What would Irving Gill Say to City Hall Today?
By Alana Coons and James B. Guthrie, AIA
In the early years of the 20th century, San Diego was young and full of hope. In 1893, among the dust and ambition, walked Irving J. Gill, an architect by profession but a visionary to his core. He said: San Diego “has an opportunity unparalleled in the history of the world, for it is the newest white page turned for registration.”
As a master architect, he recognized what was special about San Diego and designed buildings that responded to those special characteristics. In the process he constructed a unique “sense of place” for his clients and, through his designs’ beauty and durability, for us and those that will follow.
San Diego has long respected Gill’s contribution to our community, not as relics of past times, but as an ongoing legacy and a part of who we still are.
Yet, today, as we face the most aggressive dismantling of preservation protections in our city’s history under the ironically named Preservation and Progress initiative, it is vital we look to Gill not just for the beauty and history of his arches and tilt-slab innovations, but for his advocacy.
There is a salient, sometimes overlooked story from Gill’s classic period (1908–1916) that serves as a mirror to our current crisis. In 1910, Gill did not retreat to his drafting table to ignore the politics of the day. Instead, he spearheaded the creation of the San Diego Architectural Association. His goal was explicit and bold: to professionalize the trade and, crucially, to organize a body of experts who could “promote the artistic, scientific and practical efficiency of the profession.”
Gill understood that a city could not be built by developers and politicians alone. He knew that without the oversight of seasoned professionals, the built environment would suffer. Minutes from those early meetings reveal Gill as a relentless catalyst for standards, standards that would preserve what is unique and special about San Diego. He moved to appoint committees to review city building ordinances before they were approved by the City Council. He fought to ensure that the growth of San Diego was guided by competence, quality, and an unwavering respect for the craft. He worked side by side with his fellow architects to make a difference.
Fast forward to 2026. The spirit of professional oversight that Gill championed is currently on the chopping block. The City of San Diego’s proposed reforms to the Historical Resources Board (HRB) and the preservation program at large represent a complete reversal of the values Gill fought to instill.
Where Gill sought to empower architects and experts to guide city policy, today's administration seeks to silence them. The proposal to allow the City Council, a political body with no required architectural expertise to overturn the designations of the Historical Resources Board is an insult to the “scientific and practical efficiency” Gill advocated. It replaces the fact-based analysis of historians and architects with the capricious winds of political pressure.
Gill was a Progressive in the true sense of the era; he believed in using innovation and regulation to improve the lives of all citizens, from the workers at his Lewis Court cottages to the philanthropists at the La Jolla Woman’s Club. But he never confused “progress” with the erasure of standards. He did not advocate for a free-for-all that bypassed expert review.
The current narrative pushing “Preservation and Progress” suggests we must choose between housing and history. This is a false binary that Irving Gill dismantled over a century ago. Gill was the ultimate pioneer of affordable, high-density housing. His worker’s cottages and courts were models of efficiency and dignity. He proved that you could build low-cost housing without sacrificing architectural integrity or the “sense of place” that defines a community.
When we look at the threatened historic districts today, from the bungalow courts of North Park to the coastal cottages of Ocean Beach, we are looking at the direct descendants of Gill’s philosophy. To demolish these inherently naturally occurring affordable housing resources in the name of “streamlining” is not progress; it is regression.
In 1910, Gill galvanized his peers because he saw that the future of San Diego depended on “uniting in fellowship” to demand better from their city government. He knew that if architects and preservationists did not stand up for the “artistic and scientific” standards of their city, no one else would.
Today, SOHO issues that same call. The threat is no longer the loss of a single building; it is the structural dismantling of the very boards and ordinances designed to protect our cultural landscape.
We must channel the spirit of Irving Gill, not just in admiration for his aesthetics, but active engagement in his advocacy. His method of engaging fellow civic minded professionals to make the right call has lasted 116 years. Now is not the time to throw a great idea away.
We must demand that the expertise of the Historical Resources Board be respected, not weakened or vetoed. We must insist that efficiency in permitting, or “streamlining” for new construction as the Preservation and Progress initiative states is its primary goal, does not come at the cost of our historic neighborhoods and community. If Irving Gill were here today, he would not be silent. Neither should we.
Join SOHO in opposing the weakening of the Historical Resources Board. Our heritage is not a barrier to the future; it is the foundation upon which a worthy future is built. Write your city councilmember now:
James B. Guthrie, AIA, is the founder and president of the Irving J. Gill Foundation (IJGF)
Alana Coons is the education and communications director for Save Our Heritage Organisation,
SOHO
Image: San Diego Architectural Association, photo by J E Stromberg. Courtesy Coons collection
