HomeMy WebLinkAboutDune Palms HRER and Attachemnt to Caltrnas 9-29-2016Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
Attachment C. HRER
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
HISTORICAL RESOURCES EVALUATION REPORT
FOR THE
DUNE PALMS ROAD LOW-WATER CROSSING
REPLACEMENT PROJECT, LA QUINTA, RIVERSIDE
COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
Federal Project No. BLRKS – 5433(014)
Prepared for
California Department of Transportation—District 8
464 W. 4th St
San Bernardino CA 92401
Prepared by: _____________________________________________ _________________
C. Lynn Furnis, M.A., Architectural Historian, Cogstone Date
1518 W Taft Avenue, Orange, CA 92865
Reviewed by Andrea Galvin, Principal Architectural Historian, GPA Consulting
231 California Street, El Segundo, CA 90245
Reviewed by: _____________________________________________ _________________
Andrew Walters Date
Principal Investigator, Architectural History (PQS)
Caltrans District 8, Environmental Support – Cultural Studies Division
464 West Fourth Street, 8th Floor, MS-825
San Bernardino, CA 92401-1400
Approved by: ____________________________________________ _________________
Gabrielle Duff, Branch Chief Date
Caltrans District 8, Environmental Support – Cultural Studies Division
464 West Fourth Street, 8th Floor, MS-825
San Bernardino, CA 92401-1400
September 2016
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SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
The proposed project involves the replacement of the existing low-water crossing spanning the
Coachella Valley Storm Water Channel (CVSC) at Dune Palms Road with an all-weather access
bridge in the City of La Quinta, California. The improvements would provide safe access across
the channel during all weather events, provide reliable routes for emergency vehicles, motorist,
pedestrains and bicyclists and achieve the City’s General Plan goals for the corridor. The bridge
is funded by the federal Highway Bridge Project (HBP) program.
Caltrans District 8, on behalf of FHWA, is the federal lead agency for this project. The project
requires compliance with the January 2014 First Amended Programmatic Agreement Among the
Federal Highway Administration, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the California
State Historic Preservation Officer, and the California Department of Transportation Regarding
Compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, as it pertains to the
Administration of the Federal-Aid Highway Program in California (PA).
The record search at the Eastern Information Center determined that no built environment
resources had previously been recorded within the Area of Potential Effects (APE). The APE
was surveyed by a qualified architectural historian and only the Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park
located within APN 600-030-010 was determined to have constituents older than 45 years and
would therefore require evaluation. The buildings on this parcel were identified, recorded, and
evaluated per National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and California Register of Historic
Resources (CRHR) eligibility criteria to determine if they qualified for listing for either register.
The mobile home park was evaluated as a historic district. There were no other buildings or
structures within the APE but outside the boundary of the mobile home park that are more than
45 years of age or older that would require individual evaluation for historic significance. The
mobile home park does not appear eligible for listing on the NRHP or on the CRHR as a historic
district, nor do any individual resources within appear eligible for either listing individually. The
results of the survey of the project APE for built environment resources determined that there are
no historic properties present within the APE for the purposes of Section 106 of the National
Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) or any historical resources for the purposes of the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS ......................................................................................................................................II
PROJECT DESCRIPTION ........................................................................................................................................ 1
AREA OF POTENTIAL EFFECTS .................................................................................................................................... 4
RESEARCH METHODS ............................................................................................................................................ 4
FIELD METHODS...................................................................................................................................................... 5
HISTORICAL OVERVIEW ...................................................................................................................................... 6
HISTORIC THEMES ...................................................................................................................................................... 7
DESCRIPTION OF CULTURAL RESOURCES .................................................................................................... 9
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS .......................................................................................................................... 12
FINDINGS .................................................................................................................................................................. 12
Historic properties listed in the National Register .............................................................................................. 12
Resources Previously Determined Eligible for the National REgister ................................................................ 12
Resources Previously Determined Not Eligible for the National Register .......................................................... 14
Historic Properties Determined Eligible for the National Register As a Result of the Current Study ................ 14
Resources Determined Not Eligible for the National Register as a Result of the Current Study ........................ 14
Resources for Which Further Study Is Needed Because Evaluation Was Not Possible ...................................... 14
Historical Resources for the Purposes of CEQA ................................................................................................. 14
Resources that are not historical resources under CEQA, per CEQA Guidelines §15064.5, because they do not
meet the California Register criteria outlined in PRC §5024.1........................................................................... 14
CONCLUSIONS .......................................................................................................................................................... 15
BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................................................................... 16
APPENDIX A. PREPARER’S QUALIFICATIONS ............................................................................................. 19
APPENDIX B. MAPS ................................................................................................................................................ 21
APPENDIX C. DPR 523 FORMS ............................................................................................................................ 26
LIST OF FIGURES
FIGURE 1. AERIAL VIEW OF DUNE PALMS MOBILE HOME PARK ................................................................................. 11
FIGURE 2. DUNE PALMS TRAILER PARK DISTRICT ...................................................................................................... 13
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PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The proposed project involves the replacement of the existing low-water crossing spanning the
Coachella Valley Storm Water Channel (CVSC) at Dune Palms Road with an all-weather access
bridge in the City of La Quinta, California (Project) (Appendix B, Map 1). The improvements
would provide safe access across the channel during all weather events, provide reliable routes
for emergency vehicles, motorist, pedestrains and bicyclists and achieve the City’s General Plan
goals for the corridor.
The Project is located immediately north of State Route 111 and south of Westward Ho Drive in
the City of La Quinta, western Riverside County, California (Appendix B, Map 2). Located
entirely within the city limits of La Quinta, the Project is depicted on the La Quinta 7.5 minute
USGS quadrangle in Sections 20 and 29; Township 5 South, Range 7 East, San Bernardino
Baseline and Meridian.
The existing roadway crosses the CVSC at the channel grade. The roadway width is 68 feet at
the crossing, and consists of one northbound and two southbound through lanes, an eight foot
wide walkway area along the western edge, and an eight-foot wide shoulder along the eastern
edge of the road, and no median. The existing roadway approach south of the crossing consists of
one northbound and two southbound through lanes. The northern roadway approach consists of
one through lane in each direction. The transition from one to two lanes in the southbound
direction occurs at the midpoint of the channel crossing. Dune Palms Road becomes a four lane
roadway with a median approximately one-quarter mile north of the channel low-water crossing
and just south of the project limits. The roadway section just north of the crossing will be
widened as part of an approved City project. The project was originally approved with a
Mitigated Negative Declaration under CEQA in April 2010.
The Project proposes to remove the existing low-water crossing on Dune Palms Road at the
CVSC in the City of La Quinta, Riverside County. The crossing would be replaced with a 480-
foot long and 86-foot wide three-span bridge. The bridge typical section consists of a six-foot
sidewalk on both sides of the bridge, two (2) 8-foot outside shoulders also serving as bike/golf
cart lanes, a 10-foot raised median, two (2) 11-foot travel lanes, and two (2) 12-foot travel lanes.
The proposed configuration will be consistent with the existing four lane roadway section to the
south, and the City’s current improvement project to the north (project number 2009-04), which
will widen Dune Palms Road from two to four lanes with a median and left turn lanes.
The proposed improvements would include reconstruction of the north and south bridge
approaches to accommodate the significant raised profile of the roadway. In order to match the
roadway section on the south side of the bridge, the project’s construction limits will be extended
to within 239 feet of Highway 111. On the north side of the bridge, the project construction
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limits would be extended to include a vacant lot immediately north of the project limits. The
vacant lot is owned by the City and would be offered by the City in the bidding documents to be
used for storage and construction staging by the contractor for the construction of this project.
As a part of the bridge construction, concrete slope protection would be installed along the north
side of the channel. Additionally, minor removal and replacement of slope protection would be
required on the south side of the channel west of the proposed bridge and extension of slope
protection approximately 300 feet downstream of the proposed bridge. The slope protection is
needed for scour countermeasures. As a result of the proposed cast-in-place drilled shaft bridge
construction, scour protection within the bottom of the channel should not be required.
