Historic Site Preservation Board recommends Class 1 designation for Temple Isaiah

The Palm Springs Historic Site Preservation Board voted 4-0 on a motion to recommend that the City Council designate Temple Isaiah as a Class 1 historic site, while instructing staff to revise language in the draft resolution about the criteria and to narrow some landscape character‑defining items.

Chair Janet Hansen called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m., and after a staff presentation and public testimony the board debated how to reflect the building’s layered history in the resolution. Sarah (staff) told the board that the nomination encompasses a property that staff described as a 3.3‑acre lot first developed in the early 1950s and later remodeled in the 1980s, and recommended Class 1 designation under Criteria 1, 3 and 5. “As it stands today, we have jurisdiction over site design, we have jurisdiction over the exterior features of structures,” Sarah said, adding that interior elements can be identified in the report for the record but generally fall outside the board’s legal purview.

The board heard from the applicant team and community supporters. Stephen Keel, vice president of the Palm Springs Preservation Foundation and the report’s author, described the site’s architectural evolution and said the building visible from the street today reads as the David Christian design. “What’s there now from the street is the David Christian design,” Keel said, arguing that the 1980s remodel itself carries architectural significance. Robert Weinstein, president of Temple Isaiah, described past preservation efforts and said the congregation wants to ensure the property endures as a community resource. “We want to make sure the temple will be there for future generations,” Weinstein said.

Two supporters who spoke during the public hearing emphasized the site’s role as a community hub. Michael Frederick, vice president of Temple Isaiah, recounted the congregation’s history at the site and said the property houses programs and a school that serve a broad constituency; he said the temple’s founding membership included survivors of the Holocaust. “This building was started by around 100 concentration camp survivors,” Frederick said. Susan Missner, a longtime attendee and Modernism Week project coordinator, told the board she had personal ties to the site going back decades and supported designation for historical and neighborhood context reasons.

Board members’ deliberations focused on how to capture the property’s multiple phases of development. Some members stressed Criterion 1 — the site’s social and cultural significance to Palm Springs — while others emphasized that Criterion 3 should clearly identify the David Christian exterior as the visually dominant phase that defines what the public sees and what will fall under the board’s review. Members proposed allowing multiple periods of significance or clarifying the end date to reflect the site’s evolution rather than a single construction era.

The board also questioned elements of the draft resolution describing landscape features and exterior artwork. Members asked staff to remove broad, generic landscape language (for example, general xeriscape descriptions) and to retain architectural hardscape features that demonstrably contribute to the site’s character, such as integrated planters and retaining walls; staff agreed to research the exterior sculpture further before including it as a character‑defining feature.

During deliberations the board flagged an inconsistency in the staff presentation: the announcement of the item in public notice referenced “322 West Alejo Road” and case number HSPD173, while the staff report text later referenced “332 West Eleno Road” and case number HSBV173. The board did not resolve the discrepancy during the meeting and asked staff to confirm and correct the address and case details before materials go to City Council.

A motion to recommend Class 1 designation with the condition that staff revise the language under Criteria 1, 3 and 5 and temper certain landscape character‑defining items carried unanimously, 4‑0. The board directed that at least one member work with staff on the resolution wording prior to transmittal. The vote came from the four members present; two members were excused.

The board forwarded the recommendation to the City Council for final consideration. The Historic Site Preservation Board adjourned and announced its next regularly scheduled meeting for Tuesday, June 2, 2026, at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.