2025-01319 Ordinance Listing 5850 Freeport Boulevard as a Landmark on the Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources (M24-014) [Passed for Publication 06/24/2025; Published 06/27/2025, 07/11/2025; Noticed 07/11/2025] — Sacramento City Council, July 22, 2025 (part 1 of 2)

City of Sacramento
City Council - 2PM Report
915 I Street Sacramento, CA 95814
www.cityofsacramento.org
File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025
Ordinance Listing 5850 Freeport Boulevard as a Landmark on the Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources (M24-014) [Passed for Publication 06/24/2025; Published 06/27/2025, 07/11/2025; Noticed 07/11/2025]
File ID: 2025-001319
Location: 5850 Freeport Blvd, APN: 035-0034-016-0000, District 5 Recommendation:1) Conduct a public hearing and upon conclusion: 1) pass a Motion determining the listing of 5850 Freeport Blvd as a landmark on the Sacramento register of historic and cultural resources is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15308, which exempts actions taken to assure the maintenance, restoration, enhancement, or protection of the environment and where the regulatory process involves procedures for the protection of the environment; and 2) adopt an Ordinance listing 5850 Freeport Blvd as a landmark on the Sacramento register of historic and cultural resources.

Contact: Sean de Courcy, Preservation Director, (916) 808-2796, [email protected], Community Development Department
Presenter: Whitney Johnson, Assistant Planner (916) 808-8954, [email protected], Community Development Department Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Ordinance
3-Historic Resource Evaluation for 5850 Freeport Boulevard 4-Public Comments
Description/Analysis
Issue Detail: In May 2024, Staff received a planning application requesting the demolition of the building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard due to interior fire damage. Consistent with City Code section

17.604.600, within 45 days of a request to demolish a building 50 years of age or older, the preservation director is required to make a preliminary determination regarding the building’s eligibility for listing on the Sacramento register. The owner retained the services of SWCA environmental consultants who prepared and submitted a historic resource evaluation. Concurrently, the Sacramento County Historical Society retained Brunzell Historical to prepare a second historic

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File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025
resource evaluation for the building. The SWCA report did not find the building eligible as a historic landmark, while the Brunzell Historical report did find the building to be an eligible historic resource.

The two reports and the request to demolish the building were routed to preservation advocacy and neighborhood groups; Fifty letters were received in total. One comment in particular, submitted by Preservation Sacramento, also noted that the building was identified in the City’s recently completed LGBTQ+ Historic Experience historic context statement. Preservation Sacramento further supported that the building was potentially eligible for listing on the Sacramento register for its association with the Japanese-American developer Gonzo Sakai who built the building, and for the Nisei bowling leagues that met in the building since its construction.

In accordance with City Code section 17.604.600, the preservation director reviewed the record, including both historical evaluations and all public comments received, and determined that there is a reasonable likelihood the building qualifies for listing on the Sacramento register under Criterion i (City Code, § 17.604.210.A.1.a.1.) for its association with Sacramento’s Japanese American and LGBTQ+ communities, with particular significance as a Japanese-American (Nisei) gathering place.

Staff presented a statement of nomination to the preservation director who concluded at a public hearing on January 30, 2025, that the resource appears eligible for listing in the Sacramento register pursuant to the criterion in City Code section 17.604.210.A.1.a.i. Staff prepared a draft ordinance (Attachment 2) for review by the preservation commission, which is responsible for reviewing the ordinance and making a recommendation to the city council regarding the eligibility of 5850 Freeport Boulevard (Nominated Resource) for listing on the Sacramento register. On May 21, 2025, the preservation commission held a hearing and passed a motion recommending the City Council adopt an ordinance listing the Nominated Resource as a landmark on the Sacramento register.

A notice of the public hearing describing the proposed landmark listing was sent to the property owner of 5850 Freeport Boulevard as required by City Code section 17.604.230.

The South Land Park Neighborhood Association, Pocket Greenhaven Community Association, Freeport Renovation on The Move (FROM), Preservation Sacramento, Sacramento County Historical Society, Sacramento Modern, Sacramento Area Fire Fighters Local 522, Sacramento Regional Fire Museum received notice of the hearing and submitted letters supporting the nomination. Fifty letters in total were received in response to the nomination.. Staff have met with representatives of the property owner who have expressed some concerns about the potential listing on the Sacramento register, however they have not indicated support or opposition to the listing.

Policy Considerations: The city council has found “that significant aspects of the city’s rich and diverse historic resources deserve recognition and preservation to foster an understanding of our heritage, and to promote the public health and safety and the economic and general welfare of the people of the city. The preservation and continued use of historic resources are effective tools to sustain and revitalize neighborhoods and business districts within the city, enhance the city’s

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File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025
economic, cultural and aesthetic standing, its identity, its livability, marketability and urban character.” (City Code, § 17.604.100.A.) To this end, the city code directs the preservation director, to “make preliminary determinations relative to properties’ eligibility for listing on the Sacramento register” and to “initiate proceedings to nominate resources for listing on the Sacramento register.” (City Code, §§ 17.604.100.C.2 and 17.604.220).

The nomination of the building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard for listing as a historic landmark on the Sacramento register is consistent with Sacramento 2040 General Plan goal HCR-2.3, which provides for the identification and preservation of historical and cultural resources. General Plan policy HCR-

2.3 states, “The City shall maintain and update the Sacramento register of historic and cultural resources on a regular basis, including proactively identifying and listing additional unidentified landmarks and historic districts…”
Economic Impacts: Not applicable.

Environmental Considerations: The listing of the Nominated Resource as a historic landmark on the Sacramento register is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15308. Section 15308 exempts from review acts that are undertaken to assure the maintenance, restoration, enhancement, or protection of the environment where the regulatory process involves procedures for protection of the environment. Listing the Nominated Resource as a historic landmark would ensure that future development on the site would undergo preservation review, as part of the city’s site plan and design review process prior to the granting of any entitlements, thereby protecting the historic resource, which would be considered part of the environment.

Sustainability: Not applicable.

Commission/Committee Action: On January 30, 2025, the preservation director, in conformance with City Code section 17.604.220, held a public hearing, reviewed the historic analysis prepared by Kara Brunzell, M.A., Brunzell Historical (Attachment 3) and concurred with a draft statement of nomination and requested staff prepare a draft ordinance (Attachment 2) for review and consideration by the preservation commission. On May 21, 2025, the preservation commission held a hearing and passed a motion recommending the City Council adopt an ordinance listing the Nominated Resource as a landmark on the Sacramento register.

Rationale for Recommendation: Listing of the building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard as a historic landmark on the Sacramento register is consistent with the Historic Preservation Chapter of the City Code (chapter 17.604) and the goals of the 2040 General Plan. Furthermore, listing the nominated resource on the Sacramento register will help ensure its preservation and encourage rehabilitation consistent with the U.S. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

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File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025
5850 Freeport Boulevard is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of the history of the city. (City Code, § 17.604.210.A.1.a.i) The property is associated with the commercial development of the South Land Park area of Sacramento in the mid-twentieth century and with the transformation of Freeport Boulevard into a commercial corridor. It is also associated with the expanding postwar popularity of bowling as a sport played by women and children as well as men. It exemplifies the postwar rise of the suburban bowling center in Sacramento, a purpose-built bowling facility in which the sport was the primary activity. Constructed outside the traditional urban core, these facilities included amenities such as restaurants, meeting rooms, nurseries, free parking, and cocktail lounges. Land Park Bowl was particularly important as a gender-neutral recreational center for people of all ages since the newly developed neighborhood lacked a downtown area with a high density of traditional quasi-public recreational spaces like social clubs, lodges, neighborhood bars, and restaurants. The nominated property is the last purpose-built and intact bowling alley from this era in the city of Sacramento.

The property is of particular significance to the local Japanese American Community. Land Park Bowl was developed by Gonzo Sakai, a Japanese American Issei, and served as a popular venue for Nisei bowling leagues in Sacramento. The site reflects an important chapter in Sacramento’s Japanese American community history, including its contributions to recreational and social integration during and after World War II. Additionally, the property has also been identified in the Sacramento LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project historic context statement as a venue for the River City Bowlers, a prominent LGBTQ+ bowling league, including the team “Four Brothas and a Sistah.” Therefore, the building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard meets the criterion for listing on the Sacramento register under City Code section 17.604.210.A.1.a.i because of its association with the local Japanese American and LGBTQ+ communities.

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File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025

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Figure 1: 5850 Freeport Boulevard
File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025
Figure 3: Owner Gonzo Sakai, Rev. Senshow Sakai and the Warren brothers breaking ground, 1960 (Sacramento Union).

The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard has integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship and association. (City Code, § 17.604.210.A.1.b.)

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Figure 2: Nisei Old timers' Bowling League Team, c. 1970 File ID: 2025-01319 7/22/2025
The building retains a high degree of historic integrity in all six aspects. The building is in its original location, the design elements from the time of construction are largely intact with minimal alterations, the surrounding setting of Freeport Boulevard has remained intact, the workmanship present on the building is nearly identical to when it was built, and finally the building retains the ability to convey its association with the Japanese and LGBTQ+ communities due to its continued usage as a bowling alley up to the point of the fire.

The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard has significant historical worth, and its designation as a landmark is reasonable, appropriate and necessary to promote, protect and further the goals and purposes of this chapter (City Code, § 17.604.210.A.1.c.) The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard has significant historic worth. Up until the fire, it had been well-maintained and retains a high level of integrity. 5850 Freeport Boulevard is a significant property since it is the last purpose-built and intact bowling alley from this era in the city of Sacramento. It has exceptional cultural importance, particularly to the Japanese-American community as evidenced by the substantial number of public comments received in support of listing as a landmark, along with the LGBTQ+ community due to its identification in the City’s LGBTQ+ Historic Context Statement.

Financial Considerations: Not applicable.

Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not applicable.

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182090789.3
ORDINANCE NO. ___
Adopted by the Sacramento City Council
[Date Adopted]
AN ORDINANCE LISTING 5850 FREEPORT BOULEVARD (LAND PARK BOWL) AS A LANDMARK

ON THE SACRAMENTO REGISTER OF HISTORIC AND CULTURAL RESOURCES

BACKGROUND
A. The city council has found “that significant aspects of the city’s rich and diverse historic resources deserve recognition and preservation to foster an understanding of our heritage, and to promote the public health and safety and the economic and general welfare of the people of the city. The preservation and continued use of historic resources are effective tools to sustain and revitalize neighborhoods and business districts within the city, enhance the city’s economic, cultural and aesthetic standing, its identity and its livability, marketability and urban character.” (Sacramento City Code, § 17.604.100.A.) B. To this end, the city code provides a mechanism for listing landmarks, historic districts, and contributing resources on the Sacramento register of historic and cultural resources (“Sacramento register”).

C. On January 30, 2025, the preservation director reviewed a statement of nomination and determined that the building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard (Land Park Bowl) is eligible for listing on the Sacramento register a landmark. On March 19, 2025, the preservation commission concurred with the findings of the preservation director and recommended the city council list the building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard (Land Park Bowl) as a landmark on the Sacramento register.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO:

SECTION 1
A. 5850 Freeport Boulevard (Land Park Bowl) meets the requirements for listing as a landmark on the Sacramento register as follows:
i. The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of the history of the city, the region, the state or the nation. (City Code, § 17.604.210.A.1.a.i).

Land Park Bowl was particularly important as a gender-neutral recreational center for people of all ages since the newly developed neighborhood lacked a downtown area with a high density of traditional quasi-public recreational spaces like social clubs, lodges, neighborhood bars, and restaurants. The nominated property is the last purpose- built and intact bowling alley from this era in the city of Sacramento.

182090789.3

The property is of particular significance to the local Japanese American Community.

Land Park Bowl was developed by Gonzo Sakai, a Japanese American Issei, and served as a popular venue for Nisei bowling leagues in Sacramento. The site reflects an important chapter in Sacramento’s Japanese American community history, including its contributions to recreational and social integration during and after World War II.

Additionally, the property has also been identified in the LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project historic context statement as a venue for the River City Bowlers, a prominent LGBTQ+ bowling league, including the team “Four Brothas and a Sistah.” Therefore, the property at 5850 Freeport Boulevard meets the criterion for listing on the Sacramento register under City Code section 17.604.210.A.1.a.i for its association with the postwar popularity of bowling and for its association with the local Japanese American and LGBTQ+ community.
ii. The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard (Land Park Bowl) has integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship and association, as judged with reference to the criterion in City Code section 17.604.210.A.1.a. (City Code, § 17.604.210.A.1.b.)

The building retains a high degree of historic integrity in all six aspects. The building is in its original location, the design elements at the time of construction are largely intact with minimal alterations, the surrounding setting of Freeport Boulevard has remained intact, the workmanship present on the building is nearly identical to when it was built, and finally the building retains the ability to convey its association with the Japanese and LGBTQ+ communities due to its continued usage as a bowling alley up to the point of the fire.
iii. The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard has significant historical worth, and its designation as a landmark is reasonable, appropriate and necessary to promote, protect and further the goals and purposes of chapter 17.604 of the City Code. (City Code, §

17.604.210.A.1.c.)

The building at 5850 Freeport Boulevard has significant historic worth. Up until the fire, it had been well-maintained and retains a high level of integrity. 5850 Freeport Boulevard is a signific property since it is the last purpose-built and intact bowling alley from this era in the city of Sacramento. It has exceptional cultural importance, particularly to the Japanese American community as evidenced by the substantial number of public comments received in support of listing as a landmark, along with the LGBTQ+ community due to its identification in the City’s LGBTQ+ Historic Context Statement.
iv. The city council has considered the factors set forth in City Code section 17.604.210.A.2 and determined that none of them apply to the listing of 5850 Freeport Boulevard.

182090789.3
Table of Contents:

Exhibit A: Significant Features and Characteristics

182090789.3
A. Significant Features and Characteristics
Constructed as a bowling alley in 1960 by Japanese American developer, Gonzo Sakai, the property retains its overall identity with a high amount of historic integrity. The building retains most of its original design aspects and signifies its usage as a bowling alley. Prominent features of the building include the front canopy supported by an A-shaped metal frame near the entrance, low-pitched side-gable roof spanning a large distance, and concrete block construction. The property is of significant importance to the Japanese American and LGBTQ+ communities, who frequented the bowling alley to play in recreational bowling leagues.

5850 Freeport Boulevard

182090789.3

Nisei Old timers' Bowling League Team, c. 1970

Owner Gonzo Sakai, Rev. Senshow Sakai and the Warren brothers breaking ground, 1960 (Sacramento Union).

November 13, 2024
Sacramento Historical Society
Firefighters Burn Institute
c/o Gregg Lukenbill
1081 38th Street
Sacramento, CA 95816
Subject: Historical Evaluation of 5850 Freeport Boulevard, Sacramento, Sacramento County, California.

Dear Gregg,
This letter report and the attached DPR 523 forms comprise the Historical Evaluation of 5850 Freeport Boulevard, Sacramento, Sacramento County, California.

Methodology
Brunzell Historical staff conducted online research through the Sacramento County Assessor Recorder as well as Ancestry.com, Newspapers.com, and other websites in order to develop relevant historic contexts and land-use history of the property. Photographs of the historic-era building and neighborhood setting from November 2024 were provided by Gregg Lukenbill. The property was evaluated according to the relevant National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR), and Sacramento criteria for historic eligibility. The property was documented on DPR 523 forms as required by the California Environmental Quality Act as (CEQA).

Summary of Findings
Because this work was completed pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the historic-era resource was evaluated for CRHR eligibility. The property was also evaluated for NRHP and local Sacramento eligibility. The property historically significant under Criterion A/1/a.i for its association with the postwar development of South Land Park and transformation of Freeport Boulevard into a commercial corridor as well as with the dominant popularity of bowling as a gender-neutral recreational activity for people of all ages during the postwar era. It is also significant under Criterion C/3/a.iii-v for its Mid-Century Modern Googie commercial architecture. The property is recommended eligible for listing on NRHP, CRHR, and Sacramento register under criteria A/1/a.i and C/3/a.iii-v.

National Register of Historic Places
In conjunction with the following NRHP criteria, sites must be assessed for integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association. A property may be considered eligible to the NRHP if it retains sufficient integrity of the elements listed above and it:

A. is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history;
B. is associated with the lives of persons significant in our past;

2 C. embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, represents the work of a master, possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant or distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; D. yields, or may be likely to yield, information important to the prehistory or history of the area/region.

California Register of Historical Resources
The CRHR criteria are based on NRHP criteria. For a property to be eligible for inclusion on the CRHR, one or more of the following criteria must be met:

1. It is associated with the events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of local or regional history, or the cultural heritage of California or the United States;

2. It is associated with the lives of persons important to local, California, or national history;

3. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, region, or method of him construction, or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values; and/or

4. It has yielded, or has the potential to yield, information important to the prehistory or history of the local area, California, or the nation.

In addition to meeting one or more of the above criteria, the CRHR requires that sufficient time has passed since a resource’s period of significance to “obtain a scholarly perspective on the events or individuals associated with the resources.” (CCR 4852 [d][2]). Fifty years is normally considered sufficient time for a potential historical resource, and in order that the evaluation remains valid for a minimum of five years after the date of this report, all resources older than 45 years will be evaluated. The CRHR also requires that a resource possess integrity. This is defined as the ability for the resource to convey its significance through seven aspects: location, setting, design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association.

Sacramento Register of Historic And Cultural Resources
The Sacramento Register is a local historic register of historic properties. Significance criteria are based on standards set forth by the National Park Service for the NRHP, though they are stated slightly differently.

A property or district is eligible for the Sacramento Register when it meets the following significance criteria:
i. It is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of the history of the city, the region, the state or the nation, ii. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, iii. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, iv. It represents the work of an important creative individual or master, v. It possesses high artistic values, or

3 vi. It has yielded, or may be likely to yield, information In addition to meeting one or more of the above significance criteria, a property must retain integrity in order to be locally eligible. A resource that meets the above criteria will be locally listed if it has significant historic or architectural worth, and its designation as a landmark is reasonable, appropriate and necessary to promote, protect and further the goals and purposes of the City of Sacramento’s Historic Preservation Program.