As a result of the existing low water crossing acting as a quasi-grade control structure for the
CVSC, sediment has been deposited on the upstream side of the channel from Dune Palms Road
since the original construction. Additionally, on the downstream side of the Dune Palms Road
crossing, the channel has an area of scour. Therefore the elevation differential between the
upstream and downstream channel bottom is approximately eleven (11) feet; therefore the
project will grade the bottom of the channel 300 feet up and down stream of the crossing to
provide a uniform channel bottom slope within the project area.
The project will also include the following additional improvements:
• Railing Architectural treatment. The bridge design will incorporate railing
architectural treatment as required by the City’s standard design.
• Integration of a regional Bike/Pedestrian/NEV corridor (CV Link). The Coachella
Valley Association of Governments (CVAG) and the communities within the
Coachella Valley are working together on the implementation of a regional
Bike/Pedestrian/NEV corridor (CV Link) along Whitewater River and Coachella
Valley Storm Water Channel. The project design will be consistent with these plans
by allowing for the integration of a trail under crossing within the southern slope
protection, which also includes a trail connector to the pedestrian and bike facilities
proposed along Dune Palms Road in the project area.
• Utility Relocation. The project will also require utility relocations for overhead
electrical distribution lines (Imperial Irrigation District facility), adjustment to both
water valve can and lids and the manhole covers, minor 12-inch ductile iron pipe
water main relocations at each bridge abutment, and relocation of both a 12-inch and
18-inch sewer line at the northern bridge abutment. Both the water main and sewer
line relocations would be minor in nature, with the relocation limited to the existing
road right and or channel of way.
The relocation of the overhead electrical lines is considered by IID as a minor relocation, due to
a parallel underground system along the west side of Dune Palms Road. The project will
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coordinate with IID on providing the missing underground link crossing the channel through the
placement of conduit on the proposed bridge. The placement of the electrical system on the
bridge will mostly likely allow IID to eliminate the overhead distribution facility along the east
side of the road.
For the water main, the relocation is also considered minor by CVWD standards. The two
possible solutions for relocation would be either minor realignment work at the two abutments to
eliminate any possible conflicts with abutment construction or relocation of the full length
crossing the channel onto the bridge.
The Project would require right-of-way acquisition from three parcels within the APE, located
inthe northeast, southwest and southeast corners of the proposed bridge (APN’s 600-030-010,
600-390-021 and 600-030-018 respectively). APN’s 600-030-010 and 600-030-018 will require
both street right of way acquisition as well as a temporary construction easement, and APN 600-
390-021 will require only a temporary construction easement. Note, the Project will not require
any additional street right of way or construction easements from the High School property
(APN 600-010-004) located at the northwest corner of the project area.
The existing development at the northeast corner of the proposed bridge consists of a Mobile
Home Park with one single family home, which is the park manager’s residence and, though
outside the park fence, is part of the park (APN 600-030-010). Some of the mobile homes
adjacent to the Dune Palms Road are encroaching within the street right of way. The project may
require the acquisition of the single-family home site and relocation of two mobile homes.
The existing roadway will be modified to construct a temporary bypass road. The temporary
bypass will allow for staged construction of the bridge, and maintaining vehicle and pedestrian
access at all times. Temporary and short term access impacts may occur during construction, and
will require coordination with property owners, the public, and other stakeholders.
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AREA OF POTENTIAL EFFECTS
The Area of Potential Effects (APE) includes both horizontal and vertical limits (Appendix B,
Map 3). The horizontal limits of the APE north of the CVSC are along the existing street right-
of-way, along the west side of Dune Palms Road and include the entire intersection of Westward
Ho Drive/Blackhawk Way and Dune Palms Road. The eastern extent of the APE north of the
CVSC includes the intersection of Westward Ho Drive/Blackhawk Way and Dune Palms Road
and continues east approximately 500 feet to encompass the city-owned Accessor’s Parcel
Numbers (APNs) 600-030-020, 600-030-004, and 600-030-021 as well as privately-owned APNs
600-030-019 and 600-030-010. The 35,000 square foot staging area is located within APNs 600-
030-021 and 600-030-004. The Dune Palms Mobile Estates mobile home park is located within
APN 600-030-010. South of the Dune Palms Mobile Estates, the APE includes an approximately
750 foot wide section of the CVSC; this includes approximately 450 feet east of Dune Palms
Road and approximately 300 feet west of Dune Palms Road. South of the CVSC, the western
limit includes all of APN 600-390-021 as well as portions of the La Quinta Corporate Center
(APNs 600-390-023 and 600-390-010). The eastern extent of the APE south of the CVSC
includes the entire APN 600-030-018.
The typical maximum vertical depth APE outside of the channel area would be 1 foot of
excavation in undisturbed areas and up to 4 feet of excavation within the existing roadway street
section, notwithstanding the above noted roadway approach fill areas. The maximum vertical
depth APE for the portion of the project within the channel area is up to 80 feet of excavation for
the bridge piers and up to 40 feet of excavation along the channel banks for the installation of the
concrete slope protection. The construction of bridge piers would be accomplished by a large
diameter (8 foot) auger. The APE totals 48.5 acres.
RESEARCH METHODS
Cogstone staff conducted a search for archaeological and historical records at the Eastern
Information Center (EIC) for a one-mile radius around the APE on October 29, 2014. During the
records search, the following sources were consulted:
• California Historical Resources Inventory System (CHRIS)
• National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)
• California Historical Landmarks (CHL)
• California Historical Resources Inventory (HRI)
• California Points of Interest (PHI)
• California Register of Historical Resources (CRHR)
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Online resources consulted include the City of La Quinta Historic Resources Inventory Database
(HRID), historic topographic maps and historic aerial maps. Published and online references
were consulted to develop a history of the APE vicinity.
The record search did not locate any recorded built environmental structures within the APE.
Within the one-mile search area, one historic structure was previously recorded, located outside
the APE. Site P-33-4756 (CA-RIV-4756/H) is a historic-age concrete water valve tower with
associated pipes and a fence along Adams Street. It was recommended as not eligible for NRHP
listing by the surveyors. See the Archaeological Survey Report (ASR) for more details.
In-person visits were made to the City of La Quinta Building Department and to the County of
Riverside Building Department and Assessor’s Office on August 6, 2015 and on March 3, 2016.
Cogstone staff also visited the Dune Palms Mobile Home Park on two separate occasions to
conduct a survey and interview the Park Manager for information about the Park.
Themes that are relevant to this Project include “Desert Recreation” and “Trailer and Mobile
Home Parks” as they relate to the post-World War II years, from 1945 to 1975 in the Southern
California desert. The two themes are interconnected and are treated as one here because trailer
parks first came into existence in the region through recreational and travel activities.
FIELD METHODS
A field survey was performed on August 6, 2015, by Architectural Historian Lynn Furnis, M.A.
The survey consisted of a pedestrian-level investigation of the historic built-environment
resources located in the APE. Fieldwork included examining the style, construction, and
materials of the built-environment resources, and recording and photographing those resources,
which were mostly located in the south half of the park, since most of the mobile homes in the
north half were known to have been moved to the park sometime after 1972 and, therefore,
would be less than 45 years old. The row of mobile homes in the north half that border Dune
Palms Road are the exception and they were recorded. They stand along a row that had been
occupied by mobile homes prior to 1972 and some are old enough to have been there since that
time. The data collected was then used to prepare the California Department of Parks and
Recreation (DPR) 523 series site forms.
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HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
The City of La Quinta began as a “watering hole” for gold miners traveling through the
Coachella Valley on their way to Arizona. In 1862, Major William Bradshaw transported miners
through the Valley and stopped at Point Happy (corner of Washington Street and Highway 111)
which soon became a way station for stagecoaches and freight wagons traveling the Bradshaw
trail (Soltys 2005:175). In 1876, the Southern Pacific Railroad (SPRR) constructed tracks
through the region that today parallel US 86; they are now Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR) tracks
and are located 9 miles east of the Project Area. The coming of the railroad spurred a new local
industry. In the 1880s, enterprising growers in Coachella Valley imported date palms from the
Middle East in an effort to produce dates for the American market (Miller 2012). The center of
this effort was at nearby Indio and the effort was extremely successful. Coachella Valley’s dates
comprise approximately 95 per cent of all dates consumed in the United States. The date palms
provided a strong agricultural industry in the valley, with their fruit dependent on the local
railroad for shipping to distant markets. The proliferation of date production was responsible for
the founding of several Middle East inspired towns, such as Indio, Mecca, Oasis, and the now
defunct Arabia and Edom (Miller 2012).
The historical settlement pattern is reflected in land patents granted by the Government Land
Office, which show that the Southern Pacific Railroad Company was granted patents in 1866 and
the State of California in 1927 (BLM n.d.). In 1926, Walter Morgan founded the La Quinta
Resort which attracted Hollywood celebrities and established La Quinta as a resort destination
for Los Angeles’ wealthy population. The City of La Quinta, named for the Resort, was
incorporated in 1982 and maintains a seasonal population and reputation as a premier resort town
(City of La Quinta 2014).
The 1904 USGS topographic quadrangle, the earliest available, shows no development or any
other features near the APE with the exception of the Whitewater River. Highway 111 and Dune
Palms Road are first depicted on the 1941 Toro Peak USGS 15 min. quadrangle.
According to one article, there were more than 32 trailer parks in the Coachella Valley in the
1950s (Brown 2014). At this time, after World War II, people sought inexpensive recreation,
often bringing their travel trailer with them to desert, beach, and mountain destinations. The
many trailer parks around Palm Springs offered those seeking fall and winter sun and warmth,
safe and familiar facilities, to which many of them returned year after year. Each park served as
a small community, many of them having their own stores, restaurants, and recreational facilities
such as heated pools and shuffleboards.
The Dune Palms Mobile Home Park (parcel 600-030-010), as it was first called, was established
in 1949, or shortly before (The Desert Sun 1949:13). A classified advertisement from December
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16, 1949 reads, under “Trailer Space” “DUNE PALMS Trailer Park, new, quiet, beautiful view
of desert and mountains. Restful grass patio. On Dune Palms Rd, just off Highway 111, ½ mile
west of Sun Gold Date Gardens. Reasonable rates” (The Desert Sun 1949:9). This park was
probably always a more simple, plain, basic type of trailer park, as it remains today. According
to the present park manager, the park was established in 1951 and at one time had a pond on the
property (Michael Moss, March 3, 2016, personal communication). The 1972 aerial photograph
shows the pond, located in the northeast quadrant of the park (NETR 1972).
The 1972 aerial photograph is also the first to depict the Dune Palms Trailer Park (NETR 1972);
it also appears on the 1973 La Quinta USGS 7.5 min. quadrangle. Though the park had been
established in 1949, and presumably accommodated primarily small travel trailers, by 1972, it
was providing lots primarily for larger, more long-term single-wide mobile homes. These were
located primarily in the south half of the park. Much of the north half was vacant in 1972. It is
possible that that portion of the park was reserved for winter visitors in their travel trailers, with
the remainder being rented to year-round occupants, suggesting a transitional strategy to keep up
with changing trailer park/ mobile home park trends. There are several permanent buildings in
the park, including a community center, laundry room, tiny office, as well as a swimming pool,
as well as the single-family house located outside the park fence. The house is the residence for
the park manager and likely has been since at least 1972. The standing buildings do not appear
to have been constructed in 1949, but rather sometime between 1959 and 1972 (NETR 1972;
USGS 1959).
A few buildings and a short east-west road first appear in this area in the 1959 La Quinta USGS
7.5 min. quadrangle (Map 4). In the USGS topographic maps from the 1960s and 1970s, and in
aerial photographs from the early 1970s, crops of some kind were being cultivated on a few
parcels within 0.25 mile of the Project Area. Today, the park is called the Dune Palms Mobile
Estates. No other signs of development were apparent within or around the APE until 1996.
Later aerial photographs show the presence of La Quinta High School by1996, a USA Gasoline
Station on the northwest corner of the intersection of Highway 111 and Dune Palms Road by
2002, and the La Quinta Corporate Centre by 2005.
HISTORIC THEMES
Themes that are relevant to this Project include “Desert Recreation” and “Trailer and Mobile
Home Parks” as they relate to the post-World War II years, from 1945 to 1975 in the Southern
California desert. The two themes are interconnected and are treated as one here because trailer
parks first came into existence in the region through recreational and travel activities and
interests of Americans. As noted above, there were more than 32 trailer parks in the Coachella
Valley in the 1950s (Brown 2014). After World War II, people were seeking inexpensive
recreation, and traveling with their trailers for cheap lodging in the desert was a popular way to
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do it. Based on trailer parks designated as such on the 1973 USGS topographic map (USGS
1973), there were at least 35 trailer parks in existence in 1973 within the La Quinta, Coachella,
Indio, Palm Desert, Cathedral City, and Palm Springs communities. Several of these were quite
large.
Palm Springs was the most famous, early desert resort in the Coachella Valley, beginning in the
1930s. Its sunny, warm winter climate drew year-round and seasonal residents. By 1939, the
permanent population was 5,336, with more than 8,000 in the winter (Bogert 2016). One of its
earliest trailer parks was established in the 1930s, known as Ramon Trailer Park (Brown 2014).
It is still operating, with 250 mobile homes (no longer trailers) on 20 acres. At about this same
time, famous Hollywood actors and actresses discovered the place and truly put Palm Springs on
the map as a desirable resort town. Tourists with their travel trailers came in droves before and
after World War II. The popularity of Palm Springs spread to the region as a whole, with Desert
Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, La Quinta and other nearby communities being
created or, if already in existence, then expanding and prospering through tourism and recreation.
Golf courses and swimming pools were everywhere.
Hollywood celebrities were also attracted to La Quinta, the very upscale resort established by
Walter Morgan in 1926 (City of La Quinta 2014). La Quinta had few trailer parks, with just two
shown in 1973 (USGS 1973). One of those was the Dune Palms Trailer Park, the other, name
unknown, was located approximately 0.25 mile to the south-southeast, south of the Whitewater
River and on the south side of Hwy 111. It appears to have been even smaller than the Dune
Palms Trailer Park. The Dune Palms Trailer Park was 14 acres in size, as it remains today. The
unnamed park was approximately 8 acres in extent.
In neighboring communities, the number of trailer parks varied in 1973, with 13 in Palm Springs,
eight in Indio, six in Cathedral City, four in Palm Desert, two in Coachella (USGS 1973). The
range of trailer park types varied considerably within the Coachella Valley, from small, less
structured parks like the Dune Palms Trailer Park to large, well-groomed parks with amenities
such as wide, paved streets, extensive landscaping, large club houses and other ancillary
buildings, large trailer spaces, and multiple pools. Bing Crosby’s Blue Skies Village in Rancho
Mirage was one of the latter type (Brown 2014).
As mentioned above, each park served as a small community, many of them having their own
stores, restaurants, and recreational facilities. In the early years of auto camping, private camps
tended to arrange camp spaces in a row that was either parallel to or perpendicular to the
adjacent highway (Fowler et al. 2016:4). The older topographic maps indicate that the first
interation of the Dune Palms Mobile Home Estates consisted of a single road oriented
perpendicular to Dune Palms Road. Presumably, the trailers were lined up along one or both
sides of this road or lane. As time went on, Dune Palms Trailer Park (later Dune Palms Mobile
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Estates) offered a swimming pool, small laundry room, a community room of some type, a pond
in its early years, paved lanes, and narrow trailer and mobile home spaces. There is a tiny
manager’s office on the grounds today, as well as a manager’s residence just outside the fenced
park area, but still within the same parcel of land.
