Courthouse Legacy Foundation
The Courthouse Legacy Foundation (CLF) gives one of my favorite Fiesta parties of the week. It’s held on the 2nd floor of the Santa Barbara Courthouse overlooking the Sunken Garden and Las Noches de Ronda. There were tables in the Mural Room for sitting and eating the taco buffet or you could be on the balcony and watch the dancing show down below. There were wines from Carr and CrossHatch Wineries and of course, margaritas, served in the Loggia. Guests had private use of the courthouse for the evening, including the Clock Tower observation deck.
The CLF was formed in 2004 by a group of citizens concerned about the County’s lack of funds and artistic resources to restore the courthouse. The structure, designed by William Mooser, was built in the immediate aftermath of the 1925 earthquake. Today it is a working courthouse with a law library, and public and County offices.
The Fiesta party began ten years ago with 40 attendees. This year it was sold out with 160 costumed folks. The co-chairs were board president Jan Ferrell and Steve Thompson mingling and making sure we were all “happy campers.”
Our courthouse has been around for more than 80 years and is thought to be the most picturesque one in the United States. Each year we get visitors from all over the world to view this National Historic Landmark. There are only three other properties with this designation in Santa Barbara: the Mission, Casa del Herrero, and an adobe. Thousands more people use it for weddings, concerts, and parties.
CLF are stewards to ensure the courthouse will be here for our kids and theirs. CLF has recast the crumbling Spirit of the Ocean sculpture at the entrance. The Great Arch heraldic ceiling was repainted in 2010. The clockwork in the tower was not operating and was restored in 2012. The paintings in the Mural Room (4,200 square feet) were cracked and peeling away from the walls. It was fully restored for $575,000 in 2015 including lighting the ceiling for the first time. There are about 300 weddings performed in this room each year. The next CLF project is the masonry of the Great Arch and then the restoration of the windows at Figueroa Street. CLF has won the California Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation, among others.
Since 2004, almost $2 million has been raised for these projects and more will be needed to finish. Without our local philanthropists, the courthouse would be crumbling. There are no funds in the regular budget to fund conservation, preservation, and education projects. If you join the Membership Circle, you become part of the Legacy. Call 805.770.7222
