BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 2701
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 28, 2010

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                     AB 2701 (Eng) - As Amended:  March 18, 2010 

          Policy Committee:                              Housing and  
          Community Development                         Vote: 8 - 0 

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill places qualified playgrounds and playground sites with  
          historical or cultural significance under the exclusive  
          jurisdiction of the State Historical Building Code. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Costs for the Building Standards Commission would be minor,  
          likely in the range of $10,000 per year. 

          COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale  . AB 2701 states that playgrounds that have a  
            historic designation are subject to the requirements of the  
            state historical building code rather than the standardized  
            modern playground standards that apply to all other  
            playgrounds.  The bill is not a change to existing law, which  
            already specifies that any structure with a historic  
            designation is subject to the state historical building code  
            and that the application of any other statue or regulation as  
            applied to a historic structure is governed by the state  
            historical building code.

           2)Background  . La Laguna park in San Gabriel, often referred to  
            as "Monster Park" or "Dinosaur Park," was created in 1965 by  
            Benjamin Dominguez, a master concrete craftsman who created a  
            number of playgrounds in the Los Angeles area.  Friends of La  
            Laguna, which was formed when the City of San Gabriel  
            announced plans to demolish the playground because it could  
            not see a feasible way to bring the unique one-of-a-kind  
            structures into compliance with modern playground safety  








                                                                  AB 2701
                                                                  Page  2

            standards, successfully managed to place the playground on the  
            California Register of Historic Places.  

            According to the sponsor, in the 1950s and 1960s, reaction to  
            suburban growth, a booming population, and tract home  
            development led to the creation of unique and artistic  
            playgrounds.  These playgrounds functioned to distinguish  
            cities from one another and communicated the character and  
            diversity of the community.  These playgrounds sometimes drew  
            on the skills of notable artists and architects, which  
            resulted in a creative period in playground design and served  
            to capture the culture of the community.  Many communities  
            have already destroyed playgrounds built during this era that  
            might have been worthy of a historic designation.  The  
            demolition of a historic playground results in the loss of a  
            community icon, and in some cases, a regional resource.  

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081