By the mid-1950s, trailers had become larger and more spacious inside (Fowler et al. 2016:9,
11). They became more like permanent houses and less like travel trailers. Their larger sizes
and more limited mobility, as well as their popularity, led to changes in the configuration of the
later trailer parks, soon to be mobile home parks. The lots became larger and often had
individual concrete patios. Each also had its own utilities, such as water, electricity, sewer, and
garbage service. The street patterns within the parks became less grid-like and more curvilinear.
And they were furnished with communal recreation or meeting buildings, playgrounds, and
swimming pools, in addition to laundry rooms and park offices. They were also well-defined
through outer fencing and landscaping, as well as more extensive landscaping between lots.
The Dune Palms Trailer Park has some of the later features and some of the earlier features,
reflecting its existence and transition from 1949 to the present. It has expanded its streets, from
the original one, then to two parallel streets that are perpendicular to the adjacent main road. By
1972, there were two loops formed around the two streets. But individual spaces remain quite
narrow for the most part, with little landscaping between them. Many do have concrete patios.
The park is a mix of double-wide and single-wide mobile homes, with a few small trailers and
even campers on trucks. The park has communal amenities such as a swimming pool, park
office, laundry room, and community center, but it definitely appears to cater mostly to working
families and a few retirees, rather than to mostly retirees looking to the park for social activities
and recreation. When compared with the full spectrum of trailer and mobile home park
possibilities available in the area in the 1940s to the 1970s, the Dune Palms Trailer Park was a
very modest one. It contained approximately 100 spaces within its 14 acres. There were smaller
parks, as well as some that were much larger and more refined.
DESCRIPTION OF CULTURAL RESOURCES
Through this study, one historic resource has been newly-recorded and evaluated; the Dune
Palms Trailer Park. The DPR is included in Appendix C.
Table 1. Properties Surveyed Older Than 45 Years
Street Address Assessor’s Parcel No.
(APN)
Date of
Construction
Description
46-400 M.E. Dune Palms Road 600-30-010 Pre-1972 Trailer/Mobile Home Park
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The current Dune Palms Mobile Estates mobile home park comprises 14 acres and includes five
permanent buildings and structures (pool, laundry room, community center, park office, and
manager’s residence), five mobile homes that are more than 45 years old and 94 that are less than
45 years old. Due to the nature of the property type and the concentration of buildings,
structures and objects within a defined boundary that have a shared historic context, the mobile
home park was evaluated as a singular resource (historic district) instead of evaluating each
individual feature therein. It was determined to not meet the NRHP or CRHR criteria because it
does not appear to be a trailer or mobile home park that has specifically influenced or led the
national or regional trends in trailer park development or popularity over time; it is not known to
be associated with a person or persons important in national or regional history, it possesses most
of the character-defining features for a mobile home park from the 1920-1969 period (Fowler et
al. 2016), yet is not a good example of one. In addition, it retains little of its integrity since very
few of the existing trailers and mobile homes are 45 years old or older and are not contributing
district elements. Figure 1 below provides an aerial view of the mobile home park depicting its
boundaries.
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Figure 1. Aerial view of Dune Palms Mobile Home Park
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FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
FINDINGS
One property was evaluated for historic signficance. It consists of a trailer/mobile home park
over 45-years of age, evaluated as a historic district. Inside the park fence are mobile homes and
trailers, as well as permanent buildings such as a tiny manager’s office, a community building, a
laundry room, and a swimming pool (Figure 2). Outside the fence but on the same parcel is a
single-family house serving as the park manager’s residence. Cogstone recorded and evaluated
the mobile home park as a district in keeping with Caltrans’s guidelines that a district “possesses
a significant concentration, linkage, or continuityof sites, buildings, structures, or objects united
historically or aesthetically by plan or physical development” (Caltrans 2014:5). The Dune
Palms Trailer Park (District) satisfies the district definition in that it possesses a concentration
and continuity of buildings that are united historically by plan and physical development (Figure
1). It’s historic name of Dune Palms Trailer Park was utilized rather than the modern name.
The Dune Palms Trailer Park District is 66 years old. It retains five permanent structures that
also appear to be at least 45 years old. The vast majority (95 per cent) of the existing mobile
homes within the Park are less than 45 years old and/or have been moved to the Park within the
past 43 years. Only five mobile homes appear to be 45 years old or more. These and the five
permanent buildings and structures, as well as roads, comprise the main structures that have been
part of the Park since between 1960 and 1972. They are contributing elements to the district.
Still, the Dune Palms Trailer Park does not appear eligible for listing on the NRHP or on the
CRHR.
Lynn Furnis, a qualified architectural historian who meets the Professionally Qualified Staff
Standards in the Section 106 Programmatic Agreement (Section 106 PA) Attachment 1 as an
Architectural Historian or above, has determined that the other properties present within the
Indirect APE, including federally-owned resources, meet the criteria for Section 106 PA
Attachment 4 (Properties Exempt from Evaluation) as property types 4 and 5. Andrea Galvin, a
qualified principal architectural historian, has concurred.
HISTORIC PROPERTIES LISTED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER
none
RESOURCES PREVIOUSLY DETERMINED ELIGIBLE FOR THE NATIONAL REGISTER
none
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
13
Figure 2. Dune Palms Trailer Park District
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
14
RESOURCES PREVIOUSLY DETERMINED NOT ELIGIBLE FOR THE NATIONAL REGISTER
none
HISTORIC PROPERTIES DETERMINED ELIGIBLE FOR THE NATIONAL REGISTER AS A RESULT
OF THE CURRENT STUDY
none
RESOURCES DETERMINED NOT ELIGIBLE FOR THE NATIONAL REGISTER AS A RESULT OF THE
CURRENT STUDY
Name Street Address Assessor's
Parcel No. Community
OHP
Status
Code
Description
Map
Reference
No.
Dune Palms
Trailer Park
46-400 Dune
Palms Road, La
Quinta, CA
600-30-010 La Quinta 6Z 1940s-70s trailer
park
1
RESOURCES FOR WHICH FURTHER STUDY IS NEEDED BECAUSE EVALUATION WAS NOT
POSSIBLE
None
HISTORICAL RESOURCES FOR THE PURPOSES OF CEQA
None
RESOURCES THAT ARE NOT HISTORICAL RESOURCES UNDER CEQA, PER CEQA GUIDELINES
§15064.5, BECAUSE THEY DO NOT MEET THE CALIFORNIA REGISTER CRITERIA OUTLINED IN
PRC §5024.1
Name Street Address Assessor's
Parcel No. Community
OHP
Status
Code
Description
Map
Reference
No.
Dune Palms
Trailer Park
46-400 Dune
Palms Road, La
Quinta, CA
600-30-010 La Quinta 6Z 1940s-70s trailer
park
1
The Dune Palms Trailer Park District is the only resource determined to be not eligible for the
California Register of Historic Resources, under CEQA, as a result of the current study.
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
15
CONCLUSIONS
This HRER evaluated one property within the APE. The results of the survey of the project APE
for built environment resources determined that the only non-exempt property, the Dune Palms
Trailer Park, does not have the potential to be considered a historic property under the NHPA or
under CEQA, either individually or as a historic district.
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
16
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BLM (U.S. Bureau of Land Management)
n.d. General Land Office patent records for Township 5 South, Range 7 East, Sections 20 and
29; San Bernardino Meridian, accessed online at https://glorecords.blm.gov/default.aspx
on February 26, 2016.
Bogert, Frank M.
2016 The History of Palm Springs, in Palm Springs, First Hundred Years, accessed online at
http://palmsprings.com/history/today.html on May 23, 2016.
Brown, Renee
2014 Palm Desert History: Glamorized Mobile Home Living, in My Desert, accessed online at
http://mydesert.co/PWyrHk on March 2, 2016.
