Huntington Beach council denies bid to move 112-year-old home to downtown lot

After a neighborhood backlash, the Huntington Beach City Council denied a local preservationist’s plan to relocate a 112-year-old home to a downtown residential lot.

Joseph Santiago wanted to place the nearly 2,000-square-foot house on a lot at 506 Seventh St., which already contains a house and a detached garage. The 1905 home, which currently is in a storage lot, is distinctive for its Colonial Revival and Victorian architectural touches. It was owned by John and Martha Hearn, who had ties to Huntington Beach’s beginnings.

But in a unanimous vote Monday night, the council upheld the Planning Commission’s decision in June to deny the project, effectively killing Santiago’s plan.

The vote came after more than an hour of public comment dominated by downtown residents who didn’t like how the Hearn house would need a host of variances for approval. They also criticized Santiago’s restoration of the Manning house on 10th Street — a 1906 home owned by the city’s first mayor, Ed Manning, that Santiago placed on top of the garage of another old house.

Councilwoman Jill Hardy called the Hearn house proposal “just too big of a project for a small space.” She suggested moving the house to Central Park to create a historic district there.

Though some residents were skeptical that the Hearn house is historic at all — “This is not a case of ‘George Washington slept here,’ ” one woman said — city officials said it was identified as such in a 1986 city survey.

Ron Cole, Santiago’s attorney, said his client’s project had “broad community support,” including an endorsement from the Huntington Beach Historical Society and about 70 other people.

Santiago argued that fear, speculation, exaggeration and “very few facts” have plagued his effort.

“It’s a worthy project,” he said.

One of Santiago’s supporters, David Eastman, said that, unlike during the Manning house effort, Santiago has financial backing this time to complete his project.

Having the old home on Seventh Street would “add to the vitality and richness of the city, which you need,” Eastman said.

Area resident Chris Hart, however, called the house an ill fit.

“Simply, it’s like putting 10 pounds of sand in a 5-pound can,” he said.

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Twitter: @BradleyZint