A Glimpse That Enlightens

By agreeing to modify the widening of Lankershim Boulevard to save a section of original adobe floor tiles at Campo de Cahuenga, planners and preservationists have found a way to marry progress and history.

The future collided with the past four years ago when workers digging the Metro Red Line subway hit an adobe foundation near the Campo property. Archeologists believe the structure dates from between 1795 and 1810 and was probably built by Native Americans on Spanish-owned Mission San Fernando grazing property. It is thought to be the site where Mexican Gen. Andres Pico and American Lt. Col. John C. Fremont signed the 1847 treaty that ended the Mexican-American War in California, eventually leading to the state’s admission to the Union.

In a region where history is generally relegated to 1950s strip mall architecture, the discovery of this multicultural cornucopia thrilled preservationists. But excitement was followed by dismay when they learned that the foundation would be permanently paved over as part of the city’s plan to widen Lankershim by 22 feet to improve traffic flow beside Universal Studios.

After negotiating with the Campo de Cahuenga Historical Memorial Assn. and other preservationists, city transportation officials agreed instead to widen that portion of Lankershim by just 10 feet, allowing room for a plexiglass viewing panel embedded next to the sidewalk. If the compromise is approved by state and federal officials, commuters using that modern mode of transportation, the subway, will get a glimpse of history as they enter and exit the soon-to-open Universal City station.

Is it worth giving up an extra lane just to preserve a passel of old bricks? After all, the Campo de Cahuenga property, already a city Historical-Cultural Monument and a California Historical Landmark, is home to a replica of the old adobe. In this land of illusion, isn’t that enough?

Ask the schoolchildren who were invited to watch archeologists unearth a portion of the foundation earlier this year. See them inspired to go to the library to learn more about their own family histories and their city’s multiracial past. A compromise over widening a modern road seems a small price for slowing time 100 years.