Survey Number: HPS-386
Year Built: 1933
Architectural Style: Classical Bungalow


BACKGROUND + STATUS:
The 1933 Lucier / O’Neill Residence, located at 1114 South Maple Avenue in the historic 1924 Park Tract Subdivision, has been nominated for historic designation and listing in the Tempe Historic Property Register at the request of the property owners, Jenny Lucier and Dan O’Neill. Built in 1933, this house is in the ninety-ninth percentile (n = 153/53,665 = 99.7) of all Tempe properties in terms of age. The property is also significant as an excellent surviving example of the Classical Bungalow style masonry house as it both embodies the distinctive characteristics of the type and survives with a high degree of architectural integrity.

LOCATION
The 1933 Lucier / O’Neill Residence is located on Lot 11 of Block 5 of the historic 1924 Park Tract subdivision, which is on the west side of Maple Avenue midway between 11th and 12th Streets. Located just west of the Arizona State University campus, Park Tract subdivision forms the middle portion of Tempe’s historic Maple-Ash neighborhood; it is bounded by 10th Street, Mill Avenue, 13th Street, and the Union-Pacific Railroad tracks. Platted in 1924, Park Tract contains homes built primarily during the first half of the twentieth century, and recently qualified as an historic district. For some time Tempe had experienced a housing shortage and Park Tract Subdivision was designed to provide relief in the form of comfortable and modern family housing to meet that demand. The Bungalow style was similarly designed to satisfy widespread demand for housing that was economical and efficient.

Subdivision of Park Tract predated adoption of a zoning ordinance by the Tempe Town Council and today this property is zoned R-2: Multi-Family Residential. Park Tract subdivision is identified as a Cultural Resource Area in Tempe General Plan 2030. Cultural Resource Areas are considered culturally significant to the character of Tempe and GP2030 states it is desirable to maintain the character of these areas. General Plan 2030 recommends the underlying zoning in place at the time the plan was adopted should remain the highest appropriate density for Cultural Resource Areas. Accordingly, Cultural Resource Areas are indicated on the GP2030 Projected Land Use Map with the density of the zoning in place at the time the plan was adopted on December 4, 2003.[i] [ii]

CONDITION
The 1933 Lucier / O’Neill Residence is significant as one of the best remaining examples of Classical Bungalow style masonry houses in Tempe. The single-story clay brick masonry house is one of many Bungalows sprinkled throughout the neighborhood, but is one of few exposed brick houses. The house has been meticulously maintained. The historic front façade has been carefully preserved and remains intact. In addition, the historic flood irrigated landscape is thoughtfully tended and the property makes a positive contribution to the historic streetscape of the Park Tract subdivision. Changes made to the property that are visible on the exterior have been sensitively designed and skillfully executed in order to achieve a comfortable balance of differentiation from, and compatibility with, the historic form and fabric of the historic Classical Bungalow style house. The 1946 addition on the north was sensitively constructed and is a character defining feature of the property. Characteristic of the Classical Bungalow style, this house emphasizes economy and efficiency. Like the earlier American Foursquare house form, the Classical Bungalow style of the 1930s was a reaction to the ornate and mass produced elements of the Victorian and other Revival styles popular throughout the last half of the 19th century.[iii] [iv]

AGE
The Lucier / O’Neill Residence is one of only two Tempe properties believed by Tempe HPO to survive from 1933. Based on data from the Maricopa County Assessor’s Office and Tempe HPO files, 153 standing Tempe properties are thought to predate this historic house having year-built dates earlier than 1933. The house is in the ninety-ninth percentile (n = 153/53,665 = 99.7) of all Tempe properties in terms of age.

Tempe HPO is conducting field survey work that has revised construction dates for many properties in Park Tract. Particularly suspect are properties indicated as built in decade or mid-decade years (1910, 1915, 1920, etc.), as this appears to be a rounding device in many cases. This property is an example. Listed in the 1983 Survey as “year built 1920”, the subsequent 1997 Update carried forward 1920 as the year built. An aerial photo from a flight on January 28, 1930 shows the 1924 Park Tract subdivision with streets and alleys in place and the 1928 Hiatt-Barnes House at 1104 S. Ash surrounded by fields that look mostly uncultivated and undeveloped six years after the subdivision opened.[v]

