Federal grant funds will help preserve the treasured Casa del Herrero in Montecito
MONTECITO, Calif. - The Casa del Herrero property in Montecito, a National Historic Landmark, has received federal funding to help with the badly needed restoration of the community treasure.
As a Save America's Treasures grant, the $750,000 comes from the National Park Service at the U.S. Interior Department. It will be administered through the California Missions Foundation which serves to preserve 21 Missions and related historical sites. It comes with a matching grant requirement and the local campaign for funds is under the Capital Campaign “Preserving Our Past, Protecting Our Future”.
The location is the 11-acre private estate where industrialist George Fox Steedman lived on East Valley Road. The home was designed by leading Spanish revival architect George Washington Smith in 1925. Age and weather have been causing deterioration in many areas. There's also been water intrusion from the heavy rains in recent years. Casa’s historic Glass House, Lath House, and Tool Shed are also on the list for repairs.
Biles says, "From architecture to design to the garden to all of the interior furnishings you have to be able to be here to experience it. I am so excited the Casa is receiving this big extra attention right now."
The California Missions Foundation Executive Director David Bolton presented a check Monday morning at the site. He said this is an important step because, "there's water damage, there's stucco damage, there's surrounding buildings here that will be part of this grant. This treasure will be preserved and conserved for future generations."
Among the projects will be a repair of the faded, cracked and broken tiles around ten fountains. Some tiles date back to the 17th and 18th century. The fountains are fed through a flow out of the Montecito hills and have a recirculating pump.
The grounds also have many other community benefits outside of these repairs. Citrus trees are harvested in part for local programs including for the Food Bank of Santa Barbara County.
The home has a preserved dining area that is set up as it would have been in the 20s and 30s for dinner. There is also a large workshop where Steedman did many of his metal designs alongside of his wife Carrie Howard Steedman who was an award-winning floral designer. The Steedmans came to Montecito from St. Louis and moved into the property at the time of the damaging June 1925 Santa Barbara earthquake. The home was not damaged.
Those visiting the home can see it in as close to the condition it was in during that time, as the nonprofit can create.
Reflecting on the grant, Bolton said, "The arches, the style of the building, the tile work, the fountains, the water moving water through in order to survive, all of that led to the Spanish colonial architecture and there is a not a finer example here than Casa del Herrero."
The $750,000 is the largest grant received for Casa del Herrero.
The California Missions Foundation said the grant request was an extensive and detailed application, and the funding indicates the importance of the property and restoration ahead.
Regionally these grants in recent years have also helped to restore Mission Santa Barbara and Mission Santa Ines.
The project will be a three-tiered collaboration of national, state and local funding and community support.
Bolton said the grants have totaled $25.7 million this year to 59 projects in 26 states and the District of Columbia. The funding for Casa del Herrero was the only preservation grant awarded in California.
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