Response to Landmark Designation Appeal 1007 University Avenue

The Landmarks Preservation Commission designated 1007 University Avenue a City of Berkeley Landmark on July 20, 2009. The designation was based on nine separate findings that the subject building met all criteria for designation, both architecturally and culturally (see Notice of Decision forwarded by Dan Marks on September 22, 2009). On September 21, 2009, attorney Robert A. Belzer of Belzer, Hulchiy & Murray filed an appeal to the designation on behalf of Fox Ortega Enterprises, Inc. This is a detailed response to allegations made by Mr. Belzer and Mr. David Trachtenberg on behalf of Fox Ortega Enterprises, Inc. The appeal is based solely on the one statement, “…for its direct association with Berkeley’s internationally known architect Bernard Maybeck.” Of the nine findings made by the commission in designating 1007 University Avenue a City of Berkeley landmark, the following is the only one addressing the statement under contention:

Bernard Maybeck had a long association with the Mobilized Women of Berkeley. Maybeck’s wife Annie was a early member of this organization and in 1947 had become an honorary member. Maybeck designed the organization’s first building at 1001 University Avenue in 1938, a fact that is undisputed. (The building was damaged by fire in 1975 and demolished in 1980.) Two documents indicated clearly Maybeck’s “direct association” with the design of 1007 University Avenue.

• When the “addition” was completed in 1949, a newspaper article noted, “...Bernard Maybeck was the architect of the original building and his ideas have been carried out in the new one [emphasis added] by Contractor Ensor Buell [sic], Asst. Architect P. L. Coates [sic], and

1007 University Avenue, Mobilized Women of Berkeley attachment to letter of November 16, 2009, page 2 of 7

Landscape Architect Phillip Kearney.” 1 (See Exhibit A) Bernard Maybeck must have had some influence on the design of 1007 University Avenue. Why did the Mobilized Women refer to P. L. Coats as “asst.” if he was the architect? And who was he “asst.” to? The actual role Maybeck may have played in the design of subject building may never be known, because the 1948 and 1949 minutes of the Mobilized Women are missing from the Bancroft Library Collection. 2

• The Mobilized Women’s Board of Directors minutes of 8-20-1947: “Mrs. Gannon showed some very interesting drawings made by Mr. Maybeck of a new addition to 1001 University.” 3 (See Exhibit B)

This statement is proof that the organization was in contact with Bernard Maybeck regarding the addition to 1001 University Avenue in 1947, and that Maybeck had made drawings of an addition that were presented to the building committee. This also refutes Mr. Bezler and Mr. Trachtenberg’s claim that the “building was not constructed until 1949, some 9 years after Maybeck’s retirement.” Although Maybeck had essentially retired in 1941, the architect made occasional designs for a friend. 4 Maybeck would have consider the Mobilized Women “friends” since Annie Maybeck had been a member since its inception, Maybeck himself had served during the 1920s and 1930s on their Building Committee, and designed 1001 University in 1938. When 1007 University Avenue was dedicated, there were at least twelve board members of the Mobilized Women who were active in 1938 when the first building was built and still active in 1949 when 1007 University Avenue was dedicated. 5 These were women Maybeck would have known and worked with, i.e., “friends.”6 1 Mobilized Women of Berkeley records, 1917–1969 BANCROFT LIBRARY Collection Number: BANC MSS 70/10 c—Scrapbook, Vol. 4, 1948–1949. 2 (Mobilized Women of Berkeley records, 1917–1969, BANCROFT LIBRARY: BANC MSS 70/10 c––Carton I) The Minutes of the Board of Directors of the Mobilized Women of Berkeley that are part of the collection are not complete, and the critical set of minutes (1948–1949) that could perhaps more clearly answer the question as to what extent Maybeck was involved with the final design are missing. Also, with the exception of an unsigned “architect’s drawing” published in a newspaper, there are no other known drawings or plans for the subject building. 3 Mobilized Women of Berkeley records 1917–1969, BANCROFT LIBRARY. Collection Number: BANC MSS 70/10 c––Carton 1 Minutes. 4 Kenneth Cardwell, Bernard Maybeck, 1983, Salt Lake City, Peregrine Smith Books., P. 234. 5 Mobilized Women of Berkeley records, 1917–1969, BANCROFT LIBRARY. Collection Number: BANC MSS 70/10 c—Scrapbook 1 & 4, Berkeley Gazette articles 1939 and 1949. 6 Ibid. Carton 1. These twelve women were on the Mobilized Women of Berkeley’s Board of Directors in 1938 and 1947: Mrs. H. F. Hartzell, chair, building committee 1939; Mesdames A. L. Houle, Samuel Hughes, Nelson B. Bailey, S. Hall Bither, Frank L. Bohn, A. K. Evens, Frank J. Lyman, Mathew Morton, Jr., George M. Stratton, Chester B. Tonkin, and Frank H. Yelton.

