HELP THE VILLA RIVIERA GARGOYLES RESTORE THEIR ORIGINAL SPACE

The completion of the historic restoration of the Villa Riviera in Long Beach is being defaced by some remaining non-conforming and un-permitted iron railings  -- erected some time in the 1990s on the top East & West sides of the North wing, on common area exterior windows' ledges -- because of an preliminary injunction placed in Los Angeles Court.

The Villa Riviera building completed in 1929 is a prominent Long Beach historical icon and City Landmark.  It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.    The Villa Riviera Owners supporting the Restoration and Conservation of the Building consider themselves its keepers and frequently share it with the community through open houses and free use of their facilities.

The building is completing a remarkable restoration of its exterior bringing it back to its 1929 glory; for about 15 months some 14 layers of paint have been stripped, decorative plaster painstakingly restored and some thousand gallons of paint used to re-paint and bring back the original colors.

The Owners are unable to complete the full restoration of the exterior due to a preliminary injunction placed by ONE owner (out of 134), has stopped the Association from retrofitting the railings and bringing them into Code compliance.

The Villa Riviera was built in the Châteauesque architectural style by Architect Richard D. King;  a style that became fashionable in the 1880s due to the influence of New York City's famed Vanderbilt mansion (1879, Richard Morris Hunt).  The style was used to a limited extent in Long Beach and the Villa Riviera stands as the most monumental example of the Châteauesque style remaining, in the City of Long Beach and the region.

The façade of the building consists of alternating bays of flat planes and projecting bay windows.  Fifteen vertical bays of full building height symmetrically surround the building, crowned at the top by fifteen pairs of gargoyles, physically paired by a decorative pedestal, standing on massive windows' sills -- a prominent feature of the Châteauesque style.
 

These gargoyles stand in pairs, free and detached from the building's façade except for four pairs of these gargoyles where these non-conforming railings have been installed, encumbering and altering their space and destroying the symmetry and rhythm of the building's architecture.  This could impact the historic qualities that render the Villa Riviera a National Register listed property.

The architect, Richard D. King, referred to them (gargoyles) as his beloved gargoyles, standing free and unattached at the top of the building gazing protectively on all directions.

Help us keep all of King's beloved gargoyles free and restore their original space.  Help us complete the full restoration of the building's exterior.

To view photographs of the gargoyles please click on the link:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=15m1civz.rmd86hr&x=0&y=-vfnie4&localeid=en_US