Evaluation
Criterion A/1/a.i: The bowling alley property at 5850 Freeport Boulevard is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history. The property is associated with the commercial development of the South Land Park area of Sacramento in the mid- twentieth century and with the transformation of Freeport Boulevard into a commercial corridor. It is also associated with the expanding postwar popularity of bowling as a sport played by women and children as well as men. It exemplifies the postwar rise of the suburban bowling center in Sacramento, a purpose-built bowling facility in which the sport was the primary activity. Constructed outside the traditional urban core, these facilities included amenities such as restaurants, meeting rooms, nurseries, free parking, and cocktail lounges. Land Park Bowl was particularly important as a gender-neutral recreational center for people of all ages since the newly-developed neighborhood lacked a downtown area with a high density of traditional quasi-public recreational spaces like social clubs, lodges, neighborhood bars, and restaurants. Therefore, the property is recommended eligible to the NRHP, CRHR, and Sacramento register under Criterion A/1/a.i.

Criterion B/2: The commercial property at 5850 Freeport Boulevard is not associated with the life of persons important to our history. Research has revealed no important professional accomplishments or impacts on local history by individuals associated with the property, and the property type has limited potential for significant association with important persons. Therefore, the property lacks the association required for eligibility under Criterion B/2. The property is recommended not eligible to the NRHP or CRHR under Criterion B/2.

Criterion C/3/a.ii-v: The property is significant for its architecture. Land Park Bowl was designed and constructed by a well-known local company, Winston Steel Works. The steel-span roof structure was believed at the time of its construction to be the largest in Northern California. Moreover, Winston Steel Works was Sacramento’s only prefabricated steel producer at the time. It is an excellent example of a Mid-Century Modern bowling alley, many of which have been demolished or redeveloped in Sacramento, making them increasingly rare. Its dramatic folded plate roof form, concrete construction, geometric shapes (main entrance awning), and eye-catching space-age entrance sculpture designed to attract the attention of passing motorists are characteristic of the Googie commercial architectural style as described in the Sacramento Mid-Century Modern Historic Context Statement. For these reasons, the property is individually eligible to the NRHP, CRHR, and local register under Criterion C/3/a.ii-v.

Criterion D/4/a.vi: In rare instances, buildings themselves can serve as sources of important information about historic construction materials or technologies and be significant under Criterion D/4. 5850 Freeport Boulevard is an example of well-understood types of construction and does not appear to be a principal source of important information in this regard.

4 Historic integrity is defined as the authenticity of a property’s historic identity, evidenced by the survival of physical characteristics that existed during its historic period. There are seven aspects of integrity: location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association. Loss of integrity, if sufficiently great, overwhelms significance, rendering a property ineligible for historic listing. Land Park Bowl has not been moved and therefore retains integrity of location. The composition of elements that constitute the form, plan, space, structure, and style of the building have not been significantly altered. Although the loss of original signage has somewhat degraded integrity of design, other signiricant features of its original design have been retained and therefore the property retains the ability to convey its original design significance. The building’s integrity of materials and workmanship is evident in the survival of original exterior details such as its dramatic folded plate roof, concrete construction, and Googie-style entrance details with geometric triangular steel sculpture. The property retains sufficient significant physical characteristics from its original construction to convey its historic qualities and therefore retains integrity of feeling. Recent use as a bowling alley and the presence of the physical features that convey its original architectural characteristics allow it to convey integrity of association. Therefore, the building conveys its historic significance through all seven aspects of integrity.

The property is recommended eligible for listing on the NRHP, CRHR, and Sacramento register under criteria A/1/a.i and C/3/a.ii-v.

Evaluator Qualifications
I meet the Secretary of Interior’s Professional Qualifications for both History and Architectural History (as defined in 36 CFR, Part 61). I hold a Master’s degree in Public History and have worked in multiple facets of historic preservation and cultural resource evaluation since 2007. I established Brunzell Historical to provide built environment regulatory compliance and historic landmark nomination services in 2012. I have served as a consulting historian and project manager on historical research investigations for federal, state, and local governments. I am proficient in the recordation, inventory, and evaluation of historic resources using the NRHP and CRHR criteria; expertise includes Section 106 compliance for transportation and telecommunications projects. I am experienced in applying the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to both large-scale survey projects and individual historic-period resources, as well as application of California Public Resources Code 5024.5 to state-owned historic buildings.

Please contact me by phone at 707/290-2918 or e-mail at [email protected] with any questions or comments.

Sincerely,

Kara Brunzell, M.A.

Brunzell Historical

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DPR 523A (1/95) *Required Information

State of California – The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________ PRIMARY RECORD Trinomial _____________________________________ NRHP Status Code
Other Listings _______________________________________________________________ Review Code __________ Reviewer ____________________________ Date ___________ P1. Other Identifier: AMF Land Park Lanes
*P2. Location:  Not for Publication  Unrestricted *a. County Sacramento and (P2b and P2c or P2d. Attach a Location Map as necessary.) *b . USGS 7.5’ Quad Sacramento East Date 1967 T_8N_; R _ 4E_; ___ ¼ of Sec __; _ _ B.M. c. Address 5850 Freeport Blvd City Sacramento Zip 95822 d. UTM: (give more than one for large and/or linear resources) Zone ; mE/ mN e. Other Locational Data: (e.g., parcel #, directions to resource, elevation, etc., as appropriate) APN 035-0034-016-0000 *P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries) The 2.53-acre property is located in a commercial area in South Land Park, across from the Sacramento Executive Airport. The one-story Mid-Century Modern Googie style bowling alley occupies approximately half of its parcel, with paved parking areas to the east and north. The building is set back approximately 90 feet from Freeport Blvd and is roughly L-shaped in plan. It is concrete construction with steel truss roof support structure. It has a dramatic folded plate roof comprised of a low-pitch gabled roof on its large primary volume and an upward-pitched shed roof on projecting entry volume at the primary (east) elevation. There is a cut-out opening in the shed roof at the main entrance which is pierced by a tall triangular steel sculpture. The entrance is fitted with fully-glazed aluminum double doors with glass sidelights. A projecting awning above the entrance mimics the upward pitch of the shed roof. A secondary entrance on the south end of the main elevation is fitted with a painted-over glazed door with a transom. There is a small fixed window to its left. A small concrete masonry unit volume with large vents on its main elevation projects from the front of the building. It is sheltered by its own upward-pitched shed roof. The word “BOWL” is painted on the main elevation, to the left of the main entrance. A large freestanding sign advertising the bowling alley is in front of the main elevation. An entrance on the north elevation is fitted with double glazed aluminum doors. Side and rear facades lack decorative features or references to Googie architecture. The building is not in use, but its exterior appears to be in good condition.
*P3b. Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) HP6, 1-3 story commercial property. *P4. Resources Present:  Building  Structure  Object  Site  District  Element of District  Other (Isolates, etc.) P5b. Description of Photo: (View, date,
accession #) Photograph 1: 5850 Freeport Blvd, east
elevation, camera facing west, November 7, 2024.
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and Sources:
 Historic  Prehistoric  Both
1960, Sacramento County Assessor
*P7. Owner and Address:

Bowlero Corporation
7313 Bell Creek Rd
Mechanicsville, VA 23111

*P8. Recorded by:(Name, affiliation, address)
Gregg Lukenbill
Firefighters Burn Institute
1081 38th Street
Sacramento, CA 95816
*P9. Date Recorded: November 7, 2024
*P10. Survey Type: (Describe) Intensive
*P11. Report Citation:(Cite survey report and other sources, or enter “none.”) None
*Attachments: NONE  Location Map  Sketch Map  Continuation Sheet  Building, Structure, and Object Record  Archaeological Record  District Record  Linear Feature Record  Milling Station Record  Rock Art Record  Artifact Record  Photograph Record  Other (list) __________________

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*Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Land Park Bowl

DPR 523B (1/95) *Required Information State of California – The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________

BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND OBJECT RECORD
B1. Historic Name: Land Park Bowl
B2. Common Name: 5850 Freeport Blvd; AMF Land Park Lanes B3. Original Use: commercial B4. Present Use: commercial *B5. Architectural Style:
*B6. Construction History: (Construction date, alteration, and date of alterations) Original construction, 1960 Interior remodel, 1992
Freestanding Sign replaced, 1999
Interior restroom remodel and parking lot repaved, 2004 Snack bar area inside remodeled, 2013
*B7. Moved?  No  Yes  Unknown Date: Original Location:
*B8. Related Features:

B9. Architect: None b. Builder: Winston Steel Works, Inc. *B10. Significance: Theme Commercial Development/Recreation/Architecture Area South Land Park Period of Significance 1960 - 1974 Property Type Bowling Alley Applicable Criteria A/1/a.i & C/3/a.iii-v (Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural context as defined by theme, period, and geographic scope. Also address integrity.)

B11. Additional Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) *B12. References:
(See Footnotes)
B13. Remarks:

*B14. Evaluator: Kara Brunzell

*Date of Evaluation: November 7, 2024

(This space reserved for official comments.)

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*Recorded by Kara Brunzell *Date: November 7, 2024  Continuation  Update

DPR 523L (1/95) *Required Information State of California – The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________ CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial ____________________________________________

*P3a. Description: (continued):

Photograph 2: 5850 Freeport Blvd, north elevation, camera facing south, November 7, 2024.

Photograph 3: 5850 Freeport Blvd, west elevation, camera facing northeast, November 7, 2024.

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*Recorded by Kara Brunzell *Date: November 7, 2024  Continuation  Update

Photograph 4: 5850 Freeport Blvd main entrance, east elevation, camera facing southwest, November 7, 2024.

Photograph 5: View up Freeport Blvd looking towards 35th Ave, camera facing north, November 7, 2024.

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B10. Significance (continued):

Sacramento
The Nisenan, a branch of the Maidu people, occupied the area near the confluence of the American and Sacramento Rivers before the arrival of Europeans. The Spanish explored but did not settle in the region, and the first permanent non-native resident was Swiss immigrant John Sutter, who arrived in 1839. Sutter’s Fort (approximately ¾ mile northeast of the Richmond Grove neighborhood) became a waystation for immigrants traveling overland to California in the 1840s. When Sutter’s employees discovered gold near the end of the decade, Sam Brannan and other speculators laid out Sacramento near Sutter’s Fort. A dry winter in 1848 – 49 allowed Sacramento’s founders to ignore the great drawback of the site: its position in the floodplain. Surveyors platted an enormous three-mile area, giving the east-west streets letter names and numbering the north-south streets (see Figure 18). Sacramento became the gateway to California’s gold fields. Its influence was made enduring in 1854, when Sacramento became the permanent state capital. The completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 further established Sacramento as a hub for commerce as the importance of gold mining waned in the region. As the nineteenth century progressed, agriculture began to overtake mineral extraction as the most important economic pursuit in the Sacramento Valley.1
As Sacramento matured from a frontier tent encampment to a permanent city, it became clear that flooding would be a recurring problem.

Beginning in 1862, Sacramento undertook a series of flood control projects that were considerably more ambitious than initial attempts to build levees. Civic leaders raised the streets just east of the Sacramento River and re-channeled the mouth of the American River. A flood in 1878 prompted the creation of the first comprehensive flood control plan for the Sacramento Valley in 1880. The first structure of note in the southern part of Sacramento was the R Street levee, initially constructed from Front Street to 19th Street to protect downtown from floods. The R Street levee acted as a de facto barrier to the development of the southern portion of city limits.2 Early Sacramento development was concentrated near the waterfront. The State Capitol on 10th Street and the rail yards to the northwest stimulated West End development during the late nineteenth century. Commercial activity was concentrated at the western end of K Street and near the rail yards. Establishment of streetcar service allowed residential development to push eastward along the streetcar lines beginning in the 1870s. As Sacramento’s population grew around the turn of the century, K Street was transformed into a commercial corridor and residences were pushed out. During the first two decades of the twentieth century, development densified the West End with multi-story retail, office, hotel, and apartment buildings replacing many smaller nineteenth century. Sacramento’s population growth was further stimulated as new levees lessened flood danger and streetcars were electrified; by 1910, the City had nearly 45,000 residents.
3 After the turn of the century, the entire southern part of the Sacramento street grid was opened to development when the City demolished the R Street levee in response to advocacy from the Southside Improvement Club. In 1911, annexation of areas east and south of the original grid added 6,000 acres of land and further boosted population. Growth slowed during World War I, but by the 1920s a booming economy was fueling rapid development and population expansion in Sacramento. The built environment was reshaped with the addition of institutional buildings like lodges, churches, Memorial Auditorium, and a new hospital as well as substantial downtown commercial development. Commercial expansion fueled population growth, which necessitated new residential neighborhoods as well as schools and a junior college. The onset of the Great Depression in 1930 halted most construction and began an era of hardship for Sacramento. The railyards and canneries, major local employers, laid off workers in considerable numbers. Population growth, however, continued, along with continued development of educational buildings in the 1930s. 4 The entry of the US into World War II in 1941 prompted the establishment or reactivation of three military installments in Sacramento County: Mather Field, McClellan Supply Depot, and Sacramento Signal Depot. The bases, located outside city limits, stimulated suburban

1 “Sacramento Bird’s Eye View,” The Daily Record-Union and Weekly Union, 1890s; Sacramento Daily Union, 6 October 1881, 3 col.1; Sanborn Insurance Maps, Sacramento, California, 1895; Steven M. Avella, Sacramento, Indomitable City (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2003), 31-32, 41, 49,

58. 2 Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency, Sacramento Area Flood History, SAFCA, 2008, http://www.safca.org/history.html, accessed 6 February 2014; Sacramento Archives and Museum Collection Center and the Historic Old Sacramento Foundation, Sacramento’s Midtown (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2006), 71.
3 Environmental Science Associates, “Historical Resource Impact Analysis Report, Sacramento Entertainment and Sports Complex,” prepared by JRP Historical Consulting, October 2013, 13.
4 William Burg, Midtown, Sacramento: The Creative Soul of a City (Charleston: The History Press, 2014); The Sacramento Bee, October 25, 1944, 6; Steven M. Avella, Sacramento, Indomitable City (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2003), 80, 90-92.

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commercial and residential development and drew new residents to the area. Development also signaled a shift from an economy based on agriculture and the railroad to one in which military bases and state government offices were the biggest local employers. The local Japanese population suffered disruption and loss of property during the war as a result of the US government decision to incarcerate them in camps far from the West Coast. As California’s population exploded during and after World War II, state government grew with the transition to a full-time legislature, and the City of Sacramento expanded far outside its original boundaries into former agricultural areas. Between 1946 and 1955, 27 annexations added ten square miles to Sacramento’s urban footprint. The shift toward the personal automobile in the post-war period facilitated this trend, making commutes feasible beyond the area that had been urbanized during the nineteenth century; by 1960, the population of Sacramento’s suburbs had surpassed that within city limits. Completion of the Elvas Freeway (Business 80) in 1955, US 50/99 in 1961, and Interstates 5 and 80 in the late 1960s further encouraged development in Sacramento County’s rural areas. The 1960s and 1970s saw more substantial annexations, after which growth slowed but did not stop. 5 Redevelopment beginning in the 1950s led to the destruction of much of Sacramento’s original urban fabric, including the West End and historic Japantown. Meanwhile, continued suburban development and the intrusion of freeways into historic neighborhoods led to disinvestment and population loss in much of the area within the original city limits. The 1980s brought the decline of Sacramento’s most significant, long-standing industries: the railyards, canneries, and military bases. The loss of these industries was only partially offset by growth in the technology sector and the ongoing employment provided by state government. Today, Sacramento’s population is over 490,000 and the city occupies around 98 square miles.
6 South Land Park
South Land Park is a neighborhood in south Sacramento roughly bounded by Interstate 5, Florin Avenue, Freeport Boulevard, and Centerville Road. The area was part of John Sutter’s New Helvetia land grant, and, along with Land Park to its north, gets its name from William Land, a former Mayor of Sacramento who purchased the land in 1911. At the turn of the twentieth century, small-scale residential development began near the corner of Sutterville Road and Freeport Boulevard. After World War II, many of the mid-century modern homes in the neighborhood were developed by Joseph Eichler, a real estate developer and proponent of affordable nondiscriminatory housing. Eichler worked with Moss & Moss developers to construct the residential subdivisions and became well-known for the design quality of his houses. The area was annexed by the City of Sacramento in the 1950s, when Freeport Boulevard was being intensively developed as a commercial corridor to serve new houses nearby. By 1955, South Land Park had 9,000 residents. The suburban neighborhood saw additional growth when Interstates 5 and 80 were completed in the 1970s. In 2024, the city of Sacramento designated 48 houses built by Eichler near the southeast corner of the neighborhood as the South Land Park Hills Historic District for their historical significance.
7 Bowling
Many versions of bowling games have developed independently worldwide since ancient times. The American sport of bowling originated in Germany as a game called ninepins, which had been brought to the US along with English and Dutch versions by the early 1800s. In the US, a tenth pin was added to the game for unknown reasons. Bowling grew in popularity and bowling lanes were built in the mid-nineteenth century in cities with large German populations such as Chicago and New York. Early bowling balls were made of hardwood, and rubber bowling balls were introduced in 1905. In 1914, the bowling ball transitioned to the rubber compound Mineralite, as promoted by the Brunswick Corporation, which was used through the 1960s. Bowling was one of the first sports to include women; there are records of women bowling as early as the late-nineteenth century. In 1916, the Women’s International Bowling Congress was established; the sport would eventually include children as well and become a popular family activity.8

5 City of Sacramento, General Plan Technical Background Report, Prepared by Ascent Environmental, August 2014, 81-82, 94, 113; County of Sacramento, County History, 2018, accessed 28 November 2018, http://www.saccounty.net/Government/Pages/CountyHistory.aspx; Norwood, 2004. 6 “Visitors: Demographics,” City of Sacramento, 2013 – 2017, accessed 13 June 2018, http://www.cityofsacramento.org/Visitors/Demographics. 7 U.S. Geological Survey, 1902; Land Park Community Association, “Sacramento Park Neighborhoods: Land Park,” Jul. 2020, 75; City of Sacramento, Mid-Century Modern Historic Context Statement and Survey Results, prepared by GEI consultants, Mead & Hunt, September 2017, 2-36; City of Sacramento Mayor’s Office of Community Engagement, “Sacramento Historic District Recognizes Mid-Century Homes by Developer Joseph Eichler,” May 21, 2024.
8 International Bowling Museum, “History of Bowling,” Accessed Nov. 5, 2024,https://www.bowlingmuseum.com/Visit/Education/History-of-Bowling; United States Bowling Congress, “History of Bowling,” Accessed Nov. 5, 2024, https://bowl.com/about-us/history-of-bowling.

