Home Savings: City Moves to Protect Architecturally Significant Residences

The homes in Beverly Hills’ residential neighborhoods are well known for their beauty and varied design by some of the most prominent architects of the 20th century. Over the past few years, there has been a renewed interest in protecting this architectural legacy in order to preserve the historic fabric of the community.

One of Beverly Hills’ architectural treasures became national news recently when the Kronish House, designed by iconic mid-century architect Richard Neutra, was . Owners of the 1955 home on Sunset Boulevard had planned to tear it down. However, under pressure from the Beverly Hills City Council, historical preservationists and the public, the owners agreed to a 70-day delay and sold the property to buyers who have said they intend to restore the home.

In a separate action, the Beverly Hills City Council has taken an additional step toward protecting architecturally significant buildings in the City with the launch of a Mills Act pilot project. The program grants property tax breaks to homeowners as an incentive to preserve and restore their homes—money that must be spent on maintaining the property according to state and local standards. Homeowners could expect a savings of up to 60 percent on their property taxes.

The pilot project, approved at the Oct. 18 City Council meeting, will accept six qualified residential properties over a two-year period. Property owners would enter into a contract with the City of Beverly Hills for a minimum of 10 years. The program is strictly voluntary.

The pilot project will allow the City to evaluate the effectiveness of the Mills Act in preserving important structures and the financial impact from the loss of property tax revenue. The pilot project will be evaluated at the end of 2014 to see if it should be continued and/or extended to commercial buildings.

Some version of the Mills Act exists in almost every state in the nation. The California version, named after State Senator James Mills, was established 1972 in the city of Coronado in order to protect the Hotel Del Coronado. It has been adopted by cities statewide, including San Diego, Long Beach, Claremont, Covina, Glendale, Glendora, LaVerne, Los Angeles, Pasadena, Redondo Beach, San Gabriel, and Santa Monica, Sierra Madre, West Hollywood and many others.

The application period for the first year is from Jan. 16 to May 31, 2012. In December of this year, an information packet and other information will be available. Interested homeowners may call 310-285-1127 or watch for more information on www.beverlyhills.org. 

This blog is intended as a means of keeping the community informed about City government. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the views of Beverly Hills Patch.