Editor,
Thank you for your excellent April 11 column highlighting the significance of San Mateo’s Founding Era historic properties. These buildings are a vital part of our city’s heritage, serving as tangible connections to our shared past, and preserving them is essential for future generations.
We are fortunate that these structures were inventoried and recognized as eligible for the National Register of Historic Places in the 1989 Historic Building Survey. The survey focused primarily on downtown and the North Central district, where development pressures were most intense. However, as you rightly pointed out, that survey is now over three decades old and needs to be updated. Since 1989, buildings identified in the survey have been lost, and others may now hold greater historical value due to the disappearance of neighboring landmarks.
We appreciate your thoughtful ideas on how to support owners of Founding Era properties in maintaining and renovating these homes. We hope you will consider sharing your suggestions with the city during the Historic Preservation Ordinance update process. State programs such as the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit and the Mills Act currently offer valuable financial incentives to owners of designated historic properties and contributors within historic districts.
We look forward to the city adopting an ordinance that establishes a clear process that recognizes the properties identified in the 1989 survey. Your advocacy and vision are greatly appreciated, and we hope your column sparks meaningful discussion and action toward preserving San Mateo’s rich architectural and historic legacy.
Laurie Hietter
San Mateo
The letter writer is the president of the San Mateo Heritage Alliance.
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