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By Save Our Capitol!

"And you really come to the conclusion there's one true purpose––it's to keep the people of California out of their own house, and that is an outrage, and it's unacceptable."

By Richard "Dick" Cowan

"The Historic State Capitol Commission designated all of the materials you can see here as the historic fabric of the building... The marble floors, the ceilings are, in particular, a 1950s style."

By Victoria Kastner

"We cannot let the egotism and greed of a few affect all of us as citizens."

By Save Our Capitol!

"DGS and JRC claim that because the DEIR disclosed that it lacked adequate information to analyze the true nature of the Project’s impacts...the Project description was adequate. Not so."

By Save Our Capitol!

"Yet, DGS and JRC did not recirculate the EIR, instead choosing to deprive the public and responsible agencies of their right to review and comment on the Project’s true impacts to the Capitol Complex."

By Save Our Capitol!

“We are asking the court to enforce CEQA’s statutory requirement—which mandates the long-term protection of California’s built and natural environment—and reverse the Order and Judgment. There is no urgency to proceed with the unvetted Capitol Annex Project...”

By Save Our Capitol!

"Nevertheless, Respondents intend to demolish the Capitol Annex in its entirety and to irreversibly damage the historic West Lawn based on a legally deficient EIR that cannot possibly serve its purpose..."

By Save Our Capitol!
September 29, 2022

"By freeing up $700 million from the current Capitol Annex Project, the Legislature and Governor Newsom can better balance the state’s budget and ensure critical projects are funded. Rehabilitation...will cost taxpayers less than $500 million."

By Kitty O'Neal
News 93.1 KFBK

Controversy over the CA State Capitol Annex demolition and remodel. Those in favor say safety hazards and aesthetics demand the over billion dollar project. Others favor a $500 million refurbishing that preserves more of the Capitol and surrounding trees.

By Malcolm Maclachlan
Daily Journal

"When they were completing the annual state budget late last month, lawmakers in Sacramento quietly knifed a lawsuit seeking to block a $1.4 billion project to demolish and rebuild much of the State Capitol building."

By Save Our Capitol!

"We will not be deterred by state leadership’s hypocrisy, claiming to practice “deliberative Democracy” while intentionally denying public participation in self-governance."

By Michelle Bandur
KCRA News

"Downtown: Every time it's been given life, every time it's been given an opportunity, it's been followed by a punch in the face — a nice haymaker," he said.

By Richard Cowan
Public Accountability for Our Capitol

"Break the law, get caught, come before a judge, and then in the middle of the night, in a Budget Bill having nothing to do with the Project, write another law getting yourself out of the problem."

By Public Accountability for Our Capitol

"We are sure you can see that continued unrestricted proliferation of monuments without a Master Plan will result in damage to the priceless resource of our State Capitol Park. Surely you don’t want this to be part of your legacy as Legislative leaders."

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By Save Our Capitol!

"Here, the Legislature’s statement that the Bill’s modifications to the Government Code are merely “declaratory of existing law” is plainly absurd, as the Bill creates an exemption from complying with requirements of the Public Resources Code that did not previously exist."

By Save Our Capitol!

There are at least three sources of constitutional and statutory support for preservation of the Capitol, each of which is summarized in this document.

Eulogy by Dan Visnich and interview of Raymond Girvigian by Save Our Capitol! Counsel Stephen Cook, with Photojournalist Stan Drury.

Ray Girvigian, a renowned architect & preservation pioneer, passed away at the age of 96 on June 7 2022.  An advocate to the very end, he sent a letter this past January to California Legislature urging leadership to save the Capitol Annex. He will be missed by all. Read his obituary here

By Jeffrey Schaub and Greg Wong
KCBS Radio

"Very soon, state legislators, along with Governor Newsom, will move from their offices in the east annex building of the Capitol to make way for a new glass skinned executive building."

By Sasha Marguiles
KFBK News

"... a new construction plan seeks to relocate and-or remove some of those special trees, and demolish the East Capitol Annex Building. Urban Ecologist Paula Peper explains that puts hundreds of California’s 'historic trees' in danger."

By KUSI Newsroom
KUSI News

“Relocation practices are not following national guidelines, and with that, we assume that at least 49 of the palm trees that line — I mean, they’ve been planted since 1898 to 1903 —  and at least 49 of those will probably not be successful in the transplanting process."

By Katy Grimes
California Globe

"Ironically, Peper said 'you can sign up for the newsletter on the Capitol Annex website, but there aren’t any newsletters.' The Globe signed up long ago to the Capitol Annex newsletter subscription, and has not received any."

By Tim Foster
Capitol Weekly

"...the work is continuing apace while the lawsuits are being heard. If the judge were to find that the lawsuits are correct, that pre-commitment was made in violation of the law, EIR processes required by the law were not followed, and the SHPO visit was not done..."

By Scott Syphax
PBS KVIE

"We really do intervene with, significant old structures, and make corrections necessary. So, I think each and every one of the concerns can and would be addressed in a bonafide rehabilitation project."

By Carl Bott
KