BILL OF SALE
(Historic Building #54, “Queen Anne” – City of Hercules, CA)
In accordance with California Government Code sections 37350 and 37351 and the terms of this Bill of Sale , the City of Hercules, a California municipal corporation (the “City”), is disposing of that certain tangible property located on the south side of Willet Street in Hercules (Assessor’s Parcel Number 404-020-022) known as H istoric Building #54 or the “ Queen Anne House” for the benefit of the City.
Recitals
A. Rockhead and Quarry, LLC (“Buyer”) is a California limited liability company. Buyer has expertise in relocating and rehabilitating historic homes and has been in the business of doing so for over 25 years.
B. On November 9, 2016, the City Council authorized City staff to complete California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) review for the sale of the Queen Anne House to Buyer and for Buyer’s rehabilitation and relocation of the House to a different site (the “Project”).
C. On May 8, 2018, City filed a Notice of Exemption with the Contra Costa County Clerk for the Project which stated that the Project was exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines sections 15301 and 15331. The Notice of Exemption was posted through June 8, 2018.
D. City and Buyer now desire to complete the sale of the Queen Anne House pursuant to the terms of this Bill of Sale.
Agreement
Therefore, for good and valuable consideration of $1.00, the receipt and adequacy of which is hereby acknowledged, City does hereby sell, transfer , and convey t he Queen Anne House to Buyer. City and Buyer further agree as follows:
1. The Recitals above are true and correct and are incorporated herein.
2. Buyer must obtain all required permits from City, including but not limited to an encroachment permit (“City Encroachment Permit”). Buyer is subject to all conditions of approval contained in any permit issued by City, including but not limited to any indemnity and bonding requirements.
3. This Bill of Sale becomes effective upon issuance of the City Encroachment Permit. If Buyer fails to relocate the Queen Anne House pursuant to the terms of the City Encroachment Permit, this Bill of Sale shall be null and void.
4. City’s sale of the Queen Anne House to Buyer includes all of City’s right, title , and interest in all improvements, fixtures, and personal property, if any, located in and upon the Queen Anne House.
5. Buyer agrees that it is purchasing and taking possession of the Queen Anne House subject to the following:
DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9
WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE PROVISIONS OF ANY CITY
PERMIT, BUYER ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT CITY IS
SELLING AND BUYER IS PURCHASING THE QUEEN ANNE HOUSE
ON AN "AS -IS WITH ALL FAULTS" BASIS AND THAT BUYER IS
NOT RELYING ON ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF
ANY KIND WHATSOEVER, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, FROM CITY ,
ITS AGENTS, EMPLOYEES OR OFFICERS, AS TO ANY MATTERS
CONCERNING SUCH PERSONAL PROPERTY, INCLUDING,
WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF
MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
6. This Bill of Sale shall in all respects be governed by the laws of the State of California.
CITY OF HERCULES, CALIFORNIA,
a municipal corporation
By:
Dante Hall
City Manager
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
By: ________________________________
J. Patrick Tang
City Attorney
ATTEST:
By: ________________________________
Lori Martin, City Clerk
ROCKHEAD AND QUARRY, LLC,
a limited liability corporation
By:
_____________
_____________
DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 1/31/2022
1/31/2022
1/31/2022
CEO
Tom White
2/5/2022
Rockhead and Quarry
Historic House Restoration and Rentals
House Moving Proposal
Historic House #54 – City of Hercules
Dmitri Belser
Thomas E. White
2024 Parker Street
Berkeley CA 94704
510 540-5734
http://rockheadandquarry.com
November 2016
Attachment 1
DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 2 Rockhead and Quarry, LLC, has experience in house moving, having completed 5 separate house moves during our last project, and we are currently in the process of moving three historic houses. Our current projects include a 2500 sf duplex, a 5600 sf six-plex, and an 1887 landmark house. We have worked closely with the City of Berkeley to accomplish these moves, and have been successful despite overwhelming bureaucracy. We are particularly skilled at negotiating the City of Berkeley’s complex permit process and have political contacts throughout the City. We have restored houses built from the 1880s to the early 1900s in both Berkeley and San Francisco. Our Background We have lived in Berkeley for over 25 years, and during that time we have restored 6 houses. All the houses were in serious disrepair. We are preservationists who believe in historic preservation of houses as much as possible. Our approach to rental property has been to create high quality houses. We have found that tenants tend to treat a house the way it is restored and maintained: If a house is rented as a dump, they treat it like a dump, but if it is a beautiful house in restored condition, they treat it that way and care for it. Our current home, for which we won a restoration award from Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association, has been fully restored to its 1907 condition. The second house on the property, which is a true gem of a 1908 structure, has been loved by all the tenants we have had there. The houses we have restored have been in advanced stages of deterioration, and we have brought them back to original condition and made them beautiful and usable. They are turn of the century homes that have been neglected, and are now restored and ready for another hundred years. Our house moving projects (completed and in process) are described below.
DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 3 1632-1634 62nd Street, Berkeley CA 94703
Cheney Cottage – BEFORE (on the UC Campus) Delaney House – BEFORE In 2009, we began a project of moving and restoration of two houses. The Cheney Cottage is a 1902 State and City Landmark home that was located at 2243 College, on the campus of the University of California. The University decided to remove the structure, and we purchased it for $17. We cut the house into two pieces, and moved both pieces to the Gill Tract at Albany Village (in order to free up the land in time for the University’s plans while waiting to get permits from the City of Berkeley). We had purchased an abandoned and dilapidated 1881 Victorian cottage in 2009 (the Delaney House), located in South Berkeley on 62nd Street. The Delaney House was an 1100 sf house that sat on a 6700 sf lot. We moved the Delaney house to the back of the lot, and lifted it up, adding a new first floor which turned it from a 2 bedroom/1 bathroom house to a 4+ bedroom/2 bathroom house. The Cheney Cottage was placed in front of the Delaney House. Both houses have now been restored. The Cheney Cottage was completed in January 2013, and the Delaney House was completed in October 2013.
DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 4 Cheney and Delaney Houses - After 2214 Martin Luther King Jr. Way Our current project involves a non-conforming commercial building in downtown Berkeley. 2214 MLK is a 1913 storefront that has been neglected and abused. We uncovered the original clerestory windows, and are in the process of prepping the building to be moved several feet to the south. We are currently preparing to move a duplex from downtown Berkeley to this site, which should happen 4Q16. The two houses on Walnut Street are both being relocated. The duplex is being moved to 2214 MLK, and the six-plex is being moved to a lot in South Berkeley. 2214 MLK (the Walnut Street duplex will go behind the storefront) DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 5 The six-plex (left) and duplex on Walnut Street Historic House #54 – Two Proposals After reviewing the materials and information provided by the City of Hercules, we realize that our proposals (at least Option A) might best be considered as “back up proposals” in case no one else can step forward and actually move the house within the City of Hercules. We feel this way because we had not realized, when we began this process, that the City of Hercules prefers that the house remain within the city limits. Our first proposal is to take the house outside of Hercules. However, if there is no one who can keep the house within the City, and the City is willing to entertain having someone take the house away (as opposed to demolishing it), we hope our first proposal would be considered. Our Option B proposal, which is to keep the house in Hercules, would require additional time and DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 6 negotiation, as we are unfamiliar with land values and availability within Hercules. However, if the City is interested in keeping the house within the city limits, we are happy to explore this option further. Option A Our plan is to take the house out of Hercules altogether, and move it up to Napa. We have been making inquires on lots in the Napa area, and have found several suitable lots that are currently on the market. Once we move the house, it would be put on a new foundation and completely restored. Our goal would be to bring it back to original condition, but with new electrical, plumbing and heating, and to make it an example of early 20th century architecture. The house would then be used as a vacation home, and made available for people interested in the unique architecture of this building. Option B We also have considered ways of potentially keeping the house in Hercules, but have no contacts within the City to determine a path forward (given the timing of this proposal submission). However, if the City of Hercules has lots that they are interested in putting toward this effort, we would be open to discussing such an option. As mentioned above, this would require additional information and discussion with the City of Hercules to make this work. Cost Implications to the City of Hercules None DocuSign Envelope ID: CECCD6E2-5FAB-4671-B7E1-1B73720F3EE9 7 Team Members The Rockhead and Quarry team consists of Principals Dmitri Belser and Thomas White. Our son, Sabastian Belser, will also be an integral part of our team. The house will be moved by Phil Joy House Moving in Benecia. About Us We have been together for 37 years, and have two grown children (Elliott, 31, and Sabastian, 27) who both grew up in Berkeley. Dmitri is Executive Director of the Center for Accessible Technology, a position he has held since 2001. Dmitri also served as the President of the Ed Roberts Campus during the last years of the capital campaign, lead the project through getting all the permits and entitlements, closed the funding, and oversaw construction and occupancy of the building. He held this position from 2005 to 2012. Dmitri is a frequent speaker on issues of accessibility and universal design. Tom is Executive Director of Energy Auditor and Retrofitter Inc. and Publisher of Home Energy magazine. Tom has held this position since 2008. Through this work, Tom has developed extensive expertise in the area of residential energy efficiency. Conclusion We certainly have the track record and the capacity to make a project like this a reality. The only issue is the City’s desire to keep the house within the city limits. If this changes, or if the City of Hercules will work with us to identify a lot where the house can be moved, we believe our expertise and hands on ability to do this task make us the ideal candidates. Thank you for your careful review of this proposal. Dmitri Belser and Thomas E. White Principals, Rockhead and Quarry Rockhead and Quarry is a California-registered LLC owned by Dmitri Belser and Thomas E White.
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