Historic Structure Reports

Aline Barnsdall Complex residence A
Los Angeles, California

Chattel worked with LSA Associates, Inc. to prepare a Historic Structure Report (HSR) for Residence A, a 1921 building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright with Rudolph Schindler for heiress Aline Barnsdall. Also known as the Director’s House, the property has been owned by the City of Los Angeles since 1927. It was designated a City Historic-Cultural Monument in 1965, is one of two contributors to the National Historic Landmark Aline Barnsdall Complex designated in 2007, and is associated with the adjacent Hollyhock House designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019 as part of the 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright in the U.S. Located in Barnsdall Park, Residence A has accommodated a variety of uses and has sustained both interior and exterior alterations. To repair and restore the vacant residence for reuse, the HSR involved preparation of a chronology of building development and use based on historical documentation and physical evidence, and collaboration with conservation and engineering specialists to perform an in-depth assessment of building materials and the structural system. 

Chattel and LSA Associates, Inc. also prepared an update to the HSR for Hollyhock House which is located within the complex. Both Residence A and Hollyhock House HSRs are intended to provide stakeholders with a plan for restoration as well as establish a framework for future reuse options. In 2019, Residence A received a Save America’s Treasures grant for seismic retrofit and other rehabilitation work.