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Commission considers new landmark nominations and work‑program priorities; adds two nominations for follow‑up
Summary
Commission heard nominations for three landmark candidates — the Rube Goldberg Building (Gough Street), University Mound Old Ladies' Home, and 199 Carl Street — received public support for Gough and University Mound, and reached consensus to add the first two to the landmark work program while deferring the Carl Street item pending recusal and further staff research and prioritization on Sept. 17.
Staff presented three community nominations for the Historic Preservation Commission's landmark designation work program: the Rube Goldberg Building at 182–198 Gough Street, the University Mound Old Ladies' Home (350 University Street), and the Laing House at 199 Carl Street. Staff described the Rube Goldberg Building's architectural significance and a potential association with cartoonist Rube Goldberg, but said further research is needed to document the extent of the association. The University Mound Old Ladies' Home was described as a Georgian Revival assisted‑living facility with potential associations to James Lick and an extant historic fabric that may retain integrity; staff said additional research is required for both nominations.
Members of the public and long‑term tenants urged designation. Beverly Upton and Jackie Naylor, long‑time tenants of the Gough Street building, and architectural historian Edward Yarbrough described interior and exterior integrity and community support; Yarbrough said he had been retained to prepare a landmark designation report. Other speakers supported designation of the University Mound Old Ladies' Home and the Laing House.
Commissioners discussed prioritization and staffing: the commission has roughly one FTE allocated to the work program but staff time is shared across surveys and permit review, and several commissioners raised the need to formalize a prioritization list and to consider resources (including volunteers and supervisor support) before adding properties. The commission took consensus to add the Gough Street and University Mound nominations to the work program and asked staff to bring a recommendation and prioritization discussion to the Sept. 17 hearing; the Carl Street nomination was deferred and Commissioner Pearlman recused from that discussion because of her project connection.
