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C'411FORN"P CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
DATE: April 18, 2018 PUBLIC HEARING
SUBJECT: AN AMENDMENT TO THE CLASS 1 HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION OF "THE
OASIS HOTEL" TO LIST THE OASIS HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED AT 211-
219 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AND THE COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT
AND CASITA BUILDINGS LOCATED AT 121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE
AS CONTRIBUTING ELEMENTS; DESIGNED BY MASTER ARCHITECT
LLOYD WRIGHT; ZONE CBD, (CASE HSPB #10 AMND).
FROM: Department of Planning Services
SUMMARY
This is a recommendation by the HSPB to amend the Class 1 historic site designation of the
Oasis Hotel (HSPB #10) to list the storefront building and the surviving casita building as
integral elements that contribute to its historic significance and to add the dining hall at the
Village Green to the Class 1 designation.
The Oasis Hotel was designed by master architect Lloyd Wright in 1923 for Palm Springs
pioneer Pearl McManus. Completed in 1925, it is recognized by many architectural historians
as one of the most important works of early modernist architecture in the state of California.
In 1952, learning of the intent of the new owners of the Oasis Hotel to demolish the northerly
portion of the hotel, Pearl McManus had the McCallum Adobe and the Wright-designed dining
hall moved to property she owned south of the hotel that is now the Village Green Park.
In 1985, the City Council granted "Class 7" (now Class 1) historic site designation to the Oasis
Hotel, however the designation focused only on the tower and the two-story building to which it
is attached. The 1985 staff report noted the commercial storefronts, and casita building — both
integral components of the Wright-designed hotel — had been "significantly altered", however
no analysis was provided to substantiate that assertion. The dining hall was also not given
consideration or evaluation at that time.
In 2016, as part of its annual work plan, the City's Historic Site Preservation Board ("HSPB")
initiated study on the Oasis Hotel to determine whether the Class 1 designation for the Oasis
Hotel should be amended to recognize the storefront, casita building, and dining hall as
"contributing" to the historic significance and public understanding of the Oasis Hotel.
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CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
DATE: April 18, 2018 PUBLIC HEARING
SUBJECT: AN AMENDMENT TO THE CLASS 1 HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION OF "THE
OASIS HOTEL" TO LIST THE OASIS HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED AT 211-
219 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AND THE COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT
AND CASITA BUILDINGS LOCATED AT 121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE
AS CONTRIBUTING ELEMENTS; DESIGNED BY MASTER ARCHITECT
LLOYD WRIGHT; ZONE CBD, (CASE HSPB #10 AMND).
FROM: Department of Planning Services
SUMMARY
• This is a recommendation by the HSPB to amend the Class 1 historic site designation of the
Oasis Hotel (HSPB #10) to list the storefront building and the surviving casita building as
integral elements that contribute to its historic significance and to add the dining hall at the
Village Green to the Class 1 designation.
The Oasis Hotel was designed by master architect Lloyd Wright in 1923 for Palm Springs
pioneer Pearl McManus. Completed in 1925, it is recognized by many architectural historians
as one of the most important works of early modernist architecture in the state of California.
In 1952, learning of the intent of the new owners of the Oasis Hotel to demolish the northerly
portion of the hotel, Pearl McManus had the McCallum Adobe and the Wright-designed dining
hall moved to property she owned south of the hotel that is now the Village Green Park.
In 1985, the City Council granted "Class 7" (now Class 1) historic site designation to the Oasis
Hotel, however the designation focused only on the tower and the two-story building to which it
is attached. The 1985 staff report noted the commercial storefronts, and casita building — both
integral components of the Wright-designed hotel — had been "significantly altered", however
no analysis was provided to substantiate that assertion. The dining hall was also not given
consideration or evaluation at that time.
In 2016, as part of its annual work plan, the City's Historic Site Preservation Board ("HSPB")
initiated study on the Oasis Hotel to determine whether the Class 1 designation for the Oasis
• Hotel should be amended to recognize the storefront, casita building, and dining hall as
"contributing" to the historic significance and public understanding of the Oasis Hotel.
rMM NO. _
City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 2 of 18
RECOMMENDATION:
1. Open the public hearing and receive public testimony.
2. Close the public hearing and adopt Resolution ; "A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY
COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING THE CLASS
1 HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION OF "THE OASIS HOTEL" TO LIST THE OASIS
HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED AT 211-219 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AND
THE COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT AND CASITA BUILDINGS LOCATED AT 121
SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AS CONTRIBUTING ELEMENTS; DESIGNED BY
MASTER ARCHITECT LLOYD WRIGHT; (CASE HSPB #10 AMND) APN 513-143-
009, 513-143-008, AND 513-153-017, ZONES: CU (CIVIC USES) & CBD (CENTRAL
BUSINESS DISTRICT)."
BACKGROUND AND SETTING:
On October 6, 2016, the HSPB included the Oasis Hotel dining hall and storefront in its top six
work plan priorities for the coming year. The Planning Services Department secured the
professional consultant Architectural Resources Group ("ARG") to analyze the Oasis Hotel
fragments to determine any possible historic significance. ARG conducted research including
review of the Lloyd Wright archives at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). Their
work is summarized in a report dated August 23, 2017 ("the ARG report"), attached.
A previous historic resources report was written by architect Andrea Urbas in November 2004
as part of the CEQA analysis for a Conditional Use Permit for renovation of the Oasis Hotel for
a restaurant'. That report addressed the hotel tower, commercial storefronts and casitas. A
detailed discussion of the Oasis Hotel in the book "A Palm Springs Weekend" by architectural
historian Alan Hess and Andrew Danish is also provided as reference for the analysis that
follows. No formal survey or historic analysis was conducted as part of the 1985 Class 1
designation of the Oasis Hotel.
In the 1923 site plan for the Oasis Hotel (shown on the following page), one can see the
original McCallum adobe in the upper right corner (north is up on this site plan). That building
was given Class 7 (now Class 1) designation in 1985. The dining hall (denoted by the grid of
white square posts) was attached to back side of the adobe and connected by covered paseos
to the hotel's tower and guest rooms to the south. The commercial storefronts, which still exist
along Palm Canyon Drive, are at the lower right side of the site plan. The circles denote trees,
including two cottonwood trees that, during the construction of the dining hall, were preserved
in place and the dining hall was built around them (as seen in early photos). A fruit tree
orchard is seen at the left (west) side of the site.
The hotel was conceived as a carefully planned group of buildings that encircled the site and
The project, Case 5.1076 CUP was approved but never developed and the entitlement expired.
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND— Oasis Hotel
Page 3 of 18
provided a sense of refuge and protection from the surrounding open desert and harsh climate.
The original plans by Lloyd Wright denote the name of the hotel as "The Hacienda"; referring to
the early Spanish colonial building typology in which the buildings were constructed with thick
adobe walls that typically surrounded a courtyard with generous covered paseos and open air
passages connecting the various buildings or spaces. The Oasis Hotel was Lloyd Wright's
modern interpretation of a colonial hacienda, with thick walls of poured concrete, and covered
paseos.
The Oasis Hotel was a combination of wood frame and reinforced poured concrete
construction. Wright created a "campus" of separate buildings connected by the covered
walkways and paseos. The dining hall, kitchen and McCallum adobe, formed the northwest
part of the campus. The commercial storefronts and reception / office were located along the
east side, fronting Palm Canyon Drive, and the hotel rooms were located along the south side
of the courtyard. Covered porches and paseos from each side of the courtyard converge at
the tower, which was the focal point of the campus.
ADOBEEAST TAHQUITZ CANYON WAY
ir
McCALLUM
DINING HALL
LU
TOWER
CAS17A BUILDING
I
STOREFRONTS
.-
OASIS HOTEL SITE PLAN C 1923(courtesy of the Palm Springs Historical Society)
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND —Oasis Hotel
Page 4 of 18
The only components of the Oasis Hotel that survive today are the tower, the storefronts, a
portion of the casita/guest rooms, the dining hall, and the McCallum Adobe.
THE CONTEMPORARY RENDERING BELOW BY JOHN ANTHONY RIVERA SHOWS THE MCCALLUM ADOBE AT THE
FAR RIGHT, THE DINING HALL IS IN THE MIDDLE ATTACHED TO THE TOWER AND THE RECEPTION OFFICE AT THE
LEFT IS WHERE THE OASIS COMMERCIAL BUILDING IS PRESENTLY LOCATED (VIEW LOOKING SOUTHEAST).
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As noted in the historic resources reports and other documentation on the Oasis Hotel, despite
its current neglected state, it stands as one of the most important buildings in Palm Springs for
the following reasons:
1. It is the only building in Palm Springs designed by master architect and landscape
architect Lloyd Wright.
2. It demonstrates Wright's design theories on the integration of structure and architectural
ornament as seen in the trusses of the dining hall roof and the geometric ornament cast
into the concrete of the hotel tower.
3. It is an excellent example of Wright's "organic Modern architecture" incorporating design
motifs inspired from indigenous Aztec and/or Mayan cultures of the region, rather than
borrowing on classical revival styles from Europe.z
4. It is one of the earliest built examples of Wright's principals of integrating nature and
architecture, in which his design responds to both the existing landscape and the
intense climatic conditions of the desert — the Oasis Hotel precedes his father's
application of organic Modern architectural principals in the Arizona desert at Taliesin
West by at least fifteen years.
5. Its unique method of construction — that of slip-form poured-in-place reinforced concrete
--was revolutionary at the time.
6. It is associated with Pearl McCallum McManus, an early pioneer, developer, and
philanthropist, whose father, John Guthrie McCallum, was the first non-native settler in
Palm Springs.
'- Although frequently labeled "Art Deco", given Wright's career-long focus on developing a uniquely American
style of architecture, his integration of local indigenous design motifs and resistance in adopting European styles,
it is unlikely Wright would have considered the Oasis "Art Deco"; rather "Organic Modern" may be a more
appropriate descriptor for the architectural style of the building.
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 5 of 18
7. The Oasis Hotel, (c. 1925) was one of three "catalyst hotels" that included Nellie
Coffman's Desert Inn (c. 1909) and Prescott Stevens' El Mirador Hotel (c. 1927) that
contributed to the transformation of Palm Springs from a refuge for those seeking relief
from respiratory ailments to its international reputation as a premier resort destination.
Related Relevant City Actions by HSPB, Planning, Fire, Building, etc...
1970 The McCallum Foundation donated the Village Green Park including the
McCallum Adobe and the fragments of the Oasis dining hall to the City.
February 6, 1985 City Council designated the Oasis Hotel tower and related structure as a
Class 7 now Class 1 historic site.
1925 to 2006 Various building permits are issued for work on the Oasis Hotel Dining
Hall and related structures.
March 1, 2006 City Council approved Case 5.1076, a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for
proposed adaptive reuse of the Oasis Hotel for a restaurant. The project
was never implemented and the entitlement expired.
August 13, 2013 HSPB approved maintenance repaint and repairs and installation of a
series of interpretative displays along the paseo between the Oasis Hotel
and the Oasis Commercial Building.
October 8, 2016 HSPB included the Oasis Dining Hall & storefronts in its annual work
plan.
February, 2018 Site inspection by members of the HSPB and City staff.
February 13, 2018 The HSPB voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council
amend the Oasis Hotel Class 1 historic site designation.
Ownership Status
1970 Village Green, on which the fragments of the Oasis Hotel dining hall are
located was donated to the City of Palm Springs by the McCallum Desert
Foundation (which managed the McManus estate after Pearl's death in 1966).
2004 The Oasis Hotel tower, commercial storefronts and guest rooms purchased by
Brandenberg Oasis Plaza LLC.
ANALYSIS:
Quoting architectural historian Alan Hess in the ARG report:
"There was no precedent for using a distinctly Modern design for a resort anywhere in
the country before the Oasis... Resorts contemporary to the Oasis, built for the
burgeoning car tourism industry, boasted exotic, historically based designs ... The
Oasis was boldly unique."
"The Oasis Hotel is one of the first defining statements about a Modern architecture in
the desert."
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 6 of 18
As noted in the ARG report, on page 23, hiring Wright to design the hotel was a bit of gamble,
since it was Wright's largest commission at the time. Embracing Wright's organic modern
designs was also risky because it would be a significant departure from the rustic ranch and
romantic Spanish Colonial Revival styles that dominated Palm Springs and most of southern
California at that time. With the passage of time, it has become clear that McManus' "risky
venture" and Wright's unique approach to building and architecture yielded one of the most
significant turning points in modern architecture in California.
The purpose of this analysis is to consider a two-part amendment to the Class 1 historic site
designation of the Oasis Hotel: re-defining the commercial storefront building and the surviving
casita building as contributing elements at 121 South Palm Canyon Drive, and adding the
dining hall at the Village Green to the Class 1 designation.
For clarity, the two parts are evaluated separately in the analysis that follows.
In 1985, the City Council granted Class 1 historic site designation to the Oasis Hotel tower
"and attached structure"3. Those structures do not require further evaluation at this time. The
February 1985 City Council staff report asserted that:
"The tower, a landmark for many years, has remained basically unaltered
although it will require some renovation. The remaining original buildings are in
good condition but have been significantly altered and, therefore are not being
recommended for historic designation..."
This 1985 staff report failed to analyze the alterations using the CEQA guidelines for
evaluating historic resources and also lacked any evaluation of the hotel components against
the definition of a historic site as defined in the City's Historic Preservation Ordinance (Palm
Springs Municipal Code Section 8.05.020). The CEQA guidelines note that a significant
adverse change to a historic resource (i.e. to define it as "significantly altered") is one that
materially impairs the physical characteristics that convey its historic significance and that
justify its inclusion in a local register of historical resources. The conclusion drawn from the
following analysis would suggest that the assertion in the 1985 staff report that the remaining
buildings have been significantly altered was incorrect.
Part 1: Evaluation of the Commercial Storefront and Casita Buildings.
Definition of an Historic Site
Section 8.05.020 of the Palm Springs Municipal Code (°PSMU) provides the definition of a
historic site. The historic resources report provides an evaluation of the subject property in
accordance with this definition which is summarized below.
(a) Historic Site.
3 The two-story attached structure is also constructed of slip-formed poured concrete integral to the tower and
contained two hotel guest rooms per floor, a stairway, a covered paseo and second floor open walkway.
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND— Oasis Hotel
Page 7 of 18
An historic site is any real property such as: a building; a structure, including but
not limited to archways, tiled areas and similar architectural elements; an
archaeological excavation or object that is unique or significant because of its
location, design, setting, materials, workmanship or aesthetic effect.
The Commercial Storefront Building:
Below are photos showing the commercial storefront building in its original condition (left) and
its present condition (right).
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This building was an integral part of Wright's design for the Oasis Hotel. Contrary to the
statement in the 1985 staff report, the commercial storefront building does convey historic
significance and has not been significantly altered because:
1. It retains its association with master architect Lloyd Wright and with local pioneer Pearl
McCallum McManus.
2. It retains visual evidence of the same slip-form method of construction used on the
tower.
3. It continues to be used for commercial/retail functions for which it was originally
designed.
4. It retains a high degree of integrity. Both the addition on the back side of the building
and the alteration of the storefront display windows are removable and reversible; and
the structure could be restored based on archival photos and drawings to further
strengthen the historic integrity of the site.
For these reasons the current evaluation concludes that the storefront building has not been
significantly altered and in fact, retains sufficient integrity to convey historic significance as a
contributing historic element on the site.
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND —Oasis Hotel
Page 8 of 18
The Casita Building:
This building lies to the southwest of the Oasis Hotel tower and directly west of the commercial
storefront building. It is two stories in height, originally contained six hotel rooms and was
constructed of the same "slip-form" concrete method Wright employed in other parts of the
Oasis Hotel. It is the only surviving set of free-standing hotel rooms from the Oasis Hotel.
BELOW LEFT, CASITA BUILDING IS DENOTED IN THE GREEN CIRCLE, STOREFRONTS AT THE BOTTOM.
BELOW RIGHT VIEW OF CASITA BUILDING LOOKING FROM THE PARKING LOT WEST OF THE BUILDING
(THE TOWER CAN BE SEEN IN THE BACKGROUND).
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Contrary to the statement in the 1985 staff report, the casita building has not been significantly
altered and does convey historic significance because:
1. It retains its association with master architect Lloyd Wright and with local pioneer Pearl
McCallum McManus.
2. It retains visual evidence of its slip-form method of construction and its physical
association with the other surviving buildings on the Oasis Hotel site that also employed
this innovative construction technology.
3. Although poorly maintained, it has not been modified by additions or alterations.
4. It retains a high degree of integrity.
For these reasons the current evaluation asserts that the casita building has not been
significantly altered and in fact, it too retains sufficient integrity to convey historic significance
as a "contributing historic element' on the site.
The commercial storefronts and casita buildings are further evaluated against the seven
criteria found in PSMC 8.05.020 that establish the definition of a historic site or district as
follows:
Criterion 1. That is associated with events that have made a meaningful
contribution to the nation, state or community, or
Although it attracted many celebrities and socialites, no known events are associated with the
Oasis Hotel. Therefore it does not meet this criterion.
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 9 of 18
Criterion 2. That is associated with lives of persons who made meaningful
contribution to national, state or local history; or
The storefronts and casita buildings were designed and constructed as an integral part of the
Oasis Hotel. As noted on page 45 of the ARG report, the Oasis Hotel is significant for its
association with Pearl McCallum McManus. McManus' vision of a modern luxury hotel that
would be a tribute to her father's legacy was the impetus for its development. Pearls' long
association with Palm Springs is well documented as is her vision of the town growing to
become an important world-renowned resort destination. The Oasis Hotel storefront and
casita buildings both meet the definition of a historic site as defined in Criterion 2.
Criterion 3. That reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the national, state
or local history;
As described in the historic resources report, the commercial storefront and casita buildings
both exemplify the early Modern period in architectural history and thus meet the definition of a
historic site as defined in Criterion 3.
Criterion 4. That embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or
method of construction;
As noted above, these two structures are an integral part of the Oasis Hotel design by Lloyd
Wright and were both constructed at the same time, using the same reinforced poured
concrete "slip-form" method as the Oasis Hotel tower. The horizontal 'joints" created by the
slip-form method are clearly evident in the exterior of both buildings. Contrary to the 1985
report, both buildings retain a high degree of integrity. The additions on the back of the
storefront building are removable and the changes at the display windows are reversible. The
casita building, although long vacant and poorly maintained remains unaltered and clearly
conveys its unique slip form method of construction and its association with the Oasis Hotel.
BELOW, A 1929 EXCERPT OF A TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE OASIS HOTEL,
NOTE UNDER "TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION":
"Reinforced concrete, dry tamped in slip forms invented by the Architect for the purpose."
39oeoonber 2o, ing
OASIS Hoyt.
Palm sprinq;a, Calif.
Yeer at Completiont 1984 hdditionst M&
Type of Constructlmm: Reinforced cu,creto dry* tsuped in clip
tacks Invented tq the rrer.itect for the
Puri, ee, lAnLas roen er.,v Mlle dressed
rvd-;:)t)4, tracrior and orterior.
l "too Cesamt sU% terraces.
Interior £".ct�rislst dace to exterior i.e, coot concrete rate as
left by tarms, decorative $olnt lines inside
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 10 of 18
Criterion 5. That presents the work of a master builder, designer, artist, or architect
whose individual genius influenced his age; or that possesses high artistic value;
The commercial storefronts and casita building were designed by Lloyd Wright as an integral
part of the Oasis Hotel at the same time as the tower. They employ the same slip-form
construction technology. They demonstrate Wright's interest in minimal ornamentation and in
a clear expression of the building's structure and material. Thus the storefront building and the
casita building meet the definition of a historic site as outlined in Criterion 5 and the Oasis
Hotel historic site designation could be amended to include both buildings as "contributing
elements" to the historic significance of the site.
Criterion 6. That represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components
may lack individual distinction;
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 7. That has yielded or may be likely to yield information important to national,
state or local history or prehistory.
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Part 2: Evaluation of the Dining Hall Fragments.
Pursuant to Municipal Code 8.05.195, the board may only consider the exterior of buildings
when evaluating historic significance, and may not consider the interiors except in the case of
public buildings. Since the dining hall fragments are owned by the City of Palm Springs and
are thus "public buildings", both the exterior and the interior of the dining hall have been
included in this analysis. The ARG report asserts that the dining hall fragments of the Oasis
Hotel, meet the definition of a historic site because
• Its unique design reflects the work of master architect Lloyd Wright.
• It is a unique, surviving example of early 20th century Modern architectural design.
• It reflects Wright's aesthetic principles of integrating ornament and design motifs found
in regional indigenous cultures.
• It exemplifies a tenet of Modern architecture in which the building's structure becomes
expressed as ornament.
• On page 49 the ARG report assesses the historic integrity of the dining hall. The report
notes that although location and setting has been compromised by its dismantlement
and relocation, it still retains integrity of design, materials, workmanship, feeling and
association primarily on its intact interior roof trusses and related features.
The dining hall fragments are further evaluated against the seven criteria found in PSMC
8.05.020 that establish the definition of a historic site or district as follows:
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 11 of 18
Criterion 1. That is associated with events that have made a meaningful
contribution to the nation, state or community; or
Although it attracted many celebrities and socialites, no known events are associated with the
Oasis Hotel. Therefore it does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 2. That is associated with lives of persons who made meaningful
contribution to national, state or local history; or
The ARG report notes, "McManus' enduring attachment to this building (the Oasis Hotel),
reflects both her regard for Lloyd Wright's architectural design and the ruthless practicality for
which she was known..." As the report states, among the building's significant characteristics
is a handwritten "McManus" signature on the underside of a roof truss on a portion of the
dining hall. The dining hall fragments thus meet the definition of a historic site as defined by
Criterion 2.
Criterion 3. That reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the national, state
or local history;
On page 45 the ARG report notes that the dining hall was an integral part of the Oasis Hotel
complex, and that the hotel was particularly significant in the development of Palm Springs as
a resort destination in the 1920's. On page 46, the ARG report suggests that because portions
of the Oasis Hotel such as the dining hall had been dismantled, moved, and repurposed in the
1950's, the dining hall fragments no longer convey significance relative to that earlier period in
Palm Springs history.
However the HSPB concluded that those portions of the Oasis Hotel that have survived, even
in their fractured condition, are critically important in conveying an understanding of the
broader period of innovative, creative architectural experimentation with new technologies from
the 1920's. It reflects the principles, tenets and theories of the Modern era in architectural
history that began in the early 1920's and reached its zenith in the 50's and 60's. The Oasis
Hotel, including the dining hall, exemplifies this "first chapter of the story" of the Modern period
in architecture in Palm Springs and in California in general. As such, the Oasis Hotel dining
hall fragments meet Criterion 3 in conveying the significance of the early period of
development of a uniquely American style of Modern architecture.
Criterion 4. That embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or
method of construction;
On page 46, the ARG report evaluates the Oasis Hotel dining hall fragments, particularly the
complex scissor truss system of the dining hall roof. The report notes "the interior's exposed
scissor truss roof system, which incorporates 30 and 60 degree angles as seen in natural
forms like snowflakes, crystals, and tree branches reflects a type of architectural thinking which
was still relatively new in the early 1920's; the early Modern tenet that structure should also
11
City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 12 of 18
serve as ornament." As such the dining hall embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
unique type and method of construction and meets the definition of a historic site as defined by
Criterion 4.
Criterion 5. That presents the work of a master builder, designer, artist, or
architect whose individual genius influenced his age; or that possesses high
artistic value;
The ARG report outlines on page 47 the significance of Lloyd Wright as a master architect
whose work influenced his age and possesses high artistic value. The exposed interior roof
system of the dining hall comprised of spaced wood slats over compound scissor trusses
created a visual effect similar to tree branches overhead. The integration of two living
cottonwood trees into the construction of the dining room further strengthened this effect.
BELOW LEFT DINING HALL c.1930 SHOWING EXISTING TREE INTEGRATED INTO THE DINING HALL,
BELOW RIGHT, CURRENT CONDITION SHOWING TRUSSES STILL INTACT
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The complex truss geometry culminates in four separate gables that converge in an intricate
"crossing" in the center of the dining hall shown below:
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 13 of 18
Wright used the wood slat motif to visually unify and integrate each component of the Oasis
Hotel, as seen in the dining hall roof(above), the screens at the tower and railings at second
floor passages and balconies as seen in the following photos.
BELOW, THE INTEGRATION OF THE WOOD SLAT MOTIF ON THE TOWER AND RAILINGS.
THE TALL WOOD SLAT SCREEN SEEN ON THE TOWER(CENTER BELOW)RESTED ON THE CAST-IN-PLACE
CONCRETE BRACKETS SHOWN BELOW RIGHT.
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IMAGES BELOW SHOWING THE SCISSOR TRUSSES AND THE WOOD SLAT MOTIF APPLIED TO THE LOGGIA
CONNECTING THE DINING ROOM TO THE TOWER.
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Wright's use of complex wood structural systems as architectural ornament can be seen in his
later works as outlined in the ARG report on page 35 in reference to his Wayfarer's Chapel
(1951), and it seems plausible that his work may have also inspired the work of architect E.
Fay Jones in his design of Thornhill Chapel (1980) in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. The report
concludes that the Oasis Hotel dining hall truss system demonstrated Wright's creative talent
as an architect and inspired later works by both Wright and other architects and thus meets the
definitinon of a historic site as defined by Criterion 5.
Criterion 6. That represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components
may lack individual distinction;
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City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 14 of 18
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 7. That has yielded or may be likely to yield information important to national,
state or local history or prehistory.
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
INTEGRITY
Dining Hall Fragments. Beginning on page 49, the report analyzes the dining hall components
of the Oasis Hotel relative to the seven aspects or qualities of integrity, as recognized by the
National Register of Historic Places. The seven aspects or qualities include location, design,
setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.
The report concludes that although the location and setting have been altered, the dining hall —
particularly the complex interior geometry of the roof and truss system -- retains integrity of
design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.
Commercial Storefronts and Casita Buildings. Both these buildings retain a high degree of
integrity: The location of each building remains as originally constructed. The integrity of
"setting" has been mostly lost due to encroaching surrounding development, additions on the
back of the commercial building and the demolition of much of the hotel for construction of the
Oasis Commercial Building in 1953. The integrity of the design, materials, workmanship,
feeling and association of both buildings remain intact. Thus the HSPB recommended that the
historic designation of the Oasis Hotel be amended to include these two buildings as
"contributing" because they continue to possess a high degree of historic integrity.
Integrity Discussion: Hotel Tower and attached structure. The 1985 staff report provided no
evaluation of integrity of the tower and attached structure. Staff notes that although the tower
and attached structure retain integrity of location, materials, workmanship, feeling and
association, its setting has been lost to over ninety years of encroaching commercial
development and the demotion in 1953 of the northern part of the hotel.
The tower and attached building have also lost some design integrity due to the removal of the
vertical wood slatted screens seen in the photo on page 13 of this report and in the photos on
the following page. Similarly the covered paseo attached to the tower has been boarded up
and wood screens and railings in the "attached building" have been partially removed.
Restoring these wood elements would strengthen the integrity of the tower and attached
building.
14
City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND— Oasis Hotel
Page 15 of 18
BELOW ELEVATION FROM ORIGINAL WRIGHT DRAWINGS
SHOWING SLATTED SCREENS ON THE TOWER,ATTACHED STRUCTURE AND PASEOS.
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ABOVE COMPUTER GENERATED IMAGE BY JOHN ANTHONY RIVERA ABOVE SHOWING CURRENT CONDITION OF THE TOWER
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ATTACHED STRUCTURE AND CASITA BUILDING(RIGHT).
City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 16 of 18
DEFINING HISTORIC CHARACTERISTICS
The physical character-defining historic features include the following:
Dining Hall Fragments:
• The exposed scissor truss structural system.
• The handwritten "McManus" on the underside of one of the trusses.
The general roof configuration of a "compound gable" reflecting the angles of the
scissor trusses below.
• The narrow wood slat roof sheathing.
Commercial Storefront Building:
The exposed (painted) concrete exterior walls, including the horizontal "reveals".
The narrow slot window on the north fagade.
• The general 4-part structural module expressed in the Palm Canyon fagade.
Casita Building:
The exposed (painted) concrete exterior walls, including the horizontal "reveals".
• The general 3-part structural configuration expressed in the south fagade.
Tower and Attached Structure:
Although the 1985 staff report provided no identification of the character-defining features, staff
recommends that any amendment to the historic designation of the Oasis Hotel include
identification of the entire tower and original elements of the attached structure as character-
defining features contributing to the historic significance of the Oasis Hotel.
NON-CONTRIBUTING TO THE HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE:
Dining Room Fragments:
• All exterior materials, pole ramada, storefronts, doors, shake roof shingles (not original)
• All interior finishes except the exposed scissor trusses and related roof structure. The
HSPB also noted future removal of the drywall that is covering the slatted wood roof
sheathing in the candy shop will strengthen the historic integrity of that structure.
Commercial Storefronts:
The additions on the west side of the building.
• The renovated display windows and associated cornice.
• The interiors.
• Signage.
Casita Building:
• The interiors.
Tower and attached structure:
• The interiors.
• Non-original elements (surface-mounted conduit, infill panels on the paseo and tower,
fire escape, etc.)
16
City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND—Oasis Hotel
Page 17 of 18
REQUIRED FINDINGS:
HSPB Findings. Pursuant to PSMC Section 8.05.145, following the public hearing, the HSPB
shall make findings upon which it shall base its recommendation to the City Council asserting
historic significance of the site or district. The HSPB determined that the Oasis Hotel dining
hall, the commercial storefront building, and the casita building meet the definition of a historic
site as outlined in PSMC Section 8.05.020 including Criterion 2, 3, 4 and 5 and voted
unanimously to recommend that the historic site designation be amended to include these
elements.
City Council Findings.
Pursuant to Municipal Code Section 8.05.160, in considering a recommendation by the Historic
Site Preservation Board for Class 1 historic site designation, the City Council shall find that the
purposes of the historic preservation ordinance are furthered by the designation of property as
a historic site. The purpose of the historic preservation ordinance is stated in PSMC 8.05.010:
This chapter is adopted pursuant to the authority of Government Code Section
37361 for the purpose of preserving areas and specific buildings of the city which
reflect elements of its cultural, social, economic, political, architectural and
archaeological history. This chapter is intended to stabilize and improve
buildings, structures or areas which are considered to be of historical,
architectural, archaeological or ecological value, to foster civic beauty, to
strengthen the local economy and to promote the use of specific buildings for the
education and welfare of the citizens.