California
2016 2016 California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Statutes and Guidelines, California
Code of Regulations, Title 14, Division 6, Chapter 3, Sections 15000-15387, AEP, Palm
Desert, CA.
Caltrans (California Department of Transportation)
2014 Chapter 7: Built-Environment Cultural Resources Evaluation and Treatment, Exhibit
7.4.3, in Standard Environmental Reference, Vol. 2, California Department of
Transportation, online resource, accessed at www.dot.ca.gov/ser/index.htm on March 4,
2016.
The Desert Sun
1949 Dune Palms Trailer Park, in the classified ads section of The Desert Sun, December 16,
1949, Palm Springs, CA, p.13, column 6.
FHWA (Federal Highways Administration)
2014 FHWA Section 106 PA, Attachment 4: Exempt Properties: in Caltrans Environmental
Handbook, Cultural Resources, Vol. 2 Exhibit 1.1.
Hart, John Fraser, Michelle J. Rhodes, and John T. Morgan
2002 The Unknown World of the Mobile Home, The John Hopkins University Press,
Baltimore, MD.
McAlester, Virginia and Lee McAlester
2009 A Field Guide to American Houses, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY.
Miller, Bettye
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
17
2012 History of Date Industry in Indio, in Prairie Farmer, February 8, 2012, accessed online at
http://farmprogress.com/story-history-date-industry-indio-9-56932 on February 29,
2016.
NETR (Nationwide Environmental Title Research)
1960 Historic Aerial photograph, at Historicaerials.com, Nationwide Environmental Title
Research, LLC, accessed online on January 11, 2016.
1972 Historic Aerial photograph, at Historicaerials.com, Nationwide Environmental Title
Research, LLC, accessed online on January 11, 2016.
1996 Historic Aerial photograph, at Historicaerials.com, Nationwide Environmental Title
Research, LLC, accessed online on January 11, 2016.
Riverside County
1975 Space #82, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # 02200, Riverside, California.
1976 Space #83, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # 07908, Riverside, California.
1977 Space #55, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # 11170, Riverside, California.
1979 Space #21, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # A007560, Riverside, California.
1980 Space #4, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # A009024, Riverside, California.
1980 Space #5, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # A008972, Riverside, California.
1981 Space #9, Department of Building & Safety, County of Riverside, Mobile Home
Installation Application, Permit # A012578, Riverside, California.
Soltys, Richard J.
2005 Coachella Valley: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, Richard J. Soltys Productions, La
Quinta, CA.
Fowler, K., H. Goers, and C. Lazzaretto
2016 Los Angeles Citywide Historic Context Statement, Trailer Parks and Mobile Home Parks
Theme. Dated January 2016. Accessed online 9/27/2016 at
http://preservation.lacity.org/sites/default/files/Trailer%20Parks%20and%20Mobile%20H
ome%20Parks,%201920-1969.pdf.
USGS (United State Geological Survey)
1904 USGS 15 min. quadrangle, United States Geological Survey, Washington, D.C.
1941 Toro Peak USGS 15 min. quadrangle, United States Geological Survey, Washington, D.C.
1959 La Quinta USGS 7.5 min. quadrangle, United States Geological Survey, Washington,
D.C.
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
18
1973 La Quinta USGS 7.5 min. quadrangle, United States Geological Survey, Washington,
D.C.
Wallis, Allan D.
1991 Wheel Estate: The Rise and Decline of Mobile Homes, Oxford University Press, New
York, NY.
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
19
APPENDIX A. PREPARER’S QUALIFICATIONS
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
20
PREPARERS’ QUALIFICATIONS
This study was prepared by Lynn Furnis, architectural historian, for Cogstone and reviewed by
Andrea Galvin, principal architectural historian, of GPA Consulting. All of Ms. Galvin’s
comments were incorporated into the revised documents.
Andrea Galvin is a Principal Architectural Historian for GPA and has been practicing in the
field of historic preservation since 1995. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental
Design from the University of California, Davis, a Master of Science degree in Historic
Preservation from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Certificate in Preservation Planning
from Istanbul Technical University in Turkey. Ms. Galvin peer reviewed the report and DPR
forms. She has extensive experience in Caltrans District 8.
Lynn Furnis is an architectural historian and historical archaeologist who has worked as an
architectural historian in California and Nevada for the past 12 years, and as an historical
archaeologist for the past 40 years. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology from the
University of California, Davis and a Master of Arts degree in Anthropology from the University
of Nevada, Reno. She has completed coursework in World Architecture, Anthropology of
Architecture, Vernacular Architecture, Historic Preservation, and a workshop on The
Identification of Mid-Twentieth Century Buildings.
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
APPENDIX B. MAPS
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
Map 1. Project Vicinity Map
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
Map 2. Project Location Map
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
Map 3. Project Aerial Map
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
Map 4. Project area superimposed on 1959 USGS map.
Note short east-
west road in
mobile home park
space.
Dune Palms Low Water Bridge Replacement HRER
APPENDIX C. DPR 523 FORMS
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #
PRIMARY RECORD Trinomial
NRHP Status Code 6Z
Other Listings Review Code Reviewer Date
Page 1 of 14 *Resource Name or #: Dune Palms Trailer Park District
P1. Other Identifier: APN 600-30-010
*P2. Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted *a. County: Riverside
and (P2b and P2c or P2d.
*b. USGS 7.5' Quad: La Quinta Date: T 5S ; R 7E ; NW ¼ of NE ¼ of Sec 29 ; S.B. B.M.
c. Address: 46-400 M.E. Dune Palms Rd City: La Quinta Zip:92253-4034
d. UTM: Zone: 11 ; mE/ mN (G.P.S.)
e. Other Locational Data: APN 600-30-010; Elevation: 55 ft amsl
To reach the site, proceed south (eastbound) on Interstate 10 to Exit 137/Washington Street. Turn right onto Washington Street
and proceed 3.3 miles. Turn left onto Highway 111 and proceed 1.2 miles. Then turn left onto Dune Palms Road. The mobile
home park (site) is located 0.38 mile to the north, on the east (right) side of the road.
*P3a. Description: The site consists of a complete mobile home park, dating to at least 1949, here considered as a district. At
present, the park includes 103 mobile home spaces, of which 99 are occupied, 97 of them filled with mobile homes and two with
travel trailers. In addition, the park includes five permanent structures – a laundry room, a community center building, a
swimming pool, a small office, and a single-family 1960s style house situated outside the mobile home park fence, but at the
southwest corner of the same parcel occupied by the park. This house serves as the mobile home park manager’s residence. There
are two entrances from Dune Palms Road – a north entrance and a south entrance – and these lead to paved lanes and loops along
which the mobile homes and structures stand. As of 1972, most of the mobile homes were located in the south half of the park,
with just eight units in the north half and approximately 30 in the south half. All of the permanent structures are located in the
south half. Because the mobile homes in the north half (except for the original 8) had to have been moved to the park after 1972,
they have been there for 43 years or less. Those 41 mobile homes are not recorded or evaluated here, since they have been in the
park less than 45 years and are not considered historic in age, no matter how old each actual mobile home might be. All of the
permanent structures, including the single family house just outside the park, were in place by 1972 and have been recorded and
evaluated as part of this district site record. Only those five mobile homes that appear to date to the 1960s or older are described
and evaluated here. (See Continuation Sheet for more text on page 5).
*P3b. Resource Attributes: HP2: Single family property, HP4: Ancillary buildings, HP13: community center, HP30: trees,
vegetation, HP39: roads, swimming pool, HP46: fences
*P4. Resources Present: Building Structure Object Site District Element of District Other (Isolates, etc.)
