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Commission approves demolition of deteriorated warehouse‑era building after engineering reports
Summary
The commission approved demolition of a deteriorated masonry building that staff and a structural engineer described as beyond feasible rehabilitation and potentially hazardous; the owner owns multiple properties on the block and said redevelopment is planned.
The Downtown Design Commission voted Sept. 18 to approve the demolition of a masonry building identified in staff reports as an historic resource but judged to be structurally compromised and a potential public safety hazard.
Planning department staff briefed commissioners that the building, originally a beer warehouse noted on mid‑20th century Sanborn maps, appears in a 2012 resource identification as a historic architectural resource and was included in prior surveys with varying construction dates (staff referenced both 1940 and 1949 dates in packet materials). Recent engineering documentation supplied with the owner—s application concludes the exterior load‑bearing masonry walls and foundation are not sound, with walls cracked and out of plumb in multiple areas.
John Joyce, the structural engineer who authored an updated report, told the commission the building is a load‑bearing masonry structure in poor condition and that rehabilitation would require taking down and rebuilding most of the walls. "This building probably was a valuable historic and architectural resource at one time. That time has passed," Joyce said. He described how decades of deferred maintenance and water intrusion — including areas where brick had been painted and mortar had deteriorated — left the structure in a condition where collapse risk increases over time.
Owner representative Savannah Vogler described the family's long ownership and stewardship of several buildings on the block and said the family had performed roof and ironwork repairs on other properties. Vogler said the affected building "holds a special place" for the family but that it has reached a point where preservation is no longer feasible given its condition.
Commissioners said Joyce's signed engineering analysis provided the professional documentation the commission needed to find the structure posed a threat to public health and safety. The commission voted to approve the demolition application on the basis that the proposed action complies with the Downtown Design District Zoning Ordinance and because staff and the engineer had documented the building's compromised structural condition.
The motion passed. The owner told the commission the property is part of a larger block‑level ownership and that eventual redevelopment plans would be coordinated with staff and appear before the commission as required.