The purpose of the City's historic preservation ordinance would be furthered by amending the
Oasis Hotel's Class 1 historic site designation to include the dining hall, commercial storefronts
and the casita building because these components are an integral part of Lloyd Wright's
revolutionary and innovative design for the hotel, they possess a high degree of historic
integrity, and convey a unique type, period and method of construction. The dining hall
fragments are the only surviving wood-frame structures from the Oasis Hotel. Recognizing
their historic importance is necessary to assure that future adaptive reuse of these structures is
done in a manner that does not further compromise or materially impair their historic
significance.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT
The proposed historic site designation is not subject to the California Environmental Quality
Act (CEQA) pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or
reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the
activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code
of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no potential for resulting in physical
changes to the environment, directly or indirectly.
17
City Council Staff Report: April 18, 2018
HSPB-10 AMND-Oasis Hotel
Page 18 of 18
NOTIFICATION
Pursuant to section 8.05.140 of the Municipal Code of Palm Springs, All property owners within
five hundred (500) feet of the subject property have been notified and notice was made in a
newspaper of general circulation.
CONCLUSION:
The HSPB concluded that the dining hall, commercial storefront building and casita building of
the Oasis Hotel meet the definition of a historic site as outlined in the City's Historic
Preservation Ordinance and contribute to the hotel's historic significance. The Class 1 historic
site designation of the Oasis Hotel is recommended to be amended to include these
components. They contribute significantly not only to one's awareness of the total integration
of Wright's design aesthetic in the various parts of the hotel, but also in understanding the
importance of the Oasis Hotel in the evolution of Modern architecture in California and the
pivotal role that innovative architecture played in the early development of Palm Springs.
Recognizing their historic importance is necessary to assure that future adaptive reuse of
these structures is done in a manner that does not further compromise or materially impair
their historic significance.
linn Fagg, AICP i M r us L. Fu , MP , P.E., P.L.S.
Director of Planning Services Assistant City Manager/City Engineer
David H. Ready,
City Manager
Attachments:
1. Vicinity Map.
2. Draft City Council Resolution.
3. HSPB Resolution HSPB #10 AMND and minute excerpt from the HSPB meeting of February 13,
2018.
4. Historic Resources Report dated August 23, 2017 by Architectural Resources Group (ARG).
5. Excerpts from the Historic Resources Report dated 2004 by Andrea Urbas, excerpts from the
book, "A Palm Springs Weekend, the Architecture and Design of a Mid-Century Oasis", Hess &
Danish, 2001, published by Chronicle Books, Articles on the Oasis Hotel from the Palm Springs
Historical Society, Nicholette Wenzell, 2014, E mail correspondence from Eric Lloyd Wright
dated April 11, 2005.
6. City Council Resolution 15424 and related material from the 1985 historic site designation of the
Oasis Hotel.
18
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CITY OF PALM SPRINGS
HSPB 10 OASIS HOTEL
Attachment 2:
Draft City Council Resolution
20
RESOLUTION NO.
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING THE CLASS 1
HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION OF "THE OASIS HOTEL"
TO LIST THE OASIS HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED AT
211-219 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AND THE
COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT AND CASITA BUILDINGS
LOCATED AT 121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AS
CONTRIBUTING ELEMENTS; DESIGNED BY MASTER
ARCHITECT LLOYD WRIGHT; (CASE HSPB #10 AMND)
APN 513-143-009, 513-143-008, AND 513-153-017,
ZONES: CU (CIVIC USES) & CBD (CENTRAL BUSINESS
DISTRICT).
THE CITY COUNCIL FINDS AND DETERMINES AS FOLLOWS:
A. Chapter 8.05 of the Palm Springs Municipal Code allows for the designation of
historic sites and districts.
B. On February 6, 1985, the City Council granted Class 7 (now Class 1) historic site
status to the Oasis Hotel. The staff report identified the hotel tower and attached
structure as "basically unaltered", the commercial storefront and casita building
as "significantly altered" and mentioned the hotel's dining hall had been moved to
the Village Green Park, but no analysis of the historic significance of those
portions was provided. The staff report also provided no analysis of the various
components against the definition of a historic site, nor was there any analysis
provided pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as to
whether the noted alterations materially impaired the historic significance of the
various components of the site to the extent that they no longer conveyed or
contributed to the site's historic significance.
C. On October 6, 2016, the City's Historic Site Preservation Board ("HSPB")
identified a possible amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the
Oasis Hotel as part of its annual work plan to study the hotel's dining hall,
commercial storefront building and casita building to determine their relative
importance in contributing to the historic significance of the hotel.
D. The consulting firm Architectural Resources Group ("ARG") was retained by the
City to study the Oasis Hotel and prepare a report to determine any possible
historic significance of the components. ARG's analysis was summarized in a
report provided to the City dated August 23, 2017.
E. In February, 2018 copies of the ARG report were provided to members of the
HSPB and members of the HSPB and City staff conducted site tours of the
various components of the Oasis Hotel.
21
Case HSPW.10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 2 of 12
F. A notice of a public hearing of the HSPB was published in accordance with
applicable law.
G. On February 13, 2018, the HSPB held a public hearing in accordance with
applicable law to consider a possible amendment to the Class 1 historic site
designation of the Oasis Hotel. At said hearing the HSPB carefully considered all
the evidence associated with the hearing, including but not limited to the historic
resource report, the staff report, and all other written and oral testimony and
voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council amend the Class 1
historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel to list the dining hall, commercial
storefront and casita building as contributing elements to the historic significance
of the site.
H. FINDINGS: HSPB. Pursuant to Municipal Code Section 8.05.145, the HSPB
shall make findings upon which it shall base its recommendation to the City
Council.
Findings in support of amending the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis
Hotel to list the commercial storefront buildinq and casita building as contributing
to the historic siqnificance of the site:
The Board found that contrary to the assertion in the 1985 staff report that the
commercial storefront building and casita building "had been significantly altered'
they in fact have not been significantly altered. Rather, they retain sufficient
integrity to warrant amending the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis
Hotel to list them as "contributing historic elements". The Board based this
conclusion on its evaluation of the storefront building and casita building against
the City's definition of a historic site pursuant to Municipal Code Section 8.05.020
("Definitions") as follows:
A historic site is any real property such as: a building; a structure,
including but not limited to archways, tiled areas and similar
architectural elements; an archaeological excavation or object that
is unique or significant because of its location, design, setting,
materials, workmanship or aesthetic effect
The storefront building and casita building of the Oasis Hotel are unique and
significant because they were designed as an integral part of the Oasis Hotel, the
only known commission in Palm Springs by master architect Lloyd Wright. As an
integral part of the hotel, they retain their association with Pearl McCallum
McManus a person of local significance. Wright designed the hotel as a modern
interpretation of a Spanish Hacienda, with thick concrete walls and covered
paseos and passageways that protected the occupants from the intense desert
climate. It retains visual evidence that it was built using a unique method of
construction: that of "slip-form" poured-in-place concrete. It embodies Wrights'
2�
Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 3 of 12
philosophy that the architectural ornament should be integral with the structure of
the building and the building's ornament and detail reflected Wright's belief that a
"uniquely American" form of architecture should be based upon design motifs of
the indigenous cultures of the American Southwest, rather than "borrowed" styles
from Europe. The overall aesthetic effect was uniquely bold and reflected one of
the earliest examples in California of a distinctly modern American architectural
style.
The Board further found that the storefront building and casita building both
retain a high degree of historic integrity: The storefront building continues to be
used for commercial / retail functions for which it was originally designed, the
addition on the back side and the alteration of the storefront display windows are
removable and reversible and the structure is restorable based on archival
photos and drawings which would further strengthen the historic integrity of the
site. Although abandoned and boarded up, casita building remains unaltered
and retains a high degree of historic integrity. It is the only surviving set of free-
standing hotel rooms from the Oasis Hotel.
The HSPB further evaluated the storefronts and casita buildings against the
seven criteria found in PSMC 8.05.020 that establish the definition of a historic
site or district as follows:
Criterion 1. That is associated with events that have made a
meaningful contribution to the nation, state or community; or
Although it attracted many celebrities and socialites, no known events are
associated with the Oasis Hotel. Therefore it does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 2. That is associated with lives of persons who made
meaningful contribution to national, state or local history; or
The storefronts and casita buildings were designed and constructed as an
integral part of the Oasis Hotel. As noted on page 45 of the ARG report, the
Oasis Hotel is significant for its association with Pearl McCallum McManus.
McManus' vision of a modern luxury hotel that would be a tribute to her father's
legacy was the impetus for its development. Pearls' long association with Palm
Springs is well documented as is her vision of the town growing to become an
important world-renowned resort destination. The Oasis Hotel storefront and
casita buildings both meet the definition of a historic site as defined in Criterion 2.
Criterion 3. That reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the
national, state or local history;
As described in the historic resources report, the commercial storefront and
casita buildings both exemplify the early Modem period in architectural history
23
Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 4 of 12
and thus meet the definition of a historic site as defined in Criterion 3.
Criterion 4. That embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
type, period or method of construction;
As noted above, these two structures are an integral part of the Oasis Hotel
design by Lloyd Wright and were both constructed at the same time, using the
same reinforced poured concrete "slip-form" method as the Oasis Hotel tower.
The horizontal "joints" created by the slip-form method are clearly evident in the
exterior of both buildings. Contrary to the 1985 report, both buildings retain a high
degree of integrity. The additions on the back of the storefront building are
removable and the changes at the display windows are reversible. The casita
building, although long vacant and poorly maintained remains unaltered and
clearly conveys its unique slip form method of construction and its association
with the Oasis Hotel.
Criterion 5. That presents the work of a master builder, designer,
artist, or architect whose individual genius influenced his age; or
that possesses high artistic value;
The commercial storefronts and casita building were designed by Lloyd Wright as
an integral part of the Oasis Hotel at the same time as the tower. They employ
the same slip-form construction technology. They demonstrate Wright's interest
in minimal ornamentation and in a clear expression of the building's structure and
material. Thus the storefront building and the casita building meet the definition
of a historic site as outlined in Criterion 5.
Criterion 6. That represents a significant and distinguishable
entity whose components may lack individual distinction;
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 7. That has yielded or may be likely to yield information
important to national, state or local history or prehistory.
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Conclusion: Based on the above, the HSPB finds and recommends that the
Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel be amended to list the
commercial storefront building and casita building as contributing to the historic
significance of the site.
24
Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 5 of 12
Findings in support of amending the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis
Hotel to list the dining hall as contributing to the historic significance of the site.
Pursuant to Municipal Code 8.05.195, the board may only consider the exterior of
buildings when evaluating historic significance, and may not consider the
interiors except in the case of public buildings. Since the dining hall fragments
are owned by the City of Palm Springs and are thus "public buildings", both the
exterior and the interior of the dining hall were analyzed by the Board. The Board
made findings in support of an amendment to the Class 1 historic site
designation of the Oasis Hotel to list the dining hall fragments as contributing to
the historic significance of the hotel. It based its findings on evaluation of the
dining hall fragments against the City's definition of a historic site pursuant to
Municipal Code Section 8.05.020 ("Definitions") as follows:
A historic site is any real property such as: a building; a structure,
including but not limited to archways, tiled areas and similar
architectural elements; an archaeological excavation or object that
is unique or significant because of its location, design, setting,
materials, workmanship or aesthetic effect
The dining hall of the Oasis Hotel is unique and significant because it was
designed as an integral part of the Oasis Hotel by master architect Lloyd Wright.
It is the only known commission in Palm Springs designed by Wright. As an
integral part of the hotel, it retains its association with Pearl McCallum McManus
a person of local significance. It embodies Wrights' philosophy that the
architectural ornament should be integral with the structure of the building. This
is evidenced in the intricate structural scissor trusses that comprise the roof
structure of the dining hall. The trusses create an abstract visual effect of tree
branches overhead; an effect that was further emphasized by Wright's design
which integrated two large cottonwood trees into the original construction of the
dining hall. The overall aesthetic effect was uniquely bold and reflected one of
the earliest examples in California of a distinctly modern American architectural
style.
The dining hall, although moved to a separate parcel by McManus in 1952,
retains a high degree of historic integrity as outlined in the ARG historic
resources report. Past alterations to the dining hall such as the drywall ceilings
are removable, which would further strengthen its historic integrity. On page 49
the ARG report assesses the historic integrity of the dining hall. The report notes
that although location and setting has been compromised by its dismantlement
and relocation, it still retains integrity of design, materials, workmanship, feeling
and association primarily on its intact interior roof trusses and related features.
The HSPB further evaluated the dining hall against the seven criteria found in
PSMC 8.05.020 that establish the definition of a historic site or district as follows:
25
Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 6 of 12
That is associated with events that have made a meaningful
contribution to the nation, state or community, or
Although it attracted many celebrities and socialites, no known events are
associated with the Oasis Hotel. Therefore it does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 1. That is associated with lives of persons who made
meaningful contribution to national, state or local history; or
The ARG report notes, "McManus' enduring attachment to this building (the
Oasis Hotel), reflects both her regard for Lloyd Wright's architectural design and
the ruthless practicality for which she was known..."As the report states, among
the building's significant characteristics is a handwritten "McManus" signature on
the underside of a roof truss on a portion of the dining hall. The dining hall
fragments thus meet the definition of a historic site as defined by Criterion 2.
Criterion 2. That reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the
national, state or local history;
On page 45 the ARG report notes that the dining hall was an integral part of the
Oasis Hotel complex, and that the hotel was particularly significant in the
development of Palm Springs as a resort destination in the 1920's. On page 46,
the ARG report suggests that because portions of the Oasis Hotel such as the
dining hall had been dismantled, moved, and repurposed in the 1950's, the
dining hall fragments no longer convey significance relative to that earlier period
in Palm Springs history.
However the HSPB found that those portions of the Oasis Hotel that have
survived, even in their fractured condition, are critically important in conveying an
understanding of the broader period of innovative, creative architectural
experimentation with new technologies from the 1920's. It reflects the principles,
tenets and theories of the Modern era in architectural history that began in the
early 1920's and reached its zenith in the 50's and 60's. The Oasis Hotel,
including the dining hall, exemplifies this "first chapter of the story' of the Modern
period in architecture in Palm Springs and in California in general. As such, the
Oasis Hotel dining hall fragments meet Criterion 3 in conveying the significance
of the early period of development of a uniquely American style of Modern
architecture.
Criterion 3. That embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
type, period or method of construction;
On page 46, the ARG report evaluates the Oasis Hotel dining hall fragments,
particularly the complex scissor truss system of the dining hall roof. The report
26
Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 7 of 12
notes "the interior's exposed scissor truss roof system, which incorporates 30
and 60 degree angles as seen in natural forms like snowflakes, crystals, and tree
branches reflects a type of architectural thinking which was still relatively new in
the early 1920's; the early Modern tenet that structure should also serve as
ornament." As such the dining hall embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
unique type and method of construction and meets the definition of a historic site
as defined by Criterion 4.
Criterion 4. That presents the work of a master builder, designer,
artist, or architect whose individual genius influenced his age; or
that possesses high artistic value;
The ARG report outlines on page 47 the significance of Lloyd Wright as a master
architect whose work influenced his age and possesses high artistic value. The
exposed interior roof system of the dining hall comprised of spaced wood slats
over compound scissor trusses created a visual effect similar to tree branches
overhead. The integration of two living cottonwood trees into the construction of
the dining room further strengthened this effect.
Wright used the wood slat motif to visually unify and integrate each component of
the Oasis Hotel, as seen in the dining hall roof (above), the screens at the tower
and railings at second floor passages and balconies as seen in the following
photos.
Wright's use of complex wood structural systems as architectural ornament can
be seen in his later works as outlined in the ARG report on page 35 in reference
to his Wayfarer's Chapel (1951), and it seems plausible that his work may have
also inspired the work of architect E. Fay Jones in his design of Thornhill Chapel
(1980) in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. The report concludes that the Oasis Hotel
dining hall truss system demonstrated Wright's creative talent as an architect and
inspired later works by both Wright and other architects and thus meets the
definitinon of a historic site as defined by Criterion 5.
Criterion 5. That represents a significant and distinguishable entity
whose components may lack individual distinction;
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 6. That has yielded or may be likely to yield information
important to national, state or local history or prehistory.
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Conclusion: Based on the above, the HSPB finds and recommends that the
Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel be amended to list the dining
27
Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 8 of 12
hall fragments as contributing to the historic significance of the Oasis Hotel site.
I. A notice of a public hearing of the City Council of the City of Palm Springs,
California was published in accordance with applicable law.
J. On April, 18, 2018 the City Council held a public hearing to consider a
recommendation from the HSPB to amend the Class 1 historic site designation of
the Oasis Hotel. At said hearing the City Council carefully considered all the
evidence associated with the hearing, including but not limited to the historic
resource report, the staff report, and all other written and oral testimony.
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS DOES HEREBY RESOLVE
AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1.
That the foregoing recitals are true and correct and are incorporated herein by this
reference.
SECTION 2 — FINDINGS: HSPB.
The Council adopts the findings of the HSPB outlined above in support of their
recommendation for the amendment of the Oasis Hotel Class 1 historic site designation.
SECTION 3 — FINDINGS: CITY COUNCIL.
Pursuant to Municipal Code Section 8.05.160, in considering a recommendation by the
Historic Site Preservation Board for Class 1 historic site designation, the City Council
shall find that the purposes of the historic preservation ordinance are furthered by the
designation of property as a historic site. The purpose of the historic preservation
ordinance is stated in PSMC 8.05.010:
This chapter is adopted pursuant to the authority of Government Code
Section 37361 for the purpose of preserving areas and specific buildings
of the city which reflect elements of its cultural, social, economic, political,
architectural and archaeological history. This chapter is intended to
stabilize and improve buildings, structures or areas which are considered
to be of historical, architectural, archaeological or ecological value, to
foster civic beauty, to strengthen the local economy and to promote the
use of specific buildings for the education and welfare of the citizens.
The City Council finds that the purpose of the City's historic preservation ordinance
would be furthered by amending the Oasis Hotel's Class 1 historic site designation to
include the dining hall, commercial storefronts and the casita building because these
components are an integral part of Lloyd Wright's revolutionary and innovative design
for the hotel, they possess a high degree of historic integrity, and convey a unique type,
period and method of construction. The dining hall fragments are the only surviving
Case HSPB 10 AM ND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
April 18, 2018
Resolution No.
Page 9 of 12
wood-frame structures from the Oasis Hotel (the other components are poured-in-place
concrete structures). Recognizing their historic importance is necessary to assure that
future adaptive reuse of these structures is done in a manner that does not further
compromise or materially impair their historic significance. The amendment will
enhance future efforts to stabilize and improve the buildings and thereby contribute to
the economic vitality of the City.
SECTION 4 — INTEGRITY.
The City Council hereby amends the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
to include the following assessment of historic integrity:
Dining Hall Fragments. Beginning on page 49, the historic resources report analyzes
the dining hall components of the Oasis Hotel relative to the seven aspects or qualities
of integrity, as recognized by the National Register of Historic Places. The seven
aspects or qualities include location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling,
and association.
The report concludes that although the location and setting have been altered, the
dining hall — particularly the complex interior geometry of the roof and truss system --
retains integrity of design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.
Commercial Storefronts and Casita Buildings. Both these buildings retain a high degree
of integrity: Their location of each building remains as original constructed. The
integrity of "setting" has been mostly lost due to encroaching surrounding development,
additions on the back of the commercial building and the demolition of much of the hotel
for construction of the Oasis Commercial Building in 1953. The integrity of the design,
materials, workmanship, feeling and association of both buildings remain intact.
Hotel Tower and attached structure. The 1985 staff report provided no evaluation of
integrity of the tower and attached structure. Although the tower and attached structure
retain integrity of location, materials, workmanship, feeling and association, its setting
has been lost to over ninety years of encroaching commercial development and the
demotion in 1953 of the northern part of the hotel.
The tower and attached building have also lost some design integrity due to the removal
of the vertical wood slatted screens seen in the photo on page 13 of this report and in
the photos on the following page. Similarly the covered paseo attached to the tower
has been boarded up and wood screens and railings in the "attached building" have
been partially removed. Restoring these wood elements would strengthen the integrity
of the tower and attached building.
SECTION 5 - DEFINING HISTORIC CHARACTERISTICS.
The City Council hereby amends the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
to include the following identification of character-defining features that contribute to the
historic significance of the site:
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Resolution No.
Page 10 of 12
Dining Hall Fragments:
• The exposed scissor truss structural system.
• The handwritten "McManus" on the underside of one of the trusses.
• The general roof configuration of a "compound gable" reflecting the angles of the
scissor trusses below.
• The narrow wood slat roof sheathing.
Commercial Storefront Building:
• The exposed (painted) concrete exterior walls, including the horizontal "reveals".
• The narrow slot window on the north fagade.
• The general 4-part structural module expressed in the Palm Canyon fagade.
Casita Buildinq:
• The exposed (painted) concrete exterior walls, including the horizontal "reveals".
• The general 3-part structural configuration expressed in the south fagade.
Tower and Attached Structure:
Although the 1985 staff report provided no identification of the character-defining
features, staff recommends that any amendment to the historic designation of the
Oasis Hotel include identification of the entire tower and original elements of the
attached structure as character-defining features contributing to the historic
significance of the Oasis Hotel.
SECTION 6 - NON-CONTRIBUTING TO THE HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE:
The City Council hereby amends the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
is to include the following identification of features or elements that do not contribute to
the historic significance of the site:
Dining Room Fragments:
• All exterior materials, pole ramada, storefronts, doors, shake roof shingles (not
original)
• All interior finishes except the exposed scissor trusses and related roof structure.
The HSPB also noted future removal of the drywall that is covering the slatted
wood roof sheathing in the candy shop will strengthen the historic integrity of that
structure.
Commercial Storefronts:
• The additions on the west side of the building.
• The "renovated display windows" and associated "cornice".
• The interiors.
• Signage.
Casita Buildinq:
• The interiors.
Tower and attached structure:
• The interiors.
• Non-original elements (surface-mounted conduit, infill panels on the paseo and
tower, fire escape, etc.)
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SECTION 7 - ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT.
The proposed historic site designation is not subject to the California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a
direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and
15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA
Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no
potential for resulting in physical changes to the environment, directly or indirectly.
SECTION 8 — DESIGNATION.
Based upon the foregoing, the City Council hereby amends the Class 1 historic site
designation of the Oasis Hotel to list the dining hall at 211 South Palm Canyon Drive
and the storefront building and casita building at 121 South Palm Canyon Drive as
contributing to the hotel's historic significance, placing all structures and the site under
the regulatory guidance of Municipal Code Section 8.05.
SECTION 9 — RECORDATION WITH COUNTY RECORDER.
Upon action on the recommendation by the City Council, the City Clerk shall submit the
Council resolution to the County recorder for recordation within 90 days of the effective
date of this resolution.
ADOPTED THIS 18T" DAY OF APRIL, 2018.
David H. Ready, Esq., Ph.D.
City Manager
ATTEST:
Anthony J. Mejia, MMC
City Clerk
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CERTIFICATION
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE ) ss.
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS )
I, ANTHONY J. MEJIA, City Clerk of the City of Palm Springs, hereby certify that
Resolution No. is a full, true and correct copy, and was duly adopted at a regular
meeting of the City Council of the City of Palm Springs on
by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
Anthony J. Mejia, MMC, City Clerk
32
Attachment 3:
HSPB Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
and
minute excerpt of HSPB meeting of February 13, 2018
33
RESOLUTION NO. HSPB 10 AMND
A RESOLUTION OF THE HISTORIC SITE
PRESERVATION BOARD OF THE CITY OF PALM
SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, RECOMMENDING THAT THE
CITY COUNCIL AMEND THE CLASS 1 HISTORIC SITE
DESIGNATION OF "THE OASIS HOTEL" TO LIST THE
OASIS HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED AT 211-219
SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AND THE COMMERCIAL
STOREFRONT AND CASITA BUILDINGS LOCATED AT
121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AS CONTRIBUTING
ELEMENTS; DESIGNED BY MASTER ARCHITECT LLOYD
WRIGHT; (CASE HSPB #10 AMND) APN 513-143-009,
513-143-008, AND 513-153-017, ZONES: CU (CIVIC USES)
& CBD (CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT).
THE HISTORIC SITE PRESERVATION BOARD FINDS AND DETERMINES AS
FOLLOWS:
A. Chapter 8.05 of the Palm Springs Municipal Code allows for the designation of
historic sites and districts.
B. On February 6, 1985, the City Council granted Class 7 (now Class 1) historic site
status to the Oasis Hotel. The staff report identified the hotel tower and attached
structure as "basically unaltered", the commercial storefront and casita building
as "significantly altered" and mentioned the hotel's dining hall had been moved to
the Village Green Park, but no analysis of the historic significance of those
portions was provided. The staff report also provided no analysis of the various
components against the definition of a historic site, nor was there any analysis
provided pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as to
whether the noted alterations materially impaired the historic significance of the
various components of the site to the extent that they no longer conveyed or
contributed to the site's historic significance.
C. On October 6, 2016, the City's Historic Site Preservation Board ("HSPB")
identified a possible amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the
Oasis Hotel as part of its annual work plan to study the hotel's dining hall,
commercial storefront building and casita building to determine their relative
importance in contributing to the historic significance of the hotel.
D. The consulting firm Architectural Resources Group ("ARG") was retained by the
City to study the Oasis Hotel and prepare a report to determine any possible
historic significance of the components. ARG's analysis was summarized in a
report provided to the City dated August 23, 2017.
E. In February, 2018 copies of the ARG report were provided to members of the
HSPB and members of the HSPB and City staff conducted site tours of the
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various components of the Oasis Hotel.
F. A notice of a public hearing of the HSPB was published in accordance with
applicable law.
G. On February 13, 2018, the HSPB held a public hearing in accordance with
applicable law to consider a possible amendment to the Class 1 historic site
designation of the Oasis Hotel. At said hearing the HSPB carefully considered all
the evidence associated with the hearing, including but not limited to the historic
resource report, the staff report, and all other written and oral testimony and
voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council amend the Class 1
historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel to list the dining hall, commercial
storefront and casita building as contributing elements to the historic significance
of the site.
H. FINDINGS: HSPB. Pursuant to Municipal Code Section 8.05.145, the HSPB
shall make findings upon which it shall base its recommendation to the City
Council.
Findings in support of amending the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis
Hotel to list the commercial storefront building and casita building as contributing
to the historic significance of the site:
The Board found that contrary to the assertion in the 1985 staff report that the
commercial storefront building and casita building "had been significantly altered'
they in fact have not been significantly altered. Rather, they retain sufficient
integrity to warrant amending the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis
Hotel to list them as "contributing historic elements". The Board based this
conclusion on its evaluation of the storefront building and casita building against
the City's definition of a historic site pursuant to Municipal Code Section 8.05.020
("Definitions") as follows:
A historic site is any real property such as: a building; a structure,
including but not limited to archways, tiled areas and similar
architectural elements; an archaeological excavation or object that
is unique or significant because of its location, design, setting,
materials, workmanship or aesthetic effect
The storefront building and casita building of the Oasis Hotel are unique and
significant because they were designed as an integral part of the Oasis Hotel, the
only known commission in Palm Springs by master architect Lloyd Wright. As an
integral part of the hotel, they retain their association with Pearl McCallum
McManus a person of local significance. Wright designed the hotel as a modern
interpretation of a Spanish Hacienda, with thick concrete walls and covered
paseos and passageways that protected the occupants from the intense desert
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Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
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climate. It retains visual evidence that it was built using a unique method of
construction: that of "slip-form" poured-in-place concrete. It embodies Wrights'
philosophy that the architectural ornament should be integral with the structure of
the building and the building's ornament and detail reflected Wright's belief that a
"uniquely American" form of architecture should be based upon design motifs of
the indigenous cultures of the American Southwest, rather than "borrowed" styles
from Europe. The overall aesthetic effect was uniquely bold and reflected one of
the earliest examples in California of a distinctly modern American architectural
style.
The Board further found that the storefront building and casita building both
retain a high degree of historic integrity: The storefront building continues to be
used for commercial / retail functions for which it was originally designed, the
addition on the back side and the alteration of the storefront display windows are
removable and reversible and the structure is restorable based on archival
photos and drawings which would further strengthen the historic integrity of the
site. Although abandoned and boarded up, casita building remains unaltered
and retains a high degree of historic integrity. It is the only surviving set of free-
standing hotel rooms from the Oasis Hotel.
The HSPB further evaluated the storefronts and casita buildings against the
seven criteria found in PSMC 8.05.020 that establish the definition of a historic
site or district as follows:
Criterion 1. That is associated with events that have made a
meaningful contribution to the nation, state or community; or
Although it attracted many celebrities and socialites, no known events are
associated with the Oasis Hotel. Therefore it does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 2. That is associated with lives of persons who made
meaningful contribution to national, state or local history, or
The storefronts and casita buildings were designed and constructed as an
integral part of the Oasis Hotel. As noted on page 45 of the ARG report, the
Oasis Hotel is significant for its association with Pearl McCallum McManus.
McManus' vision of a modern luxury hotel that would be a tribute to her father's
legacy was the impetus for its development. Pearls' long association with Palm
Springs is well documented as is her vision of the town growing to become an
important world-renowned resort destination. The Oasis Hotel storefront and
casita buildings both meet the definition of a historic site as defined in Criterion 2.
Criterion 3. That reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the
national, state or local history;
Case HSPB 10 AM ND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
February 13, 2018
Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
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As described in the historic resources report, the commercial storefront and
casita buildings both exemplify the early Modern period in architectural history
and thus meet the definition of a historic site as defined in Criterion 3.
Criterion 4. That embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
type, period or method of construction;
As noted above, these two structures are an integral part of the Oasis Hotel
design by Lloyd Wright and were both constructed at the same time, using the
same reinforced poured concrete "slip-form" method as the Oasis Hotel tower.
The horizontal 'joints" created by the slip-form method are clearly evident in the
exterior of both buildings. Contrary to the 1985 report, both buildings retain a high
degree of integrity. The additions on the back of the storefront building are
removable and the changes at the display windows are reversible. The casita
building, although long vacant and poorly maintained remains unaltered and
clearly conveys its unique slip form method of construction and its association
with the Oasis Hotel.
