Fremont, CA Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)

Fremont Municipal Code Section 18.175.090 directs the planning manager to maintain, as a permanent public record, the Fremont register of historic resources. The register consists of resources already listed in Appendix 1 to the general plan as of January 1, 2007, plus any additional resources the city council designates by resolution under Section 18.175.100. A listing can later be rescinded by council resolution under Section 18.175.110, at which point the property is automatically removed and no longer treated as a register or potential register resource.

Section 18.175.120 sets the substantive criteria: the historical architectural review board makes a recommendation, and the city council can add a resource if it is already listed or eligible for the California or National Register, or if the council independently finds it significant under one of five tests, association with important historical events or persons, embodying a distinctive architectural style or craftsmanship, potential to yield important historical information, or a unique, familiar visual landmark. A resource of purely local significance does not need to qualify for the state register to be added.

Once listed, Section 18.175.380 requires the owner to keep the exterior, and any interior portions necessary to prevent exterior deterioration, in good repair. Enforcement under Section 18.175.390 is significant: violating the chapter, including altering, removing or demolishing a register resource, can require the owner to reconstruct it to its prior appearance, and if reconstruction is not feasible, the historical architectural review board can impose monetary sanctions equivalent to the community's loss of the resource, plus a denial of building, zoning or use permits on the property for up to five years, recorded on title.