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In Sacramento, bowling alleys were erected alongside billiard rooms, saloons, and dance halls during the 1850s. A bowling alley in the basement of the Morse Building in Old Sacramento was a typical example. As Sacramento grew, new bowling alleys were constructed in recreation halls and social clubs, and even a few large private homes. Male domination of bowling and its association with establishments that served alcohol persisted well into the twentieth century. When the sale and consumption of alcohol was outlawed in the 1920s, bowling alleys were separated from bars, and the sport began to take on more wholesome associations. Although women's bowling associations and tournaments were on the rise in the 1910s, the sport was opened to large numbers of women and children during the Prohibition era, as purpose-built alcohol-free bowling facilities developed. Repeal of Prohibition allowed the introduction of drinking into the new bowling alleys in which the sport was the primary activity, further increasing its popularity. At least three Sacramento bowling alleys featuring eye-catching signage, meeting rooms, and Streamline Moderne architecture were developed between 1939 and 1942.9 In t he early 1940s, approximately 12 million people participated in bowling nationwide. Following World War II, many bowling centers were constructed in Sacramento and across the US. By this time, rules and alley specifications had been standardized. These modern bowling alleys were also accompanied by amenities like restaurants and lounges to accommodate families and socializing. By 1948, there were approximately 20 million bowlers in the United States. The early postwar era was a golden age for bowling, as alleys proliferated alongside suburban expansion. By 1958, the American Society of Planning Officials considered US bowling centers “one of the most important – if not the most important – local center of participant sport and recreation,” which was attractive to men, women, and children. The planning society attributed the success of bowling to its relatively low cost, the attractive amenities of postwar bowling facilities, and their suburban locations, which had helped bowling become “socially acceptable.” By 1959, 400,000 children were members of the Junior Congress bowling organization. However, growth was slowed in the 1950s and 1960s, due to the overproduction of bowling centers and the increase in the value of land, and many bowling alleys w ere redeveloped or stripped of decorative features in the 1970s.

Bowling became a corporate pursuit, and many bowling alleys were remodeled to be more uniform. Today, approximately 67 million people of all ages bowl in the US.10
With rapid suburbanization and annexation of former agricultural lands after World War II, Sacramento experienced a strong postwar bowling alley boom. At least eight new facilities were constructed in and around San Francisco between 1948 and 1960; the subject property was one of three bowling alleys developed in 1960. In 1962, The Sacramento Suburban Directory boasted of 10 bowling alleys in the area including six “huge bowling and recreational centers.” All 10 Sacramento-area bowling alleys were still open in 1989; in 2024 the subject property is the last purpose-built bowling alley within Sacramento city limits.11 Winston Steel Works
Winston Steel Works, Inc. of Sacramento was founded by James Winston in 1946. The company had plants in Sacramento, Stockton, and San Francisco, where they prefabricated steel warehouses and commercial buildings. Winston Steel Works constructed many commercial and industrial buildings in Sacramento and Northern California, including its own Sacramento headquarters at 4700 West Capitol Avenue. They would use cranes to assemble steel structures with concrete foundations and concrete slab walls poured on site. Born in Hungary, James Winston (1897-1974) immigrated to the United States in 1904 and received his master’s degree in engineering at Cooper Union College in New York in 1926. Winston was a pioneer in pre-fabricated reinforced concrete and steel construction. Winston also worked as a draftsman, design engineer, contracting engineer, industrial engineer, and chief engineer. He was also very involved in the community, a member of the Society of American Military Engineers, the California Society of Professional Engineers, the Sacramento Chamber of Commerce, the California Farm Bureau, and other local organizations. At the time the company was founded, it was the only producer of prefabricated steel buildings in Sacramento. His wife, Ellenore Winston (1888-1987), was the vice president of Winston Steel

9 United States Bowling Congress, “History of Bowling,” Accessed Nov. 5, 2024, https://bowl.com/about-us/history-of-bowling; Bowlero Corporation, Historic Resources Evaluation of 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California, Prepared by Lisa “LC” Demarais, M.H.P., and Dan Herrick, M.H.C., Principal Investigator, Garret Root, M.A., October 2024, 12 – 13. 10 Sandra Shannon, “Post WWII Commercial Recreation, 1940-1975,” Los Angeles Citywide Historic Context Statement, Sep. 2017, 1-5; Bowling Musuem, “History of Bowling,” Accessed Nov. 5, 2024; American Society of Planning Officials, Report 110, May 1958; Bowlero Corporation, Historic Resources Evaluation of 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California, Prepared by Lisa “LC” Demarais, M.H.P., and Dan Herrick, M.H.C., Principal Investigator, Garret Root, M.A., October 2024, 13 – 15. 11 Bowlero Corporation, Historic Resources Evaluation of 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California, Prepared by Lisa “LC” Demarais, M.H.P., and Dan Herrick, M.H.C., Principal Investigator, Garret Root, M.A., October 2024, 14; The Sacramento Suburban Directory, 1962, VII; Dorothy Leland, Big Tomato Guide to Sac Region, 1989, 33.

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Works. The couple had two daughters. In 1964, the company went bankrupt and closed. James Winston died in 1974 after working in engineering for many decades.12
Notable Projects:
-Winston Steel Works plant, Sacramento, 1951
-Highway maintenance station, Auburn, 1954
-Buildings at two uranium mills, Argentina, 1954
-Palm Market, Auburn, 1957
-Hi Land Market, Sacramento, 1959
-Storage building for General Mills, Lodi, 1961
-Bowling alley, Nevada City, 1961
5850 Freeport Blvd
The Bowling Alley at 5850 Freeport Boulevard was built in 1960 by the Winston Steel Works, Inc. of Sacramento, which also designed the 26,000 square-foot building. Previously, the property was owned by Walter and Tom Sullivan and was purchased by Toki and Gonzo Sakai in 1958. The building was originally Land Park Bowl, owned by the Sakais and operated by David, Dale, and Earl Warren. The structure of the building was pre-engineered by Winston Steel Works, and the bowling alley’s plans accounted for 32 lanes, a restaurant, a cocktail lounge with seating for 95 people, and even a nursery and children’s play yard. The “cluster”-type automatic return system was the first of its kind in the area. Its suburban location featured ample free parking. According to its designer, its 148-foot-wide clear span roof was the largest of its type in Northern California at the time. Gonzo Sakai (1888-1962) was a native of Japan and lived in Clarksburg for many years with his wife, Toki Sakai (1894 – 1963). The couple operated a ranch on which they raised six children, all born in California. The family was apparently able to reclaim their property after being incarcerated by the US government at Tule Lake during World War II. The bowling alley project seems to have been their only foray into real estate development. The Sakais were active in the local community, donating cherry trees to a public park and participating in the Buddhist temple community.13 In the 1960s and 1970s, the bowling alley hosted events for various age and affinity groups including bowling classes. Special rates were offered to children for daytime bowling, and there was a bowling club specifically for seniors. Land Park Bowl was used for charity fundraisers and local clubs like the Lions met at its restaurant. On weekends, live bands and go go dancers entertained evening bowlers, and on Monday nights it was the meeting place for a 21-and-over singles club.14 In the 1960s, the bowling alley experienced two robberies and two fires, leading to some interior remodeling. However, the footprint of the building has remained unchanged since 1964. By the late 1960s it was known as Brunswick Land Park Bowl. In 1974, the Sakai family sold old Land Park Bowl to the Brunswick Corporation of Illinois (the company that historically led the change of bowling balls from rubber to Mineralite). In 1987, the property was sold to American Recreation Centers, Inc. of Sacramento. At the time, the American Recreation Centers company owned 27 bowling alleys. The name of the bowling alley was eventually changed to AMF Land Park Lanes.

The AMF Land Park bowling alley continued in use with few alterations until its recent closure in 2024.15

12 United States Federal Census, “James Winston,” New Jersey, 1930; Sacramento Union, “Producer of Prefab Buildings Launches $500,000 Expansion,” Jul. 29, 1951, 7; Press-Tribune, “congratulations Dry Mix Products Co,” Mar. 16, 1954, 13; Sacramento Bee, “James Winston,” Jan. 10, 1974, 35; Sacramento Bee, “US Bankruptcy Public Auction,” Aug. 12, 1964, 65. 13 Sacramento Union, “Freeport Blvd. Land Sells for $92,500,” Apr. 20, 1958, 23; Sacramento Union, “Ground Broken For New Bowl,” Jan. 17, 1960, 35; Sacramento Bee, “Sakai,” Apr. 24, 1962, 25; US Census Records, Clarksburg, California, 1940. 14 Sacramento Bee, “Bachelors & Bachelorettes,” October 8, 1970, 57. 15 Sacramento Bee, “Masked Trio Ties Up Land Park Bowl Manager, 7 Others, Flees with $637,” Feb. 24, 1961, 32; Sacramento Bee, “Crime in the Alleys, Fire Set By asked Pair Damages Bowling Spot in City,” Oct. 17, 1966 1; Sacramento Bee, “Youth, 17, Is Facing 2 Charges,” Jun. 17, 1966, 32; Sacramento Bee, “Land Park Bowl Arson Is Probed,” Aug. 8, 1968, 64; Sacramento Bee, “Land Park Bowl is Purchased,” Sep. 8, 1974, 46; Sacramento Bee, “Public Notice,” Sep. 5, 1987, 78.

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Figure 1: Owner Gonzo Sakai, Rev. Senshow Sakai and the Warren brothers breaking ground, 1960 (Sacramento Union).

Figure 2: Land Park Bowl under construction, 1960 (Sacramento Bee).

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Figure 3: Land Park Bowl coffee shop, 1960 (Sacramento Bee).

Figure 4: Land Park Bowl interior, 1960 (Sacramento Bee).

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Figure 5: Land Park Bowl at 5850 Freeport Blvd, 1960 (Sacramento Bee).

Evaluation:

The NRHP, CRHR, and Sacramento require that a significance criterion from A-D, 1-4, or a.1-a.vi (respectively) be met for a resource to be eligible.

Criterion A/1/a.i: The bowling alley property at 5850 Freeport Boulevard is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history. The property is associated with the commercial development of the South Land Park area of Sacramento in the mid-twentieth century and with the transformation of Freeport Boulevard into a commercial corridor. It is also associated with the expanding postwar popularity of bowling as a sport played by women and children as well as men. It exemplifies the postwar rise of the suburban bowling center in Sacramento, a purpose-built bowling facility in which the sport was the primary activity.

Constructed outside the traditional urban core, these facilities included amenities such as restaurants, meeting rooms, nurseries, free parking, and cocktail lounges. Land Park Bowl was particularly important as a gender-neutral recreational center for people of all ages since the newly-developed neighborhood lacked a downtown area with a high density of traditional quasi-public recreational spaces like social clubs, lodges, neighborhood bars, and restaurants. Therefore, the property is recommended eligible to the NRHP, CRHR, and Sacramento register under Criterion A/1/a.i.

Criterion B/2: The commercial property at 5850 Freeport Boulevard is not associated with the life of persons important to our history.

Research has revealed no important professional accomplishments or impacts on local history by individuals associated with the property, and the property type has limited potential for significant association with important persons. Therefore, the property lacks the association required for eligibility under Criterion B/2. The property is recommended not eligible to the NRHP or CRHR under Criterion B/2.

Its dramatic folded plate roof form, concrete construction, geometric shapes (main entrance awning), and eye-catching space-age entrance

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sculpture designed to attract the attention of passing motorists are characteristic of the Googie commercial architectural style as described in the Sacramento Mid-Century Modern Historic Context Statement. For these reasons, the property is individually eligible to the NRHP, CRHR, and local register under Criterion C/3/a.ii-v.

Historic integrity is defined as the authenticity of a property’s historic identity, evidenced by the survival of physical characteristics that existed during its historic period. There are seven aspects of integrity: location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association. Loss of integrity, if sufficiently great, overwhelms significance, rendering a property ineligible for historic listing. Land Park Bowl has not been moved and therefore retains integrity of location. The composition of elements that constitute the form, plan, space, structure, and style of the building have not been significantly altered. Although the loss of original signage has somewhat degraded integrity of design, other signiricant features of its original design have been retained and therefore the property retains the ability to convey its original design significance. The building’s integrity of materials and workmanship is evident in the survival of original exterior details such as its dramatic folded plate roof, concrete construction, and Googie-style entrance details with geometric triangular steel sculpture. The property retains sufficient significant physical characteristics from its original construction to convey its historic qualities and therefore retains integrity of feeling. Recent use as a bowling alley and the presence of the physical features that convey its original architectural characteristics allow it to convey integrity of association. Therefore, the building conveys its historic significance through all seven aspects of integrity.

The property is recommended eligible for listing on the NRHP, CRHR, and Sacramento register under criteria A/1/a.i and C/3/a.ii-v.

Historic Resources Evaluation of
5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land
Park Lanes), Sacramento,
Sacramento County, California
OCTOBER 2024

PREPARED FOR
Bowlero Corporation

PREPARED BY
SWCA Environmental Consultants

HISTORIC RESOURCES EVALUATION OF
5850 FREEPORT BOULEVARD (AMF LAND PARK LANES),

SACRAMENTO, SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

Prepared for
Bowlero Corporation
7313 Bell Creek Rd
Mechanicsville, VA 23111
Attn: Steve Moroneso

Prepared by
Lisa “LC” Demarais, M.H.P., and Dan Herrick, M.H.C.

Principal Investigator
Garret Root, M.A.

SWCA Environmental Consultants
100 Howe Avenue, Suite 230N
Sacramento, California 95825
(916) 427-0703
www.swca.com

SWCA Project No. 93135

SWCA Cultural Resources Report No. 24-791

October 2024
Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
i

MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
Purpose and Scope: In compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and pursuant to request by the City of Sacramento (City), Bowlero Corporation (Bowlero) retained SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) to conduct a historic resources evaluation of AMF Land Park Lanes located at 5850 Freeport Boulevard(, Sacramento, Sacramento County, California (subject property). The purpose of the current study was to determine whether AMF Land Park Lanes qualifies as a historical resource, as defined by CEQA, and to assist the City in consideration of the proposed demolition of the subject building.

To evaluate AMF Land Park Lanes, SWCA conducted property research, completed an architectural field survey, documented the subject property and its existing conditions, developed relevant historic contexts, and assessed the potential historical significance of the property to determine potential eligibility for listing in the California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR) and Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources (Sacramento Register), per each inventory programs criteria. This Historic Resources Evaluation Report provides the results of the study.

Findings: After careful consideration of the history, design, and historical associations of the subject property, SWCA recommends AMF Land Park Lanes not eligible for listing in the CRHR or Sacramento Register due to a lack of historical significance under any CRHR and Sacramento Register Criteria. Thus, AMF Land Park Lanes does not qualify as a historical resource for the purposes of CEQA compliance.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
ii

CONTENTS
Management Summary ............................................................................................................................... i Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 1 Qualifications of Personnel .................................................................................................................... 1 Location and Setting ............................................................................................................................... 1 Methodology .......................................................................................................................................... 4 Literature Review............................................................................................................................. 4 Archival Research ............................................................................................................................ 4 Field Survey ..................................................................................................................................... 4 Regulatory Framework .............................................................................................................................. 4 California Environmental Quality Act ................................................................................................... 4 California Register of Historical Resources ........................................................................................... 5 Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources ...................................................................... 6 Historic Context .......................................................................................................................................... 6 Development of the City of Sacramento ................................................................................................ 6 Nineteenth Century .......................................................................................................................... 6 Twentieth Century ........................................................................................................................... 9 Bowling and Bowling Alleys in Sacramento ....................................................................................... 11 Mid-Century Modern Architecture ....................................................................................................... 15 Evaluation of AMF Land Park Lanes ..................................................................................................... 17 Property History ................................................................................................................................... 17 Existing Conditions .............................................................................................................................. 20 Observed Alterations ............................................................................................................................ 23 Evaluation Considerations .................................................................................................................... 23 Evaluation of Eligibility ....................................................................................................................... 25 Criteria 1/I ...................................................................................................................................... 25 Criteria 2/II .................................................................................................................................... 25 Criteria 3/III, IV, and V ................................................................................................................. 25 Criteria 4/VI ................................................................................................................................... 26 Eligibility Recommendation Summary .......................................................................................... 26 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 27 References Cited ........................................................................................................................................ 28

Appendices
Appendix A. Department of Parks and Recreation 523 Forms

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
iii
Figures
Figure 1. Project vicinity map. ...................................................................................................................... 2 Figure 2. Project location map. ..................................................................................................................... 3 Figure 3. Surveyor's map of the city of Sacramento, California, 1874 (J. R. Ray). Courtesy of the California State Railroad Museum. ............................................................................................. 8 Figure 4. Early bowling alley in Sacramento, 1915 (International Bowling Museum & Hall of Fame 2024). ......................................................................................................................................... 12 Figure 5. Advertisement for the Capitol Bowl, 1939 (The Sacramento Union). ........................................ 13 Figure 6. Image of Alhambra Bowl from a 1942 flyer (Sacramento Public Library). ................................ 13 Figure 7. Fireside Lanes, 1960 (Pope Studios). Courtesy of the Sacramento Public Library. .................... 14 Figure 8. Advertisement for the opening of Country Club Lanes (The Sacramento Union 1960). ............ 15 Figure 9. Loan/Chase Bank Building, 2017 (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017). .............................................. 17 Figure 10. Interior view of Land Park Lanes under construction (The Sacramento Bee 1960a:17). .......... 18 Figure 11. Part of the Land Park Bowl grand opening advertisement, showing an exterior rending of Land Park Bowl (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23). ................................................................... 19 Figure 12. Bowling lanes at Land Park Bowl (The Sacramento Bee 1960:23). ......................................... 20 Figure 13. Coffee shop at Land Park Bowl (The Sacramento Bee 1960:23). ............................................. 20 Figure 14. Land Park Bowl, 1960 (The Sacramento Bee 1960:A17). ........................................................ 20 Figure 15. East (primary) façade; view facing west. .................................................................................. 21 Figure 16. South façade; view facing north. ............................................................................................... 22 Figure 17. West (left) and south (right) façades; view facing northeast. .................................................... 22 Figure 18. North façade; view facing south. ............................................................................................... 23

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
1 INTRODUCTION
SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) was retained by Bowlero Corporation (Bowlero) to conduct a historic resources evaluation of AMF Land Park Lanes located at 5850 Freeport Boulevard, Sacramento, Sacramento County, California (subject property) in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and at the request of the City of Sacramento (City). Bowlero is seeking approval from the City to demolish AMF Land Park Lanes, which is a 1960 post-war bowling alley building located in the South Land Park neighborhood of Sacramento. This evaluation considers whether AMF Land Park Lanes is eligible for listing in the California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR) and Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources (Sacramento Register). The purpose of this study is to determine whether AMF Land Park Lanes is a historical resource, as defined by CEQA.

