Item 5 - Staff Report with Attachments 1 through 5.16401 Englewood Avenue
PREPARED BY: Ryan Safty
Associate Planner
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6874
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE
REPORT
MEETING DATE: 3/26/2024
ITEM NO: 5
DATE: March 21 , 2025
TO: Historic Preservation Committee
FROM: Joel Paulson, Community Development Director
SUBJECT: Consider a Request to Remove a Pre-1941 Property from the Historic
Resources Inventory for Property Zoned R-1:20. Located at 16401 Englewood
Avenue. APN 532-05-010. Exempt Pursuant to CEQA Section 15061(b)(3).
Request for Review PHST-25-002. Property Owner/Applicant: Christine
Garwood. Project Planner: Ryan Safty.
RECOMMENDATION:
Consider a request to remove a pre-1941 property from the Historic Resources Inventory for
property zoned R-1:20 located at 16401 Englewood Avenue.
PROPERTY DETAILS:
1. Date primary structure was built: 1939 per County Assessor
2. Town of Los Gatos Historic Status Code: N/A
3. Does property have an LHP Overlay? No
4. Is structure in a historic district? No
5. If yes, is it a contributor? N/A
6. Findings required? Yes
7. Considerations required? No
DISCUSSION:
The applicant is requesting approval to remove the pre-1941 residence from the Historic
Resources Inventory. The Santa Clara County Assessor’s Database lists a construction date of
1939. The property is not included in the 1990 Anne Bloomfield Survey or Sanborn Fire
Insurance Maps. The Town does not have records for the subject property as it was annexed
into the Town in 2019.
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SUBJECT: 16401 Englewood Avenue/PHST-25-002
DATE: March 21, 2025
The applicant has provided a letter justifying the requested removal (Attachment 1), historic
aerial imagery of the property (Attachment 2), Santa Clara County Residential Unit Property
Record (Attachment 3), project plans from 2012 showing a remodel and new second-story
addition (Attachment 4), and pictures of the current residence (Attachment 5). Based on the
research provided, the applicant believes that the required findings for removal from the
Historic Resources Inventory can be made for this property as the residence is not in its original
condition and there is nothing noted about the property that is significant to the Town’s
history.
The aerial images in Attachment 2 show that the subject property was undeveloped in August
of 1939, and it appears that a structure is shown on the subject property in May of 1948.
The Santa Clara County Residential Unit Property Record in Attachment 3 is from 1974, which
was the oldest record available. As noted in the Applicant’s letter (Attachment 1), the 1974
record was conducted after a 1973 remodel which included an enlarged garage and addition of
two bedrooms and a bathroom. An image of the front of the house from 1974 is included in this
report.
The property was sold to the current owners in 2011. In 2012, the owners obtained permits for
a full remodel, second-story addition, and new covered porch with the County (Attachment 4).
The approved elevations, as well as the current property pictures in Attachment 5, show a
substantially different house than what existed in the 1974 Santa Clara County Residential Unit
Property Record.
CONCLUSION:
Should the Committee find that the structure no longer has historic significance or architectural
merit due to the loss of integrity, a recommendation of approval of the request to remove the
property from the Historic Resources Inventory would be forwarded to the Community
Development Director. Once approved by the Director, any proposed alterations would not
return to the Committee.
FINDINGS:
A. Findings - related to a request for a determination that a pre-1941 primary structure has no
historic significance or architectural merit.
_____ In evaluating a request for a determination of historic significance or architectural merit,
the Historic Preservation Committee shall consider the following:
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SUBJECT: 16401 Englewood Avenue/PHST-25-002
DATE: March 21, 2025
1. The structure is not associated with events that have made a significant contribution
to the Town;
2. No Significant persons are associated with the site;
3. There are no distinctive characteristics of type, period or method of construction or
representation of work of a master;
4. The structure does not yield information to Town history; or
5. The integrity has been compromised such that the structure no longer has the
potential to convey significance.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Request for Review Letter
2. Historic Aerials
3. Santa Clara County Residential Unit Property Record
4. 2012 Approved Plans
5. Property Pictures
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Historic Preservation Committee Request for Review Regarding the Property at:
16401 Englewood Avenue
Los Gatos CA 95032
APN 532-05-010
I request that the above property be removed from Historic Resources Inventory for the
following reasons. The structure is not associated with events that have made a significant
contribution to the Town; No Significant persons are associated with the site;
There are no distinctive characteristics of type, period or method of construction or
representation of work of a master; The structure does not yield information on the Town's
history; The integrity has been compromised such that the structure no longer has the potential
to convey significance.
In researching the history of this property I found no mention of this property in either the
Sanborn Maps, 1941 Tax Assessment, 1989 Bloomfield Historic Resource Survey, Polk’s
Directories, Telephone Directories or General History Files. A very helpful librarian, Michael
Lara, in the San Jose Public Library’s California Room did help me find the attached aerial
images of the property. The image dated 8-1-39 shows no structure on the property at that time
(orange arrow denotes property). The image dated 5-14-48 does show a structure on the
property. Therefore the structure was built sometime during that time period. It is unlikely that
the structure was built in 1939 as stated in public records.
This property was, for most of its history, unincorporated and under the jurisdiction of Santa
Clara County. It was recently annexed into the Town of Los Gatos as a result of an entire
neighborhood annexation.
The Santa Clara County Residential Unit Property Record (attached) from 1974 is the oldest
record available. It contains an image of the property in 1974 when it was accessed after a
remodel. That remodel was permitted in 1973 and SCC Planning Department does have a
record of the permit (BP 17730 - Enlarge Garage, Add 2 Bedrooms, Bath). However, no plans
or other documents associated with the permit are available.
My husband and I purchased the property in 2011. In 2012 we did a full remodel and added a
2nd story and covered porch. This was permitted through SCC (BP 49975). Please note that
the remodel did not trigger annexation at that time. As part of the 2nd story addition and
remodel we replaced all siding, windows, and roof and therefore the elevations of the structure
completely changed. Please see attached elevations from that permitted work and images of
the home.
I do not believe the structure had historic significance when we purchased it in 2011 but after the
2012 remodel the integrity would have been compromised such that the structure no longer has
the potential to convey significance. For these reasons, we ask the committee to remove this
property from Historic Resources Inventory.
ATTACHMENT 1
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08/01/1939
ATTACHMENT 2
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05/14/1948
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ATTACHMENT 3Page 135
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ATTACHMENT 5Page 139
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