Criterion 5. That presents the work of a master builder, designer,
artist, or architect whose individual genius influenced his age; or
that possesses high artistic value;
The commercial storefronts and casita building were designed by Lloyd Wright as
an integral part of the Oasis Hotel at the same time as the tower. They employ
the same slip-form construction technology. They demonstrate Wright's interest
in minimal ornamentation and in a clear expression of the building's structure and
material. Thus the storefront building and the casita building meet the definition
of a historic site as outlined in Criterion 5.
Criterion 6. That represents a significant and distinguishable
entity whose components may lack individual distinction;
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 7. That has yielded or may be likely to yield information
important to national, state or local history or prehistory.
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Conclusion: Based on the above, the HSPB finds and recommends that the
Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel be amended to list the
commercial storefront building and casita building as contributing to the historic
significance of the site.
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Findings in support of amending the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis
Hotel to list the dining hall as contributing to the historic significance of the site.
Pursuant to Municipal Code 8.05.195, the board may only consider the exterior of
buildings when evaluating historic significance, and may not consider the
interiors except in the case of public buildings. Since the dining hall fragments
are owned by the City of Palm Springs and are thus "public buildings", both the
exterior and the interior of the dining hall were analyzed by the Board. The Board
made findings in support of an amendment to the Class 1 historic site
designation of the Oasis Hotel to list the dining hall fragments as contributing to
the historic significance of the hotel. It based its findings on evaluation of the
dining hall fragments against the City's definition of a historic site pursuant to
Municipal Code Section 8.05.020 ("Definitions") as follows:
A historic site is any real property such as: a building, a structure,
including but not limited to archways, tiled areas and similar
architectural elements, an archaeological excavation or object that
is unique or significant because of its location, design, setting,
materials, workmanship or aesthetic effect
The dining hall of the Oasis Hotel is unique and significant because it was
designed as an integral part of the Oasis Hotel by master architect Lloyd Wright.
It is the only known commission in Palm Springs designed by Wright. As an
integral part of the hotel, it retains its association with Pearl McCallum McManus
a person of local significance. It embodies Wrights' philosophy that the
architectural ornament should be integral with the structure of the building. This
is evidenced in the intricate structural scissor trusses that comprise the roof
structure of the dining hall. The trusses create an abstract visual effect of tree
branches overhead; an effect that was further emphasized by Wright's design
which integrated two large cottonwood trees into the original construction of the
dining hall. The overall aesthetic effect was uniquely bold and reflected one of
the earliest examples in California of a distinctly modern American architectural
style.
The dining hall, although moved to a separate parcel by McManus in 1952,
retains a high degree of historic integrity as outlined in the ARG historic
resources report. Past alterations to the dining hall such as the drywall ceilings
are removable, which would further strengthen its historic integrity. On page 49
the ARG report assesses the historic integrity of the dining hall. The report notes
that although location and setting has been compromised by its dismantlement
and relocation, it still retains integrity of design, materials, workmanship, feeling
and association primarily on its intact interior roof trusses and related features.
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Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
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The HSPB further evaluated the dining hall against the seven criteria found in
PSMC 8.05.020 that establish the definition of a historic site or district as follows:
That is associated with events that have made a meaningful
contribution to the nation, state or community; or
Although it attracted many celebrities and socialites, no known events are
associated with the Oasis Hotel. Therefore it does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 1. That is associated with lives of persons who made
meaningful contribution to national, state or local history; or
The ARG report notes, "McManus' enduring attachment to this building (the
Oasis Hotel), reflects both her regard for Lloyd Wright's architectural design and
the ruthless practicality for which she was known..."As the report states, among
the building's significant characteristics is a handwritten "McManus" signature on
the underside of a roof truss on a portion of the dining hall. The dining hall
fragments thus meet the definition of a historic site as defined by Criterion 2.
Criterion 2. That reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the
national, state or local history,
On page 45 the ARG report notes that the dining hall was an integral part of the
Oasis Hotel complex, and that the hotel was particularly significant in the
development of Palm Springs as a resort destination in the 1920's. On page 46,
the ARG report suggests that because portions of the Oasis Hotel such as the
dining hall had been dismantled, moved, and repurposed in the 1950's, the
dining hall fragments no longer convey significance relative to that earlier period
in Palm Springs history.
However the HSPB found that those portions of the Oasis Hotel that have
survived, even in their fractured condition, are critically important in conveying an
understanding of the broader period of innovative, creative architectural
experimentation with new technologies from the 1920's. It reflects the principles,
tenets and theories of the Modern era in architectural history that began in the
early 1920's and reached its zenith in the 50's and 60's. The Oasis Hotel,
including the dining hall, exemplifies this "first chapter of the story" of the Modern
period in architecture in Palm Springs and in California in general. As such, the
Oasis Hotel dining hall fragments meet Criterion 3 in conveying the significance
of the early period of development of a uniquely American style of Modern
architecture.
Criterion 3. That embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
type, period or method of construction;
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Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
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On page 46, the ARG report evaluates the Oasis Hotel dining hall fragments,
particularly the complex scissor truss system of the dining hall roof. The report
notes "the interior's exposed scissor truss roof system, which incorporates 30
and 60 degree angles as seen in natural forms like snowflakes, crystals, and tree
branches reflects a type of architectural thinking which was still relatively new in
the early 9920's, the early Modern tenet that structure should also serve as
ornament." As such the dining hall embodies the distinctive characteristics of a
unique type and method of construction and meets the definition of a historic site
as defined by Criterion 4.
Criterion 4. That presents the work of a master builder, designer,
artist, or architect whose individual genius influenced his age; or
that possesses high artistic value;
The ARG report outlines on page 47 the significance of Lloyd Wright as a master
architect whose work influenced his age and possesses high artistic value. The
exposed interior roof system of the dining hall comprised of spaced wood slats
over compound scissor trusses created a visual effect similar to tree branches
overhead. The integration of two living cottonwood trees into the construction of
the dining room further strengthened this effect.
Wright used the wood slat motif to visually unify and integrate each component of
the Oasis Hotel, as seen in the dining hall roof (above), the screens at the tower
and railings at second floor passages and balconies as seen in the following
photos.
Wright's use of complex wood structural systems as architectural ornament can
be seen in his later works as outlined in the ARG report on page 35 in reference
to his Wayfarer's Chapel (1951), and it seems plausible that his work may have
also inspired the work of architect E. Fay Jones in his design of Thornhill Chapel
(1980) in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. The report concludes that the Oasis Hotel
dining hall truss system demonstrated Wright's creative talent as an architect and
inspired later works by both Wright and other architects and thus meets the
definitinon of a historic site as defined by Criterion 5.
Criterion 5. That represents a significant and distinguishable entity
whose components may lack individual distinction;
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
Criterion 6. That has yielded or may be likely to yield information
important to national, state or local history or prehistory.
The subject property does not meet this criterion.
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Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
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Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
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Conclusion: Based on the above, the HSPB finds and recommends that the
Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel be amended to list the dining
hall fragments as contributing to the historic significance of the Oasis Hotel site.
THE HISTORIC SITE PRESERVATION BOARD OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS
DOES HEREBY RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1.
That the foregoing recitals are true and correct and are incorporated herein by this
reference.
SECTION 2 — FINDINGS: HSPB.
The HSPB adopts the findings outlined above in support of their recommendation for
the amendment of the Oasis Hotel Class 1 historic site designation.
SECTION 3 — INTEGRITY.
The HSPB makes the following findings with respect to the historic integrity of the dining
hall, storefront building and casita building of the Oasis Hotel:
Dining Hall Fragments. Beginning on page 49, the historic resources report analyzes
the dining hall components of the Oasis Hotel relative to the seven aspects or qualities
of integrity, as recognized by the National Register of Historic Places. The seven
aspects or qualities include location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling,
and association.
The report concludes that although the location and setting have been altered, the
dining hall — particularly the complex interior geometry of the roof and truss system --
retains integrity of design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.
Commercial Storefronts and Casita Buildings. Both these buildings retain a high degree
of integrity: Their location of each building remains as original constructed. The
integrity of "setting" has been mostly lost due to encroaching surrounding development,
additions on the back of the commercial building and the demolition of much of the hotel
for construction of the Oasis Commercial Building in 1953. The integrity of the design,
materials, workmanship, feeling and association of both buildings remain intact.
Hotel Tower and attached structure. The 1985 staff report provided no evaluation of
integrity of the tower and attached structure. Although the tower and attached structure
retain integrity of location, materials, workmanship, feeling and association, its setting
has been lost to over ninety years of encroaching commercial development and the
demotion in 1953 of the northern part of the hotel.
The tower and attached building have also lost some design integrity due to the removal
of the vertical wood slatted screens seen in the photo on page 13 of this report and in
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Case HSPB 10 AMND —Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
February 13, 2018
Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
Page 9 of 10
the photos on the following page. Similarly the covered paseo attached to the tower
has been boarded up and wood screens and railings in the "attached building" have
been partially removed. Restoring these wood elements would strengthen the integrity
of the tower and attached building.
SECTION 4 - DEFINING HISTORIC CHARACTERISTICS.
The HSPB makes the following findings with respect to identification of character-
defining features that contribute to the historic significance of the site:
Dining Hall Fragments:
• The exposed scissor truss structural system.
• The handwritten "McManus" on the underside of one of the trusses.
• The general roof configuration of a "compound gable" reflecting the angles of the
scissor trusses below.
• The narrow wood slat roof sheathing.
Commercial Storefront Building:
• The exposed (painted) concrete exterior walls, including the horizontal "reveals".
• The narrow slot window on the north facade.
• The general 4-part structural module expressed in the Palm Canyon facade.
Casita Building:
• The exposed (painted) concrete exterior walls, including the horizontal 'reveals".
• The general 3-part structural configuration expressed in the south facade.
Tower and Attached Structure:
Although the 1985 staff report provided no identification of the character-defining
features, staff recommends that any amendment to the historic designation of the
Oasis Hotel include identification of the entire tower and original elements of the
attached structure as character-defining features contributing to the historic
significance of the Oasis Hotel.
SECTION 5 - NON-CONTRIBUTING TO THE HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE:
The HSPB makes the following findings with respect to identification of features or
elements that do not contribute to the historic significance of the site:
Dining Room Fragments:
• All exterior materials, pole ramada, storefronts, doors, shake roof shingles (not
original)
• All interior finishes except the exposed scissor trusses and related roof structure.
The HSPB also noted future removal of the drywall that is covering the slatted
wood roof sheathing in the candy shop will strengthen the historic integrity of that
structure.
Commercial Storefronts:
• The additions on the west side of the building.
• The 'renovated display windows" and associated "cornice".
• The interiors.
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Case HSPB 10 AMND—Amendment to the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel
February 13, 2018
Resolution HSPB 10-AMND
Page 10 of 10
• Signage.
Casita Building:
• The interiors.
Tower and attached structure:
• The interiors.
• Non-original elements (surface-mounted conduit, infill panels on the paseo and
tower, fire escape, etc.)
SECTION 6 - ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT.
The proposed historic site designation is not subject to the California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a
direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and
15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA
Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no
potential for resulting in physical changes to the environment, directly or indirectly.
SECTION 7 — DESIGNATION.
Based upon the foregoing, the Historic Site Preservation Board recommends that the
City Council amend the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel to list the
dining hall at 211 South Palm Canyon Drive and the storefront building and casita
building at 121 South Palm Canyon Drive as contributing to the hotel's historic
significance, placing all structures and the site under the regulatory guidance of
Municipal Code Section 8.05.
ADOPTED THIS 13" DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2018.
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
ATTEST: CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA
Flinn Fagg, AICP
Director of Planning Services
43
EXCERPTS OF MINUTES
At the Historic Site Preservation Board meeting of the City of Palm Springs, held (month
day, 2016), the Historic Site Preservation Board took the following action:
2.13. AN AMENDMENT TO THE CLASS 1 HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION
FOR "THE OASIS HOTEL" TO INCORPORATE THE OASIS HOTEL
DINING HALL, LOCATED AT 211-219 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE,
AND THE COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT AND CASITA BUILDINGS,
LOCATED AT 121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE, DESIGNED BY
MASTER ARCHITECT LLOYD WRIGHT, ZONE CBD, (CASE HSPB
#10 AM ND). (KL)
Staff member Lyon summarized the staff report.
Chair Johns commended staff on the thorough staff report, especially the
computer generated images of the Oasis Hotel in its fully intact condition.
Member La Voie asked for clarification on ownership of the various parts of the
building.
Chair Johns opened the public hearing.
STEVE LYLE, representing the owner of the Oasis Hotel site, noted it has been a
difficult site to redevelop and referenced a previous restaurant project that had
been approved by the City, but the application expired. He noted the owner
needs help to find a viable adaptive reuse for the site. He described it as one of
the most important jewels in the desert. He stated that ownership is not fighting
the designation, but is asking for assistance to help find a new use, that it is a
shame the way it presently exists.
Chair Johns asked staff member Lyon for clarifications about incentives offered
through the City ordinances, specifically parking requirements. Lyon explained
intensified uses in Class 1 buildings are exempt from requirement to provide
additional parking.
Member Dixon asked why there isn't more marketing material making the
development community aware of the availability of the project for re-use. Mr.
Lyle noted the ownership didn't have sufficient money to develop the project and
3 to 4 years ago was the last time a prospective developer considered the site.
He noted they've approached the City on various instances seeking financial
assistance but had not been successful.
Member Hays asked about whether the owner had pursued national historic tax
credits. Mr. Lyle stated in the past it was not sufficient to get a project off the
ground.
44
Seeing no further speakers, the chair closed the public hearing.
Member Hays commended staff and the building owner for showing the site to
the board. There was considerable surprise of how much of the original building
still remains.
Member Burkett also expressed enthusiasm about what was observed during the
site visit. He encouraged the owner to go back and speak again with City
officials on assistance for redeveloping the project.
M/S/C (La Voie/Dixon) to recommended that the amendment be forwarded for
action by the City Council. Member Burkett suggested a condition be included
that if the building that is the fudge shop can have the drywall covering up the
wood slat roofing removed during a future renovation, it should be encouraged.
(7-0 to approve.)
I, JOANNE BRUGGEMANS, Administrative Secretary for the City of Palm Springs,
hereby certify that the above action was taken by Historic Site Preservation Board of the
City of Palm Springs on the 13th day of February, 2018, by the following vote:
AYES: Dixon, La Voie, Kiser, Marsh, Hays, Burkett, Johns
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
Joanne Bruggemans
Adminstrative Secretary
45
Attachment 4:
Historic Resources Report dated August 23, 2017 by
Architectural Resources Group, Inc.
44
v ,jA
T �*
A'
n
m
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4Y:
A-i A
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall
211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive
Historic Resources Report
Prepared for:
City of Palm Springs
Department of Planning Services
3200 Tahquitz Canyon Way
Palm Springs, California 92263
Prepared by:
Architectural
Resources Group
Pasadena, California
August 23, 2017
47
Table of Contents
1. Introduction.....................................................................................................................1
2. Architectural Description..................................................................................................2
2.1 Site and Setting................................................................................................................ 2
2.2 Building............................................................................................................................ 3
3. Alterations and Chronology of Development..................................................................16
4. Historic Contexts............................................................................................................20
4.1 Hotel and Resort Development in Palm Springs, 1919-1952........................................ 20
4.2 The Oasis Hotel.............................................................................................................. 23
4.3 Lloyd Wright.................................................................................................................. 33
4.4 Pearl McCallum McManus............................................................................................. 37
S. Regulations and Criteria for Evaluation ..........................................................................41
5.1 City of Palm Springs Historic Site................................................................................... 41
6. Evaluation of Significance...............................................................................................44
6.1 Previous Surveys and Designations............................................................................... 44
6.2 City of Palm Springs Historic Site................................................................................... 44
7. Integrity Analysis............................................................................................................49
Summaryof Integrity................................................................................................................. 51
8. Conclusion .....................................................................................................................52
9. Bibliography....................................................................................................................53
Appendix A. Historic Photographs
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
ARCHITECTURAL RESOURCES GROUP i
48
1. Introduction
At the request of the City of Palm Springs' Department of Planning Services,
Architectural Resources Group (ARG) has prepared this Historic Resources Report
for a building that was originally the Oasis Hotel Dining Hall,Palm Springs,Riverside
County, California.'
The property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive is a one-story commercial building
in Village Green Heritage Park; it is owned by the City of Palm Springs and has the
APN 513-153-017. Originally the dining hall of the Oasis Hotel at the corner of S.
Palm Canyon Drive and W. Tahquitz Canyon Way,the 1924 building was designed
by master architect Lloyd Wright. In 1952, its original owner Pearl McCallum
McManus had it moved a block south and reconfigured for new uses at her Village
Green retail complex.ARG has evaluated the building's eligibility for listing as a City
of Palm Springs Class 1 Historic Site.
Completion of this assessment involved a site visit and visual inspection of the
building on July 14, 2017; compilation and review of historic building permits and
project documents obtained from the Palm Springs Department of Planning
Services; primary and secondary source research conducted through various local
and online repositories, including the Palm Springs Historical Society Research
Library and UCLA's Lloyd Wright Papers in Special Collections; development of
applicable historic contexts and themes; evaluation of the property's eligibility
under City of Palm Springs Class 1 Historic Site criteria; and evaluation of the
property's historic integrity. This report was prepared by Katie E. Horak, Principal
and Mary Ringhoff, Associate, both of whom meet the Secretary of the Interior's
Professional Qualification Standards for Architectural History.z
In summary,ARG finds that the property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive is eligible
for listing as a City of Palm Springs Class 1 Historic Site, on the basis of its intact
interior features.The following report provides a contextual basis for analysis and
a detailed discussion of how this determination was made.
'Amending the designation of the Oasis Hotel(HSPB#10)to include the surviving portions of the
hotel's wood frame dining hall and the poured-in-place concrete commercial storefronts along Palm
Canyon was part of the HSPB's 2016/17 annual work plan priorities.
I Katie E.Horak is a Principal and Architectural Historian in ARG's Pasadena office,with 13 years of
experience in the field.She is a graduate of the Master of Historic Preservation(now Heritage
Conservation)program at the University of Southern California.Mary Ringhoff is an Associate in
ARG's Pasadena office,with eight years of experience in the field.She is also a graduate of USC's
Master of Historic Preservation program.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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49
2. Architectural Description
W.Arenas Rd.
of eD
FL a
9,0
�n� l
Y
�I
e'
Site map.The subject
property is outlined in
V red.Base map from
maps.google.com.
BEFT
2.1 Site and Setting
The subject property, 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive, is located within the City-
owned Village Green Heritage Park,on the west side of S. Palm Canyon Drive south
of W. Arenas Road. This area adheres to a rectilinear street grid, and has a wide
array of lot sizes. The topography of the immediate area slopes gently to the east,
down from the San Jacinto mountain range. The Village Green complex is
surrounded by one- and two-story commercial properties representing
construction dates from the 192Os to the 2O1Os. Most of the surrounding buildings'
main volumes are set back from the sidewalk, fronted by attached covered dining
patios. Some buildings are flush with the sidewalk.
The Village Green complex contains four buildings arrayed around a central
landscaped plaza: the subject property (currently containing the Agua Caliente
Cultural Museum and Palm Springs Fudge and Chocolates); the McCallum Adobe
(Palm Springs Historical Society Museum);the Cornelia White House; and Ruddy's
General Store. The subject property occupies the north and northwest portions of
Village Green.All of the complex's buildings face inward toward the plaza,which is
landscaped with lawn and flowers and crossed by concrete walkways, some of
which have terrazzo "Palm Springs Walk of Stars" insets. The concrete walkway
along the south facade of the subject property is shaded by the building's
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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50
projecting porch roof. A large concrete fountain sits at the east edge of the plaza,
within a hardscaped circle of embossed commemorative bricks. Other Village
Green features include light standards, boulder-mounted historical markers,
freestanding signage, a flagpole, and concrete benches. The west and south parts
of the complex, including the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum volume of the subject
property, are elevated from street level and accessed via a set of concrete steps at
the north side and a gently sloping concrete ramp/walkway at the south side. The
north side of the subject property directly abuts the commercial building to the
north (205 S. Palm Canyon Drive, originally Haggarty's clothing store and currently
Kaiser Grill). Surface parking lots lie beyond the west side of the Village Green
complex.
2.2 Building
T
i .
Overview of subject
property from the
street.All existing - •
conditions photos 1 `
were taken by ARG on
July 14,2017. •.
Key to building me J
volumes.Volumes 1-3 r a
represent the
,r
reconfigured Oasis E
Hotel dining hall,while
Volume 4 is a later
addition.Base map
from maps.google.com.
Nil
The building comprises three primary attached volumes; all three volumes were
originally part of the Oasis Hotel dining hall, but they have been separated, moved,
and reattached to each other in a new angled configuration on the Village Green.
A fourth volume, a flat-roofed, concrete block addition to the north side of the
property, is not part of the original dining hall building. Each volume is described in
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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51
turn below,with the arbitrary descriptors of Volumes 1,2,3,and 4.The building as
a whole is characterized by an irregular plan, gabled roofs covered with wood
shake, and a mix of wood siding,stucco, and concrete block cladding. It represents
wood frame construction, with the exception of the Volume 4 concrete block
addition to the north side.Volumes 1 and 2 are fronted by a projecting wood porch
roof with simple wood post supports and open eaves; the porch roof shades a
poured concrete slab floor/walkway. As discussed below, Volumes 1, 2, and 3
retain much of their original interior wood slat ceiling and exposed roof scissor
truss system.
Volume 1: 219 S. Palm Canyon Drive (Agua Caliente Cultural
Museum Entrance and Gift Shop)
1
I III
--....._ _ Volume 1 primary
s
(southeast)fayade,
A view to northwest.
Volume 1 Exterior
Volume 1 is elevated above the other volumes and accessed by a set of concrete
steps and by a gently sloping concrete walkway/ramp. It currently contains the
main entrance and gift shop for the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum. The volume
has a square footprint and a distinctive cross-gabled roof with wood shake and
simple wood bargeboards. Each of its four facades has a "broken gable' roofline.
The primary (southeast) fa4ade is nearly symmetrical, with cladding of painted
concrete block at its lower part (forming a kneewall), and vertical wood slats
fronting wood boards under the gable. The facade contains a centered glazed
storefront with wood French entry doors with divided lights and a transom. The
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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52
doors are flanked by large, fixed, single-light wood sidelights, which are in turn
flanked by two fixed,single-light wood windows.The window to the right is slightly
narrower than the one to the left due to the point of attachment between Volumes
1 and 2; a small portion of the facade here is clad with vertically scored plywood.
The concrete block kneewall projects slightly from the rest of the facade under
each of these windows. The entirety of the storefront is topped by three large,
fixed, single-light transoms. Wood support posts with large metal bolts frame the
storefront and extend to the roofline. A fabric awning,gooseneck light fixture, and
signage have been added to this facade.
,K
1
�4
Volume 1
southwest facade
and portion of
southeast facade,
view to northwest.
The southwest facade is primarily clad in textured stucco, with the concrete block
kneewall wrapping around the cornerfrom the southeast and extending across the
entire facade. No window or door openings are present. The area under the roof
gable is glazed, with crossed wood board dividers mimicking the exposed wood
scissortrusses visible at other gables and in the volume's interior.The exact nature
of these dividers is difficult to discern (hanging decorations obscure them from the
interior), but they do appear to be different from the scissor trusses seen at other
facades. A wood gate with wood and stucco surround is attached to this facade,
leading to the rear of the property.
The volume's northwest facade is clad in vertically scored plywood. The area under
the roof area is glazed, with exposed wood scissor trusses. This facade contains a
set of fully glazed metal doors and a sliding aluminum window. An accordion-style
security gate has been added to the entry. The fagade's northern portion contains
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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53
a projecting shed addition with the same plywood cladding and a set of plain metal
doors; the addition projects from both the Volume 1 facade and the north end of
Volume 4 (which extends behind all three of the building's older volumes and is
only partially visible here). Both the main facade and the shed addition are fronted
by a low, curving brick step. A non-original pole ramada projects from the
northwest facade,shading a small brick patio bordered by outdoor exhibits.
f�
I
it r
Volume 1
northwest facade,
view to southeast.
Volume 1's northeast facade is only partially visible, as Volume 2 attaches here at
an angle;Volume 2's porch roof is notched to fit Volume 1 here, and the interface
under the porch roof is a stucco wall with a wood window opening containing a
perforated metal screen with a photographic image printed on it. The visible
portion of Volume 1's northeast facade is clad in vertically scored plywood. The
area under the roof area is glazed, with exposed wood scissor trusses. Exterior
HVAC equipment sitting on the Volume 4 roof has a metal vent extension entering
Volume 1 at this facade.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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y
I � �
Volume 1 portions
of northeast and
southeast fagades,
view to northwest.
Volume 1 Interior
The interior of Volume 1 contains a single open room with a high ceiling, stucco
wall finishes, and a carpeted floor. The room's shape reflects the roughly square
footprint and cross-gabled roof of the exterior,containing a central space with four
projecting bays (one under each roof gable). The bays join the central space with
chamfered corners topped by stucco-covered timber vertical supports with large
bolts;the supports extend to the upper wall plate.The roof assembly is completely
exposed, comprising painted wood scissor trusses supporting a ceiling finish of
painted wood slats. Each gabled bay has its own truss system, all meeting at the
centerpoint of the roofline in a complex system of triangular cross-members.
The north portion of the room contains a doorway with wood folding doors leading
to a small modern kitchen with particleboard cabinets/counters. This carpeted
room leads to a small anteroom with a set of steps and a wood hopper window
which has been painted over.A partially glazed (obscure glass)wood door leads to
additional steps, down to a storage room with a tile floor and freestanding metal
shelving. Both the kitchen and the storage room have painted concrete block walls,
presumably part of the Volume 4 concrete block addition,and painted wood board
ceilings with exposed beams. The partially glazed wood door has hardware more
1920s than 1950s in appearance and may be original to the building, or represent
salvage from elsewhere (possibly somewhere within the dining hall building).
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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The west portion of the room contains another doorway with curtains, leading to
a private office space; this room was not accessible during the site visit. The east
portion of the room contains a wood-framed opening with steps leading down to
the exhibit gallery in the interior of Volume 2.
77
t�
_a
r
II
i n'lM��F
ti�� b�I� I Iiilll I a
. u P fill 1 I T
„ ♦ f
Volume 1 interior,
p typical scissor
trusses and wood
slat ceiling.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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5
4°} � � $ � � � � q�ygp• (, 1. {FF fj�{.pkEp j�p /Edi.! J'� f �.:� p�� ��.,ren•^'.,
x A,
.. ism:+' �� •.++a++r.rww. ,...
Volume 1 interior,
central meeting
Dint of roofs stem "" 1•'
(object in center isa
hanging decoration).
Volume 2: 215 S. Palm Canyon Drive (Agua Caliente Cultural
Museum Gallery)
Volume 2 Exterior
Volume 2, which currently contains the gallery for the Agua Caliente Cultural
Museum, serves as the connector between Volumes 1 and 3. It has a roughly
rectangular footprint (though it is angled to meet the volumes on either side of it)
and a side-gabled roof with wood shake and simple wood bargeboards.The volume
is fronted by a projecting porch shared with Volume 3, as described above.
The primary(southwest)facade has wood framing around large openings that once
contained storefront windows; these have been enclosed with perforated metal
screens with photographic images printed on them. The screens appear to be
backed by the interior walls and do not cover windows. The facade also contains
two wood doors with openings for full glazing and transoms (the openings and
transoms now contain perforated metal screens with printed photographic
images). The left door has a metal mail slot at the bottom and its frame contains
metal "215" lettering. This door has no hardware and does not appear operable.
The right door has hardware and is opened as needed for wheelchair access to the
gallery.
Volume 2's northwest and southeast facades are now the points of attachment to
Volumes 1 and 3. Its northeast facade is covered by the Volume 4 addition.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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57
f�ty �^ice
1
b
lr:•,
Volume 2 primary
` �°� s . •i i .r•w� w , k' (southwest)facade,
� �' r 4`•� view to northwest.
_ _--�� �•� .� -���.,...-air. -
Volume 2
connecting
Volumes 1 and 3,
view to north.
Volume 2 Interior
The interior of Volume 2 is a long, rectangular open room with a carpeted floor and
painted drywall wall finishes fronted by interpretive exhibit panels. Its southern
portion, reflecting the exterior's gabled roof, exhibits the same ceiling seen in
Volume 1's interior: an exposed roof assembly with painted wood scissor trusses
and a ceiling finish of painted wood slats. Its northern portion has a different,lower
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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58
ceiling finish: painted wood boards with exposed beams,as seen in the kitchen and
storage room volumes of Volume 1.This indicates that the room's northern portion
is part of the Volume 4 concrete block addition.This northern portion has a modern
partition wall dividing it into two open display areas;to the south,the wall becomes
a header that spans the width of the interior. A scissor truss meets this header at
an angle and has been partially incorporated so it appears to pierce it. A similar
header with piercing truss is present at the west end of the room, in the area where
Volumes 1 and 2 join. This joining area has the same ceiling type as the northern
portion of the Volume 2 interior, indicating the attachment point of the two
volumes at the current angle.
Volume 1 interior,
showing roof
trusses and
partition wall.
Volume 2 interior,
showing detail of
scissor truss
piercing modern
header.
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Volume 3: 211 S. Palm Canyon Drive (Palm Springs Fudge and
Chocolates)
Volume 3 Exterior
Volume 3, which currently contains Palm Springs Fudge and Chocolates, has a
roughly rectangular footprint and a gabled roof with wood shake and simple wood
bargeboards. As described above, the volume is fronted by a projecting porch
shared with Volume 2. The volume's south facade is almost entirely glazed with
large, fixed, wood storefront windows. The windows sit above a painted concrete
block kneewall very similar to the one on Volume 1. This facade also contains two
fully glazed wood doors with transoms, of the same type on Volume 2.
a �
f v�,
Volume 3 south
.. facade,view to
northwest.
Volume 3 east and
south fazades,view
to northwest.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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The east facade faces S. Palm Canyon Drive and contains the volume's primary
entrance: a fully glazed wood door with transom at the north edge of the facade.
The rest of the facade has a large,fixed,wood storefront window of the same type
on the south facade.Above the storefront,the area under the gable is glazed,with
exposed wood scissor trusses and a metal muntin. The steep gable of the roof
projects beyond the east facade to become a porch roof with wood scissor trusses
and open eaves,supported by simple wood posts.The underside of the porch roof
retains wood slats backed by plywood. This is the same type of ceiling finish seen
in the intact interiors of Volumes 1 and 2, indicating this porch underside was
originally an interior ceiling. One of the scissor trusses here bears the handwritten
"McManus" of the original owner, as well as two dangling lengths of iron chain.
j
Detail:McManus
signature on
underside of porch
roof at Volume 3
east fagade. .
