Town Council and Staff,
As a founding member of the Apple Valley Legacy Trail Committee, thank you for your longtime service to this community and for shepherding Hilltop to this important and practical milestone.
Its sad, but many of us believed for years that public safety and future grant pursuit would be greatly enhanced by removing the fossilized structure.
As you know, rehabilitation is much more costly, not practical and not funded. The existing ruin is primarily combustible wood with a steel super structure that weakens and deforms when exposed to fire.
A new, durable, non combustible, tribute Observatory is the way to go...someday and funding dependent.
A few thoughts for your consideration.
Demo and Cultural Impact:
Allow the natural grieving process of the community and beyond to be addressed within creative and inclusive context.
The property intrigue reaches far beyond our community and region and into Mexico where Francisco Artigas - Hilltop House architect - made a name and his family continues in a vibrant architectural firm. His grand daughter Ellen would love to be part of any tribute to FA and his only USA architectural commission. Living in Texas, I believe she would appreciate any invite and opportunity to tour the property with Town dignitaries and officials. In any event, please document and "As built" the building prior to demo, so that a tribute model (of the former mansion) might be accurately created and maybe even donated by his talented family ?. The as built will also facilitate accurate Observatory design by connecting the property to its Latino connection and Artigas as a past and future, generational trail marker that should be staked. A properly placed scale model at the Town or Marcy's AVLM... with story would do the trick.
At a Hilltop Ad Hoc meeting, Lori Lamson stated in 2017 that the Town would facilitate forming "Friends of the Trail" (FOT) as the non-profit component of community connectivity and private funding. Please get it launched; there remains an incredible opportunity to allow the community to say good bye to the battled structure properly. Once hazardous material is removed, 'pieces of history' could be safely gathered and either auctioned or gifted in exchange for donations to FOT. Rick Piercy envisioned this as a unique fund raiser and a community wake which is sensitive to the cultural loss, while promoting the future use. Its a great idea, but without FOT the community has no formal organization to donate to.
As part of demo planning, leave a safe remnant foundation. Its been done before https://californiathroughmylens.com/echo-mountain-hike
Its a simple payoff for Hilltop hikers while the Observatory is planned.
Whats in a name ?
Apple Valley Legacy Museum and AVLT: In 2014 and coinciding with the Towns formal pursuit of acquisition grants, Marcy Taylor opened the AVLM at the Bob Hope Cottage below Hilltop. As a sister project of the former AVLT initiative, she chose the museum name carefully and has become the defacto information center for all things Hilltop. The AVLT name was chosen carefully by the AVLT committee made up of 12 local professionals who offered their service pro bono and spearheaded successful property acquisition with the Towns encouragement, endorsement and appreciation. The AVLT name is branded with recognizable success both locally and at the state. Future naming of a dozen existing elements at Hilltop can be decided someday - and perhaps naming rights by Tiger Donors annually in exchange for naming rights donation - but the "Apple Valley Legacy Trail" should be the name of the driveway/trail with a payoff like "Hilltop Observatory", etc...
This honors the Phase I reclaim mission and team, Marcy Taylor and her tireless work at the AVLM and maintains positive, successful name recognition for future grants.
Attached are the various elements of the existing trail with generic name place holders. As a side, "Caterpillar Turnout" was created for large construction equipment turn around needs in a constrained environment, crane platform area and eventually guest parking for the mansion in the sky.
One also could imagine that a Heritage "Trail" comes with elements of adventure and challenge that a "Park" would not...and this certainly is the experience at Hilltop for those who have visited.
Thanks for your time and consideration of these comments.
Sincerely,
Steven Richard, RDA Architect
Richard Design Associates, Inc.