Maricopa County Assessor’s Office data indicates Fred W. Hiatt acquired several undeveloped lots in Block 5 of Park Tract in 1928, and in March 1930, he sold lots 4 and 11 to Susan E. Guthrie (the widow of S. L. Guthrie) and Ada Maskrey, a teacher at Tempe Union High School. In June 1932 Guthrie and Maskrey mortgaged Lot 11 to Tempe National Bank for $1500, presumably to pay for the construction of 1114 South Maple Avenue. Tempe City Directories indicate Guthrie lived at this address by late 1933. In February 1934 Guthrie and Maskrey again mortgaged the property, now improved, to Tempe National Bank, this time for $1200, a sum which may have paid for construction of the house at 1111 South Ash Avenue, where Guthrie lived by late 1936. The properties at 1114 Maple and 1111 Ash share a common rear property boundary. In 1949 Guthrie and Maskrey attained a joint tenancy deed over 1114 Maple, and lived together there through 1952 before relocating to University Park in the mid-1950s.[vi] [vii]

SIGNIFICANCE
The Lucier / O’Neill Residence is significant for its association with Tempe’s 1924 Park Tract subdivision. West of the ASU campus, today Park Tract subdivision forms the middle section of Tempe’s historic Maple-Ash neighborhood, and contains homes built primarily during the first half of the twentieth century. Park Tract recently qualified as an historic district but the nomination was withdrawn.[viii]

The Lucier / O’Neill Residence is significant simply because it exists in the upper ninety-ninth percentile (n = 153/53,665 = 99.7) of all Tempe properties in terms of age. Consequently, the 1933 house is considered to be a rare surviving example of early residential architecture in Tempe and is an excellent example of the Classical Bungalow style masonry house, surviving with a high degree of architectural integrity and the preponderance of character-defining features of the type intact.[ix]

INTEGRITY
Integrity is the ability of a property to convey its significance. To be listed in the Tempe Historic Property Register, a property must be significant under ordinance criteria and must also possess adequate integrity to communicate this significance to persons familiar with the property and to the community at large. The integrity of a property is evaluated according to aspects which must be present in different combinations depending on the criteria from which historic significance is derived.

Like many historic properties, the Lucier / O’Neill Residence derives significance from several important associations with community history. Through “association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of community history,” this property survives as an example of early residential development in the historic 1924 Park Tract subdivision. A building eligible for listing under this criterion must possess integrity of Location, Materials, Feeling, and Association.

Finally, as an example that “embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, or that represents the work of a master” this property distinguishes itself on two counts; first it is significant for its historicity simply because it exists in the upper ninety-ninth percentile of all Tempe properties in terms of age. Consequently, the property is considered to be a rare surviving example of early residential architecture in Tempe. Second, due to its high level of architectural integrity, the Lucier / O’Neill Residence is significant as one of the best remaining examples of Classical Bungalow style masonry houses in Tempe. A building eligible for listing under this criterion must possess integrity of Design, Workmanship, Materials, and Feeling.

The Lucier / O’Neill Residence is considered eligible for historic designation and listing in the Tempe Historic Property Register under National Park Service Criteria A and C, at the local level of significance based on the continued integrity of Location, Design, Materials, Workmanship, Feeling, and Association.[x]

Location – This property exists in its originally developed location. Park Tract subdivision encompasses a collection of historic resources directly associated with the early growth and development of Tempe and the Salt River Valley. The evolution of Tempe over the past 140 years holds national, state, and local significance for its important role in the development of the Salt River Valley as a center of commerce and education, as a critical link in the transportation networks during the settlement of the Territory, and for its associations with important political figures. Tempe’s unique heritage is exemplified in its significant residential architecture and infrastructure. These exist today in Park Tract subdivision as manifestations of those Arizona pioneers who transformed the desert environment of the Salt River Valley into a community of enduring consequence and unequalled character unique in Arizona. Sited on the west side of Maple Avenue mid-block between 11th and 12th Streets, the Lucier / O’Neill Residence is located at the heart of Park Tract on land that was originally included within the boundaries of the 1894 Tempe Townsite. Although not subdivided until thirty years later, Park Tract was never annexed into the corporate limits of Tempe – rather uniquely, it was an integral part of the community from the onset. Today, the historic Park Tract subdivision is a busy and vibrant residential neighborhood. The clear and present landmark character of the Maple Ash Neighborhood retains popular historic identity recognized throughout the community and beyond.[xi]

Design – Design is the composition of elements that constitute the form, plan, space, structure, and style of a property. Because properties change through time, changes may acquire significance in their own right and changes do not necessarily constitute a loss of design integrity. Although additions were made to the Lucier / O’Neill Residence as early as 1946, the house continues to maintain original spatial relationships between major features; visual rhythms; layout and materials; and the relationship of other features as they were originally constructed and developed. Design aspects typify the Classic Bungalow style and continue to maintain this aspect of integrity.

