The Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association (BAHA) has once again honored those who have invested time, money and effort into renovating homes or buildings with historical preservation in mind.
This year’s Preservation Awards highlight thirteen Berkeley properties — eleven homes, one commercial building and one institutional project — all of which, in the words of BAHA President Daniella Thompson, “preserve the historic fabric” of Berkeley.
Residential projects which won awards include the Howard P. and Mae F. Landon House at 2743 Woolsey Street (pictured above, before and after renovation), a shingled Craftsman which was built for the secretary of the San Francisco Stock Exchange in 1909.
The young couple who fell in love and bought the homes five years ago faced a daunting task in rehabilitating it and the house was stripped to its bones before being painstakingly restored. “What we now see from the street is essentially all new, yet so well-done and so faithful to the essential form and detail that Howard Landon, were he to pass by, would have no trouble recognizing his century-old home,” states BAHA’s write-up on the home.
The owner of the Gustav E. and Anna M. Hurtig House at 1536 Edith Street, which also won an award, has been working on the home for 28 years, “transforming a small house with many drawbacks into a brilliant gem”.
The Bernard Maybeck designed home at 2577 Buena Vista Way was also honored, as was the 1880 Italianate Victorian at 1425 Milvia Street.
The downtown YMCA building at 2001 Allston Way won the Institutional category for its seismic upgrade and exterior rehabilitation and the renovation of the B. Schapiro store building on the corner of Euclid and Hearst took the prize for Commercial building. “Not only has the building been brought back from the brink, but the entire streetscape of this key commercial district has been enhanced, gaining charm and new life,” writes BAHA.
Thompson says there were around 20 nominations for the 2010 Awards — all of which had to have been completed in the past year — and the six-strong Preservation Awards committee visited them all before making their final choices.
The winners were presented with their awards on May 27 at BAHA’s annual membership meeting. Visit BAHA’s website to see details of the winners.
[Photos of the Landon house by Daniella Thompson.]
