Committee Recommends Landmark Designation for Two Onondaga Buildings Housing Bernard Zakheim Murals

Supervisor John Avalos sponsored an ordinance to designate two buildings at 35 and 45 Onondaga Avenue—the former Alameda Emergency Hospital and Health Center—as local landmarks under the Planning Code's Article 10. Avalos and Planning Department staff said both buildings were constructed in 1933, feature Spanish Revival architecture attributed to Charles H. Sawyer, and contain interior fresco murals by Bernard Zakheim that the community rediscovered and wants preserved and publicly accessible. The Historic Preservation Commission unanimously recommended local landmark designation.

Planning Department representative Tim Frey summarized the HPC review and said the site meets established eligibility criteria; he identified interior and exterior character-defining features that would be protected under the ordinance. Speakers from the community, including Richard Rothman (who described finding the Zakheim murals), David Hooper (president, New Mission Terrace Improvement Association), and Linda Lighthizer (representing local advocates), urged designation to keep the murals in public stewardship and to enable neighborhood restoration and programming.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin moved the item and it passed without objection; the committee will forward the positive recommendation to the Board of Supervisors for final action. Committee members praised community efforts to preserve the murals and the buildings’ historical value.