1007 University Avenue, Mobilized Women of Berkeley attachment to letter of November 16, 2009, page 3 of 7

• Mr. Trachtenberg’s analysis of the recorder’s answer to question #7 in the landmark application completely ignores the two clear and simple answers to the question, and zeros in on a modifying phrase that the recorder admits is unclearly stated and not fully explained:

7. Builder: Ensor H. Buel; Architect: of record: P. L. Coats (Asst. Architect)

The above information is factual. What is not clear is the following phrase: “...based on the design Bernard Maybeck did for the Mobilized Women of Berkeley’s 1938 building at 1001 University, demolished in 1980, and on sketches done in 1939. Bernard Maybeck, architect of the original building, and his ideas have been carried out in the new...” What the recorder was referring to, but failed to explain clearly, is that the reference is to the concrete grid-form wall panels embedded with translucent glass blocks that Maybeck helped develop as a consultant around 1936.7 The grid-form construction method was used in both 1001 University (demolished) and 1007 University, and the suggestions of grid forms are present on the Maybeck sketches dated 1939. This unique, local building technique is an important factor in the construction and the defining design characteristic of the subject building.8

• P. L. Coats (“asst. architect”) and Ensor H. Buel, builder. At the time the recorder submitted the landmark application, she was unaware of the connection between P. L. Coats and Bernard Maybeck. After reading the application, Daniella Thompson informed the recorder that P. L. Coats was a contractor (and later an architect) who built two well-known houses designed by Maybeck. These are fully documented9:

1. Wallen Maybeck House, 2751 Buena Vista Way, permit #37132, Philip L.

Coats, contractor, 1932. 2. Charles Aikin House, 2750 Buena Vista Way, permit #50050, Philip L.

Coats, contractor, 1940. Contractor Ensor H. Buel was the builder of the Maybeck–designed 1938 building for the Mobilized Women (demolished in 1980) and the contractor of the subject building at 1007 University Avenue in 1949.

7 Olson, Carrie. Landmark Application for 3075 Telegraph Avenue, 2003. 8 See landmark application for documentation. 9 An addendum to the application was submitted to the commission on July 20, 2009 at the continued public hearing. Apparently Mr. Belzer and Mr. Trachtenberg did not research the public record to avail themselves of this information. See Exhibit A.

1007 University Avenue, Mobilized Women of Berkeley attachment to letter of November 16, 2009, page 4 of 7 Maybeck knew both Coats and Buel professionally before the construction of 1007 University Avenue. Philip L. Coats and Ensor H. Buel worked together as architect and contractor in 1946 on another grid-form building, this one for the Troy Laundry at 1812 Dwight Way, so they also had a prior professional relationship.

• Mr. Trachtenberg, in his analysis of the recorder’s answer to #13 Description under the heading: HISTORY AND BACKGROUND: Who was the architect?, complains that the entire first page does not mention the subject building once (not true), but he has totally missed the point.

