REPORT TO THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
December 18, 2023
FROM: JENNIFER CLARK, Director
Planning and Development Department
BY: LISHA CHEN, Historic Preservation Specialist
Planning and Development Department
SUBJECT
Title
Hearing to consider and make findings on the request to reframe garage doors, replace fence, add new sign, and repave parking lot of the Twining Laboratories (HP # 58), located at 2527 Fresno St.
RECOMMENDATION:
1. ADOPT a finding of Categorical Exemption pursuant to Sections 15331/Class 31 of the California Environmental Quality Act guidelines.
2. APPROVE:
a. Request to install new signage on the Northeast façade with the condition that the design and installation of the sign meet the National Park Service requirements. Besides, the façade needs to be fully documented before any installation work.
b. Request to replace the current chain link fence and repave parking lot with the condition that the new fencing and parking pavement are unobtrusive and compatible with the historic character of the setting. Besides, the site needs to be fully documented before any construction work.
c. Request to reframe the garage door and add an additional entrance with the condition that entrances are compatible in size and scale or detailing with the historical building. Besides, the additional garage needs to be fully documented before any construction work.
Or:
2. DENY: Request to install new signage, request to replace the current chain link fence and repave parking lot, or request to reframe the garage door and add an additional entrance
Body
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Twining Laboratories Building located at 2527 Fresno Street is a National Registered Historic Resource. AD23-05527 was submitted on August 25, 2023, by Moore Twining Associates, Inc. The scope of the work will include installing new signage on the Northeast façade, replacing the current chain link fence with a rod iron fence and gates, repaving the parking lot, and reframing the garage doors and adding an additional entrance.
BACKGROUND
H.P. #58
Twining Laboratories
(ca. 1930)
2527 Fresno Street
Mediterranean Revival Building
The Twining Laboratories Building is located at Fresno and P Streets in downtown Fresno. The two-story building contains over 20,325 square feet in an "L"-shaped footprint. The original two-story brick structure was rectangular in plan, with a small basement mechanical room. The first later additions sensitively extended the Beaux-Arts detailing of the building's front facade in 1935. The original symmetrical fenestration matched quoined pilasters, and the central entryway shifted off-center with that building expansion. The centered design of latter-day signage, somewhat "modern" in flavor, counteracts the asymmetrical elevation. A single-story garage and storage wing were built to the rear and side of the building from 1940 to 1943, resulting in the "L"-shaped configuration. The additions, executed between 1930 and 1945, have since been accepted as natural evolutions of the Laboratory's growth as a scientifically based business keeping pace with technological change.
With a period of significance from 1930 to 1940, the Twining Laboratories is nationally registered under Criterion B for the association with Frederick E. Twining. Dr. Twining, a prominent pioneer chemist in the San Joaquin Valley, significantly contributed to vaccine preparation and food and drug testing. The building is also significant in the community's architectural history under Criterion C as an excellent example of a small commercial Mediterranean Revival building and as an example of the work of Charles E. Butner, a regional architect who practiced in the central San Joaquin Valley.
Project Proposal
AD23-05527 was submitted on August 25, 2023, by Moore Twining Associates, Inc. The scope of the work will include:
• Installing new signage on the Northeast façade.
• Replacing the current chain link fence with a rod iron fence and gate.
• Repaving the parking lot.
• Reframing garage doors and adding an additional entrance.
Only line drawings of plan and elevations were submitted for review.
Project Analysis
The Twining Laboratories, located at 2527 Fresno St is an individually listed historic resource on the National Register of Historic Resources therefore any proposed project with a scope of work which proposes to directly or indirectly alter, remodel, demolish, grade, remove, construct, reconstruct or restore any Historic Resource is subject to review by the Commission pursuant to FMC Section 12-1617.
a. Installing new signage on the Northeast façade.
Preservation Brief 25: The Preservation of Historic Signs provides the following guidance for designing and constructing new signs:
• signs should be viewed as part of an overall graphics system for the building. They do not have to do all the "work" by themselves. The building's form, name, and outstanding features, both decorative and functional, also support the advertising function of a sign. Signs should work with the building, rather than against it.
• new signs should respect the size, scale, and design of the historic building. Often features or details of the building will suggest a motif for new signs.
• sign placement is important: new signs should not obscure significant features of the historic building. (Signs above a storefront should fit within the historic signboard, for example.)
• new signs should also respect neighboring buildings. They should not shadow or overpower adjacent structures.
• sign materials should be compatible with those of the historic building. Materials characteristic of the building's period and style, used in contemporary designs, can form effective new signs.
• new signs should be attached to the building carefully, both to prevent damage to historic fabric, and to ensure the safety of pedestrians. Fittings should penetrate mortar joints rather than brick, for example, and sign loads should be properly calculated and distributed.