This study, including preparation of this Historic Resources Evaluation Report (HRER), was completed in compliance with the requirements established by CEQA and was guided by National Park Service (NPS) Bulletin 15: How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation (NPS 1995), California Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) Instructions for Recording Historical Resources and Guidelines for the Archaeological Research Designs (OHP 1995, 1991), and Chapter 17 of the City Code.

This section of the report introduces the preparer’s qualifications and the study’s scope, purpose, location, setting, and methodology. A summary of the regulatory framework for the study, including the evaluation criteria, follows. Next is a review of the historic context relevant to evaluating AMF Land Park Lanes, as well as an assessment of the subject property. Conclusions are provided, followed by bibliographic references. The subject property was documented on California Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) 523 Forms, which have been appended to this report (Appendix A).

Qualifications of Personnel
This evaluation was performed by and under the direction of architectural historians who meet and exceed the Secretary of the Interior (SOI) Professional Qualification Standards (36 Code of Federal Regulations [CFR] Part 61) for Architectural History and History. SWCA Architectural Historian Lisa Demarais, M.H.P., oversaw the field survey effort, served as project manager, and was the primary author of this report. SWCA Senior Architectural Historian Dan Herrick, M.H.C., contributed to this report as an author and provided oversight and review of all project activities and deliverables.

Location and Setting
AMF Land Park Lanes is located on Assessor Parcel Number (APN) 035-0034-016 at 5850 Freeport Boulevard, Sacramento, Sacramento County, California (Figure 1 and Figure 2). The property is bounded by developed commercial parcels to the north, 38th Avenue to the south, Freeport Boulevard to the east, and McLaren Avenue Freeport Boulevard Alley to the west. The surrounding setting consists of dense, low-rise, mixed-use development. The subject property setting includes low-density commercial properties to the north and south along Freeport Boulevard, a civil airport (Sacramento Executive Airport) to the east, and single-family residential development to the west, northwest, and southwest.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
2 Figure 1. Project vicinity map.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
3 Figure 2. Project location map.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
4 Methodology
This section outlines the research and field documentation approaches undertaken by SWCA to evaluate AMF Land Park Lanes.

Literature Review
AMF Land Park Lanes has not been the subject of a previous cultural resources investigation. SWCA performed a review of previous investigations relevant to the history of the subject property to compile historical context and registration requirements for the eligibility assessment. Specifically, SWCA relied upon the following documents:
• “Sacramento City-Wide Historic Context and Standards & Criteria” in Sacramento Historic District Plans – Final (Page and Turnbull 2019)
• Mid-Century Modern in the City of Sacramento Historic Context Statement and Survey Results (GEI Consultants, Inc. [GEI] and Mead & Hunt, Inc. [Mead & Hunt] 2017) • “Post WWII Recreation, 1940-1975” in Los Angeles Citywide Historic Context Statement (Shannon 2017)
Archival Research
In addition to the literature review, SWCA conducted archival research to determine whether the property is associated with any historically important persons or events and to establish a developmental history of the property. Repositories and sources included the Sacramento County Assessor, Online Archive of California, California State Railroad Museum Library and Archives, Calisphere, Sacramento Public Library, HistoricAerials.com, Newspapers.com, and Ancestry.com, among other online resources.

Field Survey
SWCA conducted an intensive-level built environment field survey of AMF Land Park Lanes on October 22, 2024, to document the existing conditions and key characteristics of the property using digital photography. The field survey was conducted under the direction of SWCA Project Architectural / Project Manager Historian Lisa Demarais, M.H.P.

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
This regulatory framework section identifies the laws, statutes, guidelines, and regulations that govern the identification, evaluation, and treatment of cultural resources.

California Environmental Quality Act
CEQA requires a lead agency to analyze whether historic resources may be adversely impacted by a proposed project. Under CEQA, a “project that may cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historic resource is a project that may have a significant effect on the environment” (California Public Resources Code [PRC] 21084.1). Answering this question is a two-part process: first, the determination must be made as to whether the proposed project involves historic resources; second, if historic resources are present, the proposed project must be analyzed for a potential substantial adverse change in the significance or integrity of the resource.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
5 According to State CEQA Guidelines 15064.5, for the purposes of CEQA, historic resources are:

1. A resource listed in, or formally determined eligible for listing in, the CRHR (PRC 5024.1; 14 California Code of Regulations [CCR] 4850 et seq.);

2. A resource included in a local register of historical resources, as defined in PRC 5020.1(k) or identified as significance in a historic resources survey meeting the requirements of PRC 5024.1(g); and

3. Any building, structure, object, site, or district that the lead agency determines eligible for national, state, or local landmark listing; generally, a resource shall be considered by the lead agency to be historically significant (and therefore a historic resource under CEQA) if the resource meets the criteria for listing in the CRHR (as defined in PRC 5024.1; 14 CCR 4852).

According to CEQA, the fact that a resource is not listed in or determined eligible for listing in the CRHR or is not included in a local register or survey shall not preclude the lead agency from determining that the resource may be a historical resource (PRC 5024.1). Pursuant to CEQA, a project with an effect that may cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical resource may have a significant effect on the environment (State CEQA Guidelines 15064.5(b).

California Register of Historical Resources
Created in 1992 and implemented in 1998, the CRHR is “an authoritative guide in California to be used by state and local agencies, private groups, and citizens to identify the state’s historical resources and to indicate what properties are to be protected, to the extent prudent and feasible, from substantial adverse change” (PRC 21083.2 and 21084.1). Certain properties, including those listed in or formally determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and California Historical Landmarks numbered 770 and higher, are automatically included in the CRHR. Other properties recognized under the California Points of Historical Interest program, identified as significant in historical resources surveys or designated by local landmarks programs, may be nominated for inclusion in the CRHR. According to PRC Section 5024.1(c), a resource, either an individual property or a contributor to a historic district, may be listed in the CRHR if the State Historical Resources Commission determines that it meets one or more of the following criteria, which are modeled on NRHP criteria:
• Criterion 1: It is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of California’s history and cultural heritage. • Criterion 2: It is associated with the lives of persons important in our past. • Criterion 3: It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, region, or method of construction, or represents the work of an important creative individual, or possesses high artistic values.
• Criterion 4: It has yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in history or prehistory.

Resources nominated to the CRHR must retain enough of their historic character or appearance to convey the reasons for their significance, known as integrity. Aspects of integrity assessed when determining potential eligibility include location, setting, materials, design, workmanship, feeling, and association.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
6 Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources The Sacramento Register was created through Title 17 of the City Code, which outlines the City’s historic preservation regulations. Criteria for listing on the Sacramento Register is similar to that of the NRHP and CRHR, though it includes cultural resources that may not reach the level of significance needed for listing in the national or state registers. Cultural resources listed in the Sacramento Register are considered landmarks and are listed based on the findings of the City Council. The requirements for listing are as follows:

I. It is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of the history of the city, the region, the state, or the nation; II. It is associated with the lives of persons significant in the city’s past; III. It embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period or method of construction; IV. It represents the work of an important creative individual or master; V. It possesses high artistic values; or
VI. It has yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in the prehistory or history of the city, the region, the state or the nation;
The nominated resource must also have integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and association.

HISTORIC CONTEXT
The following sections examine historical themes relevant in considering the potential historical significance of AMF Land Park Lanes. The historic context is divided by significance theme, and each theme is discussed chronologically.

Development of the City of Sacramento
Nineteenth Century
Before European colonization, Nisenan and Plains Miwok called the Sacramento area home. Spanish colonization, which primarily occurred along the southern and central coast of California, did not instantly affect the Indigenous populations of the interior of California. The first recorded European expedition into the interior of California occurred in 1808 by Gabriel Moraga. Moraga surveyed the region to find suitable locations for a future mission and named the Sacramento Valley and Sacramento River, after the Spanish word for sacrament. Throughout the next two decades, various travelers entered the Sacramento Valley, but no permanent non-Indigenous settlements were established until 1839.

In 1839 John Sutter, along with a few Hawaiian and European settlers, established the first non- Indigenous permanent settlement—a fort called New Helvetia. The land was granted by the Mexican government, which controlled California at the time after having gained independence from Spain in 1822. Sutter raised horses and cattle and farmed grain and corn. He also built a sawmill at present-day Coloma in El Dorado County, which would lead to the first discovery of gold in California in 1848 (Page & Turnbull 2019:19–20). The resulting Gold Rush spurred massive westward American migration and settlement of California, greatly influencing the broader history of the state and the United States.

Thousands of migrants poured into California during the Gold Rush, greatly accelerating its development Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
7 (California Department of Conservation 2005; Rice et al. 1994:169). The Gold Rush was a major factor in California’s transformation from a sparsely populated western frontier to a center of industry, commerce, and trade. One year after the discovery at Sutter’s Mill, nearly 90,000 people had migrated to California in search of gold. As the gateway to the Sierra Nevada and the goldfields of the foothills, Sacramento quickly became a transportation hub and nexus of Gold Rush economic activity (Page & Turnbull 2019:19-20; Miller and Walton 2016:9).

Also in 1848, and shortly after the discovery of gold in California, the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe H
idalgo ended the Mexican-American War and made California a territory of the United States (National Archives 2023). On January 4, 1850, California’s first constitutional convention convened, establishing the first 18 counties. Over the succeeding months, additional counties were added, bringing the total to 27 on the day of California’s admission to the United States on September 9, 1850. Sacramento County was one of those original counties, with the City of Sacramento its county seat. The City would become the capital of California in 1854, in large part due to the Gold Rush, which had caused massive population growth in the area and established its role as a center of commerce (California State Association of Counties 2019; Miller and Walton 2016:9).

While the primary draw to California in the late 1840s and early 1850s was the insatiable dream of striking it rich in the gold fields, many found the search for gold much more difficult than expected. Many of the people who migrated to the California gold fields, originally from agrarian and business backgrounds, soon realized the real riches lay in establishing enterprises that profited from miners, such as agricultural pursuits (California State Association of Counties 2019). This was true in Sacramento County, which is situated in the northern Central Valley, a region known for its rich agricultural lands.

Grain cultivation and grazing dominated land use in the Sacramento area until the turn of the twentieth century when new crops such as citrus fruits and almonds took prominence (Page & Turnbull 2019:23).

Amidst the Gold Rush and statehood, Sacramento was under formal development and soon began to take the shape of a true city. In December 1848, John Sutter, Jr. and Sam Brannan hired topographical engineer Captain William H. Warner and Lieutenant William Sherman to survey and layout “Sacramento City.” The original city grid consisted of 26 lettered (originally A to Z, today C to Broadway) and 31 numbered (originally 1st to 31st, today Front to Alhambra) streets. Sacramento’s city grid was built directly at the base of the American River flood basin, where centuries of Sierra Nevada snowmelt created temporary lakes each spring, well into the 1840s. Sacramento’s original townsite was a 5-square- mile area, with each street 80 feet wide (except for Front and M) and each block 320 to 340 feet long.

Each block was composed of many lots, and many blocks were divided by 20-foot-wide alleys (Figure 3) (Owens 2013:32–33, 42–43; Hallam 2013:63–64).

Sacramento grew through 1850; however, the population was not stable and remained largely transient aside from the core of merchants and hotel owners. California’s population was undoubtedly increasing, but the population of Sacramento grew sluggishly and inconsistently due in part to the transient nature of the early Gold Rush miners, flooding, and fires that destroyed buildings. In September 1849, a destructive fire swept through the business district, destroying several blocks of canvas tent and wood-framed structures, followed by a major flood in January 1850. In 1852 fire again swept through the business district, destroying over 55 blocks of the city. Original buildings in Sacramento were wood frame and canvas, but as fires and floods became a way of life, citizens began to erect buildings of brick and raised the street level, leaving the original street level below grade.

In 1854 Sacramento became the capital of California. This rise in prominence, coupled with the City’s strategic location and early commercial importance in the development of California, resulted in Sacramento becoming the western terminus for the first transcontinental railroad, which was constructed starting in 1863 and completed in 1869. The Central Pacific Railroad Company, which later became the Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
8 Southern Pacific Railroad and then later the Union Pacific Railroad, was founded by a group of merchants and businessman known as “the Big Four,” who were based in Sacramento, or had strong ties to the region. This development solidified Sacramento as a center for transportation in California, providing immediate links to San Francisco and the growing agricultural hinterlands of the central valleys with the rest of the United States (Owens 2013:48–50; Page & Turnbull 2019:23).

Through the 1870s and into the 1900s, growth continued eastward away from the original core along the river embankment (or embarcadero) and K Street. The patterns of growth were often reflective of the types of amenities in given neighborhoods, including schools and parks. John Sutter Jr., the primary driving force for the development of Sacramento, had the City laid in a grid pattern with spaces specifically for city plazas. These plaza parks provided residents with publicly accessible spaces within an urban core. In the 1870s, several state government buildings were built in Sacramento, including the extant Capitol Building and the adjacent landscaped park. As growth continued, pushed by the development of streetcars, which connected new neighborhoods with the urban commercial core, the main city grid began to fill. Homes were built in a variety of popular styles such as Greek Revival and Italianate. By the 1890s, speculators had begun to eye land outside of the main grid for development. This led to development of Sacramento’s first residential suburban tracts of Oak Park, Elmhurst, Curtis Park, and East Sacramento (Kremer 2012; Page & Turnbull 2019:21, 27).

Figure 3. Surveyor's map of the city of Sacramento, California, 1874 (J. R. Ray). Courtesy of the California State Railroad Museum.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
9 Twentieth Century
Sacramento continued to grow during the early to mid-twentieth century with increased residential, commercial, government, infrastructure, and transportation development. The early twentieth century was marked by steady growth and early suburbanization, while Sacramento’s development during the post- war period largely followed national trends of continued post-war suburbanization, expansion of the automobile, and late-twentieth century urban renewal, which sought to bring people back to cities that were broadly viewed negatively. Many Americans at the time saw cities as centers of disease and crime.

Urban renewal, or urban revitalization, was undertaken across the United States during the 1950s to 1980s (Williams 2013:v, 23–25; Page & Turnbull 2019:29).

In the early twentieth century, residential expansion grew outward from downtown Sacramento to the fringes of the original city limits. These new homes were built in a myriad of newly popular architectural styles such as Prairie and Craftsman styles. Affluent homes were typically built on east–west-aligned streets, while moderately sized homes were constructed on the numbered streets. Ancillary buildings such as stables and cottages for laborers were constructed facing alleys. Several new neighborhoods like Boulevard Park, Winn Park, Newton Booth, and Bungalow Row emerged during this time, largely along streetcar lines. In addition to streetcars, in the early twentieth century, Sacramento developed four electric interurban railroads for passenger service. The service had more frequent railroad stops and were faster than the streetcars. Streetcar service ended in 1947, but some passenger rail service continues. Many new civic buildings were built in downtown Sacramento in the early twentieth century. This new civic construction largely adhered to popular styles at the time, notably Neoclassical Revival and Beaux-Arts Revival. This type of development briefly slowed during the Great Depression but was renewed during and post-World War II. Several military facilities were constructed at McClellan Field, Mather Field, and the Sacramento Army Depot while new state buildings were constructed surrounding Capitol Park (Page & Turnbull 2019:26, 32–33). Pre-war commercial development was largely within downtown and midtown (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-16).

Sacramento underwent many changes in the mid-twentieth century as a direct result of World War II and expansion of the automobile. The economy shifted from primarily agriculture to military, federal and state government, and transportation industries. Alongside the national population, Sacramento saw significant population growth of its own, with an increase from 105,958 in 1940 to 137,572 in 1950. This growing population was also more mobile than ever before, spurring expansion of development outside of Sacramento’s downtown core. The growing post-war population spurred a housing shortage and rapid construction of new homes. New post-war residences were most frequently built in Minimal Traditional and Mid-Century Modern styles outside of the core city and in suburban areas (Page & Turnbull 2019:32–33; GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-4). In 1947 planning for a new freeway system began, marking the beginning of a shift to automobile travel instead of streetcar and rail service. By 1961, the South Sacramento, Elvas, and Capital City Freeways were complete. The city core connected to these routes via surface streets. By 1954, planning for an east–west-oriented freeway was underway (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-13–2-14).

World War II also had a profound effect on the Japanese-American population; more than 7,000 Japanese-American Sacramento residents were forcibly relocated to internment camps during the war, and of those, only 59% returned to the city after the war. During this time, the government instituted the Bracero Program to fill job vacancies left by the removal of Japanese-American citizens with temporary Mexican labor. The program resulted in a shift in the ethnic makeup of Sacramento’s labor force (Page & Turnbull 2019:29).

With the increasing availability and affordability of automobiles in the post-war era, most new residents, drawn to Sacramento for its available jobs, began life in the suburbs. For these same reasons, in the Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
10 1950s, state government buildings began to be dispersed throughout the city and post-war commercial development was largely focused on areas outside of downtown Sacramento, specifically in areas south, east, and northeast of downtown (Page & Turnbull 2019:32–33; Page & Turnbull 2019:22, 26-28). New commercial development was focused on independent business alongside major thoroughfares outside of downtown and through or adjacent to residential neighborhoods. Some major retailers also left downtown, such as Sears, which moved to a new suburban location in 1956. The City convinced Macy’s to construct a new downtown store, which was completed in 1963, but this did not have the desired effect of inspiring new downtown commercial development (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-19).

Like the automobile and World War II, urban renewal had a profound impact across Sacramento during the twentieth century. Beginning in the 1950s, the City began efforts of urban renewal, starting with the West End, Sacramento’s skid row, through the newly created Sacramento Redevelopment Agency (SRA).

Subsequent plans undertaken in the 1960s to 1970s also involved redeveloping the Capitol Mall, Alkali Flat, and Oak Park areas. The roots of urban renewal date to the 1940s. At the federal level, the Housing Act of 1949 provided federal subsidies for local redevelopment projects and gave local agencies the power to acquire parcels through eminent domain for redevelopment, and the Housing Act of 1954 coined the term urban renewal. At the state level, urban renewal dates to the 1945 Community Development Act.

The movement was a reaction to the economic decline in cities across the country as commercial and residential development largely moved to the suburbs. Cities at the time were broadly viewed negatively.

Sacramento’s West End was seen as a center of vice, disease, crime, and juvenile delinquency.

Ultimately, urban renewal resulted in mass demolition of buildings that displaced of thousands of residents and businesses in Sacramento (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-7–2-8; Page & Turnbull 2019:28, 30; Williams 2013:25). Despite the renewal efforts, the suburban model for development with sprawling expansions of residential neighborhoods, strip malls, and shopping centers would continue to define Sacramento and the surrounding region during the twentieth century, as evident in present-day development patterns.

