By Khalida Sarwari
Saratoga, a city that prides itself on its history, may lose two of its oldest homes, unless residents come together to save them, says Mayor Jill Hunter.
One is the Grover House, 14521 Big Basin Way next to Blue Rock Shoot; the other, at 14630 Big Basin Way, is a cottage that originally belonged to John Henry, a local sawmill foreman. Both houses are vacant and were purchased last year by their next-door neighbors.
The Grover House was purchased by Mitchell Cutler, who owns both the Blue Rock Shoot and La Fondue, and has a permit to demolish the house. “I presume he is expanding Blue Rock,” Hunter said.
The residence, which was built in 1890, once belonged to a family that had moved the home to its current location for their son who had returned from World War I. The structure’s original wood from a century ago has been retained, Hunter said. Later, Grover House served–among other uses–as a retail space, mostly for antique businesses. Prior to Cutler’s purchase, the home had been empty for several years.
Hunter wants to “save the house in some form and to keep it at that location.”
“It’s just a very charming building; the Village Gardeners have been very devoted to it, tending to the flowers in front,” said Hunter.
The second home was built in 1869 and has been purchased by Paul Hernandez, the owner of the Saratoga Oaks Lodge next door. After the McWilliams residence, this is the oldest house in Saratoga and was the office of architect Warren Hyde for more than 40 years up until a few years ago. The home was purchased last year by Hernandez, who has plans to redevelop the site.
“We want to put a new builidng there that will make better use of the property,” Hernandez said.
The house is in poor condition and has a termite problem, according to Hernandez–so much so that the expense of renovating it would not be justified. “It doesn’t have any modern wiring, any modern air conditioning. It would be a very expensive proposition.”
Hernandez said he was the one who suggested to Hunter the idea of moving the house when he walked her through it a few months ago. The best spot for the house, he said, would be the Quarry Park. “You can have a nice little office and visitor center there.”
Hunter said it would be her dream to move the house, but she has a different area in mind. “I’d love to see the John Henry House be moved to a spot in the Orchard for educational purposes–to celebrate orchards such as Sunnyvale has.”
Hernandez indicated he’d like to replace the house with a building that would serve as a retail and office space. The patio area behind the home could potentially be used as a gathering spot, he said, or “maybe a wine tasting room, who knows?”
Hernandez said he plans to submit an application for the new building in the spring.
Saratoga is no stranger to homes being moved from one location to another; the McWilliams House, the Saratoga History Museum and the Warner Hutton House are among those that were moved over the past three decades, Hunter said. The practice of moving homes was much more common in the early part of the 20th century, she said.
City officials have met with a professional mover regarding the possibility of moving the house, and the issue is slated to go before the Heritage Preservation Commission on Nov. 12.
Hunter said her objective is to raise awareness about these homes and rally the Saratoga community to “save” them. She wants to enlist the help of the Historical Foundation and volunteers willing to help raise money to refurbish the Grover House.
“There isn’t much left of history in Silicon Valley,” she said. “Saratoga, for whatever reason, has kept many of its historic buildings, and people love it for that reason and they come to visit.”
Continued Hunter, “If we maintain our historic buildings, we will retain our charm and our draw to those tourists who love to visit historic sites.”
