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Everest Properties Vandalizes Its Own City Landmark

By Daniella Thompson
Monday June 03, 2013 - 01:01:00 PM
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The Brower House and David Brower Redwood, 2232 Haste Street, as they used to be.
Daniella Thompson
The Brower House and David Brower Redwood, 2232 Haste Street, as they used to be.
The Brower House, 2232 Haste Street, as it is now.
Daniella Thompson
The Brower House, 2232 Haste Street, as it is now.
The David Brower Redwood without its lower limbs.
Daniella Thompson
The David Brower Redwood without its lower limbs.

The two Brower Houses and the David Brower Redwood at 2232–34 Haste Street were jointly designated a City of Berkeley Landmark in 2008. The front house is a Queen Anne-Eastlake Victorian built in 1887 by notable builder, artist, and civic pioneer Alphonso Herman Broad. The rear house dates from 1904. The entire property was acquired in 1902 by the grandmother of David Brower, famed environmentalist, mountaineer, and long-time executive director of the Sierra Club. The present owner is the Lakireddy family’s Everest Properties. 

In the course of current construction work, Everest ripped out an original small double-hung window from the front fishscale-shingled gable of 2232 Haste Street and tore open a large gash in this gable without seeking a permit from the Landmarks Preservation Commission. The window and the gable are among the defining historic features of the house. 

The redwood tree was planted by David Brower in 1941. Earlier this year it was severely and inappropriately pruned, losing its lower canopy. Redwood trees never regrow lost lower limbs. 

The photos show the Brower House and the David Brower Redwood before and after they were disfigured.