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Kostura, 839 Blandford Boulevard evaluation <br />Introduction <br />This house was previously evaluated for possible historical significance in 1991 by Katherine <br />Solomonson, and the evaluation was formalized in 1992 by Charles Jany as part of the Redwood <br />City Historic Resources Survey. Solomonson and Jany documented the house’s construction in <br />1939, to designs by Meno Park architect Arthur D. Jannsen. They also noted that when it was <br />built, the house had been publicized as a model home associated with the Golden Gate <br />International Exposition — the World’s Fair on Treasure Island. This house had been one of <br />twenty-seven World’s Fair model houses around the Bay Area, and one of several on the <br />peninsula south of San Francisco. These model homes were meant to showcase the latest in local <br />modern house design. <br />In their evaluation, Solomonson and Jany stated “The house has some significance solely for <br />being one of about twenty-seven residences erected for a model homes tour of San Francisco's <br />Golden Gate International Exposition in 1939.” They added “The extent to which the plan <br />rambled is extraordinary, underscoring how important private, outdoor living spaces were to <br />homeowners in 1939.” They surmised that the form of the house was influenced by nineteenth <br />century California ranch houses. They gave the house a National Register status code of 5S3, or <br />“Appears to be individually eligible for local listing or designation through survey evaluation.” <br />The present report serves three needs: <br />A) The house needs to be evaluated under Criterion 3 of the California Register. The 1991/1992 <br />evaluation described the house only briefly, and did not specify what the character-defining <br />features of the historic property were. The present report adds further description, evaluates the <br />house as eligible for the California Register under Criterion 3, and lists its character-defining <br />features. This list is needed in order to apply the Secretary’s Standards for Rehabilitation. <br />B) Alterations to the house are being proposed, and those alterations must be considered in the <br />light of the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation of Historic Properties. These <br />standards are being applied here. <br />C) Evaluation to Redwood City landmark criteria for a Mills Act nomination (see p. 22, below). <br />A Historical Evaluation under Criterion 3 of the California Register <br />Description <br />As described in 1991/1992, the footprint of this one-story house describes a U-shape, with the <br />outer perimeter facing the streets and the inner perimeter enclosing the back yard. The roof is <br />hipped on all sides. <br />In the present report, the house is described as being composed of three parts: <br />2 <br />9.A. - Page 102 of 247 <br />360