Setting – Setting is the physical environment of a historic property that illustrates the character of the place. Integrity of setting is not a condition precedent to designation in this case; however, the property retains connections to the physical environment of its surroundings. Many original relationships of buildings and structures to the streetscape and landscape; layout and materials of alleyways, walks; and the features of flood irrigation and other infrastructure remain intact.

Materials – Materials are the physical elements that were combined or deposited during a particular period of time and in a particular pattern or configuration to form a historic property. A property must retain key exterior materials dating from the period of its historic significance. Integrity of materials determines whether or not an authentic historic resource still exists. The Lucier / O’Neill Residence retains key physical elements as they were originally configured to reveal the preferences, to indicate the availability of particular types of materials, and to exemplify technologies characteristic of the Classical Bungalow style house form. An interesting comparison can be seen in the juxtaposition of materials in the original 1933 building and the 1946 addition at the north. The original building used the conventional Standard Brick, while the addition, although not even 15 years newer, used the contemporary Modular Brick masonry that was fired at a higher temperature as evidenced by hard and impervious surfaces. A similar evolution in materials can be discerned in the wood windows. Although both use pairs of wood casements; the proportions of the 1933 sash are drawn directly from the stylistic antecedent of the Classical Bungalow style whereas later fenestration, while compatible with the original, shows influence of more contemporary geometry.[xii] [xiii]

Workmanship – Workmanship is the physical evidence of the crafts of a particular culture or people during any given period of history. Workmanship is important because it can furnish evidence of the technology of the craft, illustrate the aesthetic principles of an historic period, and reveal individual, local, regional, or national applications of both technological practices and aesthetic principles. The Lucier / O’Neill Residence conveys physical evidence of the crafts attendant upon Classical Bungalow style masonry residential construction in Tempe during the 1920s.

Feeling – Feeling is a property's expression of the aesthetic or historic sense of a particular period of time. It results from the presence of physical features that, taken together, convey the property's historic character. This property expresses the aesthetic sense of its interwar period of significance. The physical features of the Lucier / O’Neill Residence, taken together, are sufficiently intact to convey their significance to someone familiar with the original property as well as to persons throughout the community to whom the property distinguishes itself as historic. Retention and good maintenance of original design, materials, workmanship, and setting as described above is sufficient to create a discernable sense of place at the historic property.

Association – Association is the direct link between an important historic event or person and an historic property. A property retains association if it is the place where the event or activity occurred and it is sufficiently intact to convey that relationship to an observer. Like feeling, association requires the presence of physical features that convey a property's historic character. This property maintains direct links between important events in community history and is emblematic of the consecutive waves of suburbanization pushing outward from the original settlement along the Salt River. Today, the Lucier / O’Neill Residence provides an excellent example of that early wave of residential development that radiated in bands within the core of the original townsite.

RESOURCES 
Letter Receipt of Nomination : : 02/04/2011 HPO to Applicant with links to relevant websites 

Research Report to Historic Preservation Commission : : 03/10/2011 Neighborhood Meeting at HPC

Staff Summary Report to Historic Preservation Commission : : 04/14/2011 Public Hearing at HPC

Staff Report to Development Review Commission : : 04/26/2011 Public Hearing at DRC

Staff Report to City Council : : 05/19/2011 Public Hearing at CC 

Staff Report to City Council : : 06/02/2011 Public Hearing at CC

ORDINANCE NO. 2011.10

ENDNOTES
[i] City of Tempe, Zoning and Development Code, amended: October 2, 2008, Part 2 – Establish Zoning
Districts, Map (page 2-30).  The Common Council of the Town of Tempe adopted its first Zoning Ordinance, Ordinance Number 177 on April 14, 1938.