The heading HISTORY AND BACKGROUND is on page 7 of 14 pages under the landmark application part #13: Description. The recorder is simply asking the question that cannot be answered,10 namely: if Philip L. Coats was “asst.” architect, who was the architect he was “asst.” to? The recorder then proceeds to explain the history of Berkeley’s unique and twice-patented Concrete Grid Form wall panels embedded with hollow glass blocks in a diamond-shaped grid design, as well as Maybeck’s early use of these panels for his 1937 Wallen Maybeck House in Kensington and his association as a consultant with the holder of the first patent, George A. Scott, whose house he designed in 1912. The recorder was of the opinion that information regarding the genesis of the grid form wall panels was important to the role that Maybeck played in their initial development and his early use of the panels, his use of them in the 1938 building, and their subsequent use in 1007 University Avenue. The grid-form panels were locally developed and used primarily for utilitarian buildings such as warehouses, manufacturing plants, service buildings such as garages, and a few garden walls without glass. Maybeck was the only architect to use the poured-in-place grid-form wall panels in non-industrial buildings. In conclusion, BAHA concurs with the decision of the Landmarks Preservation Commission and urges the council to uphold their decision. The Mobilized Women of Berkeley building at 1007 University Avenue is significant for its Architectural Merit because of its unique design and construction technique, and for its direct association with Berkeley’s internationally known architect, Bernard Maybeck.

10 See footnote #2 regarding the missing minutes from 1948–1949.

1007 University Avenue, Mobilized Women of Berkeley attachment to letter of November 16, 2009, page 5 of 7 Exhibit A

Based on the statement in the Berkeley Gazette article illustrated abovei, the recorder answered question #7 of the landmark application for 1007 University Avenue:

7. Builder: Ensor H. Buel Architect: of record: P.L. Coats (Asst. Architect) based on the design Bernard Maybeck did for the Mobilized Women of Berkeley’s 1938 building at 1001 University, demolished in 1980 and on sketches done in 1939. “Bernard Maybeck, architect of the original building, and his ideas have been carried out in the new...”1 The text of the newspaper article could be interpreted as being even more explicit about Maybeck’s contribution to 1007 University Avenue: “Bernard Maybeck was the architect of the original building and his ideas have been carried out in the new one by Contractor Ensor Buell [sic], Asst. Architect P. L. Coates [sic]…” Maybeck’s use of poured-in-place concrete grid-form wall panels embedded with translucent glass blocks, which he employed in his 1938 Mobilized Women’s building, is significant and indicative to the use of the same construction system employed at 1007 University Avenue. In the landmark

1007 University Avenue, Mobilized Women of Berkeley attachment to letter of November 16, 2009, page 6 of 7 application, the recorder documented the history of this wall-panel system, its two patents, and Maybeck’s early use of, and contribution to the development of, this unique local building technique.ii Exhibit B “Mrs. Gannon showed some very interesting drawings made by Mr. Maybeck of a new addition to 1001 University.” The image below is a photocopy of the page in which the above statement is made (see first line of the second paragraph).

Mobilized Women of Berkeley records, 1917–1969 BANCROFT LIBRARY Collection Number: BANC MSS 70/10 c Carton 1 (scanned photocopy) Unfortunately, the minutes of 1948 and 1949 are missing from the Collection, so it may never be known what transpired between 1947 and 1950, at which time the building had been completed. i BancMss 70/10c Vol. 4 Mobilized Women of Berkeley. 1948–1949 Scrapbook. On the page where this article is pasted, the person who assembled the scrapbook wrote, “Berkeley Gazette 11-25-‘49.”

1007 University Avenue, Mobilized Women of Berkeley attachment to letter of November 16, 2009, page 7 of 7 ii Bernard Maybeck may have been the first architect to use reinforced concrete grid-form wall panels embedded with hollow translucent glass blocks. In his 1937 house for his son, Wallen Maybeck, on Highland Road in Kensington, Maybeck used them for a kitchen wall. (Smith, Thomas Gordon. “Bernard Maybeck’s Wallen II House”; Fine Home Building Magazine, April 1981.)

Rodney F. Phillips (1880-1962), an Oakland inventor,ii applied for a patent for “Concrete Wall Form” on December 7, 1936.ii At some point, Phillips assigned 1/2 interest to George A. Scott of Berkeley.ii When the patent was issued on July 11, 1939, the patent belonged to both men.

In 1938, Scott built a “Concrete Wall Form” demonstration building at 3075 Telegraph Avenue, designed by Walter Steilberg. (Olson, Carrie. Landmark Application for 3075 Telegraph Avenue, 2003. The landmark designation was overturned by the City Council, and the building was demolished in 2005.)

Notes taken during a 1977 phone interview with George A. Scott’s son-in-law, J. Allen Bray. Bray is to have said, “Barney” Maybeck and Walter Steilberg were consulting architects. (BAHA Archives: Master Plan Area 13; Block #1575)