Campaign Set for Restoration of Park Pagoda

Pigeons roost in its 40-foot-high attic.

Its stamped steel roof that simulates Spanish tile is dented and rusted. Termites and rot have attacked its wooden octagonal structure.

Now that Oxnard has revamped its main downtown thoroughfare and nearby Plaza Park at a cost of $2.3 million, the venerable 87-year-old pagoda that sits in the park’s center is next in line for refurbishing.

The Oxnard Downtowners, a group representing business people in the city’s retail core, will unveil what is being dubbed the Pagoda Restoration Project on Saturday at a celebration marking the reopening of A Street.

“The whole point is to reaffirm it as the focal point,” said Gary Blum, who is heading the campaign. “The whole city was platted out with the park at the center of the city, so that pagoda is the heart of the city.”

The project is expected to cost $60,000 to $80,000 and be completed in time for the park’s 100th anniversary on July 4, 1998. The money will come from grants and other fund-raising efforts.

The pagoda was built in 1910, at a cost of $1,215, to cover the artesian well in the park, Blum said. The following year, the two-tiered roof was raised to accommodate the addition of a stage for band performances. In 1971, it was declared Ventura County Historic Landmark No. 17.

But over the years, its intricate architectural details were masked by a now-peeling two-tone paint scheme that Blum describes as an expression of civic frugality, rather than the visual treat for the eye that was originally intended. Its platform decking collects water and leaks into the framing below. Benches around its base were removed during a 1960s remodeling, and its ornamental lighting was abandoned.

The goal is to assess the pagoda’s structural and seismic condition and return the structure to its original splendor.

“A lot of its original building materials are still there and still intact and that in and of itself in Southern California makes it something worth keeping,” said Michael Faulconer, an Oxnard restoration architect who has volunteered his services. “They’ve done great work in restoring downtown in the past five years--this is just another element or flavor to improving the image and revitalizing Oxnard.”

The campaign begins Saturday at a ribbon-cutting by local dignitaries at 7th and A streets, followed by a three-block parade to 4th Street.

The newly straightened A Street boasts new light fixtures, sidewalks, landscaping and palm trees after its two-month make-over. The rehabilitation returns the retail center to its original condition before a pedestrian mall--followed by installation of the controversial winding-street configuration--helped drive merchants and shoppers away in the 1960s.

Activities, which begin at 11 a.m., include a parade of vintage cars, a performance by the Oxnard High School Marching Band and a jitterbug dance contest.

A meeting for people interested in the pagoda’s restoration campaign will be held at 6 p.m. June 26 at Heritage Square Hall, 731 S. A St.