Title
Staff Report to Authorize the City Manager to Allocate $23,000 from the General Fund Community Investment Fund and Arts Commission Funding to the Alta Mira Club for the Repair and Restoration of Stained Glass Panels and Window at the Ygnacio Peralta House (Historical Landmark #285)
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt a resolution approving a $23,000 allocation of existing General Fund appropriations for the repair and restoration of a stained glass window and surrounding glass panels located at the Ygnacio Peralta House (also known as Historical Landmark #285). The source of funds would include $20,000 from the 2019-20 Community Investment Program account, coupled with $3,000 from the City of San Leandro Arts Commission’s 2019-20 annual budget.
BACKGROUND
The Ygnacio Peralta Historical Landmark #285, located at 561 Lafayette Avenue, is a unique and valuable historical asset in the City of San Leandro. The Spanish Colonial style historic home was built in 1860 for Ygnacio Peralta, an early San Leandro Spanish settler, by W.P. Toler (Peralta’s son-in-law). It is currently the oldest existing home and the first brick home in Alameda County. The home was purchased by the Alta Mira Club in 1920 and remains in their ownership. The Alta Mira Club strives to maintain the home for future generations and gives back to the community by providing scholarships to local youth and contributing to the betterment of the San Leandro community. The Alta Mira Club also allows the City of San Leandro to utilize the home for periodic city-hosted events.
After a recent inspection of the home’s porch, it has been determined that one of the porch windows and historical art glass panels is structurally unstable and at risk of collapsing. The Alta Mira Club has received bids from three vendors with relevant expertise in these types of repairs. The bidders have determined the window and panels to be in imminent danger of collapse from wind/weather, or if pushed or fallen into by a person. Any such incident has the potential to completely collapse the window and damage the historical stained glass artwork. Engineering and Transportation Department staff have also visited the site, reviewed the submitted bids, and verified its stated condition.
Analysis
The overall window frame is 10 feet in height by 8 inches in width, with a leaded art glass panel in its center, which is 40 inches wide by 46 inches in height. It is oriented with the exterior facing south and the interior facing north, and is located along the front exterior stairway. Per the stained glass specialist’s inspections and City staff’s review, it has been verified that the stained glass window and its surrounding panels need to be repaired.
After review of the submitted bids, the Alta Mira Club has selected Nzilani Glass Conservation to carry out the work. Of the three firms that submitted bids, they were determined to be the most qualified at competitive pricing. They are one of the few companies in the United States qualified to conserve historical glass works. The firm is also known for its surveys and ability to provide one-stop treatments (including window removal, transportation, conservation, restoration, and reinstallation).
The work has been quoted at $27,165, in addition to approximately $954 in costs associated with securing the necessary building permits. The Alta Mira Club has requested $23,000 in funds from the City and has committed to providing any remaining matching costs from their own sources. City staff recommends providing the majority of the requested financial support from the Citywide Community Investment Program, which is used each year as a source of funds for projects or programs that benefit the visual appearance of neighborhoods, or to support programs or community events that benefit the public at large. This proposed action represents 20% of the available Community Investment funding in the current fiscal year.
The City of San Leandro Arts Commission was also contacted by representatives from the Alta Mira Club and visited the site on October 23,, 2019 and hosted their October meeting on site. At their subsequent meeting of November 20, 2019, the Arts Commission voted to allocate funding from their previously appropriated annual budget to help support the project. Based on this action, staff recommends allocating $20,000 from the Community Investment Program along with $3,000 from the Arts Commission’s budget, for a grand total contribution of $23,000 from the City.
Fiscal Impacts
If the requested action is approved by the City Council, it would result in $23,000 allocation of previously appropriated funding from the City’s 2019-20 General Fund budget
Budget Authority
The source of funds for the recommended action would be provided from the following existing, previously appropriated General Fund sources:
• $20,000: Community Investment Program (Account: 010-14-010-8513)
• $3,000: Arts Commission Annual Budget (Account: 010-14-010-8516)
Total: $23,000
ATTACHMENT(S)
Attachment(s) to Staff Report
• Attachment #1: Bid for stained glass repair from Nzilani Glass Conservation
PREPARED BY: Mariana Garcia, Economic Development Specialist, Community Development Department