As birds chirp and leaves sway in the wind, the Ramona Street Architectural District, a historically designated Palo Alto neighborhood, remains peaceful. The early California architecture, characterized by gentle archways, tiled roofs and Spanish influences, lends itself to a sense of history and charm.

Historic designation has become a lightning rod of controversy in the Bay Area in recent years, as arguments continue over whether the process either makes development harder or protects houses and property values.

“One of the reasons that home values in Palo Alto are so astronomically high is because people love the character and charm of Palo Alto,” said Samantha Rohman, chair of the Palo Alto Historic Resources Board.

In Palo Alto alone, there are more than 409 buildings listed in the city’s historic inventory, as well as four historic districts, according to Palo Alto Historic Preservation Planner Steven Switzer.

Historic districts in Palo Alto come with regulations, such as all exterior alterations being subject to a review by the HRB, according to Palo Alto Municipal Code 16.49.

These regulations don’t leave much room for interpretation. For example, any attempts at building additions in styles that would be incompatible with the original time period of the house are often obstructed by the HRB.

While some claim that the Historic Inventory contributes a sense of character to the neighborhoods, others contend that it makes neighborhoods less accessible to less wealthy prospective homeowners, due to its contribution to property price inflation, and its restriction of homeowner rights.

Rohman said that these restrictions keep property values in Palo Alto high, but argues that the inventory benefits the community.

“It [the Historic Inventory] maintains Palo Alto’s character, and in turn maintains home values and the affluence of the community for everyone within it,” Rohman said.

According to Switzer, there are also many monetary incentives for homeowners that come with historic designation.

“There are tax credits that are offered,” Switzer said. “There are building code incentives. If a property is listed [on the Historic Inventory], it offers alternatives to a strict compliance with the building code.”

This also means that historically designated buildings are exempt from certain building code requirements.

“If you’re doing a renovation, it’s going to prompt some [building code] upgrades,” Switzer said. “The windows need to be replaced, or you need to add sprinklers to the residence. But if a property is listed as being historic, they’re able to have an alternative.”

However, not all residents of Palo Alto believe that the Historic Inventory is beneficial.

In 2023, 165 homes were put under review by the HRB to be placed on the Historic Register, without the participation of the property owners.

Of the 165 potential homes identified, only 21 homeowners chose to opt into the inventory, according to Switzer.

Switzer theorizes that this may be because of homeowners’ anxieties about restrictions.

“I think there’s maybe some fear that if a property is listed [on the Historic Inventory], it’s going to have additional review and restrictions placed on it,” Switzer said. “For some property owners, … they don’t want to have that added level of review.”

According to Rohman, the HRB could have had more transparent communication with potential historic homeowners.

“In 2023, we had a process to let homeowners know that we were doing this investigation,” Rohman said. “The outreach absolutely could have been improved. We are actively trying to improve our candor and communication and conversation with historic homeowners.”

This led to the HRB scaling back on their reach, requiring homeowners to opt into the inventory rather than requiring an objection to opt out.

This debate over historic designation extends beyond Palo Alto. According to Jeremy Levine, executive director of the pro-housing organization Palo Alto Forward, a large point of contention in San Mateo has been whether or not the Baywood district should be classified as historic under California’s historic register.

“The Baywood neighborhood in San Mateo, which is the most expensive neighborhood in the city, had a new neighbor tear down an early 20th century home and build a new one,” Levine said. “A group of neighbors in the Baywood neighborhood were so upset about this older home getting torn down and rebuilt that they wanted to create a historic district.”

Meanwhile, an opposing group in the neighborhood fought to keep Baywood as a non-historic neighborhood.

According to Levine, the reason for this conflict is that classifying neighborhoods comes with several limitations that make building new things on properties more difficult, such as more expensive renovations and longer wait times for review. Some residents were wary of the new expenses.

“Historic properties in California are subject to a California Environmental Quality Act review, which can add tens of thousands of dollars and years of review process to any modification to a property,” Levine said.

While the Historic Inventory is expensive for owners, it also protects old houses.

“I will say that historic preservation has an important role to play in communities, and it’s not always about blocking housing,” Levine said. “It’s often about maintaining history, and the two can be compatible.”

Switzer agrees with Levine’s assessment, but acknowledges the inventory has caused inconvenience beyond its intended purpose.

“It [the Historic Inventory] provides some guidelines on how development should … be sympathetic towards historic properties,” Switzer said. “It’s not really intended to prevent development from occurring.”