Item 19 - Mills Act Agreement - 1218 N French St.

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French Park Historic District, Santa Ana, CA Orange County • M Crime A....W Ms. roNs4f1 United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number = Page 15_ Minter, two on E. Washington, and several on N. Garfield were replaced by apartment buildings. In the Mid-1970s two large and fashionable condo - minim projects were built on Ninth St. The revitilization of French Park began in the late 1970s, when a few families purchased property, planning to restore and occupy the historic homes. By 1980, this movement accelerated as a new group of people with an appreciation for old houses began to move into the neighborhood. In 1980 they organized the Historic French Park Association and began work- ing with the city to create its first local historic district. A daring and, at the time, controversial new concept called for down -zoning to prevent developer; from tearing down fine homes in order to build any more unattractive lot -line -to -lot -line apartment building;. The SD-19 Ordinance which created the local historic district, required that those owners making changes to the exteriors of their homes had to follow the--, Secretary of Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. The Historic French Park Association reviews all plans and makes recommendations. In 1987, the Association applied for and received its non-profit status, allowing it to receive block grant funds. The City purchased five empty lots on Lacy Street that had been slated for apartments to be built by a 31-partner limited partnership. A badly -deteriorated 1970s apartment house on the corner of Vance and Lacy was purchased and demolished. Through the use of block grant funds and help from Housing Services, the Historic French Park Association saved three houses slated to be demolished by moving them to Lacy St., to become single-family, owner - occupied homes. During the past ten years, most of French Park's historic houses have once more become single-family homes, leaving only five rooming houses. Within the past two years more than fifty houses have been repainted. The Historic French Park Association cooperates and works well with the Community Development, Code Enforcement, Police, Building, and Planning departments of the City. Two years ago, the neighborhood was given the opportunity to redesign an ugly modern stucco -clad apartment unit at 1029 N. Spurgeon.