Upcoming Lecture at San Diego History Center to feature Sim Bruce Richards
Historic Places: Celebrating the Architecture of Sim Bruce Richards
Tuesday, June 29, 2010 5:30pm - 7:30pm
San Diego History Center - Casa de Balboa, Balboa Park

Cost: $10 SDHC members, $15 general

Please RSVP by calling 619-232-6203, ext. 129 or send us an email to register.

Join architectural historian (modernsandiego.com) Keith York for an engaging, illustrated talk on Post-War architect, Sim Bruce Richards. A WPA (Works Progress Administration) artist turned Taliesin Fellowship student, Richards worked alongside Frank Lloyd Wright to learn how to marry a plot of land with the structures built on them. Completing over 200 residential projects, as well as a myriad of public buildings, Richards has made an indelible mark on San Diego’s skyline.

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Check them out.

Ideally the migration will occur without any of us noticing. Cross your fingers…

You have an opportunity to weigh-in, and take a stand that supports restoration and preservation of Borrego’s Mid-Century Modern Core.

The Borrego Village Association, formed initially as a committee of the Borrego Chamber of Commerce is currently conducting a survey to determine what the community and visitors to Borrego Springs would like to see in a new and revitalized commercial core.

What the survey does not address is restoration and preservation of the existing mid-century modern buildings. These buildings give the community of Borrego Springs its character and define it as San Diego’s Mid-Century Modern Desert Community.

We are writing to ask for your support in preservation of the mid-century modern architecture of Borrego Spring’s commercial core.

Please complete the survey (it will take only about 3 minutes) by following this link:

http://www.borregospringschamber.com/BVA/index.htm

As part of your answer to Question 7, please add a comment that supports the preservation, renovation and maintenance of Borrego’s mid-century modern architecture. For example:

This is a good idea but maintaining the town’s current mid-century design should be the primary goal.  Borrego Springs is beautiful the way it is, it simply needs to be preserved, restored and maintained.  This approach will attract the traditional Borrego visitor but additionally people who appreciate its small town mid-century design.

We encourage you to express your own opinion, and hope you agree that Borrego Spring’s unique mid-century modern character is worth preserving.

Post 1977 the grocery was called Borrego Valley Foods. Two years ago the building was sold to Borrego Valley Foods LLC, a subsidiary of GH Capital, the company that bought Rams Hills (reworked into Montesoro Golf and Social Club) and La Casa del Zorro (rebranded Borrego Ranch Resort and Spa, which closed January 8^th, 2010). Plans were to open an upscale market in Borrego Springs – however those plans never materialized and the building has been vacant since.

Later this month the building is up for auction – and in the next issue of the Borrego Sun, an interesting article will tell the latest installment in a story of boom and bust. What is of particular interest to borregomodern.com is that what we suspected has been confirmed – that the building was designed by William Kesling, and constructed by Kesling Modern Structures – the same as the historic and iconic Borrego Springs Desert Club.

Borrego Historian and author Phil Brigandi writes, “Quite right! The third issue of the Borrego Sun (May 1949) reports the opening of the $50,000 Borrego Business Building (which included the market). “The architecture and construction were completed by Kesling Modern Structures Company of La Jolla specialists in ultra-modern styling.”

We at BorregoModern.com believe the Borrego community and the buildings’ next owner have the opportunity to recapture and capitalize on this important part to the community’s history. The Hugh Woods Market building is a significant contributor to Borrego’s historic commercial core. Built in 1949 it appears to retain much of its original fabric. While there have been alterations, these can and should be removed and the building brought back to its original design. It can be the anchor for a revitalized commercial core that celebrates and capitalizes Borrego’s unique mid-century Desert Modern design esthetic.

2010 opens with the news that the Borrego Ranch Resort and Spa (formerly known as La Casa Del Zorro) has closed. This historic property was acquired in December 2007 by Sherman Oaks based GH Capital from the Copley Press which had owned the property since 1960. Greg Perlman, principal of GH Capital has been looking for additional investors to keep the resort open. The Borrego Sun (also a former Copley property) reports that one of those considering buying the property is Sun publisher Patrick Meehan.

Based on Mr. Meehan’s operation of the Sun, it seems he would be an excellent owner of this most important, and historic property in the Borrego community.

Homer was a fascinating man, whom I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know through SOHO’s Modernism Committee. I very much enjoyed our private conversations on our commute home together following meetings.  Homer would squeeze his sizable frame into our Miata and later into the Mercedez 560SL, both much too small for a man of his stature.  We would talk of San Diego in the 1960’s; the politics and the people. We talked about design, architecture, preservation and how fortunate we both felt to be able to be in a place so special. I was fortunate to be invited to his home on several occasions - a glimpse into how truly wonderful his designs are and how much he valued his family.

Homer designed one home in Borrego Springs at de Anza Country Club. He told me some great stories about how challenging he found the client. We talked about him coming out to the desert to take a look at it. Unfortunately that didn’t happen. The house was sold about five years ago and was in the process of being remodeled. Instead, after more than a year of no progress, the house was torn down to the foundation and a new contemporary design rose in its place. Its too bad. Homer’s design fit beautifully on the site.

Homer’s career is chronicled on www.sandiegomodern.com.

I feel honored to have been able to get to know him. He is a force that will be missed.

Here is the link to the San Diego Union Tribune article on his life:

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/jun/30/architects-modern-design-seen-local-landmarks/?uniontrib

On June 27^th, Keith York www.modernsandiego.com and Dave Hampton www.objectsusa.com were part of the Mingei Museum’s Perspectives on Mid-Century California Design, a symposium accompanying the exhibition MASTERS OF MID-CENTURY CALIFORNIA MODERNISM – Evelyn and Jerome Ackerman. The exhibit runs through January 10^th, 2010 and is well worth the visit.

Todd, Keith and Dave have all been of great support to borregomodern.com and are extremely informed and interesting speakers who have compiled some great stories of San Diego’s mid-century modern movement. I know we’ll be hearing more from them in the near future.

Allen Hazard kindly emailed these photos from the Borrego Springs Mid-Century Modern Tour.

In this photo, Janet O’Dea is featured in the Desert Club wearing her period 1950’s dress.

Chris Pro is giving the Desert Club Bar a warm-up. These martinis are shaken, not stirred.

Photographer Judy Parker, who created an exhibit of photographs of the tour homes that was on display at “The House of Borrego Springs”, has put them together them in “Borrego Modern”, a limited edition, beautifully crafted publication that features her images from the architectural designs featured in the Borrego Springs Modern III Mid-Century Modern Architectural Tour, 2009.

Here are the details (please contact Judy directly with questions):

6) how you’d like to pay - through check or paypal

Once your order is received you will be sent an invoice which will include the book charge as well as applicable sales tax and shipping charges. You can then pay the invoice via check or online through paypal.  The product will be shipped once payment is received.