79179 Ahmanson Lane - Ahmanson Ranch House
DPR 523A (09/2013) *Required information
State of California — The Resources Agency
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
PRIMARY RECORD
Review Code Reviewer Date
Resource Name: Ahmanson Ranch House
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Primary#: P-33-xxx
HRI#: None
Trinomial #: N/A
CRHR Status Code: 3S / 3CS / 5S2
Other Listings: Urbana Survey No. 484
*P3b. Resource Attributes: HP2. Single Family Property
*P4. Resources Present: ¨ Building ý Structure o Object o Site o District o Element of District o Other
P5b. Description of Photo: 79179
Ahmanson Lane_1: View facing southwest of the
detached garage / stable east elevation.
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and Source
ýHistoric: 1961; Arcadia pg. 95, Bailey and
Biondi pg. 15
o Prehistoric
o Both
*P7. Owner and Address:
City of La Quinta
PO Box 1504,
La Quinta, CA 92253
*P8. Recorded by:
Urbana Preservation & Planning, LLC
www.urbanapreservation.com
*P9. Date Recorded: June-July 2022
*P10. Survey Type:
Citywide Survey; Intensive Level
*P3a. Description: The 79179 Ahmanson Lane residence is a one-story adobe brick Custom Ranch style residence with Spanish Colonial
Revival themes. The dwelling faces southeast towards the SilverRock golf course. It features a rectilinear plan with an asymmetrical façade.
The dwelling has a front-gabled roof clad with red clay tiles. The roof has broad overhanging open eaves with exposed beams and rafters. The
exterior of the dwelling is clad with painted adobe brick. The fenestration consists of steel-framed fixed windows and steel framed sliding
windows. The entryway is located on the southern most side of the front elevation and features automatic sliding glass doors beneath a steel
framed transom lite that in-fills the wall to the gable. The entryway is beneath a wide front porch that is walled with uncoursed stone. The
southwest elevation has a full length shed roof porch extending from the gable supported by square adobe brick posts. The detached garage
is located northeast of the dwelling and it had a side gable roof clad with red clay tiles. The walls are adobe brick and the front elevation
features three sets of wood plank doors with iron fixtures. A garage window on the northeast elevation has a sliding glass aluminum framed
window. Character defining features of Custom Ranch homes that can be seen on the subject property include: the asymmetrical façades,
steel framed windows, and a high quality of craftsmanship. The Spanish Revival elements of the home include the adobe brick construction,
exposed roof beams / rafters, erd clay roofing and full-length outdoor patio.
P1. Other Identifier: N/A
*P2. Location: o Not for Publication ý Unrestricted
*a. County: Riverside
*b. USGS 7.5' Quad: La Quinta Date: 2021 T ; R ; ¼ of ¼ of Sec ; B.M. __
c. Address: 79179 Ahmanson Lane City: La Quinta Zip: 92253
d. UTM Zone: 11S, 565751.17 mE / 3727115.39 mN
e. Other Locational Data: N/A
Neighborhood: Not Listed; APN: 777490039
*P11. Report Citation: Urbana Preservation & Planning, LLC. La Quinta Citywide Historical Resources Survey and Context Statement,
2023.
*Attachments: o None ý Location Map ý Continuation Sheet ý Building, Structure, and Object Record
o Archaeological Record o District Record o Linear Feature Record o Milling Station Record o Rock Art
Record o Artifact Record o Photograph Record o Other:
DPR 523B (09/2013) *Required information
State of California — The Resources Agency
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND OBJECT RECORD
Resource Name: Ahmanson Ranch House
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(This space reserved for official comments.)
Primary#:
HRI#:
Trinomial #:
CRHR Status Code: 3S / 3CS / 5S2
Other Listings:
Other Listings: Urbana Survey No. 484
B1. Historic Name: Rancho Xochimilco
B2. Common Name: SilverRock Resort
B3. Original Use: Single-Family Dwelling/Ranch B4. Present Use: Resort
*B5. Architectural Style: Custom Ranch / Spanish Colonial Revival
B11. Additional Resource Attributes: None Identified
*B12. References: Urbana Preservation & Planning, LLC. La Quinta Citywide Historical
Resources Survey and Context Statement, 2023. See Continuation Sheet for additional
references.
B13. Remarks: None
*B14. Evaluator: Urbana Preservation & Planning, LLC | www.urbanapreservation.com
*Date of Evaluation: December 2022
The Ahmanson Ranch House / Rancho Xochimilco property was researched at the City of La Quinta, the La Quinta Historical Society, the La
Quinta Public Library, and via online archives including Coachella Valley Telephone Directories (1946-1957), City of La Quinta building permits,
regional newspapers within the UC Riverside California Digital Newspaper Collection, aerial imagery from ca. 1930s forward, and the Riverside
County Assessor's Office online property search. Results are limited. The property is not listed in available Coachella Valley Telephone
Directories. See Continuation Sheet for significance and integrity conclusions.
