Yesterday we received the above 1880’s photograph of Eureka Valley and 70 Douglass.
“70 Douglass is one of the few surviving structures from a time when Eureka Valley was better known for farms and cattle. In the photo, that’s a cattle yard on the East side of Douglass. 70 Douglass is in the center, with the roof a bit hazy. The building is circa 1883.”
And while we love the photograph (more historic pictures available here), we have to admit that we’re not so keen on the reason it found its way into our inbox. From the note that accompanied the photo:
“We’re working to save the building at 70 Douglass St. The owners want to demolish it and replace it with two single family homes – one on Ord and one on Douglass.”
And while we’re more than happy to support an effort to find a buyer that will appreciate and preserve a historic property that’s currently for sale (a la 39 Chattanooga), we’re not so hip on simply trying to block the development rights of current owners.
If you feel strongly one way or another, however, you might want to attend the Board of Supervisors’ appeal hearing on Tuesday, Aug. 15 (4pm at City Hall) [UPDATE: postponed until September or October] at which an appeal of the Planning Departments decision to issue a categorical exemption for 70 Douglass from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) will be heard (homonym pun most definitely intended).
∙ Historic Pictures of Eureka Valley [flickr]
∙ Current Photos of 70 Douglass [flickr]
∙ 39 Chattanooga Street Sold [SocketSite]
I suppose it’s fortunate that save39chattanooga and save 70 douglass weren’t around at the time of the photo. they would have been busy making sure the miwoks weren’t adding onto their teepees after they pushed them out.