FREMONT, Calif. — Fremont residents fighting to save one of the last remaining historical buildings in Mission San Jose won a major victory last week.
On Thursday, Jan. 18, the Fremont Historical Architecture Review Board unanimously rejected a request for the emergency demolition of the 129-year-old Sunderer Boot Shop-Wells Fargo Station building, located at 43341 Mission Boulevard, which was damaged in an electrical fire on Dec. 20, 2022. The board disagreed with the staff’s findings that the building posed an immediate hazard and alternatives to demolition had been thoroughly explored.
“If something’s torn down, it’s gone,” Boardmember Kel Kanady said. “We can’t change it or get it back.”
The owner, Weinong Lai, told the board he had no intention of demolishing the building until it was damaged in the fire. Two assessments of the building found it could not be repaired economically — contractor KP Bay Area Construction estimated it would cost around $1.35 million to rebuild and $1.47 million to repair — and demolition was the best course of action. The city’s building official agreed.
However, about half a dozen community members emphasized the importance of preserving the area’s history despite the cost. Mission San Jose was central to the development of Alameda County and the state economy, and that history should be celebrated, said Fremont resident Dianna Fernandez-Nichols.
“We’ve got very few buildings left to save,” Fernandez-Nichols said. “And once it’s gone, it’s gone.”
Timothy Swenson, secretary of the Washington Township Historical Society, pointed out that the staff’s findings stated the expense of restoring the building was “disproportionately great in relation to its historical significance and functional value,” but did not quantify the building’s historical significance.
The Sunderer building was constructed in 1895 to serve as a boot shop and residence by German immigrant and cobbler Joseph Sunderer, the first shoemaker in Mission San Jose, according to records from the state Department of Parks and Recreation. Sunderer played a major role in the area’s history, including helping save the old mission building during an 1884 fire that also consumed his first home. In addition to serving as the town’s first fire chief, Sunderer variously served as a Wells Fargo agent, town constable, road overseer and secretary of the Ancient Order of United Workers, among other things.
Fernandez-Nichols stressed that we only know that type of history because of the physical objects, like artifacts and buildings, that remain. She said that’s why owners of historical buildings have an obligation to keep them in good condition and save them if they are damaged.
“It seems like Fremont works really hard to tear things down,” Fernandez-Nichols said. “They look for the excuses; how can we get rid of our history instead of how can we save it.”
The owner initially brought the request for the emergency demolition to the board in early September based on an evaluation that concluded there was significant fire damage to the buildings’ north and east walls and repairing the building was too costly. According to the evaluation, the damage to the walls was so severe it cut the building’s resistance to forces like wind and earthquakes by half. Restoring the building would necessitate a comprehensive analysis of the entire structure, along with enhancements to bolster its ability to withstand wind and earthquakes.
The board voted 3-0 to continue the discussion to a future meeting to allow for a third-party structural engineer to review the assessment after eight people expressed their opposition to the emergency demolition. Boardmembers Kanady and Alta Jo Adamson were absent.
The second assessment, similar to the first assessment, concluded that the building should be demolished because restoring it would be too expensive.
Fremont resident and realtor Robert Tavares, who relocated the 142-year-old Gallegos House, highlighted that neither assessment was conducted by an engineer that was specifically knowledgeable in historical architecture. Someone with that background would have likely had a different approach and come to a different conclusion, he said, adding that the estimated cost shouldn’t have included repairs that were needed before the fire.
After public comments, members of the board expressed their discomfort with destroying a historical building, as well as their desire to see an assessment from an engineer or architect with a background in historical architecture.
Boardmember Thomas McLauchlan asked if there were state or local grants available to help restore historical buildings. City staff responded that there were none they were aware of.
But Adamson said there was nothing that would make up for the loss of the building if it were demolished.
“I’m at a place where I really think we should save this building,” Adamson said to applause.
Sonia Waraich can be reached at 510-952-7455.
