City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: Community Services
Meeting Date: September 29, 2025
Report #:2508-5065
TITLE
Adoption of a Resolution for the County of Santa Clara Historic Heritage Grant Application for the Restoration of the Roth Building Frescoes (Phase II); CEQA Status-categorically exempt.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that City Council adopt the attached resolution (Attachment A) to apply for the Historical Heritage Grant Program from the County of Santa Clara to fund the Roth Building Fresco Phase II Restoration Project. This restoration project will focus on the restoration treatment of grisaille fresco panels and sepia medallions as part of the fresco mural by artist Victor Arnautoff, titled Modern and Ancient Medicine, originally painted in 1932 at the site of the historic Roth Building.
BACKGROUND
A fresco mural by artist Victor Arnautoff, titled Modern and Ancient Medicine and originally painted in 1932, is located at the entrance to the Roth Building (the former Palo Alto Clinic).
The artwork is part of the City’s public art collection. Both the Roth Building and fresco mural are listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as a property of significant architectural and artistic value. It is also listed on the California Register of Historical Resources and as a Category 2 Building (a building of major regional importance) in the City of Palo Alto Historic Inventory.
The City of Palo Alto purchased the Roth Building in 2000, adding the Victor Arnautoff frescoes to the City’s art collection. The Public Art Program cares for artworks integrated into the exterior of the building for the benefit of the Palo Alto community.
In 2018, the City of Palo Alto in coordination with the Palo Alto History Museum (PAHM) applied for the County of Santa Clara’s Historic Grant Program for the protection and restoration of frescoes (Phase I). The grant, a reimbursement-based matching fund in the
amount of $105,000, was awarded in 2019. On November 16, 2020,1 City Council adopted a resolution to accept the grant award for the fresco mural rehabilitation and authorized the City Manager to execute the grant agreement and commit the project for park use for at least twenty years. Delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the funding agreement for the Historic Grant Program (HGP) was executed in 2022. Protection and restoration of frescoes project (Phase I) coincided with the rehabilitation of the building and took place in 2023/24. Under Phase I of the fresco protection and restoration project, a team of fine art conservators carried out full restoration of the four large color frescoes and completed in-depth cleaning and condition analysis of the lower panels and medallions. The work was completed in Fall 2024. The scope of work outlined in the grant was fully executed, and the City of Palo Alto received full reimbursement from the County of Santa Clara.
ANALYSIS
In July 2025, the County of Santa Clara announced a new grant funding cycle under its Historic Heritage Grant Program. If awarded, this grant funding opportunity would allow the City to complete an essential restoration of eight grisaille frescoes in the lower fresco register in the loggia and four sepia medallions on the arched exterior wall of the Roth Building loggia. The restoration treatment project will be carried out by a team of fine art conservators – leading experts on the frescoes by Diego Rivera and Victor Arnautoff and managed by the City of Palo Alto Public Art Program staff.
The grant application requires the City, as the property owner, to approve the resolution to apply for this grant by signing a Property Owner Approval Resolution (Attachment A). If awarded the grant, staff will return to City Council for the acceptance of the grant agreement and any necessary budget amendment.
RESOURCE IMPACT AND TIMELINE
Grant applications are due to the County on October 23, 2025, with the awards announced by the County’s Historical Heritage Commission (HHC) in Summer/Fall 2026. Should the City be successful in securing the grant award, the City will enter into a grant agreement with the expectation of completing the grant project scope within three years from the agreement execution. The Fresco Restoration (Phase II) Project is expected to cost $235,000 based on the treatment proposal and budget estimate provided by the team of fine art conservators and take place in 2027/28. The City will bring forward any necessary budget amendments for City Council review through the annual budget process to recognize expense and offsetting revenue. The City will fund the grant project out of the Roth Building CIP PF-23001. Upon project completion and prior to the expiration of the grant agreement, the City will submit a 1 City Council, November 16, 2020; Agenda Item #4; SR# 11653, https://www.paloalto.gov/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes-reports/reports/city-manager-reports- cmrs/year-archive/2020-2/id-11653.pdf?t=51404.9
final reimbursement request. The reimbursement amount will be subsequently posted back to the Roth Building CIP fund (PF-23001).
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
The City of Palo Alto, Palo Alto Museum, and the broader public, both within the Palo Alto community and beyond, will benefit from funding this project. The Public Art Commission is scheduled to discuss the grant proposal at their September 18, 2025, meeting. Through a partnership between the City’s Public Art Program and the Palo Alto History Museum, thousands of visitors will learn about the history and artistic significance of the Roth Building frescoes, as well as their unique place in the local, regional, and broader art world.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The Roth Building rehabilitation project is Categorically Exempt from CEQA review pursuant to CEQA guidelines section 15331, Historical Resource Restoration/Rehabilitation, as a project limited to maintenance, repair, and rehabilitation in accordance with the secretary of interior standards for historic preservation.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Property Owner Resolution Approving the City of Palo Alto’s Application for a County of Santa Clara Historical Heritage Grant for the Roth Building Frescoes Restoration (Phase II)
APPROVED BY:
Kristen O'Kane, Community Services Director