Editor,
Thanks, Indy, for shining a light on concerns of homeowners impacted by the current and proposed Laguna Beach historic preservation ordinances. Owners of homes designated as “E,” “K,” and “C” by the 1981 inventory oppose restrictions imposed by the ordinance. Described by Ms. Jurca (Letters, April 28.) as providing “flexibility to owners of C-rated properties who want or need to perform upgrades or alterations and meeting the requirements of CEQA,” restrictions imposed are much more severe than those imposed by design review. Laguna’s General Plan mandates “voluntary” and “incentive based” preservation. No one asked these homeowner’s permission to include their homes as resources.
In 1981, an inventory was created to identify pre-1940 structures. On Jan. 1, 1993, the California Legislature included “historic resources” within CEQA, stating that a “substantial adverse change to the significance of an historic resource” may have a significant effect on the environment. The legislature set three qualifying factors: 1) properties listed on the National or State Registers of Historic Places are required to be treated as historic; 2) properties listed on a valid local register are presumed to be historic unless the homeowner proves otherwise; and 3) unlisted properties may be discretionarily determined by the government to be historic.
To qualify as an historic resource, a property must also satisfy one of four criteria: 1) Location of an historic event; 2) The home of an historic person; 3) The exemplary work of a master architect or workmanship of an era; or, 4) The location of historical relics such as bones or ruins. For a local list of items to create the presumption of historicity, it must be updated every five years. Laguna’s inventory was five years out of date when CEQA was amended. (PRC 5024.1)
The E, K, and C designations come from the old inventory. Because the inventory was not maintained according to the law, it creates no inference of historicity. Contrary to Ms. Jurca’s claim, they are not considered “historical resources,” nor will they be until the government acts to make them historic resources.
Owners wishing to include their homes as resources may voluntarily place them on the register. E, K, and C owners electing not to participate are weary of having their properties “objectified.” These are their homes, not government resources. Until owners elect to include the homes on the register, they should be subject to no greater restrictions than any other homeowner in Laguna.
Larry Nokes, Laguna Beach
The author established Let Laguna Live, which opposes including homes on the city’s historic inventory without the property owner’s consent.
