Scheduled After Downtown Face Lift Is Finished : City Hall Restoration Project Includes Van Nuys

Architects and builders plan to give the 54-year-old Van Nuys City Hall a needed face lift, but not until they have completed restoration of the main City Hall in downtown Los Angeles, officials said Friday.

Work on the eight-story building at 14410 Sylvan St., a scaled-down version of the 27-story downtown structure, will probably not begin for another two years, Penny Perlman, acting executive director of the newly formed Project Restore, said Thursday.

The group of architects and builders, which hopes to raise $1.8 million in private and corporate donations for the downtown project, has not yet decided what needs to be done at the Van Nuys building, Perlman said.

The landscaping of the Art Deco structure, with its majestic tower, is not very creative, she said, and surrounding buildings, light fixtures and antennas clutter the ornate tower.

“It really looks sort of sad,” Perlman said. “That is a significantly special Art Deco building that has craftsmanship that will never be replaced. I’m sure there was a time when that building stood out. It needs a sense of place.

“The huge radar antenna totally obstructs the edifice . . . there’s a total absence of good, thoughtful landscaping and exterior illumination.”

Not much structural work needs to be done, Perlman said. “Buildings back then were incredibly durable,” she said. Unlike some buildings of its era, the structure meets the stringent earthquake safety requirements adopted after it was built in 1932.

Fixture May Be Replaced

Most of the restoration will probably involve replacing fixtures reminiscent of the period when City Hall was built by the federal Works Project Administration, Perlman said. For that reason, the group plans to solicit the aid of an architectural historian.

Along with its soaring tower, the building is highlighted by geometric carvings and a bas-relief sculpture of ancient figures above the main entrance. Many of the electrical fixtures are of cast iron, and several of the windows have ornate bronze frames.

The structure was designated a historical monument by the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Board in 1978.

Ruthann Lehrer, executive director of the Los Angeles Conservancy and a member of Project Restore, said her immediate impression was that the building needed “fairly superficial work on the inside . . . maintenance, repair painting. That sort of thing.”

The two-story entryway and ornamental chandelier is a visitor attraction, Lehrer said.

“The downtown building, with its marble pillars and columns, is majestic and overwhelming,” she said. “The Van Nuys building is more intimate.”

The Van Nuys building houses branch offices of the city attorney, district engineer, local City Council members and volunteer groups. The other branch City Hall, in San Pedro, also will be restored, Lehrer said. But that structure is not particularly ornate, and work on the Van Nuys building probably will come first, Lehrer said.

The plan to renovate all three city halls was initiated after Public Works Commissioner Edward J. Avila made some pleasant discoveries while trying to upgrade the dreary chambers in the downtown City Hall, where his commission meets.

He said that drawing back the heavy drapes in the Board of Public Works meeting room revealed tall windows that flooded the room with light. Black cork patching on the walls covers white pumice tiles, he added.

Avila said buckling floors and cracked tiles will be repaired throughout the structure, which served as the “Daily Planet” building in the Superman television series.

Downtown Work Listed

The first year will be limited to completing work on the Board of Public Works chambers and restoring City Council chambers, the outside courtyard and a ceremonial gallery on the 27th floor.

Avila said illumination will be a highlight of the project.

“Years ago the City Hall was illuminated much like the Pasadena City Hall is today, and it looked magnificent,” Avila said. “But, years ago, when the energy crisis hit, all that was pulled out.”

Perlman said it is not known whether restoration of the Van Nuys building will be as extensive.

“We don’t know if we’ll have to remove floors and replace fixtures,” she said. “But, while we don’t know if we’ll have to replace this glass or refurbish this mural, one shouldn’t be frustrated at the lack of details about what the project will entail. That building is going to require a lot of special expertise.”