Cook Family Decries City's Order to Remove Every Trace of Historic Barn

The charred remains of Cook Historic Barn must be demolished by Jan. 1, according to a new demand by the city.

In addition, the city will not allow any remnants of the barn to remain earlier this month.

Greg Cook, who owns a quarter of the property with two other family members, wants to retain the small portion of the red barn that remains and rebuild. His daughter, Teresa Cook, who is helping in the effort, was hoping that remnant would remind the community of what once was and help raise the funds needed to buy out the the nearly 3/4-acre property. It could then be incorporated into a rebuild, she said.

But in a letter this week to Greg Cook from the city, it all must come down, and if it were to be rebuilt, it must meet exacting standards of a historic replica.

“The public health, safety and general welfare is of primary importance, the structure is virtually destroyed, and the remains of the building must be completely demolished as it is a public nuisance,” Grant Taylor, development services director, wrote Greg Gook on Thursday.

... the remains of the building must be completely demolished as it is a public nuisance.

– Grant Taylor, development services director 

The city granted a demolition permit Dec. 9, Taylor wrote, adding that everything must go, down to the foundation. The city gave the family 10 days from the Dec. 22 letter, or Jan. 1, to carry out the demolition.

In addition, the land is not zoned for agricultural use, Taylor wrote. The city grandfathered the barn into the zoning, which calls for public or institutional uses. The only way to rebuild the barn is to construct an historic replica.

“Rebuilding an historic structure is subject to city, state and federal laws, and if the historic structure is allowed to be rebuilt, it must retain the historic characteristics to include same location, size, materials and colors,” Taylor wrote.

Teresa Cook, who has been circulating an online and on-the-ground petition to garner support for rebuilding the barn, was disheartened by the letter.

She said she sees “the window closing and light beginning to fade.”

She wrote a Facebook status directly appealing to her great-aunt Mary Cook Elliott of San Juan Capistrano and her aunt, Greg’s sister, Susan Cook Wilson of Nevada City.

“To sell the land and demolish the barn as if it never existed would be a tragedy. Why do such a thing?” she posted. “The land can and should be preserved, a beautiful barn rebuilt and new memories will be created.”

Besides the public nuisance of the fire-destroyed debris, the barn is also a code enforcement problem for the city because Greg and Teresa hung a banner on the barn, encouraging the public to join them in their effort to save it.

“There are currently unauthorized recreational vehicles, electrical attachments and a banner that must all be removed immediately,” Taylor wrote.

“Please complete demolition of the structure within ten (10) calendar days of the date of this letter,” he wrote.

Teresa Cook finds the tone of the letter at odds with the city’s motto of, “Preserving the past, to enhance the future."

“Why are they not trying to preserve the historical landmark? There have been many historical buildings including barns, destroyed by fire, then replicas rebuilt,” she said. “This is not precedent.”