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The Pleasanton Heritage Association has for the first time recognized two commercial properties with its Heritage Preservation Award.
The Kottinger Barn at 200 Ray St. and a home-turned-office at 180 Spring St. were among the awardees this year, joining a Spanish revival-style home located on 4467 Second St. and a 1930s Tudor revival home at 4239 Pleasanton Ave. All four properties were honored with plaques at a ceremony in August.
The Heritage Preservation Award recognizes historic properties that have been preserved for the community to admire. Brian Bourg, PHA’s awards committee chair, said this year’s recipients all share one thing in common: They carry a piece of Pleasanton’s history.
”Pleasanton’s historic neighborhoods … and our beautiful downtown is what makes us special,” Bourg told the Weekly. “We would like to keep that special quality and not allow people to come in with nothing but money and change the homes and demolish them or do things that take away from their historic integrity.”
Bourg is a longtime Pleasanton resident who has lived in his historic home on Second Street for 50 years. His home, which was built in 1896, was recognized by the PHA in 2020.
The heritage association was founded in 2008 after residents saw more and more people buying historic homes and either not taking care of them or demolishing them, according to Bourg.
Each year, the organization’s awards committee picks a pool of locations for consideration before choosing up to five awardees. Bourg said the committee typically looks for homes that were built before 1942.
More than a decade ago, the city conducted a survey and determined there were roughly 90 homes in the city that fit the criteria and were labeled as historic resources, which means they maintain enough of their historic character, integrity and characteristics. Since its founding, the heritage association has awarded more than 40 commemorative plaques to families and individuals, Bourg said.
This year, Bourg said the awards committee bent the rules a bit to include the two commercial properties.
He said the heritage association wanted to celebrate all the work owner Bruce Torquemada has done to restore the Kottinger Barn, Pleasanton’s oldest standing building, while making sure it looks just like it did when it was built in 1852.
Bourg said the heritage association plans to hold a special ceremony to install the award plaque on Kottinger Barn, but no date has been set. The barn currently serves as an event space.
The other commercial property recognized this year, 180 Spring St., is owned by Shawn and Dan Copenhagen. They don’t live in the home, located right at the intersection of Spring Street and Railroad Avenue, and the building isn’t considered a historic resource by the city.
Still, PHA wanted to honor the Copenhagens, who use the home as an office, for their restoration efforts. Bourg said the couple saved the structure from a development group that wanted to build five condominium units on the lot. Instead, the previous owner sold the property to the Copenhagens because he wanted the home to stay intact.
“It was such a pleasant thing to hear that the (former) owner probably could have made more money selling it to condo developers, but he chose to sell it to someone who was going to keep the home like it was and preserve its integrity,” Bourg said. “Even though it’s not a (historic) resource, it was a great example of preserving something that was part of Pleasanton’s history.”
The Spanish revival-style home located on 4467 Second St., right next to the Lighthouse Baptist Church, is owned by Jeff and Kathy Meier and was built in 1944, which means it is also not listed as a historic resource. However, Bourg said it’s one of the best local examples of a Spanish revival home.
He also noted that the Meier family did a great job rebuilding after large tree fell on top of the home and the church next door during a storm in 2023.
The Tudor home, located on 4239 Pleasanton Ave., is considered one of Pleasanton’s historic resources. Bourg said PHA wanted to recognize homeowners Terry and David Westerhoff for restoring, and artfully adding to, the structure, inspired by 15th century English architecture.
Terry Westerhoff told the Weekly that while she wasn’t completely surprised by the award, as she’s aware of the heritage association and its mission, the recognition was nice to receive. She said the plaques, which each feature the date the structure was built, contribute to the overall historic atmosphere of downtown Pleasanton.
”We’re thankful to the organization that they chose our home,” Westerhoff said.
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