To sum up, the National Park Service therefore encourages businesses to fit their sign programs to the building. Appropriately installing the new signage with compatible design at an appropriate location will meet the National Park Service requirements, will have minimal impact to the historic integrity of the property.
b. Replacing the current chain link fence and repaving the parking lot.
The building site, including its associated features such as the fence and the parking lot, contributes to the overall character of the historic property. As a result, the relationship between the building and the landscape features within the site's boundaries should be considered in the overall planning for rehabilitation project work.
The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation & Guidelines recommends the following actions for historic building site:
• Installing protective fencing, bollards, and stanchions on a build in site, when necessary for security, which are as unobtrusive as possible.
• Designing new features (such as parking areas, access ramps, or lighting), when required by a new use, so that they are as unobtrusive as possible, retain the historic relationships between buildings and the landscape in the setting, and are compatible with the historic character of the setting.
The fence and parking lot pavement are not character-defining features of the sites. Thus, replacing the current chain link fence and repave parking lot with the condition that the new fencing and parking pavement are unobtrusive and compatible with the historic character of the setting will have minimal impact to the historic integrity of the property.
c. Reframing garage doors and adding a new entrance.
The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation & Guidelines recommends the following actions for making alterations and additions to entrances and porches:
• Enclosing historic porches on secondary elevations only, when required by a new use, in a manner that preserves the historic character of the building (e.g., using large sheets of glass and recessing the enclosure wall behind existing posts and balustrades).
• Designing and constructing additional entrances or porches on secondary elevations when required for the new use in a manner that preserves the historic character of the building (i.e., ensuring that the new entrance or porch is clearly subordinate to historic primary entrances or porches).
The period of significance identified for the Twining Laboratories is from 1930 to 1940. Besides, the storage addition was built to the rear and side of the main building from 1940 to 1943. Thus, the proposed work of reframing the garage doors would not significantly impact the historic integrity of the property if the entrances were compatible in size and scale or detailing with the historical building.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
If the Commission finds that the proposed plans for the building appear to be consistent with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards, then the project can utilize a Categorical Exemption Class 31 which includes:
“Class 31 consists of projects limited to maintenance, repair, stabilization, rehabilitation, restoration, preservation, conservation or reconstruction of historical resources in a manner consistent with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties….” (CEQA Guidelines, CELSOC 2006).
Section 15331 is applicable because the proposed project is consistent with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standard for the Treatment of Historic Properties. The proposed project is not expected to have a significant effect on the environment and therefore is categorically exempt and should be adopted. Further, none of the exceptions in CEQA Guidelines 15300.2 apply to this project.
FRESNO MUNICIPAL CODE FINDINGS
Based upon analysis of the application, the required findings by the Historic Preservation Commission to approve the request can be found in FMC Section 12-1617 (h) are as follows:
FINDING 1 can be made as the description of work is consistent with the purposes of this article or the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and is not detrimental to the special historical, architectural, or aesthetic interest or value of the Historic Resource.
FINDING 2 cannot be made because the proposed work is necessary to correct an unsafe or dangerous condition on the property.
FINDING 3 cannot be made because there is no evidence that the denial of the application will result in unreasonable economic hardship for the owner.
FINDING 4 is not applicable as the site is not required for public use.
FINDING 5 is not applicable because this is not an application for relocation of a Historic Resource.
CONCLUSION
The appropriateness of the proposed project has been examined with respect to its consistency in the Fresno Municipal Code (FMC) Section 12-1617. The proposed project has been described and analyzed above and by the accompanying environmental assessment. However, only line drawings of plan and elevations were submitted for review. Staff recommends that the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) one of the following actions base on applicant’s presentation:
1. ADOPT a finding of Categorical Exemption pursuant to Sections 15331/Class 31 of the California Environmental Quality Act guidelines.
2. APPROVE:
a. Request to install new signage on the Northeast façade with the condition that the design and installation of the sign meet the National Park Service requirements. Besides, the façade needs to be fully documented before any installation work.
b. Request to replace the current chain link fence and repave parking lot on the condition that the new fencing and parking pavement are unobtrusive and compatible with the historic character of the setting. Besides, the site needs to be fully documented before any construction work.
c. Request to reframe the garage door and add an additional entrance with the condition that entrances are compatible in size and scale or detailing with the historical building. Besides, the additional garage needs to be fully documented before any construction work.
Or:
2. DENY: Request to install new signage, request to replace the current chain link fence and repave parking lot, or request to reframe the garage door and add an additional entrance
ATTACHMENTS:
Exhibit A - National Register of Historic Place Registration Form
Exhibit B - Elevations & Site Plans
Exhibit C - DPR Inventory Form (HP# 058)