Volume Ts west facade is now the point of attachment to Volume 2, and its north
facade is now obscured by the Volume 4 addition.
Volume 3 Interior
Most of Volume Ts interior is a single, open, rectangular room with tile floors. Its
south and east walls are mostly glazed, with painted wood framing at the interior,
and the other walls are finished with painted drywall. The southern portion of the
room reflects the exterior's gabled roof, with a similar ceiling to that seen in
Volumes 1 and 2: an exposed roof assembly with painted wood scissor trusses.
However, the original ceiling finish of wood slats has been covered with drywall.
The northern portion of the interior has a dropped, boxed ceiling with simple
support columns, indicating that it is part of the Volume 4 addition to the north.
The north part of the room also includes retail counters, built-in wood shelving,
and food preparation areas, as well as a doorway to an additional room or rooms
not accessible during this site visit.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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Volume 3 interior
showing intact
trusses.
Y V'
Volume 3 interior
showing dropped
ceiling and retail
built-ins in northern
portion.
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62
Volume 4: North Addition
Volume 4 Exterior
Volume 4 is a concrete block addition to the north side of the building; irregular in
plan, it extends all the way from Volume 3's west facade to the rear of Volume 1,
and provides additional interior space for all of the other volumes. This volume
does not have its own exterior entrance. It has a flat roof covered with an unknown
material, atop which sits HVAC equipment. Comprising a northern extension of
Volume 3's west facade, Volume 4's east facade (its only visible one) is clad in
painted concrete block of a different, narrower type than that seen on Volumes 3
and 1. It contains a single,fixed,wood single-light display window fronted by a low
concrete block planter. The facade is shaded by a metal awning with Plexiglas
sheets on its underside, suggesting the current or past presence of fluorescent
lighting.
'r a
Eastfasades of
Volumes 3 and 4,
view to east.
The north facade of Volume 4 directly abuts the building to the north and is not
visible. Aside from a glimpse of concrete block wall visible at the northwest facade
of Volume 1,Volume 4's west facade is also not visible.
Volume 4Interior
As Volume 4's interior appears to be fully integrated with that of the other volumes,
it is discussed in tandem with Volumes 1-3 above.
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63
3. Alterations and Chronology of Development
Upon review of historical building permits, newspaper sources, photographs, and
drawings, ARG created the following chronology of development for the Oasis
Hotel Dining Hall. This chronology provides a summary of the property's
development as well as a summary of all documented alterations.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall (1924-1952)
1924: The Oasis Hotel multi-building complex, including the dining hall,
is constructed at the southwest corner of S. Palm Canyon Drive and
W. Tahquitz Canyon Way. Architect: Lloyd Wright. Owner: Pearl
McCallum McManus and Austin McManus. The dining hall was a
28' x 90' (2,520 sq. ft.) gable-roofed wood structure, with the
existing McCallum Adobe house attached to its northeast corner
and used as a lounge.3 A concrete kitchen volume was attached
perpendicularly to its northwest corner, and concrete cladding
detail continued across the dining hall's north fagade.
1925: A second residential unit, comprising a large two-story building, is
added to the northwest corner of the Oasis Hotel parcel. This
added about 28 guest rooms to the existing 22.4
1925-1927: The property is operated by lessee W.E. Hanner.s
1927: The McManuses sell the property to Hobart Garlick, who operates
it until his death in 1940.
1941: A swimming pool and two guest cottages are added to the
complex.6
1944: Dewey Metzdorf, senior vice president of Western Hotels Inc.,
purchases and operates the property.'
1952: Metzdorf sells the property to Western Hotels,Inc.The new owner
constructs a new commercial building in the northern part of the
property, necessitating the removal or demolition of the existing
buildings there as well as part of the hotel itself.
3 Hacienda (Oasis) Hotel drawings, Lloyd Wright papers (Collection 1561). UCLA Library Special
Collections,Charles E.Young Research Library,UCLA.
"Oasis Hotel,Palm Springs, Calif."Typewritten notes on construction of first and second units, 20
November 1929,Lloyd Wright papers,UCLA;Sanborn Map Company,1926.
s Greg Niemann,Palm Springs Legends:Creation of a Desert Oasis(San Diego:Sunbelt Publications,
Inc.,2006),66.
s The Desert Sun,"Oasis Hotel Completes Improvement Program,"14 February 1941.
Nicolette Wenzell,"Palm Springs History:The Garlicks Built Up Oasis Hotel,"The Desert Sun 1 May
2014.
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64
Pearl McCallum McManus, having retained the right to the
McCallum Adobe and apparently the dining hall building as well,
removes them from the property.
Dining Hall Building at Village Green Location (1952-Present)
1952: McManus has the dining hall building cut into three pieces and
moves at [east two of them (Volumes 1 and 2) to the McManus-
owned property down the street, later known as Village Green;she
also has the McCallum Adobe disassembled, moved, and rebuilt
there. Volumes 1 and 2 are set in their current places. Volume 3
may also have been moved here at the same time, but newspaper
references indicate that a portion of the Oasis Hotel dining hall was
first moved to the new Palm Valley School,where it was remodeled
and served as a dining hall;Volume 3 is the most likely candidate.$
Volume 1 was used as a chapel and retail space, and usually used
the address 219 S. Palm Canyon Drive.Volume 2 was converted to
commercial storefronts, with the address 211 S. Palm Canyon
Drive. The 1952 permit notes "four store rooms and chapel, 8'
concrete block,frame and stucco, shake and shingle roof."9
1953: Concrete block addition (Volume 4) constructed to add a kitchen
and bathroom and to join Volumes 1 and 2.'o
1953-1955: If Volume 3 was not moved to Village Green previously, McManus
moves it now from Palm Valley School to the Village Green,setting
it at its current location and attaching it to Volume 2 (and possibly
extending Volume 4); its earliest occupant was Ruth Bibo's Acoma
Indian Shop."
$The Desert Sun,"Twenty Entered at Palm Valley School in First Year of Activity,"13 November 1952;
"Modern Cafeteria Feature of Palm Valley School," 14 September 1953. The exact address of Palm
Valley School is unclear;the November 1952 article describes it as"located on the property formerly
owned by the Marsden Foundation some four miles east of downtown Palm Springs,just off Highway
111."In 1992,the school moved to a new campus in Rancho Mirage.
e Palm Springs Building Department(PSBD), Permit 5806, 9/22/52. Plumbing and electrical permits
from 1952-1953 also exist(day and month illegible),but despite their use of the address 211 S.Palm
Canyon Drive, it is not clear which Village Green building(s) they are for. See PSBD, Permit 4864,
12/3/52; Permit 6223, [month illegible]/21/52; Permit 4762, [month illegible]/23/52; Permit 5304,
12/1/53;Permit 5724,[month illegible]/18/53.There is a great deal of address fluctuation during this
early period,and 211 S.Palm Canyon Drive sometimes refers to up to three different buildings.
10 PSBD,Permit 6466,11/4/53.
11 The Desert Sun,Ad for Hostess House,24 December 1953;"Mary Booth Killed,Two Injured in Auto
Crash," 3 April 1957; "Art Center Has Tea at Opening," 22 November 1955; "Real Joy on Tahquitz"
(Adele Joan Brott letterto the editor),11 February 1987.Bibo's shop was noted being at Village Green
as early as December 1953,but If Volume 3 was in fact moved a year or two later than Volumes 1 and
2,the shop would have occupied Volume 2 first and then moved to, or expanded into, the larger
Volume 3.
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65
1956-1958 The exteriors and interiors of Volumes 1, 2, and 3 are extensively
altered for commercial use, including window and door opening
modifications; door and window replacement; addition of
concrete block cladding to Volumes 1 and 3; and addition of the
projecting porch. Fabric awnings are added to Volumes 1 and 3."
1957-1958: Electrical work in Volume 1 for occupant Claudette Pressman
(Colbert)."
1958: Electrical work in Volume 1 for occupant Jolie Gabor."
1976: "Renewal of roofs and minor remodeling of Village Green
Buildings" (unknown which buildings)."
Upgrade of electrical and mechanical services to accommodate
new air conditioner(unknown which buildings)."
1987 Flat roof of Volume 4 repaired in Volume 2 area, at location of air
conditioning equipment.17 Occupant at that time: Gabrielle Dress
Shop."
1988 Village Green landscaping altered: grading changed, fountain and
brick plaza added, walkways altered, steps to Volume 1
reconfigured and ramp added to one side.19
1991 Minor interior alterations for conversion to Agua Caliente Cultural
Museum: bathroom area altered, 10' long track light added,
display areas and dioramas installed.ZO
1992 Major interior alterations for museum conversion: new opening
with steps placed between Volumes 1 and 2, headers and partition
walls added."
1995: Volume 3 tenant improvements for fudge-making shop with retail
sales; alterations include addition of the current retail counters
Palm Springs Historical Society photos of Jolie Gabor and other Village Green shops ca. 1958 and
1970;The Desert Sun,"Continental Charm Now Added to Village Green by New Shops,"28 November
1958,"Art Gallery to Open Today with Exhibit and Tea,"1 November 1956.
"PSBD,Permit 8741,10/16/57;Permit 146,1/6/58.
1"PSBD,Permit 950,12/12/58.
1s PSBD,Permit B10409,8/17/76.
16 PSBD,Permit A8428,8/17/76;Permit M3960,8/17/76.
1'PSBD,Permit 11886,12/3/87.
1s Newspaper ads and historic photos show Gabrielle Dress Shop at 211 S.Palm Canyon Drive(Volume
3);it is unknown whether the business extended into Volume 2 at 215 S.Palm Canyon Drive,or if the
permits just have the incorrect address.
9 Larry Boodry,"The Road to Fame Paved with Good Intentions,"The Desert Sun 19 February 1988.
20 PSBD,Permit B20264,3/21/91.
21 PSBD,Permit 23477,8/28/92.
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and food preparation area, and may include addition of the
dropped boxed ceiling and covering of the wood slats at the ceiling
of the original volume,though the permit does not specify.22
1999: Volume 3 reroofed "per city project 9748, bid schedule C."21
2009: Existing non-lit sign removed from Volume 3; new internally lit can
sign installed.24
In addition to the aforementioned alterations,ARG noted the following additional
alterations to the rear(northwest)fa4ade of Volume 1 that are not documented in
building permits, photographs, or other source materials. These alterations were
identified by visual inspection of the building conducted by ARG staff on July 14,
2017.
• Addition of projecting shed with vertically scored plywood cladding and
double metal doors (attached to Volumes 1 and 4)
• Addition of a sliding aluminum window
• Addition of vertically scored plywood cladding
• Addition of double fully glazed metal doors with security gate
• Addition of pole ramada
The aluminum window likely dates to the late 1950s-late 1960s, while the rest of
the alterations most likely date to the volume's conversion into the Agua Caliente
Cultural Museum in the early 1990s.
zz PSBD,Permit 828886,5/31/95.
s PSBD, Permit B37604,9/8/99.
24 PSBD, Permit C23998,4/24/09,
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4. Historic Contexts
4.1 Hotel and Resort Development in Palm Springs, 1919-
1952�5
Originally inhabited by the people of the Cahuilla tribe, later known as the Agua
Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians,Palm Springs was settled by European Americans
starting with John Guthrie McCallum in the 1880s. While McCallum brought his
family there for health reasons and envisioned a community that would draw other
health-seekers, others focused first on its agricultural potential. The new
inhabitants took advantage of the region's warm weather to grow produce which
ripened sooner and could reach Los Angeles markets earlier in the season.
However, the town's agricultural aspirations were short lived. A flood in 1894,
followed by years of drought, devastated the local farming industry. By the early
1900s, Palm Springs' agricultural ambitions were overshadowed by its emergence
as a resort destination, a quality that would come to define the desert city.26 New
arrivals like Nellie Coffman shared McCallum's enthusiasm for the warm, dry
climate, though they focused on developing Palm Springs as an exclusive winter
resort for a well-heeled clientele rather than just a health destination for people
seeking relief from physical ailments.
In 1918,Coffman and her sons,George Roberson and Earl Coffman,converted their
existing sanatorium of small tent cabins into the luxurious Desert Inn, on a parcel
eventually covering 3S acres and fronting on Palm Canyon Drive (originally Main
Avenue, until 1930).27 Over time, they transformed the Desert Inn into a lushly
landscaped complex with a large main building,concrete bungalows,tennis courts,
and the community's first swimming pool.21 It was a massive success, drawing a
great deal of attention to the sleepy village of Palm Springs and triggering rapid
commercial development that would continue to be resort-focused for decades to
come. Two new hotel properties followed the Desert Inn's lead and became iconic
destinations in their own right: Pearl McCallum McManus' Lloyd Wright-designed
Oasis Hotel (completed 1924) and Prescott Thresher Stevens' Walker and Eisen-
designed Hotel El Mirador(1928). The Oasis Hotel was particularly notable for its
innovative Early Modern design and slip-form concrete construction method,
distinguishing it from the more traditional Spanish Colonial Revival styles of the
u The following historic background is closely patterned on the Palm Springs citywide historic context
statement and uses its themes: Historic Resources Group, City of Palm Springs Historic Context
Statement&Survey Findings(City of Palm Springs:Department of Planning Services,2016).The date
range for the Hotel and Resort Development context is extended here to 1952,to reflect the time
period relevant to the Oasis Hotel dining room building.
26 Alan Hess and Andrew Danish,Palm Springs Weekend:The Architecture of a Midcentury Oasis(San
Francisco:Chronicle Books,2001),22-24,
2'Historic Resources Group,109.
2s ibid.
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Desert Inn and the El Mirador and announcing it as the future of Palm Springs
architecture.
The Desert Inn, El Mirador, and Oasis Hotel dominated Palm Springs's resort
environment through the 1930s,drawing wealthy guests looking for desert warmth
in the dead of winter.29 They served as resort hotels in every sense of the word,
providing dining facilities and other services to the community at a time when Palm
Springs had relatively few stand-alone restaurants and retail businesses. Taken by
the leisurely atmosphere of the desert oasis, hotel patrons often considered buying
a residence. Most of Palm Springs' early residents were prominent industrialists
and Hollywood moguls who bought second homes in the town.The new residents'
exclusive parties and various social occasions were often covered and popularized
in the Los Angeles Times and other newspapers throughout the 1920S.30 A number
of smaller hotels and resorts appeared to accommodate a wider variety of visitors;
these included properties like Sunshine Court(1919),the Ramona Hotel(converted
into the Palm Springs Hotel in 1921), the Del Tahquitz Hotel (1928), the Ingleside
Inn (1935), and numerous small bungalow courts.31 The community's desirable
climate meant that health resorts maintained a presence among the other hotels,
with the best-known property being the Reid Solarium (later known as the Reid
Clinic and Hospital).32 Many of the city's hotel and resort properties reflected a
Spanish Colonial Revival style meant to evoke the mythical romance of old
California, with the grander properties boasting ornate decorative elements,
towers, and colonnades.
As Palm Springs' resort economy grew and residential development continued,
commercial operations appeared to cater to both seasonal and permanent
residents. Most were concentrated along Main Avenue/Palm Canyon Drive, with
commercial storefronts spreading north from Tahquitz Canyon Way (originally
Spring Street)and south from there to a lesser degree.33 Local developer Julia Shaw
Patterson Carrell's Carnell Building (1935) and La Plaza shopping center (1936)
heralded a new era of commercial growth in the city. The concentration of
businesses along Palm Canyon Drive made them easily accessible by the hotels
lining the thoroughfare, as well as early residential developments directly adjacent
to it. Nightclubs like the Chi Chi (1935) and private clubs like the Palm Springs
Racquet Club (1933) and Pearl McManus' Tennis Club (1937) expanded the range
of recreational opportunities available.31 Palm Springs and its resorts weathered
the Great Depression in comparatively good shape; even the palatial El Mirador
29 Historic Resources Group, 58; Moya Henderson and the Palm Springs Historical Society, Palm
Springs(San Francisco:Arcadia Publishing,2009),8.
3°Historic Resources Group,58-59.
31 ibid.,113.
32 Ibid.,120.
33Ibid.,109.
34Ibid., 114-115,150-151.
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survived thanks to its Hollywood clientele, who made it "one of the most
prosperous, orgiastic symbols of extravagance in the midst of national poverty.""
By the time Palm Springs incorporated in 1938, it had become famous worldwide
as a "winter playground for Hollywood stars, European royalty and business
tycoons, all who came to enjoy the endless sunshine and serenity of the desert."36
Most development halted during World War II, aside from the rapid improvement
of Palm Springs Municipal Airport and the establishment of other military facilities
like the Palm Springs Air Base. The famous El Mirador was converted to an Army
hospital in 1942 and was maintained partially by Italian prisoners of war living in an
adjacent detention camp.37 At war's end, Palm Springs was poised for the growth
spurt that would change the face of the city's built environment, centered once
again on hotel development.
During the immediate postwar period, Palm Springs experienced a massive
increase in both tourists and seasonal residents reflecting the general prosperity of
the period. By 1951, the city's winter (peak) population had increased from 7,660
to almost 30,000.35 The year-round population also increased, not least because of
the new availability of affordable air conditioning systems that ameliorated some
of the summer's climate challenges. A number of new hotels appeared, ranging
widely in size but almost uniformly boasting the latest Modern architectural styles
designed by local architects as well as those from Los Angeles and across the
region.
The city's older hotels made dramatic upgrades to keep up with the pace of change.
The El Mirador, back in private hands, saw major renovations by architect Paul R.
Williams in association with the local firm Williams,Williams&Williams."Western
Hotels, Inc., new owner of the Oasis Hotel, reconfigured the resort's expansive site
plan in 1952 by removing some buildings at the north end of the property (the
dining hall and McCallum Adobe, reclaimed by Pearl McManus and moved to the
Village Green)and demolishing others(including the kitchen attached to the dining
hall and a stand-alone office).This made way for a large new commercial building
designed by Williams, Williams & Williams, as well as a broad expansion west
across S. Belardo Road that featured guest quarters and a new restaurant designed
in a flamboyant Modern style. In 1964, the Oasis Hotel added another Williams,
Williams & Williams-designed volume to the western part of its property, today
31 Dennis McDougal and Mike Meenan, "It's Check-Out Time for Palm Springs' El Mirador," Los
Angeles Times 27 July 1989,cited in Historic Resources Group,112.
" Draft Santa Rosa and Son Jacinto Mountains National Monument Management Pion and Draft
Environmental Impact Statement(U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management,
Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office,March 2003),3-5.
37 Historic Resources Group,58.
38 Western Resort Publications,Palm Springs Area Yearbook(Palm Springs:Ferris H.Scott, 1954),16
cited in Historic Resources Group,162.
39 Historic Resources Group,272.
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much altered and part of the Palm Mountain Resort & Spa. The postwar changes
to the Oasis Hotel were among many along Palm Canyon Drive at this time, as the
thoroughfare saw the construction of Mid-Century Modern department stores,
Googie restaurants, and New Formalist banks, along with other new projects on
various scales. The postwar development of Palm Springs continued in full swing
through the 1960s, resulting in the distinctive Modern built environment that
continues to dominate the City's commercial, residential,and civic buildings to this
day.
4.2 The Oasis Hotel
In 1923, Palm Springs landowner Pearl McCallum McManus teamed with her
husband Austin and Los Angeles architect Lloyd Wright to develop a hotel worthy
of her pioneer father's vision for the city.She wanted a distinctive resort that would
become a landmark to pay homage to John Guthrie McCallum and to draw guests
to the small village of Palm Springs. McManus sited it at the location of her family's
1884 adobe house, nestled in a cottonwood and orange grove at the southwest
cornerof Main Avenue(now S.Palm Canyon Drive)and Spring Street(nowTahquitz
Canyon Way). The hotel that would gain fame as the Oasis Hotel was called the
Hacienda before completion,and that is the name on all of Lloyd Wright's drawings
for the property. A 1923 handwritten note for an unknown promotional purpose
outlined McManus'goals for the hotel:
NEW Hotel now under construction in Palm Springs.
It is to be in fact a "Hacienda"with all the old traditional spirit of generous
hospitality in sympathy with the great traditions of the century.
The Hotel is the idea of Pearl McCallum McManus Builder and Owner
whose father, Judge McCallum, founded Palm Springs and to whom this
work is dedicated.
Built with heavy concrete walls with towers and enclosed courts patios and
pavillions, it will be a rugged and dignified monument to the work of Judge
McCallum, one of the first lawmakers of California."
Hiring Wright to design the hotel was a bit of a gamble for McManus; though he
was an experienced and highly regarded architect and landscape architect, Wright
had only completed a few residential designs since moving back to Los Angeles in
1919, and the Oasis was by far his largest project to date.41 Furthermore, his
organic modern designs, expanding on the work of his famous father, would be a
significant departure from the rustic ranch and romantic Spanish Colonial Revival
40 Author unknown, "Cut of 'Hacienda'" handwritten note, 1923, Lloyd Wright papers (Collection
1561)(UCLA Library Special Collections,Charles E.Young Research Library,UCLA).
41 Hess and Danish,27.
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architecture that dominated Palm Springs at that time. The hire was even risky in
national terms, as discussed by historian Alan Hess:
There was no precedent for using a distinctly Modern design for a resort
anywhere in the country before the Oasis...Resorts contemporary to the
Oasis, built for the burgeoning car tourism industry, boasted exotic,
historically based designs like the Taos-inspired La Fonda by Rapp and Rapp
in Santa Fe, or the rustic luxury of the Ahwahnee Lodge in Yosemite Park.
The Oasis was boldly unique.42
Wright's design was unique indeed: a complex of attached buildings and
landscaped courtyards dominated by a three-story concrete tower topping the
main 20-room hotel volume.The complex had green lawns,flowering trees,shaded
terraces, and a fountain creating a lush respite from the surrounding desert. The
northern part of its Palm Canyon frontage was set back from the street and
obscured by trees, while the southern part included integrated commercial
storefronts attached to the main hotel building and set flush with the sidewalk."
With its carefully landscaped,courtyard-focused site plan,the Oasis Hotel complex
reflected the influence of historic Spanish forms as translated into a new organic
modern idiom.
Most of the complex's buildings, including an office, lobby, shops, and kitchen in
addition to the main hotel, used an innovative "slip-form" concrete construction
technique creating decorative joint lines left visible on the exterior walls. Other
ornamentation included redwood slat grilles, stepped piers, and areas of abstract
patterning in cast concrete.Although Rudolf Schindler was regarded as the first to
use the slip-form construction method (as seen at his 1923 Pueblo Ribera
apartments in San Diego),the Oasis Hotel design shows that Wright was also using
the technique at the time.44 The concrete buildings reflected the architect's design
aesthetic, using massive, exposed structural forms and naturalistic materials to
create connections between the built environment and the site. Wright's form of
organic expressionism sometimes incorporated indigenous-inspired design motifs
to lend an Aztec- or Mayan-like feel to his buildings, and the Oasis Hotel
(particularly its dramatically stepped tower) is one of the best examples.
42 Hess and Danish,31.
43 These storefronts are intact but were not included as part of the Class 1 designation for the Oasis
Hotel and Tower(HSPB-10).
44 Hess and Danish,28.
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Lloyd Wright's
Hacienda Hotel site
plan,1923.
Courtesy Palm
Springs Historical
Society.
Hacienda Hotel
rendering,1923.
Courtesy UCLA
Library Special
Collections.
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Dining Hall
sr
Detail of the 1923
rendering showing
the dining hall
building.Base
image courtesy
McCallum A UCLA Library Special
Collections.
The resort's non-concrete buildings, at the north part of the property, included a
wood-framed, gable-roofed dining hall volume; this volume's northeast corner
attached to the 1884 McCallum Adobe house,which served as a lounge.The dining
hall building also connected to a slip-form concrete kitchen building, covered
terraces (including a pole-roofed ramada on the east fagade), and a covered
walkway leading to the main hotel building. The majority of the dining hall's side
facades consisted of repeating sets of French doors set into simple wood framing;
the two end facades had expanses of vertical wood slat cladding that visually
integrated the dining hall building with the wood grilles and balcony railings on the
hotel building. The north facade (facing Spring Street/Tahquitz Canyon Way) also
included stepped slip-form concrete at its corners,connecting it to the buildings on
either side. This kind of juxtaposition of vertical wood slats and horizontal slip-
formed concrete, seen in several areas of the overall complex, helped to unify the
different building types into a harmonious composition, illustrating Wright's
thoughtful use of natural materials.
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i7
F
;'. Ali✓ _-. ' ,�-= _
i J
}
Oasis Hotel dining
hall west and south
facades,view
northeast,ca.1924. w
Courtesy Palm
Springs Historical +.
Society. "
s
LIL
s
r
Oasis Hotel dining
hall north facade, -
view south,ca.
1924.Courtesy 'y - Ak . .
UCLA Library Special
Collections.
The 90-foot-long dining hall was a single, open space with exposed structural
elements that gave it a pavilion-like feel and constituted the bulk of its
ornamentation; these included exposed roof scissor trusses, wood slat ceilings,
simple wood columns, and French doors on three sides.The building was designed
to incorporate two standing cottonwood trees, which pierced the roof and
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enhanced the hall's rustic feeling. Photographs show that the interior was further
decorated with an open brazier, decorative fabric hangings, and dried desert
shrubs tucked into the roof trusses.
i
Oasis Hotel dining
hall interior,ca.
1924.Courtesy
UCLA Library Special
Collections.
With its single open space,wood framing, exposed roof trusses,and incorporation
of natural elements, the dining hall reflected the same aspects of Lloyd Wright's
organic expressionist design philosophy that the massive concrete buildings did,
just in a different medium. Its roof assembly was particularly emblematic of
Wright's designs, hinting at the essentially all-roof Wayfarers Chapel to come
nearly 30 years later.The building's scissor trusses reflect 30-60 degree angles,the
same angles that occur in nature in snowflakes, crystals, and tree branches; like
that of his father Frank Lloyd Wright, Lloyd Wright's organic designs consciously
used these oblique angles whenever possible," The trusses' wood flanking
elements extend below the gentler slope of the gabled roof at the same angles,
helping to emphasize the roof structure as the interior's primary ornamentation.
Both the Oasis Hotel dining hall and Wayfarers express, albeit on vastly different
scales, Wright's devotion to exposed structure as a means to bring the outdoors
inside.
The completion of the Oasis Hotel in 1924 and official opening in 1925 was cause
for much celebration,though the cost of the property's construction left McManus
9' National Register of Historic Places,Wayfarers Chapel, Rancho Palos Verdes, Los Angeles County,
California,National Register#20050711.
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without sufficient funds to actually operate it. McManus leased the hotel to Los
Angeles-based operator W.E. Han ner for several years,who successfully promoted
it as a hotel that "combines beauty, recreation and creature comforts to a
remarkable degree. A visit to this fascinating spot will be one long remembered,
one whose haunting memories will ever be inviting a repetition.""The Oasis Hotel
became a desirable destination for the movie stars, wealthy industrialists, and
tastemakers who shaped Palm Springs as a winter destination during the 1920s. In
1927, McManus sold the hotel to Hobart Garlick and his wife Isabel, prompting a
letter to Garlick from Lloyd Wright, who was apparently unsatisfied with the way
the project had turned out:
...I learn you have taken over the Oasis Hotel and understand you intend to
develop it properly and thoroly [sic].
Having designed the group I am particularly interested in its fate and
obviously would like the opportunity to properly develop and complete it.
The Hotel having changed hands, I am now at liberty to call attention to
the fact that it was built at a remarkably low cost. For obvious reasons an
opposite position has been maintained by the owners for general
consumption.
Through lack of funds and vision additions and repairs required to make it
a practical and livable hotel have been neglected.
May I have the privilege of a conference with you in the near future."
It is unknown exactly what Wright had in mind, or whether any of the proposed
additions and repairs took place during the Garlicks' tenure. The full extent of
Wright's involvement with the property's 1920s design is unclear in one other
respect: in 1925, the Oasis added a second unit, comprising a large two-story
building at the northwest corner of the parcel that added about 28 guest rooms to
the existing 22.^8 This building does not appear on any original drawings and it is
unknown whether it was designed by Wright. The 1926 Sanborn map does not
show it as concrete construction,so it is assumed to have been wood-framed with
stucco or wood cladding.
The Garlicks brought the Oasis Hotel to even greater success and wide recognition,
operating it for over a decade with the help of assistant manager George Linde.
Isabel died of a prolonged illness in 1937, and Hobart committed suicide on the
premises in 1940.'
"Oasis Hotel promotional booklet,Lloyd Wright papers,UCLA.
^'Wright letter to Hobart Garlick(8 April 1927), Lloyd Wright papers,UCLA.
^a"Oasis Hotel,Palm Springs,Calif."Typewritten notes on construction of first and second units, 20
November 1929,Lloyd Wright papers,UCLA;Sanborn Map Company,1926.
49 Wenzell,"The Garlicks Built Up Oasis Hotel."
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Linde and his wife took over management of the property after Garlick's death;the
ownership of the hotel at the time is unclear. The Uncles added a swimming pool
and two guest cottages to the complex in early 1941.50 The property was briefly
owned by Mrs. Dudley Alberts and her son J.H. Alberts, who sold it to Dewey
Metzdorf, senior vice president of Western Hotels Inc., in 1944.51 The Alberts'
manager George Thompson stayed on, and later became a part owner with
Metzdorf.52 In 1952, Metzdorf sold the hotel to his own company.Western Hotels,
Inc. wished to increase the property's commercial potential, and to that end had
the firm Williams,Williams&Williams(in association with Clark and Frey) design a
two story non-hotel buildingforthe parcel's northeast corner. It also expanded the
Oasis to the west, constructing new guest quarters and a new dining
room/restaurant. The changes necessitated the removal or demolition of several
buildings, including the dining hall and McCallum Adobe. Having reserved the right
to the buildings, Pearl McManus moved these buildings from their original location
to what is now the Village Green, a block to the south.