*B6. Construction History: The subject property was constructed in 1961. In 2006, property owner James Blanton obtained a permit
to conduct a special inspection for a 40'x60' tent, with the work completed by Badger Construction (Permit No. 06-3770). In 2007, the
property owner, the City of La Quinta, obtained a permit to conduct a special Inspection for a 40'x50' tent with work was completed by Classic
Party Rentals (Permit No. 07-3056). In 2007, the City of La Quinta obtained a permit to conduct a special Inspection for a 40'x50' tent (Permit
No. 2016-0055). Available aerial photography indicated that an addition was added to the dwelling between 2002 and 2004. The addition on
the northeast elevation is clad with stucco, with red clay tile roofing. At that time, a pool off the southwest elevation was also removed from
the property. There appear to have been changes to the fenestration of the residence since its conversion from a single-family dwelling to a
commercial property housing the SilverRock course clubhouse. The windows and doors are modern replacements and the surrounding
landscape has been dramatically altered. However, the essential form of the original building is definable.
*B7. Moved? ý No o Yes o Unknown Date: N/A Original Location: N/A
*B8. Related Features: None
B9a. Architect: Not Identified b. Builder: Not Identified
*B10. Significance:
Theme: Ranching and Agriculture, 1900 – 1970s; Recreation and Leisure, 1926-1970s Area: City of La Quinta
Period of Significance: 1961 – 1970s Property Type: Commercial Applicable Criteria: NRHP / CRHR / Local eligible
(A/1/B(events) and C/3/C)
DPR 523J (09/2013) *Required Information
*Map Name: La Quinta *Scale: 1:24,000 *Map Date: 2021
State of California — The Resources Agency
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
LOCATION MAP
Primary#: None
HRI #: None
Trinomial: N/A
CRHR Status Code: 3D / 3CD / 5D2
Other Listings: Urbana Survey No. 484
Resource Name: Ahmanson Ranch House and Landscape
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DPR 523L (09/2013)
Primary Record Information Continued:
79179 Ahmanson Lane_2: View facing southwest of the east (front) and north elevations.
79179 Ahmanson Lane_3: View facing west of the east (front) elevation.
State of California — The Resources Agency
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
CONTINUATION SHEET
Primary#: P-33-xxx
HRI #: None
Trinomial: N/A
CRHR Status Code: 3S
Other Listings: Urbana Survey No.: 484 Resource Name: Ahmanson Ranch House
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DPR 523L (09/2013)
Building, Structure, Object Information Continued:
B10. Statement of Significance Continued:
The Ahmanson Ranch House / Rancho Xochimilco was not previously evaluated. The property was developed in 1961 when Howard Ahmanson,
president and founder of Home Savings and Loan Association and art patron, built the existing ranch house, guesthouse, manager’s house, several
outbuildings, and a 9-hole golf course. The main residence is a 3-bedroom hacienda-style adobe blockhouse of Mr. Ahmanson’s design, with Spanish
tile roof. It is situated in an outcropping of the Santa Rosa Mountains and named Rancho Xochimilco. After Ahmanson’s death in 1968 the property
continued as an active alfalfa ranch until it was sold in 1980. The ranch house now exists as a clubhouse building for the SilverRock Golf Course with a
retained detached garage / stable.
The dwelling is associated with the themes of Ranches and Agriculture (1900-1970s) and Recreation and Leisure (1926-1970s), being one of the few
extant ranching settlements left within the boudaries of La Quinta and one of the earlier properties with a 9-hole golf course in La Quinta, following
the development of the La Quinta Country Club and the Indian Springs (Westward Ho) Golf Club. The property possesses individual documented
significance in relation to both these themes. The property is assigned the 3S, 3SC, and 5S2 status codes: appears eligible for NR individually through
survey evaluation, appears eligible for CR individually through survey evaluation, and individually eligible for local listing or designation.
The dwelling is eligible under NRHP/CRHR/Local Criterion A/1/B, as it is associated with the history of early ranches in the Coachella Valley and
seasonal resort retreats. It is not individually eligible under Criterion B/2/B, as other properties are associated with Howard Ahmanson. The dwelling
is individually eligible under Criterion C/3/C, as it embodies the distinctive characteristics of a Custom Ranch style dwelling developed with Spanish
Revival elements in La Quinta during the mid-20th century. It is not individually eligible under Criterion D/4/D, as further study of the dwelling would
not appear to yield information which could be considered important in local, regional, state, or national history. Additionally, the property was not
found to be individually eligible under Local Register Criterion A, as it was not found to exemplify a special element of the City of La Quinta. While
the dwelling has been modified since initial construction on the exterior with an addition between 2002 an 2004, the addition materials are compatible
but differentiated from intial construction. Thus the property, as a whole, maintains integrity from the historic period.
B10. References Continued:
Riverside County Assessor Records; City of La Quinta Building Permit Records; La Quinta Historical Society Research Collection; Coachella Valley
Telephone Directories (1946-1957); California Digital Newspaper Collection, University of California Riverside; Digital Newspaper Collection,
Genealogybank.com; Digital Newspaper Collection, Newspapers.com; Digital Collection, Ancestry.com; Online Historic Aerial Photographs, Historic
Aerials.com; University California Santa Barbara Online Historic Aerial Collection; U.S. Department of the Interior Earth Explorer Historic Aerial
Collection; La Quinta Design and Development Department, City of La Quinta Historic Context Statement, 2011; and La Quinta Historical Society,
Images of America: La Quinta, 2020.
State of California — The Resources Agency
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION
CONTINUATION SHEET
Primary#: P-33-xxx
HRI #: None
Trinomial: N/A
CRHR Status Code: 3S
Other Listings: Urbana Survey No.: 484 Resource Name: Ahmanson Ranch House
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