Council Approves Plan for Historic District

The Palo Alto City Council moved forward with plans to develop a uniform review process to deal with resident requests to demolish and rebuild homes in the Professorville National Historic District.

A result mostly of the lethargic, three-year process one applicant is going through to demolish a house at 405 Lincoln Ave., Monday night's decision directed city staff to work with the Historic Resource Board and Professorville residents to craft a new policy to make the permit process easier to follow and clearer for residents.

"This is clearly a step forward," Councilman Larry Klein said, referring to the adopted staff recommendations.

Near downtown Palo Alto, the district is bounded by Kingsley and Addison avenues and Ramona and Waverley streets. Scores of Stanford University professors settled in the area over the decades, leading to the district's name and eventual acceptance into the national historic registry. 

Regulated primarily by the Historic Resource Board, the process to demolish and rebuild has never been uniform and often turns highly subjective. The problem has put the council and board at odds, with board members yearning for stricter controls for the district and council members thinking more about individual property rights. The council first directed staff to explore the policy overhaul while reviewing the environmental impact report (EIR) for the 405 Lincoln Ave. property last October.

At that meeting, various council members voiced frustration about the drawn-out application, which stemmed from three factors, according to Monday's staff report: An EIR was required. The city had not developed a criteria to determine the compatibility of a new structure with the existing feel and look of the district. And there was a lack of process for the Historic Resource Board to screen building plans early to determine if the new house is consistent with the district.

Although she voted for the overhaul Monday, Councilwoman Karen Holman voiced some concern that loosening architectural oversight could threaten the district itself. She attempted to add some specific amendments to the motion Monday, but the council shot them down.

"A district is only as strong as the sum of its parts," she said during the meeting.

Some residents of Professorville voiced similar concerns to the council. They generally supported the plan but disagreed with the staff's overall assessment.

Scotty Smithwick said the city runs the gamble of destroying the district by loosening the demolition and replacement process too much.

"I don't believe staff adequately addressed these items," he told the council.

Besides allocating $15,000 to hire a consultant during the upcoming process, Monday's decision did several other things. It directed staff to develop a written process for review of any future proposed demolitions in Professorville, an early review process of the design by the Historic Resources Board and the public, and also preparation of compatibility criteria for new construction in Professorville. The council also recommended staff to update the city's website.