New City Hall Pales in Comparison to Old

* Historians, artists and anthropologists all use a culture’s public buildings to gain insight into the lives of the people that created them. The tale of the two Thousand Oak city halls tells volumes about this community.

Early in the roots of our city we elected to construct a permanent city hall to reflect the aspirations of our politically active community. In late 1969, we held a national design competition to create a civic center that would embody all the aspirations that our young city held dear: beauty, site lines, environmental appropriateness, fiscal responsibility and, most of all, natural open space preservation. The competition was fierce, including 154 designs, but one stood out from all others because of its ingenuity and subtle beauty. It is now known as the old City Hall, or just 401 W. Hillcrest.

In contrast, the new Civic Arts Plaza was designed by an architect handpicked by the City Council without submittal of architectural concepts. The residents of Thousand Oaks were outraged by the number of regulations broken and ignored in their rush to construct.

The former civic center’s land was donated by the Janss Corp. to be strictly for the public use. The new Civic Arts Plaza confiscated its site by imminent domain, cost $22 million for the property and leveled a county-designated historic site known as Goebel’s Lion Farm, or Jungleland.

Robert Mason Houvener’s design for 401 Hillcrest was chosen because “the scheme without any major disturbances to the hill and oak trees creates a simple, yet beautiful building which gains its strength from the hill.” The new Civic Arts Plaza features a sandbox blockiness that commonly leaves visitors with the impression that it is a prison.

The old City Hall’s council chambers were appropriately scaled to encourage participation by the public. Today’s City Council chamber is windowless, extremely formal and intimidating. The council sits featureless behind a high, arched black barrier that sends a clear signal of unapproachability and supreme control.

Though the old City Hall was only occupied 14 years and has been abandoned for eight, it must be preserved to provide a contrast to the Civic Arts Plaza. This will help future generations understand how far we have strayed from the original goals of our community.

If 401 Hillcrest is destroyed for shortsighted financial or political agendas, then our children will never know the goals and aspirations set down by its founders. This is the invaluable contribution of historic preservation--the education and awareness of where we have been, to illuminate where we are going.

WILLIAM MAPLE

Thousand Oaks

William Maple is leading a drive to have the building at 401 Hillcrest declared a historic landmark in Thousand Oaks.