HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-03-09; Historic Preservation Commission; 02; Update on the Historic Plaque Nomination for Four Stages of History MuralMeeting Date: March 9, 2026
To: Historic Preservation Commission
From: Mike Strong, Director of Community Development
Staff Contact: Mike Strong, Director of Community Development
Mike.strong@carlsbadca.gov, 442-339-2721
Subject: Update on the Historic Plaque Nomination for Four Stages of History Mural
Recommended Action
Receive an update regarding the nomination of Four Stages of History Mural at 3110 Roosevelt
St, Carlsbad, CA 92008
Executive Summary
The city received a letter on Oct. 29, 2025, nominating the Four Stages of History Mural for a
historic plaque. The Four Stages of History Mural is located on the north side wall of Circle K
Carlsbad, on 3110 Roosevelt St., Carlsbad, CA 92008. The Historic Preservation Commission
considered the request at its November 10, 2025 meeting. The Commissioners received the
report and nominated the Four Stages of History Mural for the Plaque program.
City staff continue to work with the applicant and the property owner to reach an agreement
on the plaque installation, which is a requirement of the program and essential to the plaque’s
installation and long-term maintenance. After the property owner consents to the nomination,
a formal resolution of approval will be presented to the Historic Preservation Commission to
ratify the approval and direct staff to submit the request to the City Council for review and
consideration.
The purpose of this report is to provide a status update on the nomination process.
Discussion
Historic plaques or markers may be utilized to recognize and landmark local historic resources,
sites, and location of events or persons that are significant in the area of architecture,
archaeology, history, and traditional culture. The City Council adopted a resolution on May 20,
2025, establishing the Carlsbad Historic Plaque Program (City Council Resolution No. 2025-110).
As established, Carlsbad’s Plaque Program requires that properties not already formally
HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
March 9, 2026 Item #2 1 of 2
designated as a historic resource or other formal designation must be identified as having some
sort of unique historical significance. Property owner permission is required.
Each historic plaque requires City Council approval before it can be created and installed. For
Historic Plaque requests, the Historic Preservation Commission’s primary role is to determine
whether the nominated building, structure, site, artifact, or landscape feature, continues to
have historic integrity and is therefore eligible for a historic plaque. The Commission’s expertise
in reviewing historic resources will be beneficial to the City Council’s review of the historic
plaque nomination. Upon confirmation of historic eligibility, the Commission would need to
forward a recommendation to the City Council to approve the historic plaque nomination for
the site. The Historic Preservation Commission may identify up to two sites each year to be
presented to the City Council for approval.
The city received a letter on Oct. 29, 2025, nominating the Four Stages of History Mural for a
historic plaque. No other applications were received. The Historic Preservation Commission
considered the proposal on November 10, 2025 and supported making a formal
recommendation to the Commission. In doing so, the Historic Preservation Commission
directed city staff to work with the property owner to sign an agreement in which the owner
agrees to maintain the historic integrity and to return the plaque to the City of Carlsbad in the
event they remove it from the current location. As of this writing, the property owner has yet to
sign an agreement. Once there is agreement and the property owner consents to the
nomination, city staff will then prepare a resolution for the Historic Preservation Commission to
approve and forward the recommendation to the City Council.
Fiscal Analysis
The city would be incurring a relatively small expense to implement the Historic Plaque
Program. City staff estimate that each custom plaque would cost about $1,000 to manufacture,
assuming each would be a 17-inch by 12-inch bronze plaque with 408 characters, which is
about eight to nine lines of text. That estimate includes about $40 for shipping. The city would
be responsible for paying the full cost of the fabrication and shipping of the plaque while the
property owner would be responsible for paying for the cost of installing and maintaining the
plaque. Funding would be requested as part of the City Council’s consideration.
Environmental Evaluation (CEQA)
Pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21065, this action does not constitute a “project”
within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in that it has no
potential to cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably
foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and therefore does not require
environmental review.
Exhibits
None
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HISTORICAL PLAQUE NOMINATION
UPDATE: FOUR STAGES OF HISTORY
MURAL
Mike Strong, Assistant Director of Community Development
March 9, 2026