The Former Oasis Hotel Dining Hall at the Village Green
Pearl McManus had obvious sentimental reasons for moving her family's historic
adobe home to the nascent Village Green (one of her many holdings fronting on
Palm Canyon Drive)in 1952. Her move of the Oasis Hotel dining hall building to the
same property appears to have been for purely commercial reasons. McManus had
a keen sense of how she wanted Palm Springs to grow and change, and she saw
the establishment of Palm Canyon Drive as a popular shopping destination as key
to its postwar success. Village Green, first referred to as such in 1953, was one of
her earliest retail ventures on Palm Canyon; its open lawn encircled by a
hodgepodge of small repurposed buildings represented a transition between the
genteel, rustic Palm Springs of the 1920s and 1930s and the bustling city of the
space age.53
McManus planned the Village Green as an indoor-outdoor marketplace for arts and
crafts and western shops, "with the old adobe as the center of interest...in that
immediate and compact area" to tell the story of her family's founding of Palm
Springs.54 The adobe had to be carefully disassembled and then reassembled brick
by brick at the new site. The Oasis Hotel dining hall appears to have been cut into
three pieces for the move, and at least two of the pieces (today's Volume 1 and
Volume 2)were placed at their current locations in 1952.55 The third piece(today's
so The Desert Sun,"Oasis Hotel Completes Improvement Program,"14 February 1941.
s'The Desert Sun,"Hotel,The Oasis,Bought by Hotel Man from Alaska,"7 April 1944.
sz Wenzell,'The Garlicks Built Up Oasis Hotel;"The Desert Sun, "Hotel The Oasis Re-Opens for New
Season Wednesday,"3 November 1944.
"The Desert Sun, "Hostess House to Open Monday in Historic Old McCallum Adobe,"24 December
1953.
54 Ibid.
ss Palm Springs Building Department(PSBD),Permit 5506,9/22/52,
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Volume 3) may have been moved there at the same time, but several
contemporaneous newspaper articles state that the "former Oasis Hotel dining
room" (clearly only a portion of it given the 1952 presence of Volumes 1 and 2 at
the Village Green) had been donated by McManus to the new Palm Valley School
for use as a dining hall.56 Volume 3 is the most likely candidate. Historic
photographs of the private school's buildings at that time show multiple gable-
roofed wood buildings, several of which could have been Volume 3.57 Whether it
was moved with the other two pieces or a year or two later,Volume 3 was present
at its current location by 1955 at the latest.
In the earliest Village Green years,Volume 1 was used as a chapel and retail space,
usually listed at the address 219 S. Palm Canyon Drive.The attached Volume 2 was
used for one or more retail occupants,with the address 211 S. Palm Canyon Drive.
Volume 3 also contained retail occupants,with the same address as Volume 2;the
215 S. Canyon Drive address does not seem to have been used by Volume 2
occupants until the 1970s. In 1953, the Volume 4 concrete block addition was
constructed to help attach Volumes 1 and 2 and provide space for a kitchen and
bathroom." The extent of other alterations to the dining hall volumes upon their
initial move is unknown; most of the exterior alterations that resulted in their
current appearance(including the matching concrete block kneewall on Volumes 1
and 3) likely happened between 1956 and 1958. In 1956, McManus started using
the McCallum Adobe as an art gallery for the Desert Art Center and Volume 2 as an
art supply store for the same organization.59 Originally established in Cathedral
City,the Desert Art Center opened a Palm Springs branch on N. Palm Canyon Dr. in
1955 and apparently used the Village Green buildings as a secondary location
providing indoor-outdoor exhibit space.
se The Desert Sun,"Twenty Entered at Palm Valley School""Modern Cafeteria Feature"
57 See The Desert Sun,Aerial photo,21 September 1953 p.4;Photo,1 October 1953 p.4.
58 PSBD,Permit 6466,11/4/53.
59 The Desert Sun, "Art Gallery to Open Today with Exhibit and Tea," 1 November 1956;ads for art
supplies at 211 S.Palm Canyon Drive and art exhibit at 223 S.Palm Canyon Drive,29 November 1956.
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Village Green in
tl 1958(Oasis Hotel
volumes at right).
The Desert Sun,
11/28/58.
The Village Green buildings remained a collection of eclectic local craft shops and
Desert Art Center facilities until 1958. In that year, Pearl McManus unveiled a new
continental theme for the complex,with its former Oasis Hotel dining hall volumes
sporting new awnings and a unified white paint scheme.A new filigreed entry gate
appeared at the (completely open on either side) entrance to the green, and
highbrow tenants like Jolie Gabor's Pearl Salon, Madelyn Fio Rito Italian Imports,
Le Rouge Interior Designs, and an espresso shop joined the McCallum Adobe and
the resolutely rustic Marge Riley's Western Shop.60 The complex maintained the
same general look,with tenant turnover and minor exterior repairs and alterations,
for over a decade.
In 1970,the McCallum Desert Foundation (which managed McManus'estate after
her 1966 death) donated Village Green and its buildings to the City of Palm Springs
for use as a city park.The complex began shifting from a retail complex to a heritage
park operated by the Palm Springs Historical Society,aided by the 1979 addition of
the Cornelia White house and the repurposing of the McCallum Adobe as a
museum. In 1987, Ruddy's General Store (a modern building)was added.The next
year, the City altered the Village Green's landscaping to add a fountain and brick
plaza celebrating the 50th anniversary of incorporation; the work changed the
grading and walkways as well. The former dining hall buildings continued to be
used primarily for retail purposes,with some office tenants, until Volumes 1 and 2
were converted to the Agua Caliente Museum in 1991-1992. The early to mid-
1990s saw the majority of the property's interior alterations since the 1950s,with
major alterations for the museum spaces and for the fudge shop that has occupied
Volume 3 since 1995.61 Exterior alterations seem to have been limited to
60 The Desert Sun, "Continental Charm Now Added to Village Green by New Shops," 28 November
1958.
61 PSBD,Permit 23477,8/28/92,Permit B28886,5/31/95.
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removal/change of awnings, paint color changes, roof material replacement, and
signage updates.
As of 2017, the former Oasis Hotel dining hall volumes continue to be owned by
the City of Palm Springs, and occupied by two tenants: the Agua Caliente Cultural
Museum and Palm Springs Fudge and Chocolates. The building's exterior is nearly
unrecognizable as a component of the historic hotel, though its interior retains
original elements like exposed scissor trusses, chamfered corners, and wood slat
ceilings as striking evidence of Lloyd Wright's innovative design.
4.3 Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright, Jr. (more commonly known as Lloyd Wright) was born on
March 21, 1890 in Oak Park, Illinois to Catherine Lee Tobin and prolific architect
Frank Lloyd Wright. His mother,who ran a nursery school in their home,introduced
Lloyd to art, music, and drama at an early age.As a teenager, Lloyd was exposed to
the creativity and intensity of his father's Oak Park studio, where he learned from
some of his father's most talented associates,including Marion Mahony Griffin and
William Drummond. From 1907 to 1909, Wright attended the University of
Wisconsin, Madison, where he majored in engineering and agronomy, played in
chamber music groups,and rowed on the crew team.His time at the university was
cut short when he received an invitation from his father to join him in Italy(where
_ the elder Frank had escaped with the wife of one of his clients).62 Though angry at
his father, Lloyd agreed to travel to Italy and help his father develop the drawings
that came to comprise the highly-regarded Wasmuth portfolio,published in Europe
in 1910.61
Upon returningto the United States,Lloyd Wright was determined to make a name
for himself. After briefly working at the Harvard Herbarium in Boston, he was hired
by Olmsted and Olmsted,the renowned landscape architecture firm that designed
New York's Central Park and originated landscape design in America.61 In 1911,
Wright moved to California with the Olmsted brothers to assist in designing the
landscape of the Panama-California Exposition in San Diego. In 1912,the Olmsteds
resigned from their work on the Exposition, upset that Bertram Goodhue, rather
than noted San Diego architect Irving Gill, had been appointed as chief designer of
the Exposition. Wright resigned from his duties at the Exposition as well and took
up practice with Irving Gill. Gill gave Wright full control over the landscape designs
of his architectural commissions.Together,Wright and Gill designed a plan for the
"Thomas S.Hines,"The Blessing and the Curse:The Achievement of Lloyd Wright,"in Lloyd Wright:
The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright,Jr.,ed.Cathryn Drake(New York:Harry N.Abrams,Inc.,1998),
13.
63 Ernest 0. Martin, The Beauty of Holiness: Story of the Wayfarers Chapel (Virginia Beach: The
Donning Company Publishers,2007),19.
64 National Register of Historic Places,Wayfarers Chapel, Rancho Palos Verdes, Los Angeles County,
California,National Register#20050711.
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City of Torrance, in south Los Angeles County. When work at Gill's office slowed in
the mid-1910s, Wright partnered with Paul Thiene, a colleague from the Olmsted
firm. Along with creating the garden designs of several residences, Wright and
Thiene developed the landscape design for the La Brea Tar Pits, including the
original prehistoric animal sculptures at the site.6s
In 1916, Lloyd set up his own practice in downtown Los Angeles. It was during this
time that he became a set designer at Paramount Pictures, creating a number of
classical and medieval sets. During World War I, Wright, along with his new wife,
actress Kira Markham, moved to the East Coast to work as a draftsman for the
Standard Aircraft and Curtis Aircraft companies. While there, he created sets for
the well-established theater group the Provincetown Players on Cape Cod.66
In 1919, after his marriage to Kira had begun to fail, Wright moved back to Los
Angeles to assist his father with the landscape design for the Hollyhock House(one
of Frank Lloyd Wright's most celebrated works of his career).67 Lloyd continued to
work with his father on a number of projects, including the Doheny Ranch Resort
(1923), before venturing out on his own again. By the early 1920s, Lloyd was
employing new and innovative construction methods in his residential designs.
Though he drew inspiration from some of this father's design principles, Lloyd
applied his own unique point of view to his creations. His use of the "knit-block"
system (in which double walls of four-inch-thick blocks are tied together by steel
rods) in the Henry Bollman house (Hollywood, 1922), and "slip-form" concrete
construction in the Oasis Hotel and the Martha Taggart House (Los Angeles, 1922;
Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #521), exemplified Wright's creative
construction techniques.68
Wright became known for his Expressionist designs, through which he blended
modern architectural modes and construction materials with indigenous design
motifs.Some of his most notable examples include the Sowden House(Los Angeles,
1926; Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #762), the Derby House (Los
Angeles, 1926), and the Samuel-Novarro House (Los Angeles, 1928; Los Angeles
Historic-Cultural Monument #130).69 Although the Oasis Hotel was one of his
earliest large commissions and reflected his Expressionist design philosophy, it is
less well-known than his residential work due to the 1950s alterations to the
complex; the construction of the new Oasis commercial building largely obscured
the hotel's primary facade, visible now only through a walkway between the two
buildings.
6s Hines,15.
66 Hines,15-16.
67 Martin,20.
68 Hines,19-21.
69 Hines,21.
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In the late 1920s,Wright was commissioned to design the stage for the Hollywood
Bowl.Though he created two acoustically successful shells for the Bowl, both were
replaced(for different reasons)with a design by Allied Architects,which lacked the
fine acoustical qualities of Wright's creations. Despite his misgivings with the
Hollywood Bowl project and his unchosen forward-thinking design for the Los
Angeles Civic Center, Wright's career flourished through the 1920s.70 Many of his
residential works were published in magazines such as Popular Mechanics,
Architectural Record, and California Arts and Architecture.71
In 1926, Lloyd married actress Helen Taggart. Lloyd and Helen met in Los Angeles
theater circles in the early 1920s, and Helen recommended that her mother,
Martha Taggart, commission Lloyd to design her house (which he did in 1922).
Helen Taggart once had a home in Palm Springs,during her previous marriage,and
it is likely that her connection to the city had something to do with Pearl McManus
hiring Wright to design her Oasis Hotel.72 Helen brought her son Rupert from a
previous marriage with her, whom Lloyd gladly accepted as his stepson. In 1929,
Helen and Lloyd had their own son, Eric Lloyd Wright,who would go on to become
an established architect and landscape designer as well.
With the 1929 stock market crash and the onset of the Great Depression,Wright's
commissions began to wane. Most of his projects during this time were smaller
residences and lacked the creativity of his earlier works. One exception was his
design forthe Griffith ranch house(Woodland Hills, 1936),a prelude to the postwar
California Ranch style, and through which Wright revived his talent for integrating
landscape and dwelling through trellises, porches, and garden elements.73 In the
late 1930s, Wright received commissions for two federally sponsored Los Angeles
Housing projects. In both Aliso Village and Ramona Gardens, Wright's main
contributions were to the landscape designs.74
Wright obtained what many consider to be his most noted commission in the
postwar era for the design of Wayfarers Chapel in Rancho Palos Verdes,California.
Following its completion in 1951, the chapel received recognition for its organic,
yet indisputably modern design.In an interview with the Los Angeles Times,Wright
explained that "in this modern age of glass we can turn outward to the beauty of
the world, to the tree groves which were Man's first chapels."75 Wright integrated
natural as well as modern materials to create a structure that was open to and
effortlessly blended with its surrounding environment.This contrasted greatly with
traditional churches,which were largely separated from their outside environment
J0 Hines,27-28.
J'Hines,22-23.
72 Hess and Danish,27.
73 Hines,31.
70.Hines,33.
75 "Glass Chapel Challenges Church Designs of the Past: Modernistic Edifice in Palos Verdes Hills
Readied for Formal Dedication May 13,"Los Angeles Times,29 April 1951,B1,
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by thick walls and lack of natural light. In 1952, Wayfarers Chapel was included in
the Museum of Modern Art's exhibition titled "Built in the USA: Post-War
Architecture," and in 1956, it was chosen as one of the 18 most excellent church
buildings in America by the National Council of Churches' Commission on
Architecture. Wright continued to serve as the chapel's consulting architect, later
along with his son, Eric, up to his death in 1978.
ire
Wayfarers Chapel,
Rancho Palos
Verdes,California.
ARG,2015.
As in the 1920s, single-family residences comprised many of Wright's projects in
the postwar era.Wright's designs during this period still represented his own brand
of Expressionism. Projects such as the Moore House (Palos Verdes, 1956), the
Bowler House (Palos Verdes, 1963),and the Lombardi House (Palos Verdes, 1965),
represented a blending of space age imagery and organic architectural philosophy
through their spatial configurations, oblique angles, sweeping rooflines, and
natural materials.76 In 1966, the Architects and Engineers Service Building Center
in Los Angeles presented an exhibit on Wright's work titled, Five Decades of Living
Architecture: Lloyd Wright, Architect, and in 1971, an exhibit on Wright was
displayed at the University of California, Santa Barbara titled Lloyd Wright: 20"
Century Architecture in an Organic Exhibition.
In Wright's later years, he became involved in Los Angeles' burgeoning
preservation movement, helping to prevent the demolition of buildings such as
Bertram Goodhue's Los Angeles Public Library (1926), and guiding the restoration
of some of his father's works, including the Storer and Hollyhock houses in Los
Angeles. Weakened from a long battle with pneumonia, Lloyd Wright died of a
heart attack on May 31, 1978. Though often overshadowed by his prodigious
father, Lloyd Wright proved successful at creating his own unique designs,
76 Hines,34.
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incorporating innovative construction techniques while maintaining a sense of
place and harmony with the surrounding environment.
4.4 Pearl McCallum McManus
Pearl McCallum was born in 1879 in San Francisco to John Guthrie McCallum and
Emily McCallum. Her father was an Indiana native who came to prominence as a
lawyer and political figure in San Francisco; he first moved his family to Southern
California to serve as Indian agent in San Bernardino, and in 1884 made another
move to the Coachella Valley, settling near the Cahuilla village of Agua Caliente in
1884. The McCallum family, who hoped the desert climate would improve the
health of their tubercular son Johnny, were the first Euroamerican settlers in the
area that would become Palm Springs. Pearl McCallum was the youngest of the five
McCallum children (and the only one who would live past the age of 30) and later
said she fell in love with the desert on this very first trip."
The family established a ranch centered on their new home, a small adobe building
sited near a creek, and John McCallum pursued land development as well as
ranching.7B Employing members of the local Cahuilla tribe, McCallum built a ditch
system, planted alfalfa, grapes, oranges, and apricots, and began to buy up
property; he also founded the Palm Valley Water Company. 79 He eventually
consolidated thousands of acres and worked hard to promote his vision of a new
community called Palm Valley. McCallum envisioned Palm Valley(soon to become
known as Palm Springs) as a haven for anyone seeking a climatic cure for
respiratory health problems.
The McCallums also established a residence in the West Adams neighborhood of
Los Angeles, where Emily McCallum and the children spent much of their time and
Pearl attended school. The family met with a number of tragedies in the 1890s,
including the deaths of two sons,water use issues,and a flood and massive drought
that wiped out the ranch's plantings and caused many in Palm Valley to abandon
their holdings.John McCallum died in 1897, but not before admonishing his three
surviving children to "pay the taxes...hold onto the land."80 Pearl took that request
to heart, and dedicated much of her adult life to fulfilling her father's vision of a
new community in the desert.
"Renee Brown, "Pearl McCallum McManus Continued Fathers Legacy," The Desert Sun, 7 March
2015.
7e The McCallums'1884 home was later incorporated into the 1924 Oasis Hotel complex and moved
to its current location at Village Green Heritage Park in 1952;it is designated as a City of Palm Springs
Class 1 Historic Site and is known to be the oldest building in the city.
" Palm Springs Life, "The McCallum Centennial—Palm Springs' Founding Family," April 1984,
reprinted 19 August 2010.
80 Poim Springs Life,"The McCallum Centennial"
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Following McCallum's death, surviving son Harry tried to keep his father's Palm
Springs interests alive while Pearl returned from school in Chicago to care for their
ailing mother in Los Angeles; Harry died in 1901. In dire financial straits, Pearl and
Emily moved back to the family adobe in Palm Springs.After Emily McCallum died
in 1914, Pearl assumed control of the family's land holdings, which by then
comprised between 5,000 and 6,000 acres, and committed herself to Palm
Springs.81 She married Pasadena real estate agent Austin G. McManus and the two
moved into the family adobe. They established Pioneer Realty, with Pearl as
president and Austin as secretary, and proceeded to develop the family holdings
(as well as new property) into a "real estate dynasty."82 In a prescient move, Pearl
"insisted on making the deeds to her properties reversible for architectural
reasons,putting restrictive covenants on the use of the land she sold."83 A covenant
of this type gave her the right to salvage the Oasis Hotel dining hall building and
the McCallum Adobe when Western Hotels, Inc. decided to construct a new
commercial building at their location in 1952.
Pearl McManus's 1924 establishment of the Oasis Hotel on the original McCallum
homestead heralded a new era in Palm Springs development, one that set a high
standard for commercial architecture and resort hotels in the city. Her other
properties, including the Tennis Club(1937, remodeled 1947), multiple apartment
buildings(including the first in Palm Springs,the ca. 1923 La Hacienda),and housing
developments like Tahquitz River Estates (1947) were crucial shapers in the
development of Palm Springs' built environment from the 1920s through the
1940s.McManus saw herself as a guiding force in the development of Palm Springs,
and used her quickly expanding finances and influence to ensure the city grew in
the right direction.
McManus was particularly instrumental in the development of Palm Canyon Drive
as a shopping destination during the post-World War II period.She owned much of
the frontage along the thoroughfare, and was careful about whom she sold it to
and for what purpose; her overall goal was developing Palm Canyon as a high-end
shopping district, and to that end she selected buyers and projects that would
produce architecturally notable properties like Robinson's department store
(1958).84 As The Desert Sun noted,
The beautiful building on Palm Canyon at Baristo, built by Mrs. McManus
and leased to Robinson's for 25 years, is concrete evidence of the
philosophy which its owner has built up over the years. It is a philosophy
which has kept her from disposing of her property in small plots for just
81 Renee Brown, "Pearl McCallum McManus Helped Shape Palm Springs," The Desert 5un, 29 April
2016.
82 Brown,"Helped Shape Palm Springs"
83 ibid.
84 The Desert Sun,"Pearl McManus Sells'Big Corner'for Saks Store,"21 February 1958;"Progress of
City Is Aim of Village's First Lady,"9 January 1958.
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any kind of commercial venture, holding it instead for something that will
be good for Palm Springs.
"It doesn't cost any more to design something beautiful than something
ordinary," Mrs. McManus always says, and this pioneer citizen has
consistently put the love of the Village and consideration for its future
ahead of more mundane considerations.85
Regarding McManus's sale of a large parcel at Palm Canyon Drive and Ramon Road
to developers planning to build the Saks Palm Springs department store, The Desert
Sun reported:
During the past decade Mrs. McManus has refused many offers for this
valuable piece of property, preferring to hold it and pay thousands of
dollars in taxes, until something big came along that she considered an
asset to the Village.
In discussing the sale with a Desert Sun reporter, Mrs. McManus said that
she feels this is one more step toward establishing Palm Canyon Drive as
one of the smart shopping centers of the world.
One of the largest property owners in Palm Springs, it is generally
recognized that Mrs. McManus' insistence on nothing but the best has
helped mould Palm Springs into the smart growing city it is today.H6
One of McManus' first commercial ventures on Palm Canyon Drive reflected a mix
of the rustic Palm Springs of earlier times and the burgeoning high-end goals of the
postwar period. This was the property to which she moved the McCallum Adobe
and the Oasis Hotel dining hall volumes, first referred to as the Village Green in
1953Y Its development is discussed above.
Thanks to her judicious sale of valuable parcels during the postwar period, Pearl
McManus grew even wealthier and more influential. As historian Renee Brown put
it, "She entertained lavishly many of the world's leading social and financial figures.
There were many who feared,and a few who genuinely loved Pearl McManus, but
there was none who secretly did not admire and respect the fierce lady sitting in
her pink mansion upon the hillside."" McManus expanded her existing
philanthropic efforts in the last decades of her life to help local organizations from
the Palm Springs Woman's Club to the Pathfinders. Before her death in 1966, she
created the McCallum Desert Foundation in memory of her father, ensuring that
ss The Desert Sun,"Progress of City."
B6 The Desert Sun,"Sells'Big Corner'."
g'The Desert Sun,"Hostess House to Open."
68 Brown,"Helped Shape Palm Springs"
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her estate would continue to help the institutions of her beloved Palm Springs long
after she was gone.
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5. Regulations and Criteria for Evaluation
5.1 City of Palm Springs Historic Site
The City of Palm Springs administers a local designation program in which individual
properties and concentrations of properties can be designated as Historic Sites and
Historic Districts, respectively. The designation of Historic Sites and Districts is
governed by Title 8, Chapter 8.05,Article III (Procedure for Designation of Historic
Sites or Districts) of the Palm Springs Municipal Code, which establishes and
authorizes a seven-member Palm Springs Historic Site Preservation Board (HSPB)
to identify, nominate and recommend potential historic sites or districts to the City
Council. To facilitate this process, the Ordinance establishes requirements that a
property must meet in order to qualify for designation as a historic site.89
Per the Municipal Code, a Historic Site is defined as "a building; a structure,
including but not limited to archways, tiled areas and similar elements; an
archaeological excavation or object that is unique or significant because of its
location,design,setting, materials,workmanship or aesthetic effect."90 A property
may be designated a Historic Site if it satisfies one or more of the following seven
evaluative criteria:
1. It is associated with events that have made a meaningful contribution to
the nation,state or community;or
2. It is associated with lives of persons who made meaningful contributions
to national, state or local history;or
3. It reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the national, state or local
history;or
4. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of
construction; or
5. It represents the work of a master builder, designer, artist, or architect
whose individual genius influenced his age; or that possesses high artistic
value; or
6. It represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components
may lack individual distinction; or
89 The City of Palm Springs is also a designated Certified Local Government (CLG), which is a
preservation partnership between the National Park Service (NPS),the State Historic Preservation
Offices (SHPOs) and local communities with a goal to create local commitments to historic
preservation.
90 City of Palm Springs Municipal Code, 8.05.020 — Historic Preservation, General Provisions,
Definitions.
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7. It has yielded or may be likely to yield information important to national,
state or local history or prehistory.91
In order for a property to qualify as a City of Palm Springs Historic Site, it must not
only be significant under one or more criteria but also retain integrity, which the
National Park Service defines as "the ability of a property to convey its
significance."92 While the City of Palm Springs Historic Sites Ordinance does not
explicitly include language about integrity, it does state that a historic site's
uniqueness and significance can be determined through its location, design,
setting, materials, workmanship or aesthetic effect.93 In nominating historic sites
to the local register, the City of Palm Springs follows guidelines on integrity
established bythe National Park Service forthe National Register of Historic Places.
The National Register has identified seven aspects of integrity as follows:
1. Location: the place where the historic property was constructed or the
place where the historic event occurred.
2. Design: the combination of elements that create the form, plan, space,
structure,and style of a property.
3. Setting:the physical environment of a historic property.
4. Materials:the physical elements that were combined or deposited during
a particular period of time and in a particular pattern or configuration to
form a historic property.
5. Workmanship:the physical evidence of the crafts of a particular culture or
people during any given period in history or prehistory.
6. Feeling: a property's expression of the aesthetic or historic sense of a
particular period of time.
7. Association:the direct link between an important historic event or person
and a historic property.
To convey historic integrity, a property will possess several, if not most, of these
aspects.94
Should a property satisfy one or more of the aforementioned criteria and retain
integrity, it is categorized into one of the following classifications by the Palm
Springs City Council:
91 City of Palm Springs Municipal Code,8.05.020.
92 National Park Service,Notional Register Bulletin#15:How to Apply the National Register Criteria
For Evaluation(Washington D.C.:U.S.Department of Interior,1990),44.
91 City of Palm Springs Municipal Code,8.05.020.
94 National Park Service,National Register Bulletin#15,44.
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Class 1. Structure/site qualified for city designation; may be qualified at the
federal,state and/or county level... (Intended for use when the structure or site
still exists as it did during the historical period or is restorable).
Class 2.Site qualified for city designation; may be qualified at the federal,state
and/or county level... (Intended for use when the site is not occupied by a
modern structure or use which is different than that of the historical period or
if structure is unusable, nonconforming, unrestorable, or the like).
Class 3.Structure/site was constructed before 1969,or a yearto be determined
by the City Council, or construction date cannot be confirmed. Eligible for a six-
month stay of demolition.95
Class 1 Historic Site designation serves as the highest level of local designation in
Palm Springs, ensuring that a "structure/site may not be modified nor objects
removed without approval of the city council," while its usage may also be
regulated or limited to "the extent that it may impair the integrity of the site."96
In most cases, local designation applies only to the exterior features of properties,
but the Palm Springs municipal code states that the interior features of designated
public buildings may be regulated:
The historic site preservation board shall consider and pass upon only the
exterior features of a structure and may not consider the interior
arrangement of the structure, except in the case of public buildings.97
This means that the interiors of public buildings (including places like government
buildings, libraries, and museums) may be considered and addressed when
evaluating properties for eligibility under City of Palm Springs criteria.
vs City of Palm Springs Municipal Code,8.05.125—Created by Council.
96Ibid.
97 City of Palm Springs Municipal Code,8.05.195.
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6. Evaluation of Significance
6.1 Previous Surveys and Designations
The property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive has not been formally designated at
the local,state,or federal level. In its City of Palm Springs Citywide Historic Context
Statement and Survey Findings report drafted 2015-2016,Historic Resources Group
(HRG) identified 219 S. Palm Canyon Drive as a potential historic resource. A
footnote in the historic context statement further notes "Several interior features
[of the Oasis Hotel dining room]were relocated to the ACBCI Cultural museum and
the Ice Cream shop at the Village Green Park. These features were not evaluated
as part of the survey, as interiors are outside the scope of the project; however,
the City could consider local designation."98
A portion of the Oasis Hotel still standing on its original site has been designated a
Class 1 Historic Site (Oasis Hotel and Tower, designated as HSPB-10 in 1985), but
the moved dining hall property is,not included in that designation. Neither is the
easternmost part of the original hotel building, containing Palm Canyon Drive-
fronting commercial storefronts that are an integral and original part of Lloyd
Wright's design for the Oasis Hotel.
6.2 City of Palm Springs Historic Site
Upon evaluation of 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive against City of Palm Springs
Historic Site eligibility criteria, ARG finds that the property appears eligible for
listing as a Palm Springs Class 1 Historic Site, as follows:
Criterion 1:It is associated with events that have made a meaningful contribution
to the notion, state or community.
The property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive is not associated with a singular
event that has made a meaningful contribution to the nation,state, or community.
Research did not indicate that any significant events occurred at the subject
property, either at its original location or its current location.Therefore,ARG does
not find the subject property eligible as a Class 1 Historic Site under City of Palm
Springs Criterion 1.
Criterion 2: It is associated with lives of persons who mode meaningful
contributions to national, state or local history.
98 Historic Resources Group, City of Palm Springs Citywide Historic Context Statement & Survey
Findings(City of Palm Springs:Department of Planning Services,2016),272.
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The subject property was originally owned by Pearl McCallum McManus, an early
pioneer and major shaper of Palm Springs who is significant for her meaningful
contributions to local history.She commissioned the construction of the 1924 Oasis
Hotel complex, and retained the rights to move the dining room building (along
with the McCallum Adobe) in 1952 when the hotel's owner decided to construct a
new building at their location. McManus owned a number of parcels along Palm
Canyon Drive, and moved the subject property to one of them;she envisioned the
repurposed building as part of a retail commercial complex that would help draw
visitors and shoppers to the burgeoning retail district.
Pearl McManus owned a number of commercial and residential properties in Palm
Springs,some of which, like her"pink mansion" personal residence,the McCallum
Adobe, and her beloved Tennis Club, were more directly and substantially
associated with her. However, her mansion is no longer extant and the condition
of most of her other major properties, excepting the extant Tennis Club, is
unknown. The property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive has a well-documented
association with McManus. Although it has experienced major alterations, the
most prominent were directed by McManus herself, in the service of repurposing
the building for new uses. Among the building's significant characteristics is a
handwritten "McManus"signature on the underside of a roof truss at Volume 3.
McManus' enduring attachment to this building reflects both her regard for Lloyd
Wright's architectural design and the ruthless practicality for which she was known,
best manifested in her covenants retaining some rights to buildings like these after
selling them. Her establishment, moving, reconfiguring, and repurposing of the
Oasis Hotel dining room building is also a clear indication of her vision for Palm
Springs commercial development as it evolved from the resort hotel-focused 1920s
to the Palm Canyon retail-focused 1950s. Because of the subject property's strong
association with significant individual Pearl McManus, ARG finds the property
eligible as a Class 1 Historic Site under City of Palm Springs Criterion 2.
Criterion 3. It reflects or exemplifies a particular period of the national, state or
local history.
When it was at its original location,the Oasis Hotel dining hall clearly exemplified
the resort-focused commercial development of Palm Springs during the 1920s.
