Appendix A Historic Property Survey Report

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State of California - The Resources Agency DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION Primary # CONTINUATION SHEET HRI # Trinomial Page 3 of 4 *Resource Name or #: (Assigned by recorder) 1007-1009 Marengo Place *Recorded by LSA Associates, Inc. *Date: April 2019 X Continuation Update 1310. Significance (continued from page 2) People Associated with this Property. According to building permits, the original owner/builder was Lee Sievers (City of Santa Ana var.). Sievers Construction Company was founded by Francis Lee Sievers (1913-2005; Ancestry.com var.). Sievers was an electrical contractor, working for his brothers' electrical business and living in Bellflower prior to World War II (Ibid.). In the post-war period, he obtained his general building contractor license and started his own business in Bellflower (Ibid.). An advertisement for his company in the Excelsior Union High School Yearbook of 1949 includes the company motto: "Distinctive Styling in Modern Building" (Ancestry.com var.). Sievers was an active home builder in Los Angeles and Orange Counties during the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. Although research findings to date are sparse, he appears to have specialized in small-scale residential projects (Newspapers.com var.). One notable project was Laguna Highlands Homes in Orange County. These custom two- and three -bedroom homes featured large garages, sundecks, spacious glass wall areas and kitchens with modern built-in gas ranges (Los Angeles Times 1963). Considering they were overlooking the ocean in the prestigious Arch Bay neighborhood, they appear to be relatively modest homes priced within reach of middle -income buyers (Ibid.). In 1956, there was no listing for Marengo Place in the Santa Ana city directory. In 1960, Clarence W. Wernick and his wife Marjorie are listed at 1007 Marengo Place and G.F. Cole is listed at 1009 Marengo Place (Ancestry.com var.). Clarence W. Wernick, a welder at Regent Manufacturing in Downey in 1960, was born on May 11, 1920, in Illinois and died on March 19, 1997 (Ancestry.com var.). From 1937 to at least 1945, Clarence was in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and was a platoon sergeant in the Pacific theater in 1945 (Ibid.). By 1962, voter registration records reveal that the Wernicks were no longer living in Marengo Place duplex (Ibid.). No additional information for the Wernicks or any other occupants of 1007 Marengo Place during the historic period was found. Similarly, no information about G.F. Cole or any other occupants of 1009 Marengo Place was found. Significance Evaluation. This property is being evaluated for listing in the National Register and California Register. Since the two sets of criteria are nearly identical, the evaluations have been combined to avoid redundancy. Under criteria All, this duplex is associated with the post -WWII residential boom that made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of local, regional, and even national history. "More than 40 million housing units were built in the United States during the 30 year period following the end of World War Il, and at least 30 million of these were single-family houses" (California Department of Transportation 2011:2). These homes were typically modest in size and style and constructed in a short time as part of large tracts marketed to the working class. "The fundamental unit for postwar housing is not the individual house, but the tract, or a single construction phase within a larger tract or new community" and typically a single home would not be individually significant in this context (California Department of Transportation 2011:121). As with most homes associated with this historic context, individually this residence is unimportant and insignificant. In addition, it does not appear to be a contributor to a potential historic district. Under criteria 13/2, very little information was found for the owners/residents of the duplex during the historic period, but there is no indication that it is associated with the productive life of a historically significant person. Under criteria C/3, no information regarding the architect/designer of the duplex was found, but it does not appear to be the work of a master and does not possess high artistic values. It is a typical example of the Ranch style that does not rise to a level beyond the ordinary. Under criteria D/4, the duplex was built in 1956 using common methods and materials and does not have the potential to yield important information in prehistory or history. DPR 523L (1195) *Required Information