SOUTH LAND PARK
The project area lies within South Land Park, which was annexed in the 1950s and today is bounded by Sutterville Road to the north, Florin Avenue to the south, Freeport Boulevard to the east, and Interstate 5 to the west. The area is known for its “rolling hills, mature native oak trees, and curving streets” (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-35). The Land Park area, including South Land Park, was named for William Land, Sacramento’s mayor from 1898 to 1899, who made his fortune with hotels in downtown Sacramento.

Before it was Land Park, the area was part of New Helvetia, an 11-square-league Mexican land grant given to John Sutter in 1841 by then-governor Juan B. Alvarado (Isidro 2005:7–13, 18; Hoffman 1862).

Development during this period was largely north of Sutterville Road in the town of Sutterville, within present-day Land Park but north of South Land Park. Early sketches show Sutterville as a burgeoning community as early as 1846 and include a brickyard, carpenter, blacksmith, and several saloons by 1847.

Sutterville Brewery was built on the south side of Sutterville Road for Robert H. Vance in 1853, within the northernmost part of South Land Park. The brewery was demolished in 1853 and was known as Sutterville’s last remaining building (Whittle 2009; Isidro 2005:9). By 1885, the entire Sutter land grant had been divided into many tracts ranging from 10 to over 1,000 acres and sold to many different property owners (Shepherd 1885).

The first homes in South Land Park were built as early as 1902, at the southwest corner of present-day Sutterville Road and Freeport Boulevard, and several more homes were built by 1907 (U.S. Geological Survey 1902, 1907). The Mead Family, which built residences during this time, is largely attributed to developing the area. In the 1940s, after the economic downturn of the Great Depression, developers began larger-scale projects in South Land Park, though there was a pause during World War II. Since the 1940s, hundreds of homes have been constructed in South Land Park, and Freeport Boulevard has become a busy Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
11 shopping district. The South Land Park Hills Historic District alone features 49 residences built by developer Joseph Eichler from 1955 to 1956, known for his non-discriminatory housing policies during segregation. By the early 1970s, construction of Interstates 5 and 80 was complete, providing better access to South Land Park and further solidifying the importance of the automobile and suburbanization in Sacramento (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-14, 2-35–2-36; Sacramento City Express 2024). Today, the neighborhood continues to retain its suburban qualities with post-war single-family residences and commercial corridors dotted with low-density shopping centers and strip malls.

Bowling and Bowling Alleys in Sacramento
The game of bowling, and its variations of target bowling (bocce, lawn bowls, etc.) and pin bowling, have ancient and widespread roots with early variations having been practiced in Egypt in the sixth century, Polynesia, and elsewhere. Modern bowling in the United States, however, evolved from traditions brought over by European immigrants and settlers, primarily from Germany and other parts of northern Europe. The earliest portrayal of the game in the United States was in Washington Irving’s 1819 book Rip Van Winkle, which depicted characters playing an early variation of the game known as ninepins.

Over the following decades, bowling became increasingly popular, resulting in the construction of indoor lanes in New York and other cities with large German populations, including Buffalo, Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, and others (United States Bowling Conference 2024).

With the discovery of gold in California at Sutter’s Mill on the American River in 1848, the ensuing Gold Rush lured thousands of people from all over the world, including the eastern United States, as well as western Europe. Throughout the mining camps and emerging towns and centers, drinking and gambling were often the most ubiquitous forms of entertainment and recreation with saloons and gambling halls being constructed from the ports of San Francisco up into the gold fields of the Sierra Nevada, earning early California an overall reputation for “moral laxity” (Khoury 2012). Gambling games varied, ranging from cards to bullfights, boxing and races, to bowling and billiards. Bowling was particularly popular during the Gold Rush with many saloons and gambling halls constructing adjoining bowling alleys as an added amenity for patrons. In an 1851 letter written by Dame Shirley (Shirley and Russell 1922), the wife of a mining camp doctor, to her sister, she wrote:

The rolling on the bowling alley never leaves off for ten consecutive minutes at any time during the entire twenty-four hours. It is a favorite amusement of the mines; and the only difference that Sunday makes is that it never leaves off for one minute.

As the launching point into the gold fields and mining camps of the Sierra Nevada foothills, 1850s Sacramento featured several saloons, billiard rooms, gambling halls, and bowling alleys. One of the earliest advertised bowling alleys was the Central Bowling Alley, located at No.51 J Street between 2nd and 3rd Streets, which boasted four 70-foot lanes that were constructed “in the most substantial manner” and a bar “supplied with the most choice liquors of all kinds, and the finest flavored cigars . . . ” (Daily California Statesman 1855; The Sacramento Bee 1857). Many other bowling alleys were located throughout the central portion of the city, located in adjoining buildings or within the basements of saloons, which often featured billiards, shooting galleries, dance halls, and stages for live music. One such place was called “The New Corner,” which was in the basement of the Morse Building, which is still standing in Old Sacramento at 1025-1031 2nd Street (The Sacramento Bee 1866). Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the game also had popularity outside of the saloons and gambling halls as a simple form of recreation, with alleys constructed in upper class social clubs, as well as the construction of lanes by the Sacramento Athletic Club and the Sacramento Young Men’s Christian Association as a form of recreation alongside gymnastics, fitness, and other forms of sport alongside intellectual and spiritual pursuits (The Sacramento Union 1887). Wealthy individuals also constructed their own personal bowling alleys within their grand mansions and estates within Sacramento and the surrounding area. One of the Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
12 most notable was that of Adolph Heilbron, a German cattle rancher and landowner, who constructed his grand Italianate mansion at 704 O Street; the still extant residence was listed on the NRHP in 1976 (The Sacramento Bee 1892; Price 1975). Despite this proliferation of bowling as a more popular form of recreation, the majority of alleys and lanes continued to be in the setting of saloons, bars, and German- owned beer gardens well into the early twentieth century (The Sacramento Bee 1896; Shannon 2017:3; Riess 2015:187).

Figure 4. Early bowling alley in Sacramento, 1915 (International Bowling Museum & Hall of Fame 2024).

As Sacramento expanded with the development of early streetcar suburbs in the early twentieth century, so did new recreation halls. In Oak Park and East Sacramento, new bowling alleys were developed as the sport continued to proliferate within popular culture. New bowling leagues were founded and tournaments were held at locations such as the Sequoia Bowling Alley on 909 K Street, drawing in teams from around the Sacramento area to regularly compete for a variety of prizes (The Sacramento Star 1910). Emerging as its own sport, local bowling scores were often increasingly published in local papers under the sports section. While the sport had previously been exclusive to men, women and youth bowlers became increasingly common during the 1920s and the sport was marketed to a broader, albeit Caucasian, demographic with new leagues, tournaments, and other events (The Sacramento Union 1931; Shannon 2017:3).

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
13 States, bringing the sport into the mainstream (Riess 2015:187; Shannon 2017:1–3). Despite the proliferation of bowling into popular culture as part of prohibition, a more widespread expansion of bowling alleys did not occur until its repeal, allowing for drinking to again become part of the bowling pastime, establishing it as a major outlet for socializing and recreation in communities, particularly for young men (Riess 2015:188). Unlike the bowling alleys before, large new bowling facilities with multiple lanes were constructed under the new specifications of the sport with bowling as the primary activity and not an added amenities as a barroom game. Just before World War II, there were an estimated 12 million bowlers in the United States, and the sport continued to grow in popularity steadily over the 1930s through World War II (Shannon 2017:1-4).

Many of these new post-Prohibition “bowling palaces” were constructed in Sacramento during the 1930s and early 1940s, including Captiol Bowl at 1415 L Street (1939), North Bowl at 1721 Del Paso Boulevard (1941), and Alhambra Bowl at 1229 Alhambra Boulevard (1942) (The Sacramento Union 1939, 1941; The Sacramento Bee 1942a). These facilities were composed in a Streamlined or Moderne style (Figure 5 and Figure 6) architecture with prominent marquee, and often featured a dozen or so lanes, air conditioning, restaurant corners, cocktail lounges, league meeting rooms, locker rooms, spectator seating areas, and occasionally billiard rooms (The Sacramento Bee 1942a).

Figure 5. Advertisement for the Capitol Bowl,
1939 (The Sacramento Union).

Figure 6. Image of Alhambra Bowl from a 1942
flyer (Sacramento Public Library).

During World War II, bowling alleys in Sacramento remained open although construction of new alleys stalled. An exception was on military bases in the area, where bowling lanes were installed as a form of recreation for the servicemen (The Sacramento Bee 1942b). Approximately 4,500 bowling lanes were constructed on military bases across the United States during World War II and more women’s leagues were established amongst civilians. It was not until the post-war period that the expansion of bowling as a sport reached a new level of popularity outside of military bases. The 1950s and 1960s are often considered the golden age of bowling with new purpose-built bowling facilities constructed throughout the rapidly expanding post-war landscape of American cities and towns (Shannon 2017:3; Riess 2015:188). Bowling was an important aspect of recreation in post-war America, with an estimated 20 million bowlers across the country in 1948. A one-lane bowling alley was even installed in the White House by President Truman in 1947. Many of these post-war bowling alleys had restaurants, meeting or banquet rooms, and lounges that served as places to socialize or gather local clubs, groups, and organizations. Most often, they were constructed in Mid-Century Modern architectural styles, with the Googie style being most notable, and eye-catching signage, such as the one at Fireside Lanes in Sacramento (Figure 7), was a key design element (Shannon 2017:1, 4, 20-22; Pope Studios 1960).

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
14 Figure 7. Fireside Lanes, 1960 (Pope Studios). Courtesy of the Sacramento Public Library.

Sacramento was no exception with new modern and larger bowling alleys constructed throughout the expanding reaches of the cities growing suburbs in the post-war era. New bowling alleys included Sacramento Bowl located at 917 6th Street (1948), Town and Country Bowl on Fulton Avenue (1956) South Bowl at 5005 Stockton Boulevard (1958), El Rancho Bowl at 900 West Capitol Avenue in West Sacramento (1959), Country Club Lanes at 2600 Watt Avenue (1960), Cordova Lanes in Rancho Cordova (1960), Fireside Lanes (1960) at 7901 Auburn Boulevard (see Figure 7), and Land Park Bowl at 5850 Freeport Boulevard (1960) (The Sacramento Union 1956, 1958, 1959, 1960a; Pope Studios 1960).

By the 1950s, bowling was solidified as an American pastime suitable for families, a stark difference from its early association with gambling. New facilities, typically composed in some variation of the Mid-Century Modern style, also featured significantly more lanes, new technologies, and amenities.

Bowling centers with 40 to 60 lanes became most common in the United States, and new technologies such as air conditioning, automatic pin setters, and underground ball returns became widespread. In Sacramento, smaller 20- to 40-lane bowling alleys were most common. Like bowling alley exteriors, interiors were also often lavishly designed with colorful carpets, murals, and other decorative details.

These types of bowling alleys were built rapidly across the United States in the 1950s and 1960s, and substantial building costs over one million dollars were not uncommon. Bowling center amenities continued to expand. Cocktail lounges and meeting rooms were still common, but instructional programs, live musical performances, coffee shops, concessions, childcare facilities, and pro-equipment shops also became common offerings. Many bowling alleys of this era were also open 24 hours a day to further attract diverse clientele. Some bowling alleys even offered laundry and grocery shopping services to attract housewives during daytime hours. The number of children bowling also substantially increased in

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
15 the post-war era with nearly 400,000 members of the Junior Congress bowling association in 1959 (Riess 2015:188; Shannon 2017:3–5).

Because of racial segregation, the bowling centers of this era were typically restricted to white Americans and the clientele was largely suburban, though with the encouragement of the National Bowling Association, some bowling alleys provided specific times for people of color to bowl. More often, older outdated bowling alleys were purchased specifically for use by persons of color (Shannon 2017:5). Of the bowling alleys constructed in Sacramento during this period, one of the most notable was the El Rancho Bowl (now Capitol Bowl), which is believed to be the first racially integrated bowling alleys in the region, allowing for patrons of any race to partake and form leagues at the facility (Saizan 2014). Another notable bowling alley was Country Club Lanes, which was the largest and most celebrated of these facilities during this period. In addition to the wide array of amenities, the building featured iconic Mid-Century Modern architecture with some Googie-inspired elements with its broad parabolic entrance canopies (Figure 8; The Sacramento Union 1960a).

Figure 8. Advertisement for the opening of Country Club Lanes (The Sacramento Union 1960a).

By the 1970s, with increased forms of recreation and entertainment available to the public, the popularity of bowling started to wane. Bowling leagues became less popular and many bowling establishments were forced to close. As women entered the workforce in greater numbers, daytime customers became fewer.

Many bowling alleys were demolished during this period as land values increased. This trend would continue in part throughout the remainder of the twentieth century and into the twenty-first century. As part of this, many of the larger bowling centers built additional amenities to attract patrons, such as arcades. The character-defining features of many early bowling alleys were removed as they were purchased and updated in the 1970s and 1980s (Shannon 2017:5–6). New bowling alleys constructed at this later date were often within the setting of larger gaming facilities or bars, such as Punch Bowl Social in downtown Sacramento, offering only a few lanes as a single amenity and novelty rather than the primary form of recreation.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
16 heyday in the post-World War II era. Modernism was greatly influenced by industrialization during and after World War II, which made new building materials such as glass and steel more common and affordable. Modernism markedly diverged from past architectural styles with its function over ornamentation ethos. Several Modernist-style offshoots developed during the twentieth century, including Googie, International, and Late Moderne (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-1–3-10). Though many of these styles had key differences, they typically shared the following features:

Form – overall geometric massing and simple, clean lines; emphasis on horizontality, though not with unrelieved flat planes; in multi-story structures, interior floors are often demarcated on the exterior with an inset first floor and cantilevered planes to indicate upper floors.

Structure – exposed structural system typically using concrete, steel, or wood materials, and some concrete block or masonry for smaller structures.

Roof – flat or low-pitches, often with deep overhangs/eaves emphasizing horizontality; some with large sweeping or folded forms.

Exterior and interior walls – contrasting materials and textures or smooth, blank walls typically filling entire structural “bays”; exterior walls and openings in offset planes along horizontal lines; use of exterior screens or grills that shelter window and door openings, usually in concrete or metal.

Windows – custom windows (ribbon, picture, corner); large expanses of glass arranged in horizontal groupings of vertically oriented sashes, with glazing often filling entire structural bays; windows may be located in clerestory, between solid walls and eaves.

Integrated site planning and landscapes designs – sliding glass doors, integrated indoor and outdoor private living spaces, courtyards with screens, walls, berms, or plantings that provide demarcation between private and public outdoor spaces; plantings generally have a horizontal orientation relative to sun angles and topography (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-5–3-6).

During the war, material rations and a moratorium on housing construction in the United States stagnated the construction of Modernist architecture. After the war, with these limitations removed, the economy in a period of prosperity, and the population expanding, there was a construction boom that favored Modern design principles and features. Modernist architecture of the post-war era is referred to under the umbrella of Mid-Century Modernism. A variety of property types were newly constructed in the Mid-Century Modern style in the post-war era, including residential, institutional, commercial, and educational buildings (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-1–3-6, 3-9–3-10). Common features of these buildings included “cantilevered roofs, flat or shed roof forms, deep overhanging eaves, canted and large expansive windows, and a variety of incorporated materials, including wood, stone, brick, stucco, plastic, metal, and concrete” (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-9–3-10). Styles under the umbrella of Mid-Century Modern architecture included Modern Ranch, Contemporary, Commercial Modern, Brutalism, and more (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-10–3-15).

During the 1950s to 1970s, Mid-Century Modern commercial architecture was often influenced by the earlier International style. On the opposite end of the spectrum, many commercial buildings in the 1950s and 1960s, were built in the striking Googie (or Exaggerated Modern) style. While the International style, and Mid-Century Modern commercial architecture influenced by the style, was defined by crisp clean lines, flat roofs, horizontality, and limited ornamentation, the Googie style was dramatic and striking.

Common features of Googie-style architecture included exaggerated non-linear rooflines, irregular Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
17 massing and asymmetrical façades, colorful accents, prominent signage, neon lights, and starburst motifs (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-8–3-9, 3-12). Key commercial corridors in Sacramento include Stockton Boulevard, Franklin Boulevard, Freeport Boulevard, Broadway, Del Paso Boulevard, Fair Oaks Boulevard, and Capitol Avenue. Examples of Mid-Century Modern architecture, such as the Loan/Chase Bank (4701 Freeport Boulevard) (Figure 9) and Gunther’s Ice Cream (2801 Franklin Boulevard), can be found within these areas (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:1-6, 2-13). The South Land Park Hills (Eichler) Historic District is composed of 49 Mid-Century Modern homes (Sacramento City Press 2024).

Figure 9. Loan/Chase Bank Building, 2017 (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017).

EVALUATION OF AMF LAND PARK LANES
This section catalogues the efforts of SWCA to assess AMF Land Park Lanes and includes a discussion of the subject property’s developmental history, a property description, photographs of the property, and the evaluation of eligibility under CRHR and Sacramento Register criteria.

Property History
AMF Land Park Lanes was constructed in 1960. A review of historical aerial photographs of the subject property from 1964 through 2022 shows the footprint of the building has remain unchanged during that period (National Environmental Title Research 2024; Sacramento County Tax Assessor 2024). The

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
18 bowling alley was first mentioned in available historical newspaper articles in August 1960, which depicted its interior (Figure 10) and reads:

A pre engineered, 148 foot [sic] clear span, described by James Winston of the Winston Steel Works as the widest of its type in a rigid frame building in Northern California, has been erected in Land Park Lanes. Plans call for the 32 lane [sic] bowling alley, restaurant and bar on Freeport Boulevard, opposite the Sacramento Municipal Airport, to be completed in about six weeks. Owned by the Gonzo Sakai family of Clarksburg, Yolo County, the $600,000 development will be operated by Dave and Dale Hanna. The steel span was engineered and built by the Winston plants in Sacramento and Stockton, San Joaquin County (The Sacramento Bee 1960a:17).

Figure 10. Interior view of Land Park Lanes under construction (The Sacramento Bee 1960 a:17).

Winston Steel Works, named after owner James Winston and founded in 1946, was a local producer of pre-fabricated steel warehouse and commercial buildings, with plants in Sacramento and Stockton.