However, its move to the Village Green in the early 1950s severed its association
with that pattern of development. Furthermore,the extensive exterior alterations
it endured as part of its repurposing into retail space greatly reduced its ability to
convey its association with 1920s development. At its new location and with its
new function,the building was part of a general 1950s push to turn S. Palm Canyon
Drive into a glamorous shopping destination. However, the bulk of the 1950s
development focused on the construction of new Mid-Century Modern buildings
and the renovating of older buildings to reflect this newer idiom.While 211-219 S.
Palm Canyon Drive and the Village Green in general were clearly associated with
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Pearl McManus' 1950s commercial endeavors as discussed above, the building
does not exemplify this particular period of local history on a broader scale. As a
result, ARG finds the property not eligible as a Class 1 Historic Site under City of
Palm Springs Criterion 3.
Criterion 4: It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method
of construction.
The subject property was originally part of the Oasis Hotel complex, parts of which
embodied the distinctive characteristics of the slip-form concrete construction
method pioneered by master architects Rudolf Schindler and Lloyd Wright. The
dining hall was not constructed using this method, but instead was wood-framed
and had a gabled roof with a scissor truss system. This type and method of
construction is not unusual or distinctive, but leaving the complex truss system
exposed on the building interior is both. Although the building was moved to a
different location in 1952 and experienced extensive alterations changing its
overall layout and exterior appearance,a substantial portion of its interior is intact.
The building's interior may be considered in the evaluation of its eligibility under
local criteria because this City-owned property is considered a public building."
The interior's exposed scissor truss roof system, which incorporates 30 and 60
degree angles as seen in natural forms like snowflakes,crystals,and tree branches,
reflects a type of architectural thinking which was still relatively new in the early
1920s: the early Modern view that structure should also serve as ornament. This
idea was derived partly from practitioners like Frank Lloyd Wright,who emphasized
the importance of natural materials and organic form.The purposeful revealing of
structure was embodied in the work of Lloyd Wright, as well as California
contemporaries like Schindler and Richard Neutra, and represented a clear break
from the Period Revival idiom in vogue at the time. The exposed interior roof
system of the dining hall building reflects a critically important period of early
experimentation with Modern ideas (as well as the individual genius of Lloyd
Wright, discussed below), and embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type
and period of construction.
Despite its many alterations, the subject property retains enough of its original
interior elements to strongly convey its historical appearance and its association
with early Modernism. As a result, ARG finds the property eligible under City of
Palm Springs Criterion 4.
Criterion 5:It represents the work of a master builder, designer artist, or architect
whose individual genius influenced his age,or it possesses high artistic value.
The Oasis Hotel complex was designed by master architect Lloyd Wright, and was
one of his earliest and largest independent commissions. Wright is widely
99 City of Palm Springs Municipal Code,8.05.195.
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recognized as an innovative and influential architect who built on the work of his
father Frank Lloyd Wright to create his own unique design philosophy. His
Expressionistic designs, which often incorporated naturalistic elements and
indigenous motifs, aimed to tie buildings to sites and vice versa, blurring the lines
between the indoors and outdoors. The Oasis Hotel exemplifies his design
philosophy, and the Class 1 Historic Site designation of the Oasis Hotel and Tower
(HSPB-10)testifies to the significance of the building historian Alan Hess called"one
of the first defining statements about a Modern architecture for the desert" and
"one of the great neglected buildings of California architecture."109
Wright's design for the Oasis Hotel dining hall differed from his design for the rest
of the complex in that it featured wood construction and finishes rather than slip-
form concrete. It also incorporated the existing McCallum Adobe, as owner Pearl
McManus envisioned her new resort hotel as a tribute to her pioneer father as
much as anything else. Wright's use of wood framing, a simple rectangular plan, a
gabled roof,wood slat cladding,and repeating French doors that opened to create
a pavilion-like feel served to seamlessly connect the 1884 adobe to the 1924 hotel
and to enhance the indoor-outdoor feel of the property. Although the dining hall
building was moved to a different location in 1952 and experienced extensive
alterations changing its overall layout and exterior appearance, a substantial
portion of its interior is intact. The building's interior may be considered in the
evaluation of its eligibility under local criteria because this City-owned property is
considered a public building.10.
The most visible and evocative evidence of Wright's individual genius is the
exposed interior roof system, including a wood slat ceiling and scissor trusses.This
system is most intact in Volumes 1 and 2, and exhibits the greatest complexity and
aesthetic effect in Volume 1.There,the trusses from four separate gables meet at
the center of the room in a complex configuration, and the four meeting points of
the gables themselves extend down to the floor at chamfered corners with bolted
vertical timber supports. It is easy to see why Pearl McManus intended this part of
the former dining hall to become a chapel at Village Green, and it is likewise easy
to see the connection between Volume 1's roof system and those in later Wright
designs like Wayfarers Chapel. In Volume 3, the roof's interior visual impact is
lessened by the covering over of the slat ceiling, though the scissor trusses are
extant; however, a portion of the original roof projects beyond the volume's east
faSade and retains all of its wood slat finish and original trusses (including one
bearing McManus' signature). As this portion was originally part of the building's
interior and retains its original features, for the purposes of evaluating eligibility
and integrity it is considered to be an interior rather than an exterior feature.
...Hess and Danish,28-29.
ro.City of Palm Springs Municipal Code,8.05.195.
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Despite its many alterations, the subject property retains enough of its original
interior elements to strongly convey its historical appearance and its association
with master architect Lloyd Wright. As a result, ARG finds it eligible under City of
Palm Springs Criterion 5.
Criterion 6:It represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components
may lack individual distinction.
As the subject property is not part of a district, it does not represent a significant
and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction.
Therefore,ARG concludes the property is not eligible as a Class 1 Historic Site under
City of Palm Springs Criterion 6.
Criterion 7: It has yielded or may be likely to yield information important to
national, state or local history or prehistory.
An archaeological assessment was not conducted as part of this study.As a result,
the subject property is left unevaluated under Criterion 7.
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7. Integrity Analysis
The National Register and California Register have specific language regarding
integrity. Both require that a resource retain sufficient integrity to convey its
significance. In accordance with the guidelines established by the National Park
Service, integrity is evaluated with regard to the retention of location, design,
setting, materials,workmanship,feeling, and association.
The City of Palm Springs'Historic Preservation Ordinance does not explicitly include
language regarding integrity,though it specifies location,design,setting,materials,
workmanship, and aesthetic effect as qualities that convey the significance and
uniqueness of a historic site. In nominating historic sites to the register,the City of
Palm Springs follows National Register guidelines on integrity.
Following is an evaluation of these aspects at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive:
Location
The place where the historic property was constructed or the place where the
historic event occurred.
The building has been moved from its original location, in the Oasis Hotel complex
at the southwest corner of S. Palm Canyon Drive and W. Tahquitz Canyon Way. It
does not retain integrity of location.
Design
The combination of elements that create the form,plan,space,structure, and style
of a property.
As the subject property was cut into pieces and reattached in a new configuration
with a new rear addition, its overall plan and form have been altered. Exterior
alterations including creation of storefronts/windows; replacement of all doors;
addition of concrete block and stucco cladding; addition of a projecting porch;and
addition of an awning and new signage have also compromised integrity of design.
However, the building retains intact interior features that strongly reflect the
design intent of its architect, particularly its exposed scissor trusses, wood slat
ceilings, and wood framing that includes bolted vertical timber supports. As a
result, the combination of elements that create the form, space, structure, and
style of the interior remain intact.The building retains its integrity of design;while
it has been somewhat compromised, it is not lost altogether.
Setting
The physical environment of a historic property.
The building has been moved roughly a block south from its original location at the
southwest corner of Palm Canyon Drive and Tahquitz Canyon Way; as a result, its
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setting since 1952 has differed from its original setting. The current setting has
remained relatively unchanged since the 1950s: an open landscaped area within a
more densely developed commercial district, featuring small moved/repurposed
buildings facing inward onto the green. While the Village Green's integrity of
setting is intact,the removal of the Oasis Hotel dining hall from its original place in
the Lloyd Wright-designed complex(and the construction of new buildings on the
site in the 1950s)means the character of the place in which the property played its
historical role has been lost. The subject property does not retain integrity of
setting.
Materials
The physical elements that were combined or deposited during a particular period
of time and in a particular pattern or configuration to form a historic property.
Due to alterations as described above, particularly the creation of
storefronts/windows, replacement of all doors, and addition of new cladding, the
building's integrity of materials has been reduced. However,the retention of intact
interior materials like unique wood trusses,timber supports,and wood slat ceilings
means that it has not been lost entirely.Volume 1 also retains its original wood slat
cladding on its primary exterior fa4ade, and all three of the original volumes have
appropriate(replacement)wood shake roofing material.As a result,the property's
integrity of materials,though compromised, remains intact.
Workmanship
The physical evidence of the crafts of a particular culture or people during any given
period in history or prehistory... [expressed through] both technological practices
and aesthetic principles.
The property's original workmanship is evident through its intact interior features,
predominantly its exposed scissor truss roof system (which culminates in a notably
complex configuration in Volume 1). The original trusses are also present in the
projecting porch at Volume 3'5 east fagade,which was originally part of the building
interior. The intricate, exposed roof system exhibits the aesthetic principles and
technological practices that drove Lloyd Wright's design work, and is clearly the
product of skilled craftsmen.The property retains integrity of workmanship.
Feeling
A property's expression of the aesthetic or historic sense of a particular period of
time.
Due to alterations, most of the property's exterior no longer expresses the
aesthetic or historic sense of a particular period of time. However, the building's
intact interior elements clearly express the innovative aesthetic of Lloyd Wright as
developed through the 1920s,and evoke the rustic elements of early Palm Springs
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resort development. The exposed scissor trusses, wood slat finishes, and bolted
timber supports continue to convey the period of time during which the building
was constructed, as well as an aesthetic sense specific to that time. The property
retains integrity of feeling.
Association
The direct link between an important historic event or person and a historic
property type.
The building was originally designed and built as the dining hall for the 1924 Oasis
Hotel; its move and reconfiguration/repurposing in the early 1950s severed the
physical and geographical link between it and the rest of the historic hotel complex.
However, its retention of intact, distinctive interior features link it to a particular
time period and enable the continued conveyance of the design association with
master architect Lloyd Wright. As a result, the property retains integrity of
association.
Summary of Integrity
In summary, to be eligible for listing, a resource must retain enough of its historic
character or appearance to be recognizable as a historical resource and to convey
the reasons for its significance. The property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive
retains integrity of design, materials,workmanship,feeling, and association based
primarily on its intact interior features. Its integrity of location and setting have
been lost due to its 1950s move and subsequent reconfiguration/exterior
alterations. Despite these modifications, the property's interior is still able to
convey its overall design, historical period, and association with master architect
Lloyd Wright. Therefore,the subject property retains sufficient integrity to convey
its significance.
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8. Conclusion
Documentary and archival research, site analysis, the development of historic
contexts, and an evaluation against local eligibility criteria indicate that the
property at 211-219 S. Palm Canyon Drive meets City of Palm Springs Historic Site
eligibility Criteria 2, 4, and 5. The subject property also retains sufficient integrity,
primarily with respect to its interior features,to convey its significance.Therefore,
the property appears eligible for listing as a Class 1 Historic Site in the City of Palm
Springs'Official Register of Historic Sites and Districts.
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9. Bibliography
Brown, Renee. "Pearl McCallum McManus Continued Father's Legacy." The Desert
Sun, 7 March 2015.
Brown,Renee."Pearl McCallum McManus Helped Shape Palm Springs."The Desert
Sun, 29 April 2016.
City of Palm Springs Municipal Code, 8.05.020 — Historic Preservation, General
Provisions, Definitions.
The Desert Sun,various dates.
Henderson, Moya and the Palm Springs Historical Society. Palm Springs. San
Francisco:Arcadia Publishing, 2009.
Hess, Alan and Andrew Danish. Palm Springs Weekend: The Architecture and
Design of a Midcentury Oasis. San Francisco:Chronicle Books, 2001.
Hines,Thomas S. "The Blessing and the Curse:The Achievement of Lloyd Wright."
In Lloyd Wright: The Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright,Jr. Edited by Cathryn
Drake. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1998.
Historic Resources Group. City of Palm Springs Citywide Historic Context Statement
&Survey Findings. City of Palm Springs: Department of Planning Services, 2016.
Los Angeles Times,various dates.
Martin, Ernest 0. The Beauty of Holiness:Story of the Wayfarers Chapel.Virginia
Beach:The Donning Company Publishers, 2007.
National Park Service. National Register Bulletin 15: How to Apply the National
Register Criteria for Evaluation. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the Interior,
National Park Service, Interagency Resources Division, 1990, rev. 1991.
National Register of Historic Places. Wayfarers Chapel, Rancho Palos Verdes, Los
Angeles County, California. National Register#20050711.
Niemann, Greg. Palm Springs Legends:Creation of a Desert Oasis. San Diego:
Sunbelt Publications, Inc., 2006.
Palm Springs Life. "The McCallum Centennial—Palm Springs' Founding Family."
April 1984, reprinted 19 August 2010.
Sanborn Map Company. Fire Insurance Maps, Palm Springs, California. New York:
Sanborn Map Company, 1929 and 1962.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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Western Directory Company. Palm Springs City Directory, 1939-1940 Seoson. Long
Beach, CA:Western Directory Company, 1939.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23, 2017
ARCHITECTURAL RESOURCES GROUP 54 102
Appendix A.
Historic Photographs of the Oasis Hotel Dining Hall, ca. 1924
Lloyd Wright Papers, UCLA Library Special Collections
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Oasis
ARCHITECTURAL RESOURCES GROUP 56
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East fagade,view northwest showing ramada-shaded terraces and repeating French doors.
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105
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Roofs of Dining Hall and McCallum Adobe,view north from the hotel tower.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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107
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Interiew,view north.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
ARCHITECTURAL RESOURCES GROUP 60
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Interior,view south/southeast.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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109
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Interior south portion with brazier, view south.
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Interior south portion with brazier, view northwest.
Oasis Hotel Dining Hall Historic Resources Report August 23,2017
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111
Attachment 5:
Excerpts from:
2004 Historic Resources Report by Andreas Urbas,
A Palm Springs Weekend: Architecture and Design of a Mid-
Century Oasis" (Hess & Danish, 2001),
Articles on the Oasis Hotel by the Palm Springs Historical
Society, Nicholette Wenzell, 2014,
E mail correspondence from Eric Lloyd Wright dated April 11,
2005.
112
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THE OASIS HOTEL
PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA
AN ASSESSMENT OF CHARACTER—DEFINING
FEATURES
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113
Existing Conditions:
EXTERIOR
Palm Canyon Elevation east
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Condition: Good
Character-defining feature:Concrete facade
Modifications:Major modifications to original storefronts (I)
Recommendation:Remove intrusions, and restore to original
Alley/Paseo Elevation north
5
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m
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Condition: Good
Character-defining feature:Concrete fa§ade.
Modifications:Major modifications including addition (I)
Recommendation:Remove and restore; open vista to tower.
All /Paseo Elevation north
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Condition:Fair
Character-defining feature:Wood balcony(P)
Modifications: Insensitive addition (I)
Recommendation:Repair if feasible, or replace.
114
Alle /Paseo Elevation (north)
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Condition:Fair
Character-defining feature:Wood balcony(P).
Modifications:N/A
Recommendation:Repair
Alle /Paseo Elevation(north)
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Condition:Fair
Character-defining features: Stepped concrete molding(P)
Modifications:Security gate,door, signage M
Recommendation:Remove door and signage, and replace with a more compatible design.
115
a
Alley/Paseo (north)
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I Condition: Fair
Character-defining features: Balcony(S), original door(I) and hardware (1)
Modifications: In-window AC unit; boarded doorway
Recommendation:Repair; remove board and AC.
Alley/Pasco north
M.
: a
F
Condition: Fair
Character-defining features:Concrete ornamentation(P)
Modifications:Covering of Art Deco ornamentation (T)
Recommendation:Remove and restore,
Co and Elevation west
4
v5
Condition:Good
Character-defining features:N/A
Modifications:Additions to rear of commercial building (I)
Recommendation:Remove;reopen courtyard,consider restoring fenestration
116
y
Courtyard Elevation west
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Condition:Poor
Character-defining features:N/A
Modifications:Metal stair(non-original) (I)
Recommendation:Remove
Courtyard Elevation (south)
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Condition:Poor
Character-defining features: original doors (including screen doors) (S) and windows (S)
Modifications: Second-story balcony(I); door replacements M
Recommendations: Replace balcony with more compatible design (consider that existing
on north elevation).Retain original doors/windows wherever possible.
1.17
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Courtyard Elevation (south)
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i
Condition:Poor
Character-defining features: original doors (including screen doors) (S), windows (S) and
light fixtures (S)
Modifications: Second-story balcony 0); door replacements M
Recommendations: Replace balcony with more compatible design (consider that existing
on north elevation). Retain original doors/windows and light fixtures, wherever
possible.
Courtyard Elevation (southeast)
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Condition:Poor
Character-defining features: original doors (including screen doors) (S) and windows (S)
Modifications: Second-story balcony (1); door replacements (1), fire escape (I), and single-
story-addition(I)
Recommendations: Replace balcony with more compatible design (consider that existing
on north elevation). Retain original doors/windows wherever possible. Remove fire
escape and consider reopening courtyard to alley.
I18
Corridor between South Cassita and Tower
J
t
Condition:Fair
Character-defining features:N/A
Modifications: Replacement doors (I) and hardware (I)
Recommendations:Replace doors with more compatible units; restore entrance to Tower.
Tower
PI
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Condition:Good
Character-defining features: Concrete walls (P), pyramidal roof (P), exterior terrace (I),
and grillwork at bell opening (S)
Modifications: Infill of doors and window openings
Recommendations:Restore original openings,and reuse terrace for outdoor living space
INTERIOR
Retail Shops
Condition:Good
Character-defining features:N/A
Modifications:New interiors
Recommendations:Modify,as desired.
119
Tower
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Condition:Poor, extensive water damage
Character-defining features:Original stair and railing (P)
j Modifications:N/A
Recommendations:Retain and repair
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The Oasis Hotel is a very good example of 1920s co, and the only local example of
the work of the master-architect, Lloyd Wright. Furthermore, it is significant as one of the
few examples of his commercial, or resort projects. Due to the property s designation as a
"Class 7 historic site", (Class I, according to Doug Evans' November 7, 2004, handwritten
notation), the Oasis must be preserved.I applaud the efforts of its developer.
Although, the exterior of the Tower is the most significant portion of the site, other features
of note must be treated with great sensitivity, wherever possible. As Wright's work during
the 1920's was characterized by concrete designs, simple volumes, and geometric details,
such features should also remain in-place. Elements described as having secondary
significance further add to the historic character of this historic property, and minimally,
examples of these should be incorporated within the rehabilitated facility.
Historic photographs appear to indicate that some of the ornamental detail was
polychromatic, as such, I would encourage consideration of undertaking a paint/color
analysis (scraping at a minimum)to determine the original color palette. I would recommend
identifying the original finish color of the concrete, doors, windows, and surrounds, in
addition to the decorative elements.
Intrusions identified were modifications and later additions,which detract from the purity of
Wright's original design. Every effort should be made to remove them. Once removed,
either the original should be restored,or a more compatible addition should be sought.
120
In planning for the rehabilitation of this site, all effort should be made to conform to the
Secretary of the Interior's Standards,as follows:
1. A property shall be used for its historic purpose or be placed in a new use that
requires minimal change to the defining characteristics of the building and its site
and environment.
2. The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of
historic materials or alteration of features and spaces that characterize a property
shall be avoided.
3. Each property shall be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and.use.
Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding
conjectural features or architectural elements from other buildings, shall not be
undertaken.
4. Most properties change over time; those changes that have acquired historic
significance in their own right shall be retained and preserved.
5. Distinctive features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of
craftsmanship that characterize a historic property shall be preserved.
6. Deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. Where the
severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature
shall match the old in design, color, texture, and other visual qualities and, where
j possible, materials. Replacement of missing features shall be substantiated by
documentary,physical, or pictorial evidence.
7. Chemical or physical treatments, such as sandblasting, that cause damage to historic
materials shall not be used.The surface cleaning of structures, if appropriate, shall be
undertaken using the gentlest means possible.
8. Significant archeological resources affected by a project shall be protected and
preserved. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures shall be
undertaken.
9. New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction shall not destroy
historic materials that characterize the property.The new work shall be differentiated
from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural
features to protect the historic integrity of the property and its environment.
10. New additions and adjacent or related new construction shall be undertaken in such
a manner that if removed in the future,the essential form and integrity of the historic
property and its environment would be unimpaired.
121
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e distance. Though Austrian by birth, Schindler took to too or the Popenoes divided from the bays by screens. R t
the sert and the Southern California climate; many of his Colors w pale olive tan and dark cottonseed stain on the 192E c-
design ad outdoor sleeping porches and outdoor courtyards wood and w rd. Flagpoles and palm leaves spread on the Popen-
for cooki and entertaining. The first design, in May Ig22, porches' screen ornamented the design. Finished by The ra.
was a light a adventurous structure with wood scissor trus- November, the building $2C00 ("a trivial sum for a the liv-
ses balanced by ' gonal outriggers and roofed in canvas that house these days," wrote Pop and Schindler's fee was was t1--
kept the sun off t walls. A tight circular staircase wound $100. The house was destroyed in 30s. in the
around the fireplace ' e the central chimney block, leading Though the first design was typic dventurous for
to a roof terrace. Schindler, the cabin as built did not match the c ity of his
The small house on w Popenoe began construction in own home on Kings Road in Los An eles and other Nefthhof
September 192.2 was scaled b A 1070-square-foot house the early I920s, and it had little
or I
sheathed in one-by-ten horizonta 'plap siding, it was sur- Schindler's reputatio he rrst important Modern structure in
rounded on three sides by screen eping porches which Palm Springs would he an example of American, organic
extended out onto the flat,undistinguish ite at the corners, design; the Oasis Hotel by Lloyd Wright, eldest son of Frank
like a pinwheel, a precursor to Neutra's ufmann house Lloyd Wright. Though it still stands today,poor treatment and
design twenty-five years later. The cabin was ribed as a remodelings—as well as its location off the beaten path in Palm
temporary" house for die Popenoes, who lived in dena. A Springs—conspired to keep this building, one of the greatest
central room, including fireplace, with a roof higher the Modern designs of the 1920s in California,virtually unknown.
rest of the house was extended by two bays,with separate - It began a series of strong organic designs in Palm Springs
m 9 d e r
123
stretching to William Cody's I947 Del Marcos motel and 1958 >
Springs restaurant, Armet and Davis' Denny's restaurant on "
Highway III, John Lautner's 1968 Elrod and 1972 Hope
houses, Kendrick Kellogg's 1978 Charthouse restaurant, and
Michael Black's 1978 bank building in Palm Desert.
Pearl McCallum McManus was a confident woman who
knew her own mind; she would still be riding horses at age I, '!Gi lillllll(II!ln��iiiilll�ftrllii�'tl� '':I
seventy-nine. She took the lead in the family real estate busi-
ness with husband Austin. Hiring Lloyd Wright was a bold
step. The other hotels in town were conventional, the Desert Visitors pulled their cars into
Inn reliably and 'charmingly Spanish, the Palm Springs Hotel the Palm Canyon Drive entry to
still Victorian. McManus had more in mind than comfortable Lloyd Wright's Oasis Hotel.The
rooms as marketing points. It was the image of Modernism that advanced slip-farm concrete
formed as much of the appeal of the Oasis as the accommoda- construction created one of the
tions themselves.The choice of Modernism was also one of real most modern buildings in
estate rivalry. Pearl and Austin McManus owned land on the California,while the wood fili-
north side of town, while Nellie Coffman, the to'wn's other gree screens and ornamental
great landowner, ran the stucco, tile-roofed Desert Inn. pots on the roof(a Lloyd Wright
McManus went on from this auspicious beginning as a patron trademark)added a new
to hire Paul Williams to design the Tennis Club opening in romance to the desert locale.
February 1937 (Lloyd Wright designed an unbuilt version). Maxfield Parrish could not
and Pereira and Lockman to design the Robinson's department have conjured a more exotic
store on Palm Canyon in 1.953• scene.The tower agd shops to
Pearl and Austin McManus hired Lloyd Wright to cre- the left still stand.
ate a distinctive resort.They met while Lloyd was courting his
future wife, Helen Taggart; when she had been married to
actor Reginald Pole, they lived in an adobe house in Palm
Springs in the early 19208. In the small community it wa>
inevitable that Peal and Lloyd would meet. What wasn't
inevitable was that she would hire him. Though he had
worked with his father, with Irving Gill, and with the
Olmsted brothers—Lloyd was also an accomplished landscape
architect—he had built only a handful of houses since return-
ing to Los Angeles in 1pip.The Oasis would be his largest and
most impressive commission when it opener) in 1925.
modern in the wilderness 027
124
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The Oasis was built around the original adobe ranch room wings and four-story tower. Thin vertical slits were left
house that Pearl's father,John McCallum,built in the center of open and set with glass to balance light in the cool,solid rooms.
town. The town was mostly a grove of trees and vacant lots in R. M. Schindler also used this construction method effectively
1924, the trees being necessary protection from the wind and at his Pueblo Ribera apartments in I923, and became famous
heat. In one of these cottonwood groves, Pearl and Lloyd in the architectural history texts for this innovation, but the
turned over the first spade of dirt for the Oasis in IQ24. Oasis shows that Lloyd was using the same technique at virtu-
Memorialized in a photo, Lloyd wears jodhpurs and a tie, the ally the same time. Lloyd had already proven himself an inno-
image of the artist architect;for.the thirty-four-year-old archi- vator in concrete, helping to develop the textile block system
Lett, getting his first large commission out of the ground was a that his father used in a series of concrete block houses in Los
hopeful moment.The boards for the concrete forms are already Angeles in the early 1920s.
in place for the innovative slip-form method of construction.In The Oasis is one of the great neglected buildings of
les system, atwelve-inch layer of wall was poured in form California architecture. Begun before his famous father first
boards. When it dried, the same forms were "slipped" up to visited Arizona, five years before the elder Wright designed
form another tier, and so on, up to the top of the two-sto the Arizona Bihmore with Albert Chase McArthur, and more
125
P3
than a dozen years before Wright the elder designed his own- the rooms onto common balconies along the two-story concrete
desert retreat, Taliesin West, in Scottsdale, Arizona, the Oasis room wings.Above it all rose the tower,its pinnacles of poured
was indeed a sheltering oasis in the desert. Warm and solid, concrete molded in an ancient, erosive abstraction that echoes
filled with trees and flowers, and with roof terraces and pent- the form of the mountains themselves, rubble fields of erosion
houses from which to drink in the spectacular panorama of from eons of rain and landslides. Evocative of thunder clouds.
mountain, desert and sky, it was one of the first defining mesas and the mountain itself, the soft character of the deco-
statements about a Modern architecture for the desert. ration distinguished Lloyd's from his father's rigorous geo-
Borrowing its craggy silhouette from the mountains, metric'ornament. It was a technique he would later use in
a tall, square tower in the middle of the property formed a another of his great designs, the Sowden house in Hollywood;
promontory around which the buildings gathered. Alon.g Palm Lloyd, as part of the Hollywood artistic intelligentsia,
C41nyon Drive, Lloyd constructed a series of small shops and a expressed the interest in exotic romance seen in many of the
separate hotel office; between them a drive brought cars past movies filmed in the Palm Springs area in the Silent Era:
a two-story room wing, faced in a distinctive, simple vertical- Theda Bara starred in Salome, and Rudolph Valentino fought
slat screen, to.the entry at the foot oe'the tower on the left. To as a tragic French Foreign Legionnaire; Frank Capra filmed
the right lay the entry to the dining room. This gabled wood Lost Horizon, a tale of another isolated paradise, in Palm
structure was more of a ranch style than the concrete room Springs in the 193Cs.Softer,more naturalistic,equally roman-
wings, and connected to the original McCallum ranch build- tic compared to the abstracted geometries of the Wright pere's
ih s, turned into rooms, lounges and a kitchen. The ninety- textile block houses in Southern California in the same period,
foot-long dining room showed Lloyd's affinity with the these expressive elements tied the builmng to the site and the
Southern California weather, seen throughout his work in site to the building.
courtyards open to the outdoors. French doors on three sides As daring as but more pragmatic than his father, Lloyd
of the dining room could be opened, turning it into an airy still captured the exotic atmosphere of the desert site and
pavilion. Two cottonwood trees grew up through the center of desert myths. Solid forms and ornament created an .exotic
the room and through the roof.A colorful wheelpatterned fab- vision in the small, dusty town of Palm Sprinp in 1924, an
ric hung over the entry door. With dried desert plants hanging undeniably Modern and progressive vision. He would go on to
from the scissor trusses, Lloyd's vision drew intimately on the design houses for Palm Springs in-the 1920s,though none was
natural surroundings, on the plants, materials, forms and built. One was a collection of rookeries, canvas and stone plat-
weather.A brazier stood at one end of the hall to take the chill forms dramatically inserted into mountainside niches; others
off cold evenings. were A-frame haciendas turning their back to the wind to pro-
The dining wing formed a line through the property tect sunken, outdoor gardens sheltered by earthen berms.
creating two courtyards, one on Palm Canyon Drive, another Lloyd's work asserted that a strong Modern architecture could
more sheltered by structures, and with a square pond, citrus be. developed out of the cultural and natural character of a s e-
trees and trellis draped in wisteria. French doors opened from cific site; even the sand for the concrete was shoveled from
126
the desert washes. It would stand apart from later designs by tains out of the arroyos and hilltops of Southern California. '
Frey, Neutra and Wexler that emphasized technological R. M. Schindler in California was clearly on a different'path:
expression. than his European compatriots, with edgy, expressive spatial
With twenty rooms and several buildings, the unusual compositions. Irving Gill's rational building systems and clean
hoteh was a risky move, of course, and the McManuses found forms were rooted to the earth and to history with their echo
themselves without the funds to operate the hotel once it was of the Spanish Missions. Lloyd contributed to this exploration
built,prompting them to bring in W. E. Hammer, operator of of Modernism at the Oasis.
a downtown Los Angeles hotel, to take over the operation. It There was no precedent for using a distinctly Modern
became popular and thrived for many years as a Palm design for a resort anywhere in the country before the Oasis
Springs fixture. The last great era of resort building, in the latter nineteenth
Though today hemmed in with later construction and century, produced Victorian extravaganzas such as the
defaced by the demolition of the dining room wing, the origi- Coronado in San Diego and the glorious Hispanic-style
nal Oasis was a sophisticated Modern design. Before Neutra -Mission Inn, not far from Palm Springs in.Riverside. Resorts
had arrived in Los Angeles, seven years before the contemporary to the Oasis, built for the burgeoning car
International Style was codified at the Museum of Modern Art tourism industry, boasted exotic, historically based designs
in New York, the character of .Modernism was still up for like the Taos-inspired La Fonda by Rapp and Rapp in Santa
grabs, especially in California. Though the elder Wright had Fe, or the rustic luxury of the Ahwahnee Lodge in Yosemite
fallen on hard times in the aftermath of the Taliesin scandal in Park. The Oasis -was boldly unique.