P5b. Description of Photo: Main (south)
entrance to park, view to east, frame
2015_08_06_LF.08
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and Sources:
Historic
Prehistoric Both
Circa 1949 based on a newspaper classified ad
*P7. Owner and Address:
Unknown
*P8. Recorded by:
Lynn Furnis
Cogstone Resources Management, 1518 W. Taft
Ave., Orange, CA 92865
*P9. Date Recorded: August 6, 2015; updated May 25, 2016
*P10. Survey Type:
Architectural intensive Section 106 Evaluation
*P11. Report Citation:
Historical Resources Evaluation Report for the Dune Palms Road Low-Water Crossing Replacement Project, La Quinta City,
Riverside County, California, Federal Project No. Blrks – 5433(014), Furnis 2016.
*Attachments: NONE Location Map Sketch Map Continuation Sheet Building, Structure, and Object Record
Archaeological Record District Record Linear Feature Record Milling Station Record Rock Art Record
Artifact Record Photograph Record Other (List):
DPR 523A (1/95) *Required information
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #
DISTRICT RECORD Trinomial
Page 2 of 14 *NRHP Status Code: 6Z
*Resource Name or #: Dune Palms Trailer Park District
D1. Historic Name: Dune Palms Trailer Park D2. Common Name: Dune Palms Mobile Estates
*D3. Detailed Description:
The district consists of a complete mobile home park, dating to 1949. At present, the park includes 103 mobile home spaces, of
which 99 are occupied, 97 of them filled with mobile homes and two with travel trailers. In addition, the park includes five
permanent structures – a laundry room, a community center building, a swimming pool, a small office, and a single-family 1960s
style house situated outside the mobile home park fence, but at the southwest corner of the parcel and occupied by the park
manager. This house was constructed by 1972 and appears associated with the park. Very possibly, the owners and occupants of
the house were also the owners of the original mobile home park, as all are situated within the same single, large parcel (APN
600-030-010). Currently the house is used by the park manager. (See attached Continuation Sheet for additional text on page 14).
*D4. Boundary Description:
The district is confined to the parcel known as APN 600-030-010, which is defined by Dune Palms Road on the west, by the
Coachella Valley Storm Water Channel on the south, by the east boundary of the APN on the east, beyond which is a subdivision
of tract homes, and by the north boundary of the APN, which is delineated by a paved east-west lane that is part of the church
complex to the north, located on APN 600-030-019. The district boundary is the same as the current Dune Palms Mobile Estates
Park.
*D5. Boundary Justification:
In terms of characteristics that provide cohesion, the Dune Palms Trailer Park District is unmistakable as a cohesive unit, as it is
uniformly contained within the parcel boundaries. The park has an infrastructure, with two east-west entrance lanes, one for the
north half and one for the south half. Each lane leads to a loop and to other, short cross lanes (north-south). These define the
spaces along which all mobile homes, trailers, and permanent buildings are organized. There are no other mobile homes within a
mile.
*D6. Significance: Theme: Recreation and Trailer & Mobile Home Parks Area: Southern California Desert
Period of Significance: 1945-1975 Applicable Criteria: N/A
The Dune Palms Trailer Park District is 66 years old. It retains five permanent structures that also appear to be at least 45 years
old. The vast majority (95 per cent) of the existing mobile homes within the Park are less than 45 years old and/or have been
moved to the Park within the past 43 years. Only five mobile homes appear to be 45 years old or more. The remaining 94 are not
45 years old.The five older mobile homes and the five permanent buildings and structures, as well as roads, comprise the main
structures that have been part of the Park since between 1960 and 1972. They are contributing elements to the district.
The District is a trailer/ mobile home park that is one of at least 32 to 35 that have existed within the Coachella Valley since the
1950s to the 1970s. The Dune Palms Trailer Park was one of only two that were present in La Quinta as of 1973. Most were
located in Palm Springs, Indio, and Cathedral City. The Park was always small and was not a fancy or expensive trailer park, but
rather was an informal, minimally landscaped and structured park. Though this park does represent the trend of seasonal or
permanent vacationing in the desert resort areas in low-cost housing, Dune Palms was one of many similar parks in the region.
No evidence has been found to indicate that this park specifically influenced or played a significant part in that trend. The Park
does not appear to be associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of national, regional,
or local history, and is therefore not eligible for listing on the NRHP or CRHR under Criterion A/1. No information was found
that the Park was associated with the lives of significant persons in the past and is therefore not eligible for listing on the NRHP
or CRHR under Criterion B/2. The Park possesses some, but not all of the character-defining park features for the period, 1940s-
1970s period, but is not a good example of such a park. As a whole, it no longer retains most of the trailers or mobile homes that
it had as late as the 1970s. It is not considered eligible for listing on the NRHP or CRHR under Criterion C/3. This resource is
not an archaeological resource and therefore Criterion D/4 do not apply.
The District retains its integrity of materials, design, and location, but has lost its integrity of workmanship, setting, feeling, and
association. An estimated 5 per cent of the mobile homes present, plus all five of the permanent structures from pre-1972, and
existing roads are the only historic-age elements of the District. The large majority of mobile homes present today are less than
45 years old or were definitely moved to the park less than 45 years ago. They are not contributing elements of the district. The
District does not appear eligible for the NRHP or CRHR because it does not appear to be significant under any of the four criteria
and lacks sufficient integrity, as well. [This section is complete on this page]
*D7. References: (See Continuation Sheet, page 14) *D8. Evaluator: Lynn Furnis Date: February 29, 2016; updated 5/26/2016
Affiliation and Address: Cogstone Resource Management, Inc., 1518 W. Taft Avenue, Orange, CA 92865PR 523D (1/95)
*Required information
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
LOCATION MAP Trinomial
Page 3 of 14 *Resource Name or #: Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Map Name: La Quinta, Calif. *Scale: 1:24,000 *Date of Map:
DPR 523J (1/95) *Required information
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
SKETCH MAP Trinomial
Page 4 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Drawn By: Andre Simmons *Date: February 29, 2016
DPR 523K (1/95) *Required information
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
Page 5 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015 ; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation Update
*P3a. Description (continued):
The south half of the park has 48 mobile homes and two travel trailers. The majority of these are not 45 years old or more. Most
appear to be from the 1970s and 1980s. The same is true for the eight mobile homes in the north half. All of the permanent
structures, including the single family house, were in place by 1972 and are recorded and evaluated as part of this site record.
Only those mobile homes that appear to date to the 1960s or older are described and evaluated here.
Mobile Home Park Office Building: There is a small wood-framed office building adjacent to a mobile home along the north
flank of the south entrance, at Space 29. It is rectangular in plan, one story in height, and is east-facing. It is oriented north-south.
The roof is a shed roof, of low pitch, sloping to the west. It has a very wide overhang and open eaves to the south, but more
narrow overhang on the other three elevations. On the south side, a palm tree grows through a large hole in the wide overhang.
The small structure is partially clad in T1-11 siding (south elevation) and in sheet metal or other particle board sheeting
elsewhere. On its east (front) elevation, the office has an entry door. There is a pair of small fixed windows with faux muntins on
its south elevation. . A cement walkway separates the office from mobile home #29, where presumably the park manager lives.
Laundry Room: A small, one-story, rectangular structure serves as the laundry room for the mobile home park. It faces west
and is oriented north-south. It is located four mobile home spaces east of Dune Palms Road and along the south flank of the east-
west road that leads into the park from the south entrance. The structure is side-gabled, with a roof of very low pitch. It has a
moderate overhang and open eaves. The structure is clad in stucco. The structure’s front (west) elevation has two entry doors –
one at the north end and one at the center. The central door has a metal security door on the front. A small window of unknown
type is located between the doors, high up on the wall. A band of three more windows, all blinded, are located in the south half of
the elevation. The north elevation includes one large central, fixed window with wood trim and an attached metal utility box.
The east elevation is fitted with a large fixed window near the west end, one small blinded and barred window to the south, set
high up on the wall, then with a boarded-up doorway near the center, and at least three large windows of unknown type in the
south half of the elevation. A tall dog-eared fence and gate obscure the remainder of this elevation from view. A cement
sidewalk leads from the lane along east and west elevations of the structure.