Winston had decades of experience as a designer, draftsman, engineer, estimator, and contractor and was a member of the Society of American Military Engineers, California Society of Professional Engineers, and Sacramento Chamber of Commerce. The builder used cranes to assemble poured concrete slabs and welded pre-engineered steel elements to construct its buildings—a common technique that Winston Steel Works used to construct buildings throughout Sacramento and that was likely also used to erect AMF Land Park Lanes (The Sacramento Union 1951:7). Winston Steel Works produced many pre-fabricated buildings in the Sacramento area and throughout Northern California, as well as a few buildings farther east and abroad. Most notably, Winston Steel Works built its own plant at 4700 West Capitol Avenue in Sacramento; a highway maintenance station in the Auburn area, which included a warehouse, office, garage, fuel house, and pump house; Palm Market in Auburn; a boiler house at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Stockton; an exhibit building for the Inter-Mountain Fair; Hi Land Market at Watt Avenue and I Street in North Highlands, Sacramento; a storage building for General Mills in Lodi; a metal shop at Folsom Dam; a bowling alley in Nevada City; and two buildings at two uranium mills in Argentina (The Sacramento Union 1951:7; 1954:45, 1959:23, 1962:4, 1957:31; Nevada County Nugget 1961:1; Auburn Journal 1957:15; Lodi News-Sentinel 1961:21; Stockton Evening and Sunday Record 1955:8). The company filed bankruptcy in 1964 and appears to have closed at that time (The Sacramento Bee 1964:65).

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
19 A grand opening advertisement for the bowling alley, which opened early November 1960, used the name Land Park Bowl and boasted Brunswick automatic pinsetters, subsurface ball returns, a nursey for children, a cocktail lounge, and a coffee shop featuring “excellent food” at modest prices. The bowling alley was also advertised as open 24 hours a day. Within the ad, a rendering of the building’s exterior shows its original appearance (Figure 11); several interior photographs were also included (Figure 12 and Figure 13) (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23). The earliest available photograph of the building’s exterior (Figure 14), from just before its opening, shows the original signage and indicates not all the exterior features in the rending of the grand opening advertisement were included in the building’s final design (The Sacramento Bee 1960c:A17). Based on this historical photograph, several original features have been altered since 1960. The original operators of the bowling alley were David Hanna, Dale Hanna, and Earl Warren (The Sacramento Union 1960b:35). In the 1960s and 1970s, the facility also offered bowling classes, leagues, and events for singles and seniors (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:82, 1976:40, 1969:28; Sheppard 1973:30). In the 1960s, the bowling alley suffered several ill-fated events—two robberies and two fires—and in 1974, the bowling alley was sold to Brunswick Corporation, which had previously operated the establishment under a lease (The Sacramento Bee 1961:32, 1966a:1, 1966b:32, 1968:64, 1974:46). The building continued to be operated as a bowling alley until its recent closure in March 2024 due to extensive damage to the building’s interior (Walike 2024).

Figure 11. Part of the Land Park Bowl grand opening advertisement, showing an exterior rending of Land Park Bowl (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23).

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
20 Figure 12. Bowling lanes at Land Park Bowl
(The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23).

Figure 13. Coffee shop at Land Park Bowl
(The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23).

Figure 14. Land Park Bowl, 1960 (The Sacramento Bee 1960c:A17).

Existing Conditions
AMF Land Park Lanes is a single-story 28,756 square-foot Mid-Century Modern commercial/recreation building (Figure 15) with a roughly L-shaped plan within a 110,207-square-foot rectangular parcel (Sacramento County Tax Assessor 2024). The entire parcel surrounding the building is paved with asphalt. The building has a concrete slab foundation and is of concrete construction. The building features a low-pitch side-gable roof with a shed roof extension on the south half of the east façade, creating a subtle folded plat roof profile at select elevations (Figure 16). The overhanging eaves of the roof profile

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
21 are varied from moderate overhang to none depending on the façade (Figure 16–Figure 18). The primary (east) façade of the building is dominated by a large, L-shaped decorative awning that protrudes from the roofline and has a large cut-out opening over the building’s entrance, reducing its functionality. The decorative awning has a strong linear and geometric form. There is a large, triangular steel sculpture north of the main entry doors, reminiscent of an antenna. The entrance is composed of non-historic aluminum- framed and glazed glass double doors. A secondary single-leaf door with a single-lite transom and picture window are at the southern end of the east façade. Adjacent is a protruding volume constructed of concrete masonry unit blocks with louvered venting and a shed canopy supported by steel poles. The primary façade also has Mid-Century Modern style starburst motifs and the word “BOWL,” but these are painted on and not architectural ornamentation (see Figure 15). The starburst motifs and lettering were also recently added circa 2015 (Google Earth 2014, 2015). A large, freestanding non-historic sign with a changeable marquee is east of the building, within the property’s parking lot. The permanent portions of the sign read “AMF Bowling Co.” and “Snack Bar” (see Figure 15). A small non-historic sign reading “AMF Bowling Co.” is on the north façade (see Figure 18). There are additional sets of steel and glass double doors on the north and south façades (see Figure 16 and Figure 18). Each façade also features interspaced steel pilasters.

Figure 15. East (primary) façade; view facing west.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
22 Figure 16. South façade; view facing north.

Figure 17. West (left) and south (right) façades; view facing northeast.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
23 Figure 18. North façade; view facing south.

Observed Alterations
Based on a review of various documents and source materials related to the subject property, as well as the existing conditions observed during the site visit to the property in October 2024 and several public photographs included in the property’s Google listing (Google 2024), the AMF Land Park Lanes building and surrounding property are known to have undergone several changes and alterations, including:
• Reconfiguration of the original entrance and installation of the current aluminum fenestration; • Replacement of other doors and select windows throughout the façades; • Replacement of the original roof with current metal seam roofing; • Improvements to interior spaces, including partial replacement of the original ceiling with a fiberglass tile drop-ceiling, installation of newer televisions and audio systems, installation of new signage by amenities, reconfiguration of the coffee shop, and replacement of the coffee shop kiosk desk; and
• Replacement of the original “Land Park Bowl” freestanding neon sign and marquee.

Evaluation Considerations
Although developed for the City of Los Angeles, SWCA used the SurveyLA Citywide Historic Context (Shannon 2017) theme of Post-World War II Recreation (1940–1975) and its sub-theme Bowling Centers (1949–1970), in combination with Sacramento-specific development and history of bowling contexts, to guide the evaluation of AMF Land Park Lanes for CRHR and Sacramento Register listing. Upon review, the eligibility standards and character-defining features for evaluating properties under these themes are largely applicable to evaluations of similar properties in other urban centers of California. SurveyLA

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
24 outlines the following areas of significance, features, and standards for evaluating post-World War II bowling alleys:

Areas of Significance: Post WWII bowling alleys/centers may be significant in the areas of Commerce, Recreation, and/or Architecture.

Period of Significance: 1949–1969
Property Type: Commercial/Recreation – Bowling Center
Property Type Description: They are large, stand-alone one-story buildings, typically surrounded by sizeable parking lots. He [sic] center typically featured eye-catching and modern architecture, design, and signage. Bowling centers typically contained bowling, dining, and drinking establishments. Modern materials including the use of steel, concrete, and glass. Modern design elements (e.g., cantilevered roof, sharp lines, sweeping angles) and futuristic or cosmic details (e.g., starbursts, boomerangs).

Eligibility Standards:
• Was developed during the period of significance as a neighborhood or regional bowling center.
• Present appearance resembles the original appearance and retains sufficient historic integrity to convey its historical association.

Character-Defining Features:
• Retains most of the essential physical and character-defining features • Played a significant role in the social and/or cultural history of the neighborhood or region
• Is an excellent example of the type
• Is also a good to excellent example of its architectural style and the work of a noted architect/designer
• Modern design elements (e.g., cantilevered roof, sharp lines, sweeping angles) and futuristic or cosmic details (e.g., starbursts, boomerangs) • Large-scale, colorful signs, frequently in neon
• Associated architectural styles may include Googie, Mid-Century Modern, Late Moderne, and Tiki/Polynesian
Integrity Considerations:
• Should retain integrity of location, design, materials, feeling, and association • Extant post-war bowling centers are now rare; therefore, a greater degree of alteration or fewer character defining features may be acceptable • Some design features may have been modified, altered, or replaced • Adjacent setting may have changed (Shannon 2017:21-22) Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
25 Evaluation of Eligibility
SWCA carefully considered whether AMF Land Park Lanes possesses historical significance under any CRHR or Sacramento Register criteria and historical integrity under the seven aspects of integrity. As the eligibility criteria for both registers is analogous, eligibility is considered concurrently, below.

While the bowling alley was part of a broader trend of the growing popularity of bowling in the mid- twentieth century and the proliferation of new bowling alleys throughout the United States during that period, AMF Land Park Lanes was one of hundreds of mid-century bowling alleys built across the United States and one of many built in the Sacramento area during this period, of which more characteristic and influential examples exist. The subject property also did not have an influence on the development of bowling or patterns of development relating to bowling, which was one of the earliest forms of recreation in Sacramento and the surrounding region. Furthermore, the subject building was one of the later bowling alleys constructed in area during this post-war “Golden Age” of bowling. The property also did not have an influence on the broader development of South Land Park and, on its own, does not characterize the commercial development of this area. In summary, AMF Land Park Lanes is not a good representation of the themes and period it is associated with, indicating the associations do not rise to the threshold of historical significance. Thus, AMF Land Park Lanes is recommended not eligible under Criteria 1/I.

Criteria 2/II
There is no evidence that the AMF Land Park Lanes has an important association with any person or persons who made significant contributions to history at the local, state, or national level. Research did not reveal any notable figures specifically associated with the bowling alley, and research did not indicate the potential for significant associations in this regard. Thus, AMF Land Park Lanes is recommended not eligible under CRHR Criterion 2 and Sacramento Register Criterion II.

Criteria 3/III, IV, and V
Constructed in 1960, the AMF Land Park Lanes building is composed in the Mid-Century Modern style.

Outside of the L-shaped decorative awning and the triangular structure at the entrance, the building currently lacks any characteristic Mid-Century Modern features. Additionally, the non-extant sign was the only notable characteristic of the original design that represented broader themes of architecture and design regarding both the Mid-Century Modern style and post-war bowling alley design. Due to the removal of this feature and other alterations found throughout the building, the current building is essentially a simple box form with simple Modern-style elements at the entrance. Overall, in its current condition, the subject property does not embody the Mid-Century Modern style, particularly within the context of South Land Park and Sacramento, which features a notable collection of Mid-Century Modern resources that better embody the style and its characteristics.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
26 As an example of the post-war bowling alley property type, the subject property does not appear to rise to a level of significance. Although these post-war bowling alleys are becoming increasingly rare, several examples exist within the Sacramento area that better reflect the characteristics of the typology, the most notable of which is the extant Country Club Lanes building, which was the largest and most celebrated bowling alley of the period, complete with amenities and architectural details that fully embody the typology and this era in bowling alley design. By comparison, the subject building, particularly in its altered state, is a typical and lackluster example of this typology and does not rise to a level of significance under these criteria.

There is no known architect for the property; though, its simple design indicates its engineer and builder, Winston Steel Works, was likely also responsible for the design. Winston Steel Works has not had a profound influence on the history of architecture, design, or engineering; research indicates the company only ever produced pre-fabricated buildings using well-established construction and assembly techniques.

The steel span roof structure was, at its time of construction, believed by Winston Steel Works to be the largest in Northern California, but it was not a new feat of engineering, as large steel span roof systems have been common in California and the United States since the post-war era. The engineering of the building was also pre-fabricated and not unique. Many such roof systems dating to the mid-century period also exist throughout Northern California, and while AMF Land Parks Lanes may have had one of the largest in Northern California for a time, this would have been a brief and/or very marginal accolade not reaching the threshold of historical significance. As such, the subject property lacks historical significance for its engineering. Similarly, the building does not appear to be a significant work of a master architect or builder.

In summary, AMF Land Park Lanes is not historically significant for its engineering or as the work of a master architect or builder, nor does it significantly embody the characteristics of Mid-Century Modern architecture or the post-war bowling alley property type in Sacramento. Thus, the subject property is recommended not eligible under CRHR Criterion 3 and Sacramento Register Criteria III, IV, and V.

Criteria 4/VI
The history of bowling in the United States and Mid-Century Modern architecture in Sacramento are well-documented and understood topics. No other historical or pre-historic associations with the property are known to exist, and thus, the bowling alley property is unlikely to yield additional information important to prehistory or history. As such, AMF Land Park Lanes is recommended not eligible under CRHR Criterion 4 and Sacramento Register Criterion VI.

Eligibility Recommendation Summary
This eligibility evaluation finds that while AMF Land Park Lanes has some historical associations under CRHR Criterion 3 and Sacramento Register Criteria III, IV, and V with Mid-Century Modern architecture and post-war bowling alley design, the property does not rise to a level of significance under these criteria as more notable and better examples of both are found in this locality. This is exacerbated by various alterations, which have impacted the building’s overall integrity and its ability to convey any potential significance under these criteria. The subject property also lacks historical significance under CRHR/Sacramento Register Criteria 1/I, 2/II, and 4/VI. Thus, SWCA recommends AMF Land Park Lanes not eligible for the CRHR and Sacramento Register Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
27 CONCLUSION
At the request of Bowlero and the City, SWCA evaluated AMF Land Park Lanes for potential historical significance. Pursuant to CEQA, SWCA considered whether the subject property is eligible for listing in the CRHR under any criteria. Since the evaluation criteria for the Sacramento Register is analogous to that of the CRHR, this study also considered whether AMF Land Parks Lanes is eligible as a local landmark. To support the evaluation, SWCA conducted background research, completed an architectural field survey and documentation, developed a historic context statement, and established a property history. After careful consideration of the bowling alley’s developmental history, design, and historical associations, SWCA recommends AMF Land Park Lanes not eligible for listing in the CRHR or Sacramento Register due to a lack of historical significance. Therefore, the AMF Land Park Lanes does not appear to qualify as a historical resource, as defined by CEQA.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
28 REFERENCES CITED
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Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
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1973 “Strictly for Singles.” May 18, pg. 30.

Shirley Dame and Thomas C. Russell
1922 The Shirley letters from California mines in 1851 -52; being a series of twenty-three letters from Dame Shirley Mrs. Louise Amelia Knapp Smith Clappe to her sister in Massachusetts, and now reprinted from the Pioneer magazine of 1854-55; with synopses of the letters, a foreword, and many typographical and other corrections and emendations. San Francisco, Printed by T.C. Russell. Available at: the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/22015468. Accessed October 18, 2024.

Stockton Evening and Sunday Record
1955 “Permits for New Buildings Issued Here.” July 30, pg. 8. Stockton, California.

United States Bowling Conference
2024 “History of Bowling.” Available at: https://bowl.com/about-us/history-of-bowling. Accessed October 18, 2024.

U.S. Geological Survey
1902 Fairoaks, CA quadrangle. TopoView. U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C.

Available via: https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/topoview/viewer. Accessed October 2024. 1907 Davisville, CA quadrangle. TopoView. U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C.

Available via: https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/topoview/viewer. Accessed October 2024.

Historic Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento, Sacramento County, California
32 Walike, Lauren
2014 “Beloved bowling alley in Sacramento permanently closes after fire.” KXTV-TV, Sacramento, California. Available at:
https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/sacramento/amf-land-park-lanes-sacramento-fire- bowling-alley/103-efc00f59-87b5-4d1f-a5bc-055f51084f7b. Accessed October 2024.

Whittle, Syd
2013 “Sutterville Brewery.” Historical Marker Database. Available at:
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=58583. Accessed October 2024.

Williams, James Michael
2013 West End Boys: Urban Redevelopment and the Elimination of Sacramento’s Skid Row.

California State University, Sacramento. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10211.9/2238.

Accessed October 2024.

APPENDIX A

Department of Parks and Recreation Forms

Page 1 of 30 ends

P1. Other Identifier: Land Park Lanes, Land Park Bowl_ DPR 523A (9/2013) *Required information
State of California - The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #
PRIMARY RECORD Trinomial
NRHP Status Code
Other Listings
Review Code Reviewer Date
*P2. Location:  Not for Publication  Unrestricted *a. County Sacramento and (P2c, P2e, and P2b or P2d. Attach a Location Map as necessary.) b. USGS 7.5' Quad Date T R Sec ; Meridian
c. Address: _5850 Freeport Boulevard_____ City __Sacramento_____ Zip _95822_____ d. UTM: (Give more than one for large and/or linear resources) See Location Map. e. Other Locational Data: (e.g., parcel #, directions to resource, elevation, decimal degrees, etc., as appropriate) Assessor Parcel Number (APN) 035-0034-016
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries) AMF Land Park Lanes is a single-story 28,756 square-foot Mid-Century Modern commercial/recreation building (Figure 1) with a roughly L-shaped plan within a 110,207-square-foot rectangular parcel (Sacramento County Tax Assessor 2024). The entire parcel surrounding the building is paved with asphalt. The building has a concrete slab foundation and is of concrete construction. The building features a low-pitch side-gable roof with a shed roof extension on the south half of the east façade, creating a subtle folded plat roof profile at select elevations (Figure 2). The overhanging eaves of the roof profile are varied from moderate overhang to none depending on the façade (Figure 2–Figure 4) (See Continuation Sheets). *P3b.Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) HP6. 1-3 story commercial building *P4. Resources Present:  Building  Structure  Object  Site  District  Element of District  Other (Isolates, etc.) P5b. Description of Photo: (view, date, accession #)
Figure 1. East (primary) façade, view facing
west (October 2024).
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and Source:
 Historic  Prehistoric  Both
1960
*P7. Owner and Address:

Bowlero Corporation
7313 Bell Creek Rd
Mechanicsville, VA 23111
*P8. Recorded by: (Name, affiliation, and address)
Lisa Demarais, M.H.P. and Dan Herrick, M.H.C.

SWCA Environmental Consulting
100 Howe Avenue, Suite 230N
Sacramento, CA 95825
*P9. Date Recorded: October 22, 2024
*P10. Survey Type: (Describe) Intensive
*P11. Report Citation: (Cite survey report and other
sources or enter “none.”) SWCA (2024) Historic
Resources Evaluation Report for 5850 Freeport
Boulevard (AMF Land Park Lanes), Sacramento,
Sacramento County, California.
*Attachments: NONE Location Map Continuation Sheet Building, Structure, and Object Record Archaeological Record District Record Linear Feature Record Milling Station Record Rock Art Record Artifact Record Photograph Record Other (List):

P5a. Photograph or Drawing (Photograph required for buildings, structures, and objects.)