1914 when a servant killed the woman he had left his wife and
family for, the forgiving, progressive millionaires and middle-
class clients of Los Angeles had allowed Lloyd's father the
opportunity to develop the concrete block houses, those lush
outcroppings,twentieth-century pueblos rising as small noun-
. ;
127
� 5
124
The success of the Desert Inn inspired the development of two equally remarkable hotels in
the 1920s and cemented the town's growing reputation as one of the country's premier
luxury winter resorts. The first of these was the Oasis Hotel (HSPB-10), opened in 1925 on
the site of the McCallum family homestead.xez Pearl McCallum had in 1914 married asadena
real estate mogul Austin G. McManus; as Palm Springs grew McManus encourageea
guided his wife as she evolved into an astute businesswoman, developing or sul:l&iding the
McCallum acreage piece by piece.-83 But Pearl kept the McCallum homestead in 1923
the McManuses became the first patrons of Modern architecture in Pal r;ngs when they
hired Lloyd Wright to design a 20-room hotel on the property and into orate the family's
adobe into the complex as a memorial to Pearl's father.384
,.-."..m ._.�
-- F I Oasis I lotel(1924,Lloyd
Photogght;raphed
tower in 19 7.
_ Photographed in 1927.
Source:Security Pacific
National Bank Collection,Los
Angeles Public Library.
lY�
�Y
�G
z12 Bowan et A.,-the McCallum Centennial."Portions of the Oasis were demolished in 1953 to make way for the construction
of the Oasis office building designed by Williams,Williams and Williams.
sea Bowan et al,'The McCallum Centennial"
2114 Bowart et A.,"The McCallum Centennial"
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128
1�5
Wright, who had previously experimented with concrete
techniques while working on his father's textile block
houses in Los Angeles,used a novel "slip form"
* u ' construction technique for the Oasis: twelve-ih
r£ courses of concrete were poured between w�ticYforms
and, when the concrete had set, the form0ere
"slipped" up and the next course pouredddntil the full
height of the wall was completed. P�d McManus later
remembered that"It took a year tbycomplete and was so
beautiful that many people d to buy it or lease it
before it was finished."3B5 asis opened in early
1925 Lib Its plan and responded to the desert
climate, with one-X e-story wings clustered around
landscaped cou rc�s, and concrete walls to insulate the
interiors froT�esert heat.Windows were screened
.- with woode lies reminiscent of Spanish ironwork.
Oasis Hotel Tower,photographed c. 1937 The trance to the hotel's main building was marked
(RSPB-10).Source:Los Angeles Public
Library. a our-story tower topped with stepped comer
decorated with abstract patterns cast into the
• concrete and supporting a pyrarn of that echoed the profile of Mt. San Jacinto beyond.
The glass-walled dining room w uilt around two pre-existing cottonwood trees,which grew
through openings in the &dround adjacent McCallum adobe served as the hotel's lounge,with
comfortable chairs clust the hearth.a$7 The hotel grounds featured a lush lawn with
a large brazier, surro by lounge chairs,where bonfires were lit each night a!8 and a
"Persian" swimmi 1 set amidst the surviving fruit trees of the McCallum orchard?e9 The
Oasis Hotel wa first of many innovative Modem concrete buildings in Palm Springs and is
an origiinnall , significant example of Modem architecture in the United States.Author and
1V
x8 emtraub,Lloyd Wright:The Architecture offrank Lloyd Wni ft Jr.(New York:Harry N.Abrams,Inc., 1998),239.
8 esort Notes,"Los Angeles Times,November 1, 1925,G 12.http://www.proquestcom(accessed October 6,2012).
287 esort Notes,"Los Angeles Time.S January 2, 1927,F10.http://www.proquestoom(accessed October 6,2012).
288"Resort Notes,"Los Angeles Times,November 28, 1926,G12.http://www.proquest.com(accessed October 6,2012).
289"Resort Notes,'November I, 1925,G12.
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126 •
historian Alan Hess has called the Oasis "one of the great neglected buildings of California
architecture" and "one of the first defining statements about a Modern architecture in the
desert,"-" but its radical modem aesthetic would not be repeated in Palm Springs for a
decade.
nish Revival style by local developer Prescott Thresher Stevens, who spen then-
omical amount of$1 million on the resort.193 Designed by the Los [fie es firm of
Wa & Eisen,who also designed the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, the pinwted El Mirador was
set in 1 ardens a mile north of the center of town on Indian C on"Drive(then Indian
Avenue) chevah Drive. It featured an eye-catching bell to constructed; HSPB-I)
topped with orish tiles, two hundred luxurious guest roo d with hand-carved
furniture, an O is-sized swimming pool, a tennis cou �t es, and private golf course.-9-
T Al ALI
rv. f
1
�0
Is i n n
El Mirado t,photographed in 1953.
_ m. aww�iy�
Source:Hera] ner Collection,Los
Angeles Public li
�90 Alan Hess and Andrew Danish,Pabn Springy Weekend(San Francisco:Chronicle Books,2001),28-29.
391 Dennis McDougal and Mike Meenan,"It's Check-Out Time for Palm Springs'El Mirador,'LosAnlgeles Times,November 27,
1977,P120,http://www.proquesLcom(accessed July 29,2012).
292lenifer Warren and Scott Hams "Fire Destroys Palm S ri 'El Mirador Hotel,"Los Angeles Times,July 27, 1989,
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S 5 CAS ITA 5
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Palm Springs History: The Oasis Hotel
Nicolette Wencell
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(Photo:Courtesy Palm Springs Historical Society.All rights 'reserved)
43CONNECTTv7EET Li NKEDINCOMMENTEMAILMORE
In 1924 construction began on the Oasis Hotel, one of the most recognizable and architecturally
distinctive buildings in Palm Springs.
Commissioned by Pearl McCallum McManus to be built on family land, the unique building was said
to have been a tribute to her father's legacy. Her father, John Guthrie McCallum, was the first white
settler to make his home in Palm Springs and subsequently, Pearl felt a strong and lasting
responsibility to keep Palm Springs a thriving community.
An important element of Pearl's vision for Palm Springs was beauty.
She desired that the structures encompassing downtown be of the utmost quality and that aesthetics
be paramount. The architect she deemed appropriate to bring life to her image was Lloyd Wright,
son of iconic Frank Lloyd Wright. The building was to be a handsome high-class hotel. The piece of
land Pearl chose to place it on was none other than the site where her father had constructed their
family home upon their arrival to Palm Springs.
132
At what is today the southwest corner of Tahquitz Canyon Way and Palm Canyon Drive, the location
was hallowed ground for Pearl and at the time of construction, remained the site of the McCallum
family home. Pearl spent a great amount of time consulting with Wright in her quest to create a
building that lived up to her expectations. To Pearl, one of the most important components of the
building's design was a tower that was to rise from the desert floor as a beacon of respect for her
father.
Another sign of her emotional connection to the land was made apparent by the effort to save as
many of the trees growing on the property as possible. Portions of the hotel building were
constructed around the trees, so that they could continue to remain on the land. It is estimated that
to do so cost Pearl an additional $1,000 per tree; in today's money, that's an estimated $16,000 to
save each tree.
The structure was built of concrete, with a distinctive pattern created during the implementation of
the slip-form technique. It was constructed in the moderne style of the 1920s and drew much
attention and admiration upon its completion.
In the end, the Oasis Hotel, as it was called, was a showpiece that boasted Palm Springs' first
swimming pool, lush landscaping, striking interiors and the statuesque tower Pearl dreamed of. Pearl
was even able to integrate part of her family home into the design.
However, the hotel claimed only 24 guest rooms. Pearl would soon find out that having 24 rooms
was "woefully inadequate." In fact, in her near obsession with the hotel's creation she neglected to
consider the profitability of such an enterprise.
Pearl's many efforts to make the hotel a stunning tribute to her heritage caused her to exceed her
original cost estimate by nearly three times its initial figure; there simply was not enough money to
incorporate additional rooms.
Pearl moved forward with the leasing of the hotel, as her plan had always been to do so.
Unfortunately, her first lessee lasted only two years. After some consideration, Pearl made the
difficult decision to sell the Oasis Hotel to someone who could build the necessary additional guest
rooms and run the hotel at a profit.
As part of the selling agreement, Pearl kept the right to move her family home from the property if it
should ever be threatened with demolition.
Next week's column will look at what happened after the hotel was sold.
Nicolette Wenzell is associated curator for Palm Springs Historical Society
133
Palm Springs History: The Garlicks built
up Oasis Hotel
Nicolette Wenzel[' 0 fi_ P I V O U
(Photo_Courtesy Paim Springs Historical Society.Ali rights reserved)
ccasr:3F..NTEMA,r.Mope
PALM SPRINGS— In 1927, Hobart Garlick moved to Palm Springs with his wife, Isabel. Garlick
came to California from his native Ohio in 1917 with the hope of getting into the hotel business.
Upon his arrival, he found a job at a hotel in San Francisco and later, as manager of the Darby Hotel
in Los Angeles, where he built a reputation as a respected hotelier.
Garlick sought to further his hostelry career and when he heard of the Oasis Hotel's listing, he
purchased it from Pearl McCallum McManus. Garlick ran the Oasis successfully and built a name for
himself in the Palm Springs community as a generous humanitarian. Garlick sent food baskets to
those in need, volunteered with the Boy Scouts and served on the school board.
The Garlicks enjoyed a decade of success in Palm Springs until tragedy struck the couple. Isabel
battled illness for several months before dying in December 1937 at the age of 46.
After her death, Garlick suffered greatly. His health also began to fail and the weight of managing the
hotel became too much for him. On the night of March 24, 1940, Garlick retired to a "remote cottage
of his hotel," and took his own life with a revolver. He was 56.
In 1944, Dewey Metzdorf, senior vice president of Western Hotels Inc. (today's Westin Hotels and
Resorts), bought the Oasis. Metzdorf was visiting Palm Springs from Anchorage, Alaska, where he
suffered frozen hands and feet. The desert climate afforded him a full recovery and he and his wife
bought the hotel because they"wanted a good excuse for staying here."
In 1952, Metzdorf said of purchasing the Oasis, "I've been in the hotel business all my life ... and in
order to settle down here, I just had to have a hotel to operate." Metzdorf ran the hotel until February
1952, when he sold it to Western Hotels Inc., "of which he (was)executive in charge of operations."
The list price for the hotel was $600,000.
Following the sale, the hotel was altered and expanded. The plans done by the architecture firm of
Williams, Williams and Williams, with associate architects Clark and Frey, called for the demolition of
some of the original hotel structure and a new commercial building to be constructed on the comer
of Palm Canyon and Tahquitz, partially on the site where Pearl McCallum McManus' family home
remained.
134
Because Pearl had always retained the right to move the building, she did so in December 1952.
Brick by brick, the adobe home was deconstructed and reconstructed on the site where it remains
today at 221 South Palm Canyon Drive.
By 1964, a multistory, 44-unit addition was added. The extension, designed by Williams and
Williams architects, was located just west of the already existing hostelry at the southwest corner of
Belardo Road and Tahquitz Canyon Way. Today, the location of the addition is home to the Palm
Mountain Resort&Spa. The structure's facade has been altered but the pool and spa maintain their
original shape.
By the 1990s, the original Oasis Hotel buildings stood vacant and in a state of disrepair. It came to
be known as "one of the great neglected buildings of California architecture." The structures became
a place for transients to find refuge.
In 2005, in an effort to breathe life back into the vacant building, a 280-seat, multimillion-dollar
restaurant honoring the site's storied past was proposed. The plan was to pay homage to some of
Hollywood's elite who had vacationed at the Oasis Hotel. Those reported to have stayed there
include Loretta Young, Clark Gable, John Wayne and Shirley Temple. Though some of the original
structures were demolished to make way for it, the restaurant, to be called Loretta's Hideaway,
never came to fruition.
Today, the tower remains a vacant beacon in downtown Palm Springs, designated a Class One
historic site. A small portion of the original Lloyd Wright slip-form building also remains; mostly
vacant, it is situated just east of the tower's location.
Nicolette Wenzell is Palm Springs Historical Society associate curator
135
� yesterday
•E 'F d r 4^w
-' �nr� a 4 �c `64rF ^k�
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P
earL McCaLLum 3
McManus
Although a century has passed since her father first planted fruit trees at the foot of
Mount San Jacinto,Pearl McCallum McManus'influence in the Coachella Valley contin-
ues to enhance our quality of life today.
Among the first to understand and imagine the possibilities of a gracious life in our
desert setting,Pearl's father was visionary.But he would not survive to see the valley's
transformation into the dreamy irrigated landscape he imagined.He did,however, TOP:A devoted equestrienne
firmly inculcate that vision into his daughter Pearl,and she spent the remainder of her au her life,valley pioneer Pearl
McCallum McManus rides
long life bringing it to fruition. through the desert scrubwith
towering Mount San Jacinto in the
SETTING THE TONE background.
With lush green golf courses and world-class resorts situated today from one end of the ABOVE:On November 26, 1953,
opening night at the Tennis Club
valley to the other,ifs difficult to imagine in their place endless dunes and scrub.Yet that she built,McManus shows
it was in this sand-swept setting that Pearl and her husband Austin McManus took the her softer side in tulle and lace.
fearless step of commissioning Lloyd Wright,the son of Frank Lloyd Wright,to build Fancy dresses were said to be her
only extravagance.
the Oasis Hotel.
136
20 1 Desert Magazine• November 2012
J
Situated at the corner of what is now Tahquitz Canyon and
Palm Canyon Way in Palm Springs,the couple's project was built
of slip form concrete,which ensured a continuous,cast-in-place
structure.When completed,the Oasis was the first architectur-
ally designed building in the desert.
Suddenly,the adjacent Desert Inn's tent and clapboard hous-
ing looked inferior.It was a situation that spurred Nellie Coff-
man,the inn's owner,into a massive building project in order to , t
compete.Thereafter,the standard for hotels in the desert was
^` forever lifted from rough camping grounds to proper hotels. r
A COMMITMENT TO QUALITY
From the onset,Pearl understood that the transformation she
sought was difficult:she wanted nothing less than to literally
change desert desolation into hospitable housing supported by
civic institutions and the trappings of life in real cities.Accord-
ingly,she continued to bring talented professionals to work on
her projects.
Among the McCallum holdings was an area now known as
the Tahquitz River Estates neighborhood,but originally called
Palos Verdes Estates.After facing challenges developing this
tract of land,which was prone to flooding along the channel, \
4:
Pearl collaborated with famed Southern California builder Paul x
Trousdale—who not only developed Beverly Hills'fashionable
a Trousdale Estates,but in his lifetime built more than 25,000
Southern California homes—and architect Allen Sipe.
With stabilization of the river's course,the collaborators built
affordable,attractive and thoroughly modern houses on both
sides of the banks.The houses featured a lanai,a breezeway and , .
a"crystal clear wall of glass"in the living room.Paul Trousdale's
W own house in Smoke Tree Ranch survives today and has the TOP:Auntie Pearl's"Pink Palace,an early California mansion,
featured a large covered porch.
S same architectural features on a slightly grander scale.
To build the Tennis Club in Palm Springs,Pearl hired architect- ABOVE:McManus with Palm Springs'dapper mayor Frank Bogert and
Los Angeles socialite Paquita Machris(Mrs.Maurice Machris)at the
to-the-stars Paul R.Williams to build an iconic,modern en- season opening of the EL Mirador 1960.BELOW:A rare view of the
W tertaining pavilion.Opening in 1937,the Tennis Club featured Lloyd Wright Oasis Hotel courtyard in the 1930s;photo courtesy the
F PalmS Springs
g Historical.Society.
an elegant oval-shape pool with two palm trees,a setting that
became the scene of many memorable dinner parties.Celebrities
a
z
o and socialites flocked to the unusual new building. x` ,
U i .
BUSINESS SAVVY
WOwning thousands of acres and adhering to her vision,Pearl z '
retained architectural control over her land by writing into the
°o deeds her right of reversion for architectural reasons.It was
tested when she gave 30 acres in the middle of Palm Springs to •
e the city for a desert preserve and equestrian center. I i
oZ Pearl had ridden since childhood and remained an avid I�
horsewoman her entire life. However,the city decided that the
z
10
land would he better used as a golf course even though the gift
provided that if the city did not use the land as directed,it would
revert to the ownership of the Living Desert Reserve.The dif-
ficult transaction ultimately resulted in litigation between Palm
,°� Springs and the Living Desert,finally resulting in the creation of
I Tahquitz Creek Golf Course.
137
CIDJing Yeo
From: Eric Lloyd Wright[elwright@elwrighl.net]
Sent: Monday, April 11, 2005 12:17 PM
To: jingy@ci.palm-springs.ca.us
Subject: Oasis Hotel
To: Jaing Yeo, Palm Springs Historic Sites Preservation Commission
Re: The Oasis Hotel, Palm Springs
From: Eric Lloyd Wright, Architect
Date: April 11, 2005
Dear Commissioners,
I am writing this letter of concern regarding the Oasis Hotel. The building was designed
by my father Lloyd Wright. It was the only project my father designed that was built in
Palm Springs. It is a unique building in many ways. It's architecture and construction
were ahead of their time. It was the first slip form concrete building built in the
United States. It's architectural form was very unique and one of the major examples of
organic architecture practiced by his father, Frank Lloyd Wright. The building is also a
vital element in the history of Palm Springs, since it was commissioned by Pearl McCallum
McManus, and represented the first major modern building in that city.
For all of the above reasons any alterations or additions have to be done with great care
not to lose the original fabric and sense of architectural form and space. I'm sure the
commission is as concerned as I am to preserve as much of the architectural history of
Palm Springs as possible. Thank you for your attention this matter.
Sincerely,
Eric Lloyd Wright
gECFIVED
APR 112005
Ytannrng tc coning
1 138
Attachment 6:
City Council Resolution #15424 - Class 1 Historic Site 10;
The Oasis Hotel
and related material from the 1985 designation
139
13
RESOLUTION NO. 15424
OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS,
CALIFORNIA, DESIGNATING THE OASIS HOTEL TOWER AS
A CLASS .I .HISTORIC SITE.
WHEREAS the Oasis Hotel Tower and its associated personages have contributed
substantially to the history of the City of Palm Springs; and
WHEREAS Chapter 8.05 of the Palm Springs Muncipal Code allows for the
designation of historic sites; and
t
WHEREAS on October 8, 1984 the Historic Site Preservation Board initiated pro- €
ceedings to designate the Oasis Hotel Tower as an historic site; and
WHEREAS on January 14, 1985, the Historic Site Preservation Board held a
public hearing on said designation and unanimously recommended to the City
Council designation of said property as a Class 7 Historic Site; and
WHEREAS the City Council concurs in the recommendation of the Historic Site
Preservation Board regarding the historic value of the Oasis Hotel Tower; and
WHEREAS the designation of the Oasis Hotel Tower shall further the purposes
and intent of Chapter 8.05; and
WHEREAS the designation of the Oasis Hotel Tower shall promote the sensitive
preservation of said site.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Palm Springs,
California as follows:
Section 1. The Oasis Hotel Tower, along with the attached structure, as shown
on attached Exhibit A,shall he designated a Class 7 Historic Site
pursuant to Chapter 8.05 of the Palm Springs Municipal Code.
Section 2. No permit for the exterior alteration to the Oasis Hotel Tower, or
the attached structure, shall be granted without the prior I
approval of the City Council. - t
f
Section 3. The Oasis Hotel Tower may be suitable for adaptive reuse and the
owner(s) of the subject structures are encouraged to investigate
potential uses and to enter into discussion with the City '
regarding said reuse.
ADOPTED this 6th day of _ February , 1985.
AYES: Councilmembers Birer, Foster, Smith and Mayor Bogert
NOES: None
ABSENT: Councilmember Maryanov
ATTEST: CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA
_ 6
ity cTe-Fk 'City Manafer
REVIEWED & APPROVED:
f
WP/P6 14 0
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z
I4SPO io
Resolution 15424 EAAMT A
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141
DATE: February 6, 1985
TO: City Council
FROM: Planning Director via Community Development Director
CASE NO. HSPB-10 - OASIS HOTEL. TOWER
RECOMMENDATION:
The Historic Site Preservation Board (HSPB) recommends that the City
Council receive public comment regarding the desiqnation of the Oasis
Hotel Tower as an historic site, and the HSPB further recommends that
the Council designate the Tower, and the attached structure, as a Class
7 Historic Site.
BACKGROUND:
At its meeting of October 8, 1984, the HSPB initiated proceedings to
designate the Oasis Hotel Tower as a City historic site. The HSPB, on
January 14, 1985, held its public hearing for which notices were sent
to all property owners within 300 feet of the Oasis property. Based
upon the written documentation presented at this hearing, and support
from the property owner, the HSPB recommended by unanimous vote (Hayes
absent) designation of the Oasis Hotel Tower, and the attached
structure, as a Class 7 Historic Site.
Class 7 is the most restrictive category for historic designation
allowed for in Ordinance 1140 and provides for protection against any
modification to the site without City Council approval, whether or not
permits would normally be required; the designation also requires that
the site be appropriately demarked with a plaque. The text of the
other six categories is included in the attached excerpt.
The original Oasis Hotel, constructed between 1923-25, contained
approximately 20 units and included the Tower Building, the only three-
story hotel in Palm Springs for many years.
The Moderne/Art Deco style hotel, designed by Lloyd Wright, the son of
Frank Lloyd Wright, was constructed of solid concrete using a slip-form
technique which was quite advanced for that time. The layers of poured
concrete gave the one-and two-story hotel and commercial building a
strong horizontal effect. The exterior walls are 18 inches thick; the
interior walls are 12 inches thick.
The 40-foot tower, with a pyramidal roof, provided access t❑ the upper-
story rooms and a roof-top terrace. The topmost room was called
I �S "Lorretta Young's room", being her favorite in Palm Springs even as a
1�p child.
Operating under the ownership of Pearl McManus, John Crawford and Dewey
Metzfdorf, the Oasis was one of three important "carriage trade",
American plan, hotels; the others were Nellie Coffmann's Desert Inn and
p Ruth Hardy'e Ingleside Inn.
4"The Tower, a landmark for many years, has remained basically unaltered
although it will require some renovation. The remaining original
buildings are in good condition but have been significantly altered
and, therefore, are not being recommended for historic designation; the
n commercial building has had additions to the rear along with changes to
IN�.L the street facade, and the hotel building in the southwest corner of
n the property has had a second-story addition.
`p"Q/ The McCallum Adobe, once used as a part of the original Hotel, has been
moved to the Village Green and designated as a Class 7 Historic Site;
�o portions of the dining hall have also been moved to the Village Green
and now Contain retail shops. A portion of the original site now con-
tains the Oasis Commercial Building constructed in 1952, 3 1 7 1 4 Z
This historic site designation has been identified as exempt under the
provisions of CEQA.
APPROVED:
A. N ON
Director of Planning Dir tar of Community Oe lopment
APPROVED:_--� nag ATTACHMENTS:
1.1. Resolution
2. Site Plan
3. HSPB Minutes of 1/14/85
4. Excerpt from Ordinance 1140
5. Letter of Endorsement from Property Owner
1 t4
2ft q
January 14, 1985 HSPB MINUTES Page 2
AGENDA ITEMS
PUBLIC
Oasis Hotel Tower/Hi or Site Desi nation Case BHSPB-I())
Staff presented
is recommendatio stgrica photographs g the asis otel, and conies of
the ans for the Hotel by Lloyd >4right.
The public hearing was opened with Nathan Cohen, the majority owner of the
Tower property, presenting a letter to the RSPB in support of the designation
of the Tower as an historic site. The public hearinq was closed with no
further comment.
Motion: M/S/C unanimously (McKinney/Henderson; Kitty Hayes absent) to
recommend to the City Council that they designate the Oasis Hotel
Tower and the adjoining structure as a Class 7 Historic Site.
Staff will donate the copies of the original plans of the Oasis Hotel to the
Palm Springs Historical Society once this case is closed.
Pacific Building/Historic Site Designation (Case_ #RSPB-13). Staff revi ed
t�discussI&i ww ich—had taken pace at t e December 10, 1984, meet and
presented its recommendation.
The public hearing was opened with Rose Mihata, an owner the Pacific
Building, stating that her partner, T.J. Haga, is opposed o the proposed
historic designation because he feels that there are no b efits to the prop-
erty owners. Mrs. Mihata stated that she, herself, i not opposed to such
designation and that it is her intention to preserve a historical character
of the Pacific Building and has already taken eps to renovate certain
features; she commented, however, that there is financial aid available to
her for renovation purposes.
Janice Lyle stated that it is_ the Board' responsibility to insure that the
City's needs for preserving its histor are met and that, 'although there may
not be a particular benefit for one ' dividual, there is a long term benefit
for the community.
Discussion ensued regarding th responsibility of the purchaser of an older
building to check into the p sibility of historic designation. Mrs. Mihata
stated that she had contac d City staff in this matter and had been told that
the building was not be' g considered; she also stated that they would not
have purchased the bui ing had they known it was on the survey. Janice Lyle
stated that the Bo should, then, be angry at some City staff for not
providing the pro r information. (Note: Planninq Division/Redevelopment
Agency staffs w ing with historical preservation activities were not con-
tacted prior t the public hearing process.)
Discussion ensued regarding the potential limitation of use within this
buildin Staff assured Mrs. Mihata that neither tha RSPB nor the City
Counci have yet acted to limit use beyond that which is regulated by other
Cit rdinances and that this case would be no different.
s. Mihata suggested that cooperation from the private sector in historic
preservation matters might be easier to achieve if the City could offer some
incentives to the property owner. She stated that she is in favor of what the
144
s
financial management consultants, inc.
N7999 RNEWAk ORIVE/WTE110 TOLUCA LAKE, CALFORMA 91602
TELEPHONES 20 769 7a22 — B77 4845
NATHAN W. COHEN HON.ROBERT s.DONFELD
wc,c:w. a ca.au
January 14, 1485
Historic Site Preservation Board of the City of Palm Springs
cPalm Springs, California
Re: Designation of Oasis Hotel Tower as Historic Site
Dear Honorable Board Members:
As owner of the property on which the Oasis Hotel Tower is located, I
fully support its designation as an Historic Site by the City of Palm
Springs, and I heartily endorse your recommendation to the Palm Springs
City Council to that effect.
The City has been aware that it has long been my intention to develop
my property to its highest and best use, and accordingly, I want to ex-
press my great concern about three matters which are related to the
Oasis Hotel Tower. First, it is important that only those structures
adjoining the Tower, as indicated in your Site Plan, and which are
necessary for its physical support, be designated Historic Sites.
Second, I should not be restricted from renovating or improving those
adjoining structures as long as the Tower is itself preserved. Third,
it may be necessary to move the Tower to some other location within the
property, such as to the middle of a new shopping center development,
or to some other location outside of the property. My information is
that this should present no problem as long as adequate care is taken
to avoid harm to the Tower, and of course, I would expect to take all
of the necessary appropriate precautions.
I am hopeful that your recommendations to the Palm Springs City Council
concerning the Oasis Hotel Tower will specifically refer to and be con-
sist�ent with my three expressed concerns.
f.
Very truly yours,
FINANCIAL MANA I T CONSULTANTS, INC.
Nathan W. Coh
President
NWC:mah
145
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS
PUBLIC NOTIFICATION
o•N1
Date: April 18, 2018
Subject: Historic Site Designation of "The Oasis Hotel'
AFFIDAVIT OF PUBLICATION
I, Cynthia A. Berardi, CMC, Chief Deputy City Clerk, of the City of Palm Springs, California,
do hereby certify that a copy of the attached Notice of Public Hearing was published in the
Desert Sun on April 7, 2018.
1 declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
Cynt is erardi, CMC
Chief Deputy City Clerk
AFFIDAVIT OF POSTING
I, Cynthia A. Berardi, CMC, Interim Chief Deputy City Clerk, of the City of Palm Springs,
California, do hereby certify that a copy of the attached Notice of Public Hearing was
posted at City Hall, 3200 E. Tahquitz Canyon Drive, on the exterior legal notice posting
board, and in the Office of the City Clerk on April 5, 2018.
1 declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
Cynth a A. Berardi, CMC
Chief Deputy City Clerk
AFFIDAVIT OF MAILING
I, Cynthia A. Berardi, CMC, Chief Deputy City Clerk, of the City of Palm Springs, California,
do hereby certify that a copy of the attached Notice of Public Hearing was mailed to each
and every person on the attached list on April 5, 2018, in a sealed envelope, with postage
prepaid, and depositing same in the U.S. Mail at Palm Springs, California.
(190 notices)
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
Cynthia A. Berardi, CMC
Chief Deputy City Clerk
PO Box 23430
mediagraUp Green Bay,WI 54305-3430
Tat:760-778.45781 Fax 760-778-4731
n+R1DFiliEt541WhY NETV,De% Email:legals@thedesertsun.com
PROOF OF
PUBLICATION A&Imm '.
X U') NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING l
is tS-TATE OF CALIFORNIA SS. CITY COUNCIL
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS -
¢OUNTYOFRIVERSIDE AN AMENDMENT TO THE CLASS I HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION FOR'THE
bA515
+:c : HOTEL' TO INCORPORATE THE OA515 HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED qT 211-
''r,. 219 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE AND THE COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT AND
tyJ W CASITA BUILDINGS LOCATED AT 121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE,DESIGNED
J G to -- BY MASTER ARCHFfECf LLOYD WRI,GHT;ZONE CBO,(CASE HSPB 10 AMINO)
V fir NOTICE 15 HEREBY GIVEN that the City Council of the City of Palm Springgs,
OF�LM SPRINGS/LEGAL$ California,will hold a public hearing at its meeting of April 18 2018.The Cittyy
Council meeting begins at 6:00 p.m., in the Coundl Chamber a i City Hall,3200
PO'BOX 21t43 `'T East Tahquitz Canyon Way,Palm Springs.
m rJ The purpose of this hearing is to consider a recommendation~ by the HSPB to
O - amend the Class 1 historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel to Incorporate the
PALNk SPIFR6GS'CA 92263 ,Oasis Hotel Dinin Hall located at 211-219 South Palm Canyon Drive and the
mmmerclal storefr
Drive. ont and casita buildings located at 121 South Palm Canyon.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION; The proposed historic site,designation is
.not subject
to the California Environmental Quality Act (fEQAI pursuant to
/oreseeable indirect physicaltchadge�iln the enviI inein a dire 1 or reasonabI
I am over the age of 18 years old,a citizen of the a tiYiry m not a pr0)e t as defined In Se ion 15378)of the CEQA Gulde)line e
California Cade of Re9ulatlons,Tkle 14,Chapter 3,because it has no potential
United States and not a party to,or have interest in fw resulting fin pity al hinges to the environment,dire ly or Indira ty.
