By Susan Motander
On Tuesday, the Monrovia City Council reviewed the process of establishing a historic district, largely in response to the movement by residents of the 100 and 200 Block of Encinitas to creating such a district. The movement started late last year when owners of the home at 256 North Encinitas were applying to demolish/renovate that house.
According to the Facebook page of the Historic Encinitas District, more than seven vintage homes had been demolished in that neighborhood and “replaced by much larger new houses with varying degrees of compatibility with the ‘feel of our neighborhood’.” Working with the city’s planning department, more than two dozen residents of the area found the best route for preserving their neighborhood was to seek Historic District status.
The Encinitas Historic District Working Group (EHDwg) was formed and reports (via Facebook) that the paperwork needed to file for Historic District designation is 75% complete. The working group felt this was the best way to prevent the destruction of vintage home and “institute reasonable design guidelines to ensure the sanctity of the character of our neighborhood” while at the same time striking “a wise balance between preservation of the much-admired, diverse, vintage character of Monrovia and individual property owner’s rights.”
To help offset the cost of preparing the paperwork and establishing the district, the EHDwg is selling t-shirts with the group’s logo. Go to the group’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Encinitas.Historic.District/ to order the shirts and review the status of the application.