QUARTERLY MEETING

August 18, 2009 | Marin Art and Garden Center, Ross

Mark your calendar for the next meeting: Tuesday, November 17. Location to be announced.

1. Theme Park Challenge

   Chris Pattillo reported that the Theme Park Challenge is under way. The National Trust has offered to cosponsor the challenge and is donating $1000 for prize money. The challenge will be promoted by ASLA and will appear in Landscape Architecture Magazine and in Land Online. Thomas Brown and Betsy Flack raised important questions about qualifying parks, wondering if parks need to be extant and if parks include overnight campgrounds, commercial ventures, and the age of the parks. A question was raised about copyright once something is submitted to HALS (does the author retain rights). Consensus on these questions was that some portion of the park needs to be extant, that the range of parks can be quite broad (the challenge says "any site designed with imagination primarily for children"), thirty years old is the cut-off, and that we don't know the answer on the retention of rights.

   Janet Gracyk raised the question of using a custom form to cull additional information that will be helpful in writing a context statement for theme parks. This question remained unresolved; it seems that the potential uses of such a form may not balance the additional work required on the applicant's parts.

   Michael Crowe pointed out that a National Historic Landmark theme study was done in 1986 (which included the Rose Bowl and the carousel and roller coaster at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk). This study may provide guidance and a framework for fashioning a context statement for theme parks. Ellen offered to review this document to determine if we can extract guidelines for our challenge.

   Cate Bainton said that the challenge is prominently located on the HALSca.org website.

   There was a discussion about ways to involve people, and suggestions were made for members to contact any groups or teachers/professors. Pattillo has contacted the ASLA Preservation Professional Network, the HALS liaisons and everyone in our HALS chapter but has had only a few responses.

2. Report on the meeting with the Office of Historic Preservation

   Pattillo reported that on June 16th, a contingent representing HALSNCC met with Milford Wayne Donaldson of the Office of Historic Preservation (OHP), and about 20 members of his staff in Sacramento. Part of HALSNCC's mission is to coordinate with the OHP. At the meeting, Pattillo reported on the group's efforts to date. Members Fredrica Drotos, Marianne Hurley, Betsy Flack and Cathy Garrett described HALS projects undertaken by the group. Meg Scantlebury of Caltrans attended to describe the documentation of Doyle Drive, and Anthony Veerkamp of the National Trust also attended the meeting. Gracyk requested that landscape architects be given full access to the California Historic Resources Information System (CHRIS), in order to have parity with other allied professionals.

   Gracyk reported that in July, Mr. Donaldson indicated that access to CHRIS is forthcoming.

   Cathy Garrett remarked that Veerkamp made several interesting observations regarding HALS, and how it differs from HABS/HAER, potentially being a more dynamic program that goes beyond mere mitigation for losses. She suggested we follow up this discussion at a future meeting.

3. Olompali

   Diane Einstein reported Carol Roland's narrative on the Burdell garden is nearly complete, awaiting some minor modifications. It was reviewed by Garrett, Hurley, Einstein, Gracyk, and Charmaine Burdell. The drawings need the appropriate title blocks with the HALS number, and then the package can be sent in to the National Park Service.

   A discussion about the submittal method followed. It seems that materials are simply sent to HALS/NPS with a transmittal - it's an informal process. Pattillo also said that when she sent a digital file of the Kaiser drawings to Paul Dolinsky at NPS, he offered to cover the costs of getting the prints made on Mylar. We agreed to accept the offer.

   Einstein said that State Parks supports a phased approach in rehabilitation of the Mary Burdell Victorian garden and grounds. Given the state budget and staffing constraints, State Parks can support beginning rehabilitation with infrastructure improvements, including repair/rehabilitation of the grotto fountain, rockery, and pond; plumbing to the reservoir; and the reconstruction of the paths. The Olompali People (TOP) will apply for Round 4 California Cultural and Historical Endowment (CCHE) funding for this Phase 1 of the project this fall. It's uncertain if the park will be on the closure list this fall, and TOP is trying to find partnership possibilities to keep Olompali State Historic Park open to the public.

4. Piedmont Way

   Michael Crowe reported that his narrative of Piedmont Way is finished. Maps are being added to the report, and the package will be ready to be sent to NPS in a couple of weeks.

5. Kaiser Roof Garden

   Pattillo showed copies of the completed set of Kaiser documentation drawings. Marlea Graham has nearly completed the narrative, and the HALS photography is done; this project has been sent to NPS.

6. HALS National

   Pattillo reported that she participated in a conference call with the National HALS group. The ASLA lobbyist said that funding for HALS at a national level looks much more promising during the Obama administration. It was reported that only half of the states have identified HALS liaisons.

7. New HALS Inventory Forms

   Pattillo shared five new inventory forms she recently completed-surprising and delighting the group. She visited the sites as part of her vacation. Chris reminded us to continue to add inventory forms to our collection. The five new inventory forms that have been sent to Paul Dolinsky are for:

   • Mendocino Woodland Demonstration Recreation Area
   • Arcata Plaza
   • Fern Dale aka Shaw House
   • Fortress Ross, aka Fort Ross State Historic Park
   • Call Ranch at Fort Ross

   At least one site already had national register designation, leading to a discussion about the relevance of documenting a designated site. It was agreed that prior designations usually ignore landscape, or treat it in a cursory way, so additional documentation is appropriate. Crowe pointed out that additional documentation could be very helpful in updating a registered property at a future date.

8. Osmundson Memorial

   Pattillo reported that the SWIG Corporation, owner of the Kaiser building, has indicated their interest in creating a memorial to landscape architect Ted Osmundson, designer, with David Abergast, of the Kaiser roof garden, and they asked Chris for input. Pattillo offered 4 suggestions; 3 different plaque ideas and also suggested the possibility of installing the aluminum bridge that was part of the original design, but was not installed. In its place there is a wood bridge, which is incompatible with the original plan. The idea of the aluminum bridge was greeted with enthusiasm. There was also a suggestion that the roof garden could be placed on the National Register as a fitting memorial, but the bridge idea was favored.

9. CED Tour of Kaiser Roof Garden

   Pattillo reported that she has offered to lead a tour of the Kaiser Roof Garden as part of the 75 year anniversary celebration for UC Berkeley's College of Environmental Design.

10. Napa Volunteer Opportunity

    Local preservationist Wendy Ward in the town of Napa is hoping for a volunteer to write a Cultural Landscapes Report on a historic 3 acre farm site parcel.

11. Bainton said that an invitation has been extended to the Southern California chapter of HALS to have a page from Southern CA on our website.

12. Flack encourages members to sign up for work parties at Western Hills in Occidental. She says that the volunteers are great horticulturalists, and she finds the work parties to be very energizing. There are several work dates set for fall that will be sent to our members. Anyone interested in volunteering for a day should contact Betsy directly. Flack also mentioned that the Cultural Landscapes Foundation Symposium in October at UCB has limited seats and she encourages members to sign up soon for what promises to be a very interesting weekend.

13. Doyle Drive

    Cathy Garrett presented the HALS documentation work that PGA is currently engaged in with Janet (Terra Cognita) and Cate. She gave some background on the scope of the project and the rest of the team that is completing HALS, HABS and HAER as part of the mitigation for the losses that will occur when Doyle Drive is replaced.

    Garrett showed the group the figure ground plan, view diagrams, built environment plans, sample vegetation plans, a sample typology sheet, sections and detail drawings.