REVIEW OF%or ub INFORMATION: The application and related documents
this matter. I hereby certify that the attached are available for public review at City all be wean the hours of8:00 a.m.and
6:00 p.m., Monday through Thursda . Please contact the s 0,c. of the City
advertisement appeared in said newspaper(set in °fie duo, e�3�z3 8204 If you would Ske to schetlule an appointment to review
type not smaller than non pariel) in each and entire COMMENT ON THIS APPUCAnON: Response to this notice may be made
verbally at the Public Hearin and/or In writing before the hearing.Written
issue of said newspaper and not in an supplement comments can be made ,'to the Ci Council b email at
Y PP ctyderk®Palmspringsca.govor letter(for mail orfianddellve y ry)to: -
thereof on the following dates,to wit: Anthonyy 1.Me)ia,MMG city Clerk
. 3209 E.Tahgwtz Canyon Way
Palm Springs,CA 92262
An challenge of the proposed project I-court may be limited to raising only
04/07/18 hose issues ralsed at the public hearing described in this notice or in written
(Government Code Section 65009(b)(z'
correspondence delivered to the Ciryry).Clescrk at. or prior to,the public hearing.
A.opportunity will be given at said hearing for all interested persons to be
I acknowledge that I am a principal clerk of the Associate uesti net regard
ffi3n-824is case may be directed to Ken Lyon, FLA,
Planneprinter of The Desert Sun,printed and published SI necesita ayuda con esta wrta porfavor Ilame a Is Ciudad de Palm Springs y
puede hablar con Felipe Prim i era elefano(760)323-8253.
weekly in the City of Palm Springs,County of
Riverside, State of California.The Desert Sun was Anthony J.Mefcity Cl r`k
adjudicated a Newspaper of general circulation on
March 24, 1988 by the Superior Court of the
County of Riverside, State of California Case No. \
191236. ( ��
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing
is true and correct. Executed on this 9th of April
2018 in Palm Springs,California.
PublishM:April],2018--
W V y ,,v
DECLARANT
Ad#:0002844105
P O: HSPB 10-Oasis Hotel
#of Affidavits:1
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
CITY COUNCIL
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS
AN AMENDMENT TO THE CLASS 1 HISTORIC SITE DESIGNATION FOR `THE OASIS HOTEL"
TO INCORPORATE THE OASIS HOTEL DINING HALL LOCATED AT 211-219 SOUTH PALM
CANYON DRIVE AND THE COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT AND CASITA BUILDINGS LOCATED
AT 121 SOUTH PALM CANYON DRIVE, DESIGNED BY MASTER ARCHITECT LLOYD WRIGHT;
ZONE CBD, (CASE HSPB 10 AMND)
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Council of the City of Palm Springs, California, will hold a
public hearing at its meeting of April 18, 2018. The City Council meeting begins at 6:00 p.m., in the
Council Chamber at City Hall, 3200 East Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs.
The purpose of this hearing is to consider a recommendation by the HSPB to amend the Class 1
historic site designation of the Oasis Hotel to incorporate the Oasis Hotel Dining Hall located at 211-
219 South Palm Canyon Drive and the commercial storefront and casita buildings located at 121
South Palm Canyon Drive.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed historic site designation is not subject to the
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not
result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and
15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines,
California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no potential for resulting in
physical changes to the environment, directly or indirectly.
REVIEW OF PROJECT INFORMATION: The application and related documents are available for
public review at City Hall between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday.
Please contact the Office of the City Clerk at (760) 323-8204 if you would like to schedule an
appointment to review these documents.
COMMENT ON THIS APPLICATION: Response to this notice may be made verbally at the Public
Hearing and/or in writing before the hearing. Written comments can be made to the City Council by
email at cityclerke_palmspringsca.gov or letter (for mail or hand delivery) to:
Anthony J. Mejia, MMC, City Clerk
3200 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way
Palm Springs, CA 92262
Any challenge of the proposed project in court may be limited to raising only those issues raised at
the public hearing described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City Clerk at,
or prior to, the public hearing. (Government Code Section 65009[b][2]).
An opportunity will be given at said hearing for all interested persons to be heard. Questions
regarding this case may be directed to Ken Lyon, RA, Associate Planner, at (760) 323-8245.
Si necesita ayuda con esta carta, porfavor Ilame a la Ciudad de Palm Springs y puede hablar con
Felipe Primera telefono (760) 323-8253.
Ark+on J. Me'i C
City Clerk
N
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The Oasis Hotel
Case HSPB 10 AMND
121, 211, & 219 South Palm Canyon Drive
NEIGHBORHOOD SPONSOR REPS
' Case HSP 10 MR PETER MORUZZI
HISTORIC AND PALM SPRINGS MODERN COMMITTEE
% The Oasls Hotel 1 k
,PHN for CC Mee'ti�404,1$18 FiISFOE{IC'SJTE,J�EP s ? P.O. BOX 4738
PALM SPRINGS, CA 92263-4738
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS
'x a ya '�^ PLANNING SERVICES DEPARTMENT
' 1VERIF CAT(RNNOTiCE4+��''a ATTN SECRETARY/HSPB 10
PO BOX 2743
PALM SPRINGS, CA 92263-2743
MRS PATRICIA GARCIA-PLOTKIN,
MS MARGARET PARK, DIRECTOR DIRECTOR
'AGUA,CALIENTE„BAND OF+GAHUILL/`< AGUA CALIENTE BAND OF CAHUILLA TRIBAL HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE
t
INDIANS AGUA CALIENTE BAND OF CAHUILLA
PLANNING&DEVELOPMENT DEPT. INDIANS
5401 DINAH SHORE DRIVE 5401 DINAH SHORE DRIVE
PALM SPRINGS, CA 92264 PALM SPRINGS,CA 92264
MR FRANK TYSEN MR JOSEPH ONTIVEROS
CASA CODY INN SOBOBA BAND OF LUISENO INDIANS
INTERESTED PARTIES-d «5 CULTURAL RESOURCES MANAGER
175 S. CAHUILLA ROAD
PALM SPRINGS, CA 92262 P.O. BOX 487
SAN JACINTO, CA 92581
MR RAYMOND HUAUTE MR,MICHAEL MIRE EZ MR DOUG TODD WELMAS
CULTURAL Ti ITN o�eni Ior� GOORDI ninTno
CULTURAL RESOURCE SPECIALIST o�c nenoTini��ncccoT rnui in n TRIBAL CHAIRMAN
Tno
MORONGO BAND OF MISSION INDIANS r.iRES CABAZON BAND OF MISSION INDIANS
IDIAN12700 PUMARRA ROAD p Q R 84-245 INDIO SPRINGS PARKWAY
BANNING,CA 92220 nn INDIO, CA 92203
Tu�oni rn n���n (AS Of 05/08/17)
MS JACQUELYN BARNUM MR DARRELL MIKE,TRIBAL CHAIRMAN
ENVIRONMENTAL DIRECTOR TWENTY-NINE PALMS BAND OF
CABAZON BAND OF MISSION INDIANS MISSION INDIANS
84-245 INDIO SPRINGS DRIVE 46-200 HARRISON PLACE
INDIO, CA 92201 COACHELLA, CA 92236
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PDS CANYON DESERT,HAZE Current Occupant
-038 513-151-038 513-151-038
M CANYON DR 14900 HINDRY AVE 200 S CAHUILLA RD
PRINGS CA 92262-6312 HAWTHORNE CA 90250-6761 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6334
CH II Current Occ nt Current Occupant
4 513-151- 513-142-001
28 220 S UILLA RD 155 S BELARDO RD
A 90264-6528 PA SPRINGS CA 92262-6334 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6327
F PALM SPRINGS NO ROOMS TONIGHT LLC Current Occupant
-017 513-142-003 513-142-003
TAHQUITZ CANYON WAY 1750 14TH ST STE E 200 W ARENAS RD
SPRINGS CA 92262-6959 SANTA MONICA CA 90404-4353 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6306
A INVESTMENT CO SEES CANDY SHOPS INC Current Occupant
060-012-874
513-144-009 SOUTH
CA H SAN 000-012-874
115 S INDIAN CANYON DR S FR REALANCISCO CA 94080- 144 S PALM CANYON DR#7
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603 SO 5968 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330
Current Occupant CHICOS FAS INC Current Occupant
000-102-331 000-154-644 000-154-644
138 S PALM CANYON DR 8 106 PO BOX 2580 155 S PALM CANYON DF
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330 WESTERVILLE OH 43086-2580 PALM SPRINGS CA 922
MERCADO, PLAZA Current Occupant FEIST FAMILY F'
513-143-019 513-143-019 000-259-177
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 155 S PALM CANYON DR 38412 PARAD-
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8303 CATHEDRA
Current Occupant Current Occupant DIAN'
000-259-177 000-244-489 000
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-2 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-1 2a
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301
Current Occupant RUBYS PALM RING LTD
000-219-518 000-168-962
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-7 850 201 5XIPYARD WAY k STE E S-
NV SPRINGS CA 92262-8300 NE ORT BEACH CA 92663- JI
Current Occupant Current Occupant
000-260-835 000-212-805
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-5 155 S PALM CANYON,,-,�qs
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CAP S
Current Occupant HERNANDEZ,Mn,
000-219-515 000-256-080
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-4 PO BOX 2366
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305 PALM SPRINGS CA 92263-_
4
pALM,PDS CANYON DESERT,HAZE Current Occupant
513-154-038 513-151-038 513-151-038
222 S P ALM CANYON DR 14900 HINDRY AVE 200 S CAHUILLA RD
pALM,;PRINGS CA 92262-6312 HAWTHORNE CA 90250-6761 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262.6334
NEW, CH�JRCH II Current Occ nt Current Occupant
513-151-044 513-I51- 513-142-001
PO BOX 6528 220 S UILLA RD 155 S BELARDO RD
MALIBU CA 90264-6528 P SPRINGS CA 92262-6334 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6327
Y
CITY OF PALM SPRINGS NO ROOMS TONIGHT LLC Current Occupant
513-143-017 513-142-003 513-142-003
3200 F,TAHQUITZ CANYON WAY 1750 14TH ST STE E 200 W ARENAS RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6959 SANTA MONICA CA 90404-4353 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6306
PLA:bA INVESTMENT CO SEES CANDY SHOPS INC Current Occupant
513-144-009 000-012-874 000-012-874
115 S INDIAN CANYON DR 210 EL CAMINO REAL 144 S PALM CANYON DR#7
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603 SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO CA 94080- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330
5968
Current Occupant CHICOS FAS INC Current Occupant
000-102-331 000-154-644 000-154-644
138 S PALM CANYON DR# 106 PO BOX 2580 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-4
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330 WESTERVILLE OH 43086-2580 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301
MERCADO,PLAZA Current Occupant FEIST FAMILY ENTERPRISES LLC
513-143-019 513-143-019 000-259-177
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 155 S PALM CANYON DR 38412 PARADISE WAY
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8303 CATHEDRAL CITY CA 92234-2243
Current Occupant Current Occupant DIANES INC
000-259-177 000-244-489 000-219-518
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-2 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-1 2401 W 208TH ST
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 TORRANCE CA 90501-6212
Current Occupant RUBYS PALM RING LTD Current Occupant
000/201YARD
000-219-518 000-168-962
850 WAY# STE E STE155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-7 155 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8300 rEACH CA 92663- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8303
Current Occupant Current Occupant HATS UNLIMITED INC
000-260-835 000-212-805 000-219-515
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-5 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-7 1567 SPRINNAKER DR#N0101
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8302 VENTURE CA 93001-
Current Occupant HERNANDEZ,MARIO Current Occupant
000-219-515 000-256-080 000-256-080
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-4 PO BOX 2366 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-5
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305 PALM SPRINGS CA 92263-2366 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305
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'Curren Occupant JP EVANS VENTURES INC Current Occupant
000-28' -287 000-282-289 000-282-289
155 S P. LM CANYON DR STE A-1 601 VAN NESS AVE#NO 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-2
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305 SAN FRANCISCO CA 94102-3200 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305
HEAVENLY COUTURE INC Current Occupant Current Occupant
000-282-290 000-282-290 000-283-964
5355 PRODUCTION DR 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-3 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-21
HUNTINGTON BEACH CA 92649-1522 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8302
Current Occupant MCDONALD,JOHN CHARLES Current Occupant
000-256-111 513-143-005 513-143-005
189 S PALM CANYON DR 49035 CALLE FLORA 187 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303 LA QUINTA CA 92253-2547 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303
Current Occupant LUNDIN,JANE MAGEE Current Occupant
000-281-852 513-143-006 513-143-006
120 W ARENAS RD 1400 PINNACLE CT APT 411 120 W ARENAS RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6302 POINT RICHMOND CA 94801-4178 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6302
SLAYMAN,JOYCE E Current Occupant Current Occupant
513-144-005 513-144-005 000-219-524
121 S PALM CANYON DR STE 216 186 S PALM CANYON DR 198 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6378 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6356 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6356
SFO FORECAST INC Current Occupant WERWER ONE THOUSAND LLC
000-265-961 000-265-961 513-151-039
496 JEFFERSON ST 186 S PALM CANTON DR PO BOX 6528
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94109-1315 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6356 MALIBU CA 90264-6528
Current Occupant BELARDO COURT ASSOC Current Occupant
513-151-039 513-151-040 513-151-040
239 W ARENAS RD 4111 E MADISON ST#490 205 S BELARDO RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6301 SEATTLE WA 98112-3241 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6344
TAUCHER,WILDA LOOFF Current Occupant EAST EL PASEO 111 INC
513-153-001 513-153-001 000-144-249
5335 E BROADWAY 205 S PALM CANYON DR 41841 BEACON HL#NO
LONG BEACH CA 90803-3581 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6310 PALM DESERT CA 92211-5190
Current Occupant NEW,C H I1 Current Occupant
000-144-249 513-151- 1 513-151-041
205 S PALM CANYON DR PO B 6528 261 S BELARDO RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6310 MAIBU CA 90264-6528 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6329
MOBARAK, LUTFA CITY OF PALM SPRINGS SAMMY GS INC
009-618-142 513-153-017 000-250-195
211 S PALM CANYON DR PO BOX 2743 68778 E PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6310 PALM SPRINGS CA 92263-2743 CATHEDRAL CITY CA 92234-1313
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Current Occupant PALM,PDS CANYON VENCE,REALTY
000-250-195 513-154-035 513-154-039
265 S PALM CANYON DR STE El 222 S PALM CANYON DR 12161 SAINT ANDREWS DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6370 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 RANCHO MIRAGE CA 92270-1507
Current Occupant Current Occupant FIRST CHURCH OF,CHRIST
513-154-039 000-259-216 SCIENTIST
200 S PALM CANYON DR 200 S PALM CANYON DR 513-153-024
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 605 RIVERSIDE DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-
Current Occupant Current Occupant PALM,PDS CANYON
513-153-024 000-029-558 513-154-030
235 S PALM CANYON DR 222 S PALM CANYON DR 222 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6310 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312
NEW,CHURCH II Current Occu ADAMO, THOMAS
513-151-043 513-151-0 513-154-004
PO BOX 6528 248 S UILLA RD 67627 S LAGUNA DR
MALIBU CA 90264-6528 P t SPRINGS CA 92262-6334 CATHEDRAL CITY CA 92234-7486
Current Occupant FISHERMANS ET & GRILL INC Current Occupant
513-154-004 000-202-871 000-202-871
235 S INDIAN CANYON DR 590 S OL RD DER #NO 235 S INDIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6617 PAL RINGS CA 92264-1522 PALM SPRINGS CA 922 62-6 6 1 7
JGD ASSOC Current Occupant Current Occupant
513-154-018 513-154-018 000-159-216
226 28TH AVE 246 S PALM CANYON DR 256 S PALM CANTON DR
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94121-1002 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312
Current Occupant ADAMO,THOMAS ADAMO,T AS
000-220-288 513-154-050 513-154- 2
256 N PALM CANYON DR 67627 S LAGUNA DR 6762 LAGUNA DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5510 CATHEDRAL CITY CA 92234-7486 C HEDRAL CITY CA 92234-7486
Current Occupant Current Occupant Current Occupant
513-154-042 000-260-847 000-260-942
245 S INDIAN CANYON DR 302 E ARENAS RD 224 E ARENAS RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6617 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6633 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6632
Current Occupant Current Occupant PLAZA INDIAN AVE INC
000-168-869 000-268-268 009-601-690
196 S INDIAN CANYON DR 214 E ARENAS RD 115 S INDIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6632 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603
Current Occupant GAYMART ERNATIONAL INC Current Occupant
009-601-690 000-156- 6 000-156-256
188 S INDIAN CANYON DR PM
B 8 305 E ARENAS RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604 P M SPRINGS CA 92264- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-66r35
Current Occupant PLAZA INDIAN AVENUE INC PLAZA INDIAN AVE INC
000-281-926 508-085-002 009-601-691
217 E ARENAS RD 217 E ARENAS RD 115 S INDIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603
Current Occupant Current Occupant ROBRAY HOTEL PARTNERSHIP
009-601-691 000-250-310 508-085-005
200 S INDIAN CANYON DR 301 E ARENAS RD 2229 HARBOR BAY PKWY
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6618 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6635 ALAMEDA CA 94502-3026
Current Occupant BARISTO G UP Current Occ ❑t
508-085-005 513-151- 513-151- 7
222 S INDIAN CANYON DR 2688 ACIFIC COAST HWY 284 ARISTO RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6619 M IBU CA 90265-4517 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6318
LGS STEAKHOUSE PALM SPRINGS Current Occupant CANIU,MI ' AEL A
LLC 000-143-075 513-153-
000-143-075 255 S PALM CANYON DR STE B2 68275 ALLE LAS TIENDAS
PALM DESERT
CA 92260-4119 EL P S PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6369 DESERT HOT SPRINGS CA 92240-6409
PAL
Current Occupa Current Occupant JOEY AT PALM SPRINGS LLC
513-153-03 000-256-251 000-281-975
245 S P CANYON DR 245 S PALM CANYON DR 2158 S BROADMOOR DR
PAL :PRINGS CA 92262-6368 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6368 PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-5942
Current Occupant Current Occupant NFW, CH II
000-281-975 000-147-837 513-151- _
245 S PALM CANYON DR STE Al 285 S PALM CANYON DR STE D7 PO B 6528
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6368 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6360 MA IBU CA 90264-6528
Current Occupant 1 ALALA,PROP Current Occupant
513-151-042 513-154-016 000-157-986
261 S BELARDO RD 266 S PALM CANYON DR 266 S PALM CANYON DR STE B
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6329 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6367
FRANKS,ZACHARY Current Occupant 296 PALM CqKON LLC
513-154-017 513-154-017 513-154-0
875 KUMULANI DR 262 S PALM CANYON DR 201 R HIRE BLVD STE A29
KIHEI HI 96753-9207 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 S A MONICA CA 90401-1209
Current Occupant CITY OF PAL SPRINGS Current Occupant
513-154-040 513-154-0 513-154-048
296 S PALM CANYON DR 3200E QUITZ CANYON WAY 275 S INDIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 P SPRINGS CA 92262-6959 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6617
SMITH&HALL DESERT PROP Current Occupant BEVERAGES&MORE INC
513-203-013 513-203-013 000-283-858
68895 PEREZ RD STE 9 333 S PALM CANYON DR 1401 WILLOW PASS RD#N0900
CATHEDRAL CITY CA 92234-7255 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-7301 CONCORD CA 94520-7982
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Current Occupant PALM SPRINGS ART MUSEUM INC Current Occupant
000-283-858 513-204-008 513-204-008
333 S PALM CANYON DR#4 101 N MUSEUM DR 300 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-7301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5659 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-7302
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WESSMAN,HOLDINGS DTPS C 12 Current Occupant
513-144-012 513-560-073 513-560-073
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 100 W TAHQUITZ CANYON WAY
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6390
SPRINGS,PALM PROMENADE WESSMAN,FJOLDINGS Current Oc pant
513-560-045 513-092-0 SE WAY STE 200 513-09 09
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 555 S 165 INDIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PAJA SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 P M SPRINGS CA 92262-6420
Current Occupant WESSMAN,HOLDINGS Current Occupant
000-260-874 513-092-010 513-092-010
119 S INDIAN CANYON DR 555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 146 N PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603 PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5504
Current Occupant PROP,FRANK Current Occupant
000-281-675 513-092-005 513-092-005
146 N PALM CANYON DR 550 N CAHUILLA RD 134 N PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5504 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5678 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-
Current Occupant WESSMAN, LDINGS Current Oc ant
000-040-279 513-092-0 513-09 03
140 E PALM CANYON DR 555 S S RISE WAY STE 200 149 IAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-8822 PAL SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 P M SPRINGS CA 92262-6420
Current Occupant SPRINGS,PALM PROMENADE DIPS C 12
000-187-215 513-560-060 513-560-074
149 S INDIAN CANYON DR# 127 555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603 PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894
Current Occupant BRANDENBUR , OASIS PLAZA Current Occ ant
513-560-074 513-143ECA
513-143- 9
100 W TAHQUITZ CANYON WAY 1122 WIST STE 200 101 S ALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6390 SAN I 5125-3103 PAW SPRINGS CA 92262-6303
STARBUCKS CORP Current Occu t ZARHILL PARTNERS
000-126-955 000-126-9 000-264-206
PO BOX 34442 101 S M CANYON DR 1021 E VIA SAN DIMAS RD
SEATTLE WA 9 8 1 24-1442 P SPRINGS CA 92262-6303 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-1763
Current Occupant RAMLA USA INC Current Occupant
000-264-206 000-268-471 000-268-471
111 LA PLAZA 128 E PALM AVE#NO 100 105 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6382 MONROVIA CA 91016-5108 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303
PALM CORNER ASSOC Current Occupant INTERNATIONAL COFFEE&TEA
513-092-004 513-092-004 LLC
0
121 S PALM CANYON DR STE 216 100 N PALM CANYON DR 570 WILSHIRE
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6378 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5504 LOS ANGEL
SA 90 #N0120
LOS ANGELES CA 90036-3659
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Current Occupant GERHARDT,DESIREE Current Occupant
000-220-624 000-231-074 000-231-074
100 N PALM CANYON DR PO BOX 4448 134 E TAHQUITZ CANYON WAY
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5504 PALM SPRINGS CA 92263-4448 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6431
WESSMAN,HOLDINGS Current Occupant Current Occupant
513-144-011 513-144-011 000-219-522
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 124 S PALM CANYON DR 124 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330
WESSMAN,HOLDINGS Current Occupant Current Occupant
513-144-013 513-144-013 000-101-334
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 134 S PALM CANYON DR 134 S PALM CANYON DR# 104
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330
PLAZA,LA LORES Current
Occ nt SB0 SC7O
1513-S144- 513- 44- 00230
-
PI
135555 SEWAYSTE200 AITZ CANYON WAY 110P MCYN
PAL SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALSPRNGS CA 92262-6430 P M SPRINGS CA 92262-
Current Occupant PLAZA, LAS ORES Current Occupa
000-237-96 513-144-0 513-144-0
135 E T QU11'Z CANYON WAY# 555 S SE WAY STE 200 116 S LM CANYON DR
I lOB PAL SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 P M SPRINGS CA 92262-6330
P SPRINGS CA 92262-6430
PLAZA WELMAS INC Current Occupant Current Occupant
508-081-002 508-081-002 000-250-293
115 S INDIAN CANYON DR 100 S INDIAN CANYON DR 267 E TAIQUITZ CANYON WAY
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6432
SIAM GOURM LTD INC Current Occupant Current Occupant
000-265-862 000-265-862 513-142-001
PO BOX,,,2016 100 S INDIAN CANYON DR 155 S BELARDO RD
PALM PRINGS CA 92263-2916 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6327
NO ROOMS TONIGHT LLC Current Occupant PLAZA INVESTMENT CO
513-142-003 513-142-003 513-144-009
1750 14TH ST STE E 200 W ARENAS RD 115 S INDIAN CANYON DR
SANTA MONICA CA 90404-4353 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6306 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6603
SEES CANDY SHOPS INC
000-012-874 Current Occupant Current Occupant
000 01 -874CAM REAL 000-012-874 000-102-331
SOUTH SAN NO REAL CA 94080- 144 S PALM CANYON DR#7 138 S PALM CANYON DR# 106
5968 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6330
MERCADO,PLAZA Current Occupant CHICOS FAS INC
513-143-019 513-143-019 000-154-644
555 S SUNRISE WAY STE 200 155 S PALM CANYON DR PO BOX 2580
PALM SPRINGS CA 92264-7894 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8303 WESTERVILLE OH 43086-2580
Current Occupant RUBYS PALM SPRING LTD Current Occupant
000-154-644 000-168-962850 201 SHIPYARD WAY#STE E STE 000-168-962
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-4 NO 155 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 NEWPORT BEACH CA 92663- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8303
DIANES INC Current Occupant Current Occupant
000-219-518 000-219-518 000-244-489
2401 W 208TH ST 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-7 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-1
TORRANCE CA 90501-6212 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8300 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301
FEIST FAMILY ENTERPRISES LLC Current Occupant Current Occupant
000-259-177 000-259-177 000-260-835
38412 PARADISE WAY 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-2 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-5
CATHEDRAL CITY CA 92234-2243 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301
Current Occupant HATS UNLIMITED INC Current Occupant
000-212-805 000-219-515 000-219-515
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-7 1567 SPRINNAKER DR#NOW 1 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-4
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8302 VENTURE CA 93001- PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305
HERNANDEZ,MARIO Current Occupant Current Occupant
000-256-080 000-256-080 000-282-287
PO BOX 2366 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-5 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE A-1
PALM SPRINGS CA 92263-2366 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8305
JP EVANS VENTURES INC Current Occ ant HEAVENLY COUTURE INC
000-282-289 000Z829 000-282-290
601 VAN NESS AVE#NO 155M CANYON DR STE A-2 5355 PRODUCTION DR
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94102-3200 PAINGS CA 92262-8305 HUNTINGTON BEACH CA 92649-1522
Current Occupant Current Occupant BRANDENBURG, OASIS PLAZA
000-282-290 000-283-964 513-143-008
155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-3 155 S PALM CANYON DR STE B-21 121 S PALM CANYON DR STE 216
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8301 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-8302 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6378
Current Occupant ESCALANTE, CHITECTS Current Occupant
513-143-008 000-233-44 000-233-445
139 S PALM CANYON DR PO BO 972 121 S PALM CANYON DR STE 222
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303 PALWSPRINGS CA 92263-1972 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6378
Current Occupant MCDONALD,JOHN CHARLES Current Occupant
000-281-671 513-143-005 513-143-005
139 S PALM CANYON DR 49035 CALLE FLORA 187 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303 LA QUINTA CA 92253-2547 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303
Current Occupant LUNDIN,JANE MAGEE Current Occupant
000-256-111 513-143-006 513-143-006
189 S PALM CANYON DR 1400 PINNACLE CT APT 411 120 W ARENAS RD
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6303 POINT RICHMOND CA 94801-4178 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6302
Current Occupant SLAYMAN,JOYCE E Current Occupant
000-281-852 513-144-005 513-144-005
120 W ARENAS RD 121 S PALM CANYON DR STE 216 186 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6302 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6378 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6356
Current Occupant SFO FORECAST INC Current Occupant
000-219-524 000-265-961 000-265-961
198 S PALM CANYON DR 496 JEFFERSON ST 186 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6356 SAN FRANCISCO CA 94109-1315 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6356
TAUCHER, WILDA LOOFF Current Occupant EAST ELPASEO I I I INC
513-153-001 513-153-001 000-144-249
5335 E BROADWAY 205 S PALM CANYON DR 41841 BEACON HL#NO
LONG BEACH CA 90803-3581 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6310 PALM DESERT CA 92211-5190
Current Occupant VENCE,REALTY Current Occupant
000-144-249 513-154-039 513-154-039
205 S PALM CANYON DR 12161 SAINT ANDREWS DR 200 S PALM CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6310 RANCHO MIRAGE CA 92270-1507 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312
Current Occupant RICHARDS, DIANA APHM Current Occupant
000-259-216 009-000-445 009-000-445
200 S PALM CANYON DR 2150 TAMARISK RD 150 S INDIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6312 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-5956 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604
ZOSO APH Curren[Occupant Current Occupant
009-607-5 Current
CurrentOcc
8910 VERSITY CENTER LN STE 150 S INDIAN CANYON DR 150 S INDIAN CANYON DR
000-263-586
100
S DIEGO CA 92 122-1 01 6 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604
HARD ROCK CAFE INTERNATIONAL Current Occupant AUDIO VISU SERVICES GROUP
INC 000-266-719 INC
000-266-719 000-26 -198
OLD PARK LN
150 S INDIAN CANYON DR
ORL 10 IVER RD#NO300
RLANDO FL 32835-2466 PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604
5S , ILLER PARK IL 60176-1058
Current Occupant ZOSO,APHM Current Occ ant
000-267-198 009-607-578 009-607 8
150 S INDIAN CANYON DR 2301 ROSECRANS AVE STE 2110 1 76
S DIAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262-6604 EL SEGUNDO CA 90245-7801 PAL SPRINGS CA 92262-6604
USA, BIA Current Oc 4ant
508-081-008 508-081 R
176 S INDIAN AVE 176 IAN CANYON DR
PALM SPRINGS CA 92262- P M SPRINGS CA 92262-6604
Neighborhood Map-1/2 Mile Radius
HSPB 10—Amendment to the Class 1 designation of a historic site
Baristo nixonSF@aol.com
Alternate baristonei¢hborhood@amail.com
Historic Tennis Club pb@mcisfca.com
Alternate kfalcon2000@vahoo.com
Midtown tbettinaer@aol.com
Alternate dbpowellwc(u@amail.com
Warm Sands sharksecret@amail.com
Alternate aaron.turker@amail.com
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