Community Center Structure: An oddly-shaped structure located at the east end of the east-west south entrance lane is
assumed to be a community center or social hall for the park residents, though there are no signs to indicate this. The single-story
structure is of concrete block. It has a complex plan. It faces west and is oriented northeast-southwest. It appears that the
original building was a shallow V shape, that had a later rectangular bay added to the rear, which appears to contain two
bathrooms. The roof of the main, original part is a low-pitch shed roof, with a wide front (west) overhang and open eaves, but no
overhang elsewhere, though it does have a wide, wooden fascia on the sides and rear. The shed roof slopes to the east. The roof
on the addition is flat, with a wide overhang and open eaves.
The structure’s west (front) elevation has a central entry door, with a metal security door in front. From there, the elevation
spreads out in two wings, one to the southwest and one to the northwest. Most of it is clad in wide T1-11 siding, but the walls
extend beyond the main building on both ends, to form tall wings composed of concrete block. The south elevation includes this
narrow wing extension, then a plain wall expanse with no fenestration. The east elevation, also of concrete block, includes a
blinded, barred window in the south half, a concrete block chimney at the center, then the rectangular addition bay on the north
half. The north elevation of the main building is of concrete block, with a blinded, barred window near its east end, then the
added bay, which is shorter in height than the main structure. This bay has an entry door off-center, with a metal security door on
its north elevation.
The south elevation of the bay has a similar door at its west end, abutting the chimney of the main structure. On its east elevation,
it has two barred, blinded or painted windows situated high up on the wall. A wooden board is affixed at the center, vertically,
and it braces a wooden light pole. The windows are identical hopper types, one for each bathroom. Palm trees are planted in
front and at the rear of the building.
Swimming Pool: A large swimming pool graces the south entrance of the park, with entrance and exit lanes skirting the pool
area. The pool is oblong in shape, with a wide concrete apron around it on all sides, and fitted with two sets of steps and metal
hand rails. A stout metal bar and concrete wall fence encloses the pool complex. It is filled with clean water and is obviously still
being used.
DPR 523L (1/95) *Required information
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
Page 6 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation Update
*P3a. Description (continued):
Single Family Residence (Park Manager’s Residence):
The house that stands within the same parcel as the Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, but just outside the park fence at the
southwest corner of the parcel, is a single-story, west-facing house, oriented north-south. It is roughly rectangular in plan and
vernacular in style, with Ranch elements. It has an attached garage. The house is set back from Dune Palms Road approximately
30-35 ft and is adjacent to the Whitewater River bed, which is just to the south. The house is set on higher ground, above the
street and the river bed.
The roof of the house may be cross-gabled, but this is not certain as the garage is front-gabled, while the roof of the house is
obscured by a short vertical wall extension, on the west elevation at least. The house roof may be flat or side-gabled and low in
pitch. The garage roof is covered in composition shingles and has a moderate overhang with open eaves.
The front of the house (west elevation) is characterized by the two-car garage front at the north end, with two original wood, pull-
up doors. Recessed an estimated four feet from the garage front elevation, the north half of the house front has a front porch with
west-sloping shed roof element supported by three stout rectangular, stuccoed columns. The porch has a cement slab floor. The
front entrydoor is set near the center of the house’s west elevation, with four large aluminum-frame windows across the front.
Each window has a single center, fixed pane and two side panes that may be sliders. The house and garage are clad in stucco.
The only other elevation that is visible from the street is the north elevation of the garage. It reveals a central aluminum slider.
The side and rear yards are fenced with tall, dog-eared wood fence. The front yard is planted with several large trees, a grass
lawn, and shrubs and smaller plants; the rear and side yards also appear to have mature trees and shrubs. A short, paved driveway
(oriented east-west) leads from the street to the garage, with a parking space located at the front of the house. This house is the
residence of the Dune Palms Mobile Estates park manager and is still associated with the park.
Mobile Home #24:
The mobile home in space #24 is a metal-clad single-wide with convex roof of low pitch and rectangular plan. It is west-facing
and oriented north-south. The unit is set just a few feet north of the east-west lane from the south entrance and immediately west
of a small connecting lane between north and south halves of the Park. The mobile home’s west (front) elevation includes a
sliding glass entry door that is devoid of access steps and apparently is no longer used as the main entry. Near its south end, the
unit has a medium-sized louvered window with three glass panes. A wooden door is located in the north half of the elevation,
with wooden steps and handrails providing access. A second small window is further north. The entire length of the west
elevation is covered by a metal porch roof supported by small metal posts and one wooden post. Beneath it is a concrete pad.
The south elevation has a vertical upper half, with a central horizontal three-part window, consisting of two side fixed panes and a
central 1/1 sash window, all in aluminum frame. Above the window, interrupting the vertical plane is a decorative metal
projection consisting of a horizontal shelf above the window supported by side “wings” that narrow towards the vertical center of
the elevation. At that point, the lower half of the elevation is curved and recessed, then vertical at the base. The unit has a
plywood skirt on all elevations. The space is devoid of vegetation except for a few potted plants within the front patio area. A 3-
ft tall picket fence encloses a portion of the space on the west and north, where a storage shed stands.
Mobile Home #27:
The mobile home in space #27 is a metal-clad single-wide (10-12 ft wide) with a flat, bi-level roof. It is and rectangular in plan.
It is west-facing and oriented north-south. The unit is set approximately 10 ft north of the east-west lane from the south entrance.
The mobile home’s west (front) elevation includes a single-width wooden panel door with nine lights in the upper half.
Originally, a sliding glass entry door may have occupied this space as a door-width span adjacent to the existing door is now
covered with non-matching siding, apparently covering an older opening. Wooden steps and handrail provide access to the door.
Near its south end, the unit has a medium-sized louvered window with eight panes. A large, three-part window graces the center
of the elevation, with two side sliders. In the north half, a second door is located, also with wooden steps and handrail. A small
window is further north. The entire length of the west elevation is covered by a metal porch roof supported by small metal posts,
by a length of metal pipe, and by one wooden dowel. Beneath it is a concrete pad. The roof projects approximately 18 inches
above the south one-third of the roof for the northern two-thirds.
The south elevation includes the projecting roof element, which is fitted with a window. The main elevation has a projecting,
winged roof element covering the upper half, with a central horizontal three-part window, consisting of two side fixed panes and a
central 6-pane, louvered window, all in aluminum frame. Below the window is a narrow, decorative shelf of metal, below which
DPR 523L (1/95) *Required information
State of California The Resources Agency Primary #
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
Page 7 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
*P3a. Description (continued):
the lower half of the elevation is curved and recessed, then vertical at the base. The unit is skirted and the sparsely landscaped
yard has low, wrought iron fencing in front of the unit and across a dirt driveway on the east side of the mobile home. A second,
main driveway parallels the unit on its west, just beyond the patio area.
Mobile Home #30:
This unit is a 1960s vintage mobile home, a narrow single-wide (8 ft), with a rectangular addition added on to the west elevation,
and a carport on the east. This home has a flat, metal roof. The south elevation is now the front of the mobile home, due to the
addition, but originally the west elevation would have been the front. The unit is set back from the south entrance exit lane
approximately 10 ft, and is behind a tall fence. The single-wide is clad in metal sheeting, while the addition appears to be wood
or a particle board material. Its west elevation consists of a rounded metal overhang that extends down from the roof, with a
recessed horizontal band within which a large central, fixed window is set. Beneath the window, the elevation projects slightly to
the south. A wooden “awning” has been added above the window to shade the window. The awning is supported by two metal
rods. At each side of the recessed window band, there are wrought iron decorative curvilinear pieces, an attribute common to
1960s mobile homes. The south elevation of the addition includes the front entryway, off-center, with a wood, paneled front
door, accessed by steps and a raised deck.