*Resource Name or #
(Assigned by recorder) AMF Land Park Lanes *NRHP Status Code 6Z

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DPR 523B (9/2013) *Required information
State of California - The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#

BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND OBJECT RECORD
B1. Historic Name: Land Park Bowl
B2. Common Name: AMF Land Park Lanes
B3. Original Use: Recreation – Bowling B4. Present Use: Recreation – Bowling *B5. Architectural Style: Mid-Century Modern
*B6. Construction History: (Construction date, alterations, and date of alterations) See Continuation Sheets.
*B7. Moved? No Yes Unknown Date: ___ Original Location: ______________ *B8. Related Features: None
B9a. Architect: Unknown b. Builder: Winston Steel Works *B10. Significance: Theme Community Development – Commercial; Recreation Area Sacramento County Period of Significance N/A Property Type Bowling Center Applicable Criteria N/A (Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural
This eligibility evaluation finds that subject
property does not possess historical
significance under any established
California Register of Historical Resources
(CRHR) or Sacramento Register of Historic
and Cultural Resources (Sacramento
Register) criteria and is thus recommended
not eligible for listing in each of these
registers. The bowling has been evaluated
in accordance with the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (see
Continuation Sheets).

B11. Additional Resource Attributes: (List
attributes and codes) _________

*B12. References: See Continuation Sheets.

B13. Remarks: None.

*B14. Evaluator: Lisa Demarais and Dan
Herrick, SWCA Environmental Consultants
*Date of Evaluation: October 24, 2024
This space reserved for official comments.

See attached map

DPR 523J (9/2013) *Required information
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Trinomial

CONTINUATION SHEET
Property Name: AMF Land Park Lanes

Page 3 of 30 ends

P3a. Description (Continued):

The primary (east) façade of the building is dominated by a large , L-shaped decorative awning that protrudes from the roofline and has a large cut-out opening over the building’s entrance, reducing its functionality. The decorative awning has a strong linear and geometric form. There is a large, triangular steel sculpture north of the main entry doors, reminiscent of an antenna. The entrance is composed of non- historic aluminum-framed and glazed glass double doors. A secondary single-leaf door with a single-lite transom and picture window are at the southern end of the east façade. Adjacent is a protruding volume constructed of concrete masonry unit blocks with louvered venting and a shed canopy supported by steel poles. The primary façade also has Mid-Century Modern style starburst motifs and the word “BOWL,” but these are painted on and not architectural ornamentation (see Figure 1). The starburst motifs and lettering were also recently added circa 2015 (Google Earth 2014, 2015). A large, freestanding non-historic sign with a changeable marquee is east of the building, within the property’s parking lot. The permanent portions of the sign read “AMF Bowling Co.” and “Snack Bar” (see Figure 1). A small non-historic sign reading “AMF Bowling Co.” is on the north façade (see Figure 4). There are additional sets of steel and glass double doors on the north and south façades (see Figure 2 and Figure 4). Each façade also features interspaced steel pilasters.

Figure 2. South façade; view facing north.

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Page 4 of 30 ends

Figure 3. West (left) façade and south (right) façades, view facing northeast.

Figure 4. North façade, view facing south.

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CONTINUATION SHEET
Property Name: AMF Land Park Lanes

Page 5 of 30 ends

*B6. Construction History:

AMF Land Park Lanes was constructed in 1960. A review of historical aerial photographs of the subject property from 1964 through 2022 shows the footprint of the building has remain unchanged during that period (National Environmental Title Research 2024; Sacramento County Tax Assessor 2024). Based on a review of various documents and source materials related to the subject property, as well as the existing conditions observed during the site visit to the property in October 2024 and several public photographs included in the property’s Google listing (Google 2024), the AMF Land Park Lanes building and surrounding property are known to have undergone several changes and alterations, including:
• Reconfiguration of the original entrance and installation of the current aluminum fenestration; • Replacement of other doors and select windows throughout the façades; • Replacement of the original roof with current metal seam roofing; • Improvements to interior spaces, including partial replacement of the original ceiling with a fiberglass tile drop-ceiling, installation of newer televisions and audio systems, installation of new signage by amenities, reconfiguration of the coffee shop, and replacement of the coffee shop kiosk desk; and
• Replacement of the original “Land Park Bowl” freestanding neon sign and marquee .

Property History
The bowling alley was first mentioned in available historical newspaper articles in August 1960, which depicted its interior (Figure 5) and reads:

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Property Name: AMF Land Park Lanes

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Figure 5. Interior view of Land Park Lanes under construction (The Sacramento Bee 1960a:17).

Winston Steel Works, named after owner James Winston and founded in 1946, was a local producer of pre- fabricated steel warehouse and commercial buildings, with plants in Sacramento and Stockton. Winston had decades of experience as a designer, draftsman, engineer, estimator, and contractor and was a member of the Society of American Military Engineers, California Society of Professional Engineers, and Sacramento Chamber of Commerce. The builder used cranes to assemble poured concrete slabs and welded pre-engineered steel elements to construct its buildings—a common technique that Winston Steel Works used to construct buildings throughout Sacramento and that was likely also used to erect AMF Land Park Lanes (The Sacramento Union 1951:7). Winston Steel Works produced many pre-fabricated buildings in the Sacramento area and throughout Northern California, as well as a few buildings f arther east and abroad. Most notably, Winston Steel Works built its own plant at 4700 West Capitol Avenue in Sacramento; a highway maintenance station in the Auburn area, which included a warehouse, office, garage, fuel house, and pump house; Palm Market in Auburn; a boiler house at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Stockton; an exhibit building for the Inter-Mountain Fair; Hi Land Market at Watt Avenue and I Street in North Highlands, Sacramento; a storage building for General Mills in Lodi; a metal shop at Folsom Dam; a bowling alley in Nevada City; and two buildings at two uranium mills in Argentina (The Sacramento Union 1951:7; 1954:45, 1959:23, 1962:4, 1957:31; Nevada County Nugget 1961:1; Auburn Journal 1957:15; Lodi News- Sentinel 1961:21; Stockton Evening and Sunday Record 1955:8). The company filed bankruptcy in 1964 and appears to have closed at that time (The Sacramento Bee 1964:65).

A grand opening advertisement for the bowling alley, which opened early November 1960, used the name Land Park Bowl and boasted Brunswick automatic pinsetters, subsurface ball returns, a nursey for children, a cocktail lounge, and a coffee shop featuring “excellent food” at modest prices. The bowling alley was also advertised as open 24 hours a day. Within the ad, a rendering of the building’s exterior shows its original appearance (Figure 6); several interior photographs were also included (Figure 8 and Figure 9) (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23). The earliest available photograph of the building’s exterior (Figure

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7), from just before its opening, shows the original signage and indicates not all the exterior features in the rending of the grand opening advertisement were included in the building’s final design (The Sacramento Bee 1960c:A17). Based on this historical photograph, several original features have been altered since 1960.

The original operators of the bowling alley were David Hanna, Dale Hanna, and Earl Warren ( The Sacramento Union 1960b:35). In the 1960s and 1970s, the facility also offered bowling classes, leagues, and events for singles and seniors (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:82, 1976:40, 1969:28; Sheppard 1973:30). In the 1960s, the bowling alley suffered several ill-fated events—two robberies and two fires—and in 1974, the bowling alley was sold to Brunswick Corporation, which had previously operated the establishment under a lease (The Sacramento Bee 1961:32, 1966a:1, 1966b:32, 1968:64, 1974:46). The building continued to be operated as a bowling alley until its recent closure in March 2024 due to extensive damage to the building’s interior (Walike 2024).

Figure 6. Part of the Land Park Bowl grand opening advertisement, showing an exterior rending of Land Park Bowl (The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23).

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Figure 7. Land Park Bowl, 1960 (The Sacramento Bee 1960c:A17).

Figure 8. Bowling lanes at Land Park Bowl
(The Sacramento Bee 1960b:23).

Figure 9. Coffee shop at Land Park Bowl (The
Sacramento Bee 1960b:23).

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*B10. Significance (continued):

Historic Contexts
Development of Sacramento
Nineteenth Century
Before European colonization, Nisenan and Plains Miwok called the Sacramento area home. Spanish colonization, which primarily occurred along the southern and central coast of California, did not instantly affect the Indigenous populations of the interior of California. The first recorded European expedition into the interior of California occurred in 1808 by Gabriel Moraga. Moraga surveyed the region to find suitable locations for a future mission and named the Sacramento Valley and Sacramento River, after the Spanish word for sacrament. Throughout the next two decades, various travelers entered the Sacramento Valley, but no permanent non-Indigenous settlements were established until 1839.

In 1839 John Sutter, along with a few Hawaiian and European settlers, established the first non- Indigenous permanent settlement—a fort called New Helvetia. The land was granted by the Mexican government, which controlled California at the time after having gained independence from Spain in 1822. Sutter raised horses and cattle and farmed grain and corn. He also built a sawmill at present -day Coloma in El Dorado County, which would lead to the first discovery of gold in California in 1848 (Page & Turnbull 2019:19–20).

The resulting Gold Rush spurred massive westward American migration and settlement of California, greatly influencing the broader history of the state and the United States. Thousands of migrants poured into California during the Gold Rush, greatly accelerating its development (California Department of Conservation 2005; Rice et al. 1994:169). The Gold Rush was a major factor in California’s transformation from a sparsely populated western frontier to a center of industry, commerce, and trade. One year after the discovery at Sutter’s Mill, nearly 90,000 people had migrated to California in search of gold. As the gateway to the Sierra Nevada and the goldfields of the foothills, Sacramento quickly became a transportation hub and nexus of Gold Rush economic activity (Page & Turnbull 2019:19-20; Miller and Walton 2016:9).

Also in 1848, and shortly after the discovery of gold in California, the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War and made California a territory of the United States (National Archives 2023). On January 4, 1850, California’s first constitutional convention convened, establishing the first 18 counties. Over the succeeding months, additional counties were added, bringing the total to 27 on the day of California’s admission to the United States on September 9, 1850. Sacramento County was one of those original counties, with the City of Sacramento its county seat. The City would beco me the capital of California in 1854, in large part due to the Gold Rush, which had caused massive population growth in the area and established its role as a center of commerce (California State Association of Counties 2019; Miller and Walton 2016:9).

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soon realized the real riches lay in establishing enterprises that profited from miners, such as agricultural pursuits (California State Association of Counties 2019). This was true in Sacramento County, which is situated in the northern Central Valley, a region known for its rich agricultural lands. Grain cultivation and grazing dominated land use in the Sacramento area until the turn of the twentieth century when new crops such as citrus fruits and almonds took prominence (Page & Turnbull 2019:23).

Amidst the Gold Rush and statehood, Sacramento was under formal development and soon began to take the shape of a true city. In December 1848, John Sutter, Jr. and Sam Brannan hired topographical engineer Captain William H. Warner and Lieutenant William Sherman to survey and layout “Sacramento City.” The original city grid consisted of 26 lettered (originally A to Z, today C to Broadway) and 31 numbered (originally 1st to 31st, today Front to Alhambra) streets. Sacramento’s city grid was built directly at the base of the American River flood basin, where centuries of Sierra Nevada snowmelt created temporary lakes each spring, well into the 1840s. Sacramento’s original townsite was a 5-square-mile area, with each street 80 feet wide (except for Front and M) and each block 320 to 340 feet long. Each block was composed of many lots, and many blocks were divided by 20-foot-wide alleys (Figure 10) (Owens 2013:32–33, 42–43; Hallam 2013:63–64).

Sacramento grew through 1850; however, the population was not stable and remained largely transient aside from the core of merchants and hotel owners. California’s population was undoubtedly increasing, but the population of Sacramento grew sluggishly and inconsistently due in part to the transient nature of the early Gold Rush miners, flooding, and fires that destroyed buildings. In September 1849, a destructive fire swept through the business district, destroying several blocks of canvas tent and wood -framed structures, followed by a major flood in January 1850. In 1852 fire again swept through the business district, destroying over 55 blocks of the city. Original buildings in Sacramento were wood frame and canvas, but as fires and floods became a way of life, citizens began to erect buildings of brick and raised the street level, leaving the original street level below grade.

In 1854 Sacramento became the capital of California. This rise in prominence, coupled with the City’s strategic location and early commercial importance in the development of California, resulted in Sacramento becoming the western terminus for the first transcontinental railroad, which was constructed starting in 1863 and completed in 1869. The Central Pacific Railroad Company, which later became the Southern Pacific Railroad and then later the Union Pacific Railroad, was founded by a group of merchants and businessman known as “the Big Four,” who were based in Sacramento, or had strong ties to the region. This development solidified Sacramento as a center for transportation in California, providing immediate links to San Francisco and the growing agricultural hinterlands of the central valleys with the rest of the United States (Owens 2013:48–50; Page & Turnbull 2019:23).

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Building and the adjacent landscaped park. As growth continued, pushed by the development of streetcars, which connected new neighborhoods with the urban commercial core, the main city grid began to fill. Homes were built in a variety of popular styles such as Greek Revival and Italianate. By the 1890s, speculators had begun to eye land outside of the main grid for development. This led to development of Sacramento’s first residential suburban tracts of Oak Park, Elmhurst, Curtis Park, and East Sacramento (Kremer 2012; Page & Turnbull 2019:21, 27).

Figure 10. Surveyor's map of the City of Sacramento, California, 1874 (J. R. Ray). Courtesy of the California State Railroad Museum.

Twentieth Century
Sacramento continued to grow during the early to mid-twentieth century with increased residential, commercial, government, infrastructure, and transportation development. The early twentieth century was marked by steady growth and early suburbanization, while Sacramento’s development during the

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post-war period largely followed national trends of continued post-war suburbanization, expansion of the automobile, and late-twentieth century urban renewal, which sought to bring people back to cities that were broadly viewed negatively. Many Americans at the time saw cities as centers of disease and crime.

Urban renewal, or urban revitalization, was undertaken across the United States during the 1950s to 1980s (Williams 2013:v, 23–25; Page & Turnbull 2019:29).

In the early twentieth century, residential expansion grew outward from downtown Sacramento to the fringes of the original city limits. These new homes were built in a myriad of newly popular architectural styles such as Prairie and Craftsman styles. Affluent homes were typically built on east –west-aligned streets, while moderately sized homes were constructed on the numbered streets. Ancillary buildings such as stables and cottages for laborers were constructed facing alleys. Several n ew neighborhoods like Boulevard Park, Winn Park, Newton Booth, and Bungalow Row emerged during this time, largely along streetcar lines. In addition to streetcars, in the early twentieth century, Sacramento developed four electric interurban railroads for passenger service. The service had more frequent railroad stops and were faster than the streetcars. Streetcar service ended in 1947, but some passenger rail service continues. Many new civic buildings were built in downtown Sacramento in the early twentieth century. This new civic construction largely adhered to popular styles at the time, notably Neoclassical Revival and Beaux -Arts Revival. This type of development briefly slowed during the Great Depression but was renewed during and post-World War II. Several military facilities were constructed at McClellan Field, Mather Field, and the Sacramento Army Depot while new state buildings were constructed surrounding Capitol Park (Page & Turnbull 2019:26, 32–33). Pre-war commercial development was largely within downtown and midtown (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-16).

Sacramento underwent many changes in the mid-twentieth century as a direct result of World War II and expansion of the automobile. The economy shifted from primarily agriculture to military, federal and state government, and transportation industries. Alongside the national population, Sacramento saw significant population growth of its own, with an increase from 105,958 in 1940 to 137,572 in 1950. T his growing population was also more mobile than ever before, spurring expansion of development outside of Sacramento’s downtown core. The growing post-war population spurred a housing shortage and rapid construction of new homes. New post-war residences were most frequently built in Minimal Traditional and Mid-Century Modern styles outside of the core city and in suburban areas (Page & Turnbull 2019:32– 33; GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-4). In 1947 planning for a new freeway system began, marking the beginning of a shift to automobile travel instead of streetcar and rail service. By 1961, the South Sacramento, Elvas, and Capital City Freeways were complete. The city core connected to these routes via surface streets. By 1954, planning for an east–west-oriented freeway was underway (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-13–2-14).

World War II also had a profound effect on the Japanese-American population; more than 7,000 Japanese- American Sacramento residents were forcibly relocated to internment camps during the war, and of those, only 59% returned to the city after the war. During this time, the government instituted the Bracero Program to fill job vacancies left by the removal of Japanese-American citizens with temporary Mexican labor. The program resulted in a shift in the ethnic makeup of Sacramento’s la bor force (Page & Turnbull 2019:29).

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With the increasing availability and affordability of automobiles in the post-war era, most new residents, drawn to Sacramento for its available jobs, began life in the suburbs. For these same reasons, in the 1950s, state government buildings began to be dispersed throughout the city and post-war commercial development was largely focused on areas outside of downtown Sacramento, specifically in areas south, east, and northeast of downtown (Page & Turnbull 2019:32–33; Page & Turnbull 2019:22, 26-28). New commercial development was focused on independent business alongside major thoroughfares outside of downtown and through or adjacent to residential neighborhoods. Some major retailers also left downtown, such as Sears, which moved to a new suburban location in 1956. The City convinced Macy’s to construct a new downtown store, which was completed in 1963, but this did not have the desired effect of inspiring new downtown commercial development (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2 -19).

Subsequent plans undertaken in the 1960s to 1970s also involved redeveloping the Capitol Mall, Alkali Flat, and Oak Park areas. The roots of urban renewal date to the 1940s. At the federal level, the Housing Act of 1949 provided federal subsidies for local redevelopment projects and gave local agencies the power to acquire parcels through eminent domain for redevelopment, and the H ousing Act of 1954 coined the term urban renewal. At the state level, urban renewal dates to the 1945 Community Development Act. The movement was a reaction to the economic decline in cities across the country as commercial and residential development largely moved to the suburbs. Cities at the time were broadly viewed negatively.

Sacramento’s West End was seen as a center of vice, disease, crime, and juvenile delinquency. Ultimately, urban renewal resulted in mass demolition of buildings that displaced of thousands of residents and businesses in Sacramento (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-7–2-8; Page & Turnbull 2019:28, 30; Williams 2013:25). Despite the renewal efforts, the suburban model for development with sprawling expansions of residential neighborhoods, strip malls, and shopping centers would continue to define Sacramento and the surrounding region during the twentieth century, as evident in present-day.

South Land Park
The project area lies within South Land Park, which was annexed in the 1950s and today is bounded by Sutterville Road to the north, Florin Avenue to the south, Freeport Boulevard to the east, and Interstate 5 to the west. The area is known for its “rolling hills, mature native oak trees, and curving streets” (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-35). The Land Park area, including South Land Park, was named for William Land, Sacramento’s mayor from 1898 to 1899, who made his fortune with hotels in downtown Sacramento.