[ii] City of Tempe, Tempe General Plan 2030 Adopted: December 4, 2003, Chapter 3, Land Use, Design + Development, Land Use Element.  Cultural Resource Area (existing density allowed by zoning) Areas identified on the density map, which are considered culturally significant to the character of Tempe, based on the 2001 Post World War II Subdivision Study. It is desirable to maintain the character of these areas. The underlying zoning should remain the highest appropriate density for these areas. These areas are shown as Cultural Resource Areas, with a projected density to match the zoning at the time this plan is adopted.

[iii] Thornton, Rosemary 2011, American Foursquare, 1890-1930 The Old House Web accessed Monday, February 28, 2011 http://www.oldhouseweb.com/architecture-and-design/american-foursquare-1890-1930.shtml “The hallmarks of the style include a basically square, boxy design, two-and-one-half stories high, usually with four large, boxy rooms to a floor, a center dormer, and a large front porch with wide stairs. The boxy shape provides a maximum amount of interior room space, to use a small city lot to best advantage. Other common features included a hipped roof, arched entries between common rooms, built-in cabinetry, and Craftsman-style woodwork.”

[iv] City of Tempe, Tempe History Museum, Tempe Historic Property Survey: Survey Number HPS-386 (Funk/Guthrie House).  “The survey was a collaborative project produced by Janus Associates, Inc, and the Tempe Historical Society, and funded by a grant from the Arizona State Historic Preservation Office. Phase I of the survey (1980-1981) involved identifying more than 350 buildings and structures in Tempe that exhibited potential historical and/or architectural significance. Phase II (1982-1983) involved research and documentation of the 150 most significant resources. More than a dozen volunteers completed most of the research under the direction of Museum Director Susan Wilcox and Cindy Myers of Janus Associates. The research collection that was compiled as a result of this project includes individual files on 158 historic properties. Of those most important buildings and structures that were studied in 1983, only 60% are still standing today.

[v] Maricopa County Flood Control District Historic Aerial Photos, accessed February 28, 2011 on line at http://www.fcd.maricopa.gov/Maps/gismaps/apps/AerialsOrder/application/index.cfm

Aerial photo from a flight on January 28, 1930 shows the 1924 Park Tract subdivision with streets and alleys in place and the 1928 Haitt-Barnes House at 1104 S Ash surrounded by fields that look mostly uncultivated and undeveloped six years after the subdivision opened.

[vi] Ryden Architects, 1997 Tempe Multiple Resource Area Update, Tempe Historic Preservation Office

[vii] Tempe HPO, research into Tempe City Directories and Property Records on file at the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office.

[viii] Tempe Historic Preservation Office, Historic District Designation Process: Gage Addition, Park Tract, College View Subdivisions (HP #34 WITHDRAWN).

[ix] Tempe Historic Preservation Commission Neighborhood Meeting 03/10/2011, The Tempe HPO preliminary determination of eligibility additionally considered the Lucier / O’Neill Residence to be significant for its association with early Tempe residents: Fred W. Hiatt, Susan E. Guthrie (widow of S. L. Guthrie) and Ada Maskrey (a teacher at Tempe Union High School), the family of Nelson E. Funk (a consulting engineer), Wallace and Billie F. Glotfelter, and Thomas W. Shaffer (Arizona Education Association). Significance under NPS Criterion B was not well developed in the preliminary report and has been dropped from further consideration at the direction of the commission.

[x] Garrison, James, 1999; Aspects of Integrity: Generalized Application.  [State Historic Preservation Officer Jim Garrison created a matrix titled “Aspects of Integrity: Generalized Application” to indicate aspects of integrity that must be present for different property types to remain eligible.

For example, to identify aspects necessary for a Building to maintain eligibility under Criterion C, enter the Criteria row at “C – Design/Construction” and move across to the property type column for “Building”, to see that four of the seven aspects of integrity must be present to maintain the integrity of a district that has significance under criteria C, they are; Design, Workmanship, Materials, and Feeling.

[xi] As evidenced by the abandoned effort to designate the Maple Ash area historic whereby over 100 letters in support of the designation and listing were received by the city from concerned citizens throughout the community.

[xii] U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, How To Evaluate The Integrity Of A Property accessed 03/21/2011 online at http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/publications/bulletins/nrb15/nrb15_8.htm

[xiii] ASTM Standards for Brick Masonry, accessed March 14, 2011, online at http://www.astm.org/Standards/C216.htm “Standard Brick. 3 5/8”. 2 1/4”. 8” – Modular Brick. 3 5/8”. 2 1/2”. 7 5/8”.