San Diego Trust & Savings Bank v. Friends of Gill

San Diego Trust and Savings Bank (Bank) as executor of the estate of Tom Kelly, deceased, and Kevin and Kathleen Kelly, coadministrators of the estate of Helen Kelly, deceased (referred to collectively as the Kellys), are the owners of certain real property on which there was a single-family residence known as Melville/Klauber House. This building was designed by architect Irving Gill and listed as a local and national historical site on both the City Historical Site Register and the National Register of Historical Places.

On November 14, 1977, the Kellys applied to the City of San Diego (City) for issuance by the City Building Inspection Department of a permit to demolish the House in order to develop the property. Pursuant to the provisions of San Diego Municipal Code section 26.02, dealing with the creation and duties of the San Diego Historical Site Board (Board), and particularly San Diego Municipal Code section 26.02E, dealing with demolition, alteration or removal of historical sites, the application was referred to the Board for consideration.

The Board objected to the issuance because an environmental impact report (EIR) had not been prepared. The applicants…