The west elevation of the mobile home includes a small aluminum slider near the south end of the single-wide and two aluminum
sliders along the west elevation of the addition. The addition is composed of panels of wood or particle board. It is covered by a
carport-like or patio roof, composed of metal with slim metal supports. The east elevation has a carport cover, of metal with
metal supports projecting to the east. A single-car width paved driveway is along the east side of the single-wide, and under the
carport. The rear and side yards are fenced with tall, wood, dog-eared fencing. Two mature palm trees grow in the yard.
Mobile Home #40:
The late 1960s vintage mobile home in Space 40 is a wide single-wide unit (at least 10 ft), facing northeast and oriented
southeast-northwest. It is set at an angle to the private park lane and its front end is within a few feet of the lane. The unit has a
flat roof that rises slightly above the rear two-thirds of the mobile home, then continues on as a flat roof to the rear. It is covered
in sheet metal. The northeast elevation is clad in T1-11 siding, apparently replacement siding. A trim of three narrow horizontal
boards covers the upper edges of the siding. The front entryway is set within the northwestern one-third of the elevation and is a
sliding glass door that is accessed by means of a set of stairs and small stoop with wide wooden hand rail. To the southeast of the
deck is a second door, a wood panel one, accessed by means of a separate set of steps, stoop, and wood handrail. A small vinyl
slider is found southeast of this door, with a medium-sized one near the northwest end of the elevation. The central area is
covered with a metal and wood patio roof, supported by two thin metal posts.
The northwest elevation is also clad in T1-11 siding with a central, vinyl slider. The uppermost elevation segment is a metal strip
that projects out horizontally from the roof edge and then narrows until it merges with the siding. The strip is approximately 12
inches wide. Its flaring shape mimmicks winged overhang roof element beneath it, that is of wood and T1-11 and forms a shade
over the small slider. The window has wide wood trim, the horizontal parts of which extend beyond the vertical trim. Beneath
the window is a wide, wood or metal strip attached to the foot of the winged overhang, forming an angled decorative (and perhaps
structural) band across the front elevation.
A concrete slab forms a patio floor beneath the patio roof on the northeast elevation. Two chain link segments of 3-ft height form
a gate to the patio. Miscellaneous, non-matching metal fence segments enclose the patio and yard areas on either side of the gate.
A second, taller chain link fence encloses the yard on the southwest flank of the mobile home. Tall palm trees grow adjacent to
the yard.
Mobile Home #41:
The 1960s vintage mobile home in Space 41 is a single-wide unit (8-10 ft), facing south and oriented east-west. It is set at an
angle to the private park lane and its east end is within 5 feet of the lane. The metal-clad unit has a low-pitch, convex roof clad in
metal. The south (front) elevation has a main entry door of wood in the east half, with wood steps and handrail providing access.
Aluminum-framed, narrow windows flank the door. A second door is located in the west half, with another window beyond that.
The south elevation is fitted with a stout metal patio roof, supported by narrow metal posts, covering a concrete slab.
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Page 8 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
*P3a. Description (continued):
The east elevation has a wide projecting upper section, with a swamp cooler now filling part of a larger opening that once held a
window, now mostly blinded. This is within a recessed section, with narrow vertical wings on each side. A glass and metal light
fixture graces each side of the recess. A narrow, projecting shelf spans the elevation center, with a plain vertical expanse beneath
the shelf. The mobile home is skirted. The yard is fenced across the east border, with its own wooden overthrow defining the
front gate. Large, mature trees grow along the south and north flanks, providing shade for the mobile home.
Photographs:
Overview of Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park from Dune Palms Road, view to south-southeast
Overview of Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park along north flank of river, view to east-northeast
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Page 9 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
Photographs (continued):
Park Office at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, south elevation
Laundry Room at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, west and north elevations
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Page 10 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
Photographs (continued):
Community Center at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, west and north elevations
Park Pool at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, view to east
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*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
Photographs (continued):
Park manager’s residence at 46-400 Dune Palms Road, west elevation
Mobile Home #24 at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, south and west elevations
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Page 12 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
Photographs (continued):
Mobile Home #27 at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, south and west elevations
Mobile Home #30 at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, south and west elevations
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Page 13 of 14 *Resource Name or # Dune Palms Trailer Park District
*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
Photographs (continued):
Mobile Home #40 at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, north and east elevations
Mobile Home #41 at Dune Palms Mobile Estates Park, 46-400 M.E. Dune Palms Road
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*Recorded by: Lynn Furnis *Date: August 6, 2015; updated 5/26/2016 Continuation
*D3. Detailed Description (Continued):
There are two entrances from Dune Palms Road – a north entrance and a south entrance – each oriented east-west and these lead
to paved lanes and loops along which the mobile homes and structures stand. As of 1972, most of the mobile homes in the park
were located in its south half, with just eight units in the north half and approximately 30 in the south half. All of the permanent
structures, all present by 1972, were and are located in the park’s south half. Because the mobile homes in the north half (except
for the original eight) had to have been moved to the park after 1972, they have been there for 43 years or less. Those 41 mobile
homes are not recorded or evaluated here, since they have been in the park less than 45 years and are not considered historic in
age, no matter how old each actual mobile home might be.
The south half of the park currently is filled with 48 mobile homes and two travel trailers. The majority of these are not 45 years
old or more, based on their styles. Most appear to date from the 1970s and 1980s. The same is true for the eight mobile homes in
the north half. All of the permanent structures, including the single family house just outside the park, were in place by 1972 and
have been recorded and evaluated as part of this district site record. Only those five mobile homes that appear to date to the
1960s or older are described and evaluated here.
In terms of characteristics that provide cohesion, the Dune Palms Trailer Park District is unmistakable as a cohesive unit, as it is
uniformly contained within the parcel boundaries. Dune Palms Road defines it on the west, the Coachella Valley Storm Water
Channel (CVSWC) defines it on the south, and parcel boundaries that abut other parcels with different uses define it on the east
and north. The park has an infrastructure, with two east-west entrance lanes, one for the north half and one for the south half.
Each lane leads to a loop and to other, short cross lanes (north-south). These define the spaces along which all mobile homes,
trailers, and permanent buildings are organized. The mobile home spaces are organized in long east-west rows, for the most part,
though there are short north-south rows along the west and east boundaries. The individual spaces within most of the east-west
rows are oriented at diagonals, northwest-southeast. A few rows, however, have spaces that are all oriented north-south.
The permanent structures within the park serve as community focal points and are permanent elements that lend additional
stability, organization, and a sense of longevity to the District. These include the well-maintained swimming pool and fenced
area around it adjacent to the south entrance, the small office building situated close to the south entrance, the laundry room also
situated near the south entrance, but amongst a row of mobile homes, the community center located at the east end of the south
entrance lane, the central parking lot just west of the community center, and the Park Manager’s Residence.
The Dune Palms Trailer Park District is situated in the Colorado Desert, within the Coachella Valley, and now a part of the La
Quinta incorporated community. As late as 1972, the land immediately surrounding the Park was either bare undeveloped ground
or else was under cultivation, perhaps growing date palms (NETR 1972). A few houses also existed by then, located to the north
and east in small groups of four or five houses. At that time, there were grand, open views of mountains to the north and west. At
present, the area has been extensively developed and the Park is surrounded by tract homes on the east, by churches and small
businesses on the north, and by a high school across Dune Palms Road and to the northwest.
*D7. References:
Michael Moss, informant, Dune Palms Mobile Estates manager, personal communication, March 3, 2016
NETR (Nationwide Environmental Title Research)
1972 Historic Aerial photograph, at Historicaerials.com, Nationwide Environmental Title Research, LLC, accessed online on
January 11, 2016.
1996 Historic Aerial photograph, at Historicaerials.com, Nationwide Environmental Title Research, LLC, accessed online on
January 11, 2016.
USGS (United State Geological Survey)
1959 La Quinta USGS 7.5 min. quadrangle, United States Geological Survey, Washington, D.C.
1973 La Quinta USGS 7.5 min. quadrangle, United States Geological Survey, Washington, D.C.
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