Sutterville Brewery was built on the south side of Sutterville Road for Robert H. Vance in 1853 , within the northernmost part of South Land Park. The brewery was demolished in 1853 and was known as Sutterville’s last remaining building (Whittle 2009; Isidro 2005:9). By 1885, the entire Sutter land grant had

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been divided into many tracts ranging from 10 to over 1,000 acres and sold to many different property owners (Shepherd 1885).

The first homes in South Land Park were built as early as 1902, at the southwest corner of present-day Sutterville Road and Freeport Boulevard, and several more homes were built by 1907 (U.S. Geological Survey 1902, 1907). The Mead Family, which built residences during this time, is largely attributed to developing the area. In the 1940s, after the economic downturn of the Great Depression, developers began larger-scale projects in South Land Park, though there was a pause during World War II. Since the 1940s, hundreds of homes have been constructed in South Land Park, and Freeport Boulevard has become a busy shopping district. The South Land Park Hills Historic District alone features 49 residences built by developer Joseph Eichler from 1955 to 1956, known for his non-discriminatory housing policies during segregation. By the early 1970s, construction of Interstates 5 and 80 was complete, providing better access to South Land Park and further solidifying the importance of the automobile and suburbanization in Sacramento (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:2-14, 2-35–2-36; Sacramento City Express 2024). Today, the neighborhood continues to retain its suburban qualities with post-war single-family residences and commercial corridors dotted with low-density shopping centers and strip malls.

The earliest portrayal of the game in the United States was in Washington Irving’s 1819 book Rip Van Winkle, which depicted characters playing an early variation of the game known as ninepins. Over the following decades, bowling became increasingly popular, resulting in the construction of indoor lanes in New York and other cities with large German populations, including Buffalo, Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, and others (United States Bowling Conference 2024).

With the discovery of gold in California at Sutter’s Mill on the American River in 1848, the ensuing Gold Rush lured thousands of people from all over the world, including the eastern United States , as well as western Europe. Throughout the mining camps and emerging towns and centers, drinking and gambling were often the most ubiquitous forms of entertainment and recreation with saloons and gambling halls being constructed from the ports of San Francisco up into the gold fields of the Sierra Nevada, earning early California an overall reputation for “moral laxity” (Khoury 2012). Gambling games varied, ranging from cards to bullfights, boxing and races, to bowling and billiards. Bowling was particularly popular during the Gold Rush with many saloons and gambling halls constructing adjoining bowling alleys as an added amenity for patrons. In an 1851 letter written by Dame Shirley (Shirley and Russell 1922), the wife of a mining camp doctor, to her sister, she wrote:

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As the launching point into the gold fields and mining camps of the Sierra Nevada foothills, 1850s Sacramento featured several saloons, billiard rooms, gambling halls, and bowling alleys. One of the earliest advertised bowling alleys was the Central Bowling Alley, located at No.51 J Street between 2 nd and 3rd Streets, which boasted four 70-foot lanes that were constructed “in the most substantial manner” and a bar “supplied with the most choice liquors of all kinds, and the finest flavored cigars . . . ” (Daily California Statesman 1855; The Sacramento Bee 1857). Many other bowling alleys were located throughout the central portion of the city, located in adjoining buildings or within the basements of saloons, which often featured billiards, shooting galleries, dance halls, and stages for live music. On e such place was called “The New Corner,” which was in the basement of the Morse Building, which is still standing in Old Sacramento at 1025-1031 2nd Street (The Sacramento Bee 1866). Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the game also had popularity outside of the saloons and gambling halls as a simple form of recreation, with alleys constructed in upper class social clubs, as well as the construction of lanes by the Sacramento Athletic Club and the Sacramento Young Men’s Christian Association as a form of recreation alongside gymnastics, fitness, and other forms of sport alongside intellectual and spiritual pursuits (The Sacramento Union 1887). Wealthy individuals also constructed their own personal bowling alleys within their grand mansions and estates within Sacramento and the surrounding area. One of the most notable was that of Adolph Heilbron, a German cattle rancher and landowner, who constructed his grand Italianate mansion at 704 O Street; the still extant residence was listed on the NRHP in 1976 (The Sacramento Bee 1892; Price 1975). Despite this proliferation of bowling as a more popular form of recreation, the majority of alleys and lanes continued to be in the setting of saloons, bar s, and German- owned beer gardens well into the early twentieth century (The Sacramento Bee 1896; Shannon 2017:3; Riess 2015:187).

Figure 11. Early bowling alley in Sacramento, 1915 (International Bowling Museum & Hall of Fame 2024).

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Emerging as its own sport, local bowling scores were often increasingly published in local papers under the sports section. While the sport had previously been exclusive to men, women and youth bowlers became increasingly common during the 1920s and the sport was marketed to a broader, albeit Caucasian, demographic with new leagues, tournaments, and other events (The Sacramento Union 1931; Shannon 2017:3).

Bowling had been long associated with drinking establishments and the sale of alcohol; however, the enactment of prohibition in 1920 quickly changed the game. Many of the alleys associated with taverns and saloons were closed, while some bowling alley owners reorganized their business model to focus on the sport itself, decoupling from associations with alcohol and creating a more family-friendly pastime (Riess 2015:187). During this period, the common naming conventions of bowling alleys changed, often substituting the words like bowl or lane instead of alley. Rules and standards of the game and the distinctly American 10-pin variant were more codified and regulated by organizations like the American Bowling Congress, and new dry purpose-built bowling alleys were constructed throughout the United States, bringing the sport into the mainstream (Riess 2015:187; Shannon 2017:1–3). Despite the proliferation of bowling into popular culture as part of prohibition, a more widespread expansion of bowling alleys did not occur until its repeal, allowing for drinking to again become part of the bowling pastime , establishing it as a major outlet for socializing and recreation in communities, particularly for young men (Riess 2015:188). Unlike the bowling alleys before, large new bowling facilities with multiple lanes were constructed under the new specifications of the sport with bowling as the primary activity and not an added amenities as a barroom game. Just before World War II, there were an estimated 12 million bowlers in the United States, and the sport continued to grow in popularity steadily over the 1930s through World War II (Shannon 2017:1-4).

Many of these new post-Prohibition “bowling palaces” were constructed in Sacramento during the 1930s and early 1940s, including Captiol Bowl at 1415 L Street (1939), North Bowl at 1721 Del Paso Boulevard (1941), and Alhambra Bowl at 1229 Alhambra Boulevard (1942) (The Sacramento Union 1939, 1941; The Sacramento Bee 1942a). These facilities were composed in a Streamlined or Moderne style (Figure 12 and Figure 13) architecture with prominent marquee, and often featured a dozen or so lanes, air conditioning, restaurant corners, cocktail lounges, league meeting rooms, locker rooms, spectator seating areas, and occasionally billiard rooms (The Sacramento Bee 1942a).

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Figure 12. Advertisement for the Capitol Bowl,
1939 (The Sacramento Union).

Figure 13. Image of Alhambra Bowl from a
1942 flyer (Sacramento Public Library).

During World War II, bowling alleys in Sacramento remained open although construction of new alleys stalled. An exception was on military bases in the area, where bowling lanes were installed as a form of recreation for the servicemen (The Sacramento Bee 1942b). Approximately 4,500 bowling lanes were constructed on military bases across the United States during World War II and more women’s leagues were established amongst civilians. It was not until the post-war period that the expansion of bowling as a sport reached a new level of popularity outside of military bases. The 1950s and 1960s are often considered the golden age of bowling with new purpose-built bowling facilities constructed throughout the rapidly expanding post-war landscape of American cities and towns (Shannon 2017:3; Riess 2015:188). Bowling was an important aspect of recreation in post-war America, with an estimated 20 million bowlers across the country in 1948. A one-lane bowling alley was even installed in the White House by President Truman in 1947. Many of these post-war bowling alleys had restaurants, meeting or banquet rooms, and lounges that served as places to socialize or gather local clubs, groups, and organizations. Most often, they were constructed in Mid-Century Modern architectural styles, with the Googie style being most notable, and eye-catching signage, such as the one at Fireside Lanes in Sacramento (Figure 14), was a key design element (Shannon 2017:1, 4, 20-22; Pope Studios 1960).

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Figure 14. Fireside Lanes, 1960 (Pope Studios). Courtesy of the Sacramento Public Library.

Sacramento was no exception with new modern and larger bowling alleys constructed throughout the expanding reaches of the cities growing suburbs in the post-war era. New bowling alleys included Sacramento Bowl located at 917 6th Street (1948), Town and Country Bowl on Fulton Avenue (1956) South Bowl at 5005 Stockton Boulevard (1958), El Rancho Bowl at 900 West Capitol Avenue in West Sacramento (1959), Country Club Lanes at 2600 Watt Avenue (1960), Cordova Lanes in Rancho Cordova (1960), Fireside Lanes (1960) at 7901 Auburn Boulevard (see Figure 14), and Land Park Bowl at 5850 Freeport Boulevard (1960) (The Sacramento Union 1956, 1958, 1959, 1960a; Pope Studios 1960).

These types of bowling alleys were built rapidly across the United States in the 1950s and 1960s, and substantial building costs over one million dollars were not uncommon. Bowling center amenities

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continued to expand. Cocktail lounges and meeting rooms were still common, but instructional programs, live musical performances, coffee shops, concessions, childcare facilities, and pro -equipment shops also became common offerings. Many bowling alleys of this era were also open 24 hours a day to further attract diverse clientele. Some bowling alleys even offered laundry and grocery shopping services to attract housewives during daytime hours. The number of children bowling also substantially increased in t he post-war era with nearly 400,000 members of the Junior Congress bowling association in 1959 (Riess 2015:188; Shannon 2017:3–5).

Because of racial segregation, the bowling centers of this era were typically restricted to white Americans and the clientele was largely suburban, though with the encouragement of the National Bowling Association, some bowling alleys provided specific times for people of color to bowl. More often, older outdated bowling alleys were purchased specifically for use by persons of color (Shannon 2017:5). Of the bowling alleys constructed in Sacramento during this period, one of the most notable was the El Rancho Bowl (now Capitol Bowl), which is believed to be the first racially integrated bowling alleys in the region, allowing for patrons of any race to partake and form leagues at the facility (Saizan 2014). Another notable bowling alley was Country Club Lanes, which was the largest and most celebrated of these facilities during this period. In addition to the wide array of amenities, the building featured iconic Mid -Century Modern architecture with some Googie-inspired elements with its broad parabolic entrance canopies (Figure 15; The Sacramento Union 1960a).

Figure 15. Advertisement for the opening of Country Club Lanes (The Sacramento Union 1960a ).

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arcades. The character-defining features of many early bowling alleys were removed as they were purchased and updated in the 1970s and 1980s (Shannon 2017:5–6). New bowling alleys constructed at this later date were often within the setting of larger gaming facilities or bars, such as Punch Bowl Social in downtown Sacramento, offering only a few lanes as a single amenity and novelty rather than the primary form of recreation.

Mid-Century Modern Architecture
As discussed in the previous section, bowling alleys of the post-war era, like AMF Land Park Lanes, were typically built in Mid-Century Modern styles. Modernism emerged as a popular architectural style and aesthetic philosophy throughout the United States during the early-to-mid twentieth century, reaching its heyday in the post-World War II era. Modernism was greatly influenced by industrialization during and after World War II, which made new building materials such as glass and steel more common and affordable. Modernism markedly diverged from past architectural styles with its function over ornamentation ethos. Several Modernist-style offshoots developed during the twentieth century, including Googie, International, and Late Moderne (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-1–3-10). Though many of these styles had key differences, they typically shared the following features:

Structure – exposed structural system typically using concrete, steel, or wood materials, and some concrete block or masonry for smaller structures.

Roof – flat or low-pitches, often with deep overhangs/eaves emphasizing horizontality; some with large sweeping or folded forms.

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During the war, material rations and a moratorium on housing construction in the United States stagnated the construction of Modernist architecture. After the war, with these limitations removed, the economy in a period of prosperity, and the population expanding, there was a construction boom that favored Modern design principles and features. Modernist architecture of the post-war era is referred to under the umbrella of Mid-Century Modernism. A variety of property types were newly constructed in the Mid- Century Modern style in the post-war era, including residential, institutional, commercial, and educational buildings (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-1–3-6, 3-9–3-10). Common features of these buildings included “cantilevered roofs, flat or shed roof forms, deep overhanging eaves, canted and large expansive windows, and a variety of incorporated materials, including wood, stone, brick, stucco, plastic, metal, and concrete” (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-9–3-10). Styles under the umbrella of Mid-Century Modern architecture included Modern Ranch, Contemporary, Commercial Modern, Brutalism, and more ( GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-10–3-15).

Common features of Googie-style architecture included exaggerated non-linear rooflines, irregular massing and asymmetrical façades, colorful accents, prominent signage, neon lights, and starburst motifs (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:3-8–3-9, 3-12). Key commercial corridors in Sacramento include Stockton Boulevard, Franklin Boulevard, Freeport Boulevard, Broadway, Del Paso Boulevard, Fair Oaks Boulevard, and Capitol Avenue. Examples of Mid-Century Modern architecture, such as the Loan/Chase Bank (4701 Freeport Boulevard) (Figure 16) and Gunther’s Ice Cream (2801 Franklin Boulevard), can be found within these areas (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017:1-6, 2-13). The South Land Park Hills (Eichler) Historic District is composed of 49 Mid-Century Modern homes (Sacramento City Press 2024).

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Figure 16. Loan/Chase Bank Building, 2017 (GEI and Mead & Hunt 2017).

Eligibility Evaluation
SWCA carefully considered whether AMF Land Park Lanes possesses historical significance under any CRHR or Sacramento Register criteria and historical integrity under the seven aspects of integrity. As the eligibility criteria for both registers is analogous, eligibility is considered concurrently, below.

Criteria 1/I
AMF Land Park Lanes is not significantly associated with events that have made a significant contribution to broad patterns of history under CRHR Criterion 1 and Sacramento Register Criterion I. While the bowling alley was part of a broader trend of the growing popularity of bowling in the mid -twentieth century and the proliferation of new bowling alleys throughout the United States during that period , AMF Land Park Lanes was one of hundreds of mid-century bowling alleys built across the United States and one of many built in the Sacramento area during this period, of which more characteristic and influential examples exist. The subject property also did not have an influence on the development of bowling or patterns of development relating to bowling, which was one of the earliest forms of recreation in Sacramento and the surrounding region. Furthermore, the subject building was one of the later bowling alleys constructed in area during this post-war “Golden Age” of bowling. The property also did not have an influence on the broader development of South Land Park and, on its own, does not characterize the

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commercial development of this area. In summary, AMF Land Park Lanes is not a good representation of the themes and period it is associated with, indicating the associations do not rise to the threshold of historical significance. Thus, AMF Land Park Lanes is recommended not eligible under Criteria 1/I.

Criterion 2/II
There is no evidence that the AMF Land Park Lanes has an important association with any person or persons who made significant contributions to history at the local, state, or national level. Research did not reveal any notable figures specifically associated with the bowling alley, and research did not indicate the potential for significant associations in this regard. Thus, AMF Land Park Lanes is recommended not eligible under CRHR Criterion 2 and Sacramento Register Criterion II.

Criterion 3/III, IV, and V
Constructed in 1960, the AMF Land Park Lanes building is composed in the Mid-Century Modern style.

Although the building was originally designed and rendered with many hallmarks of the style —full- height glazing entrance system, flagstone cladding, and L-shaped columns integrated into a pronounced folded plate roofline—what was constructed in the building’s original form was notably reduced in detail, creating a simpler and more commonplace characterization of the style (see Figure 14). Furthermore, AMF Land Park Lanes formerly had a distinct, lavish sign characteristic of Mid-Century Modern commercial properties and typical of post-war bowling alleys; however, this sign is no longer extant. Outside of the L- shaped decorative awning and the triangular structure at the entrance, the building currently lacks any characteristic Mid-Century Modern features. Additionally, the non-extant sign was the only notable characteristic of the original design that represented broader themes of architecture and design regarding both the Mid-Century Modern style and post-war bowling alley design. Due to the removal of this feature and other alterations found throughout the building, the current building is essentially a simple box form with simple Modern-style elements at the entrance. Overall, in its current condition, the subject property does not embody the Mid-Century Modern style, particularly within the context of South Land Park and Sacramento, which features a notable collection of Mid-Century Modern resources that better embody the style and its characteristics.

As an example of the post-war bowling alley property type, the subject property does not appear to rise to a level of significance. Although these post-war bowling alleys are becoming increasingly rare, several examples exist within the Sacramento area that better reflect the characteristics of the typology, the most notable of which is the extant Country Club Lanes building, which was the largest and most celebrated bowling alley of the period, complete with amenities and architectural details that fully embody the typology and this era in bowling alley design. By comparison, the subject building, particularly in its altered state, is a typical and lackluster example of this typology and does not rise to a level of significance under these criteria.

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In summary, AMF Land Park Lanes is not historically significant for its engineering or as the work of a master architect or builder, nor does it significantly embody the characteristics of Mid -Century Modern architecture or the post-war bowling alley property type in Sacramento. Thus, the subject property is recommended not eligible under CRHR Criterion 3 and Sacramento Register Criteria III, IV, and V.

Criterion D
The history of bowling in the United States and Mid-Century Modern architecture in Sacramento are well- documented and understood topics. No other historical or pre-historic associations with the property are known to exist, and thus, the bowling alley property is unlikely to yield additional information important to prehistory or history. As such, AMF Land Park Lanes is recommended not eligible under CRHR Criterion 4 and Sacramento Register Criterion VI.

Summary of Eligibility
This eligibility evaluation finds that while AMF Land Park Lanes has some historical associations under CRHR Criterion 3 and Sacramento Register Criteria III, IV, and V with Mid-Century Modern architecture and post-war bowling alley design, the property does not rise to a level of significance under these criteria as more notable and better examples of both are found in this locality. This is exacerbated by various alterations, which have impacted the building’s overall integrity and its ability to convey any potential significance under these criteria. The subject property also lacks historical significance under CRHR/Sacramento Register Criteria 1/I, 2/II, and 4/VI. Thus, SWCA recommends AMF Land Park Lanes not eligible for the CRHR and Sacramento Register
*B12. References (continued):

Auburn Journal
1957 “Background Given on Winston Steel, Palm Market Builder.” Auburn Journal 8 August:15.

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California State Association of Counties
2019 Chronology. Formerly available at: http://www.counties.org/general-information/chronology.

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National Environmental Title Research
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Rice, Richard B., William A. Bullough, and Richard J. Orsi 1994 The Elusive Eden: A New History of California. Third Edition. McGraw Hill, New York, New York.

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Sacramento Public Library
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*Date of map: 2024
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