17.0 - 2300 E 2nd St - Santa Rita Courts — original pdf

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HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION PERMITS IN NATIONAL REGISTER HISTORIC DISTRICTS OCTOBER 1, 2025 SP-2025-082872; HR-2025-115686 SANTA RITA COURTS NATIONAL REGISTER HISTORIC DISTRICT 2300 EAST 2ND STREET 17 – 1 PROPOSAL Restore original buildings and demolish non-original buildings. PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS 1) Demolish 16 non-original buildings at the center and west of the site during Phases One and Two (see backup). Construct three new multifamily apartment buildings in their place (Buildings 1-3). 2) Restore 11 original buildings in Phase Three area (see backup). a. Refinish existing pipe columns on all buildings. Refinish pipe patio rails on Buildings 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10, and 11. Refinish metal foundation vents. b. Deconstruct and remove water heater closets on all buildings. Deconstruct and remove all existing exterior doors and hardware, then restore and reuse door frames. Deconstruct and remove all existing windows and trim. Remove all exterior lighting and electrical fixtures. Deconstruct and remove all existing shingle roofs, substrate, insulation, gabled roof framing, and all roof elements, retaining and protecting existing concrete roof slabs. Deconstruct and remove all existing fascia, then prep for scupper attachment. Remove all existing paint on the exterior walls. Remove existing front ramp on Buildings 1. Remove existing front railings on Buildings 1, 2, 4, 7, and 11. Remove exterior stairs on Buildings 3 and 9. c. Replacement elements: install new metal box gutters with scuppers. Install new flat TPO roof on all buildings, to match historic rooflines. Install new doors and screens to match historic entries on all buildings, including non- operable doors and screens where needed to fill existing historic doorways. Install new operable windows in existing openings to match historic windows. Install non-operable multilight spandrels in existing openings where needed to match historic photos. ARCHITECTURE Existing buildings are one story, with painted brick veneer cladding and side-gabled shingle roofs with hipped front entry porches supported by pipe columns. All buildings have replacement windows and doors and added exterior water heater closets. In addition to the buildings’ forms, their arrangement around a central courtyard is an essential site feature, as noted in the National Register district nomination: Eight buildings extend in four parallel rows aligned north-south to allow all units to receive morning or afternoon light. Three structures stand perpendicular to the other eight, with two residential structures located along Pedemales Street, and one building along Corta Street. Courtyards, approximately seventy-five feet wide, separate the buildings, and are currently used for hanging laundry out to dry and as small children's play areas. A distinctive feature of Santa Rita Courts' plot plan…is a 76' x 224' children's play area…This Bauhaus method of organizing common space is an original row housing design feature based on German Zeilenbau principles…[and] represents the concept's earliest American social housing implementation by the United States Housing Authority, created by the 1937 Housing Act… Santa Rita Courts was designed by the firm of Giesecke & Harris under the supervision of H.F. Kuehne. 1 RESEARCH The 2008 National Register Historic District nomination describes the property’s importance to local, state, and national public housing history as the first public housing development completed under the 1937 Housing Act: Santa Rita Courts in Austin, Texas is the first public housing development completed under the 1937 Housing Act that created the United States Housing Authority (USHA). Santa Rita Courts, built to house families of Mexican descent, was one of three East Austin housing projects built under the 1937 Act, the others being Chalmers Courts (built for white families), and Rosewood Courts (built for African American families). Constructed between November 17, 1938 and June 24, 1939, the development is nationally significant under Criteria A and B in the areas of Community Planning and Development, Social History, and Government, as the first federal housing project 1 https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/08000319/08000319.pdf completed under the 1937 Housing Act, and for its association with Lyndon Baines Johnson, whose involvement with the project stands as a remarkable achievement in his early political career, and foreshadows his active role in the passage of civil rights legislation as a Senator, Vice President, and President of the United States. The period of significance is 1938-1957.2 DESIGN STANDARDS The City of Austin’s Historic Design Standards (March 2021) are based on the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation and are used to evaluate projects in National Register districts. The following standards apply to the proposed project: 17 – 2 Repair and alterations 1. General standards The proposed project removes mostly inappropriate replacement materials, not historic fabric. 2. Foundations The proposed foundation work is appropriate. 3. Roofs The proposed flat roofs are appropriate and better compliment the historic buildings than the current gabled rooflines. 4. Exterior walls and trim Proposed masonry repair and paint removal is compatible. 5. Windows, doors, and screens Proposed fenestration improves the buildings’ visual integrity and retains historic-age openings with non-operable units where necessary. 6. Porches Proposed porch element rehabilitation and ramp updates are appropriate. Summary The project meets the applicable standards. PROPERTY EVALUATION The buildings contribute to the Santa Rita Courts National Register district. Designation Criteria—Historic Landmark 1) The buildings to be restored are more than 50 years old. 2) The original buildings retain high integrity. 3) Properties must meet two criteria for landmark designation (LDC §25-2-352). Staff has evaluated the property and determined that it may meet two criteria for landmark designation: a. Architecture. The buildings are constructed with International-style influences. b. Historical association. The property is associated with early public housing in Texas. c. Archaeology. The property was not evaluated for its potential to yield significant data concerning the human history or prehistory of the region. d. Community value. The property possesses a unique location, physical characteristic, or significant feature that contributes to the character, image, or cultural identity of the city, the neighborhood, or a particular demographic group. e. Landscape feature. The property’s landscape, one of the first in the US to use Bauhaus-style common space for public housing, conveys a significant designed landscape with artistic, aesthetic, cultural, or historical value to the city. COMMITTEE FEEDBACK No additional feedback. Commend the applicant for the project’s sensitivity to the historic fabric of the district. 2 https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/08000319/08000319.pdf STAFF RECOMMENDATION Concur with Committee feedback and comment on plans. 17 – 3 LOCATION MAP 17 – 4 PROPERTY INFORMATION Photos 17 – 5 1950 and 1939 photos: National Register Nomination, Santa Rita Courts, https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/08000319/08000319.pdf Preservation Austin: https://www.preservationaustin.org/news/east-austin-barrio-landmarks-santa-rita-courts 17 – 6 Google Street View, 2024 Historical Information See National Register nomination: https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/08000319/08000319.pdf