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Monterey moves $1.09 million from facility reserves for urgent repairs to Vasquez Adobe and Gordon House
Summary
After a staff briefing describing rotten deck boards, roof leaks, termite and foundation failures at two historic city properties, the council amended the FY25‑26 CIP and approved transfers (roughly $640,000 for the Vasquez Adobe and $453,000 for the Gordon House) from the facility reserve to fund stabilization and repairs.
Monterey’s Council unanimously approved March 17 appropriating city facility‑reserve funds to begin repairs on two historic municipal properties after public works staff warned the buildings had entered an urgent phase of deterioration.
General Services Superintendent Chris White presented photos and a condition assessment showing the Vasquez Adobe (built ca. 1834) was no longer watertight, with broken roof tiles, active leaks staff must catch with buckets when it rains, a rotted second‑story balcony that is red‑tagged, and structural cracking. The Gordon House shows foundation failure (interior floors slope; a tennis ball will roll across interior rooms), termite damage to porch posts, rotten siding and deck, failing skylight seals and widespread interior cracking.
White said immediate priorities are making the Adobe watertight, stabilizing and repairing structural members, replacing rotted deck boards, upgrading electrical and HVAC systems, and addressing ADA access. For Gordon House the scope includes foundation stabilization, partial roof repairs, deck replacement and interior restoration.
Council voted to add both projects into the FY25‑26 capital improvement program and authorized finance staff to transfer approximately $640,000 to the Vasquez Adobe repairs project and $453,000 to the Gordon House project from the facility reserve fund. Council members expressed concern about depleting reserves — staff said the facilities reserve would be left near zero and acknowledged that additional emergencies would require identifying other funding sources if they arise — but stressed the buildings were at a point where delay risked losing historic fabric and the properties’ continued public usability.
Quote: "We waited the absolute longest time that we can wait to act on this," Mayor Williamson said before the vote.
Next steps: Staff will commission a historic‑preservation assessment, finalize designs and specifications, and proceed to permitting and procurement; any leftover funds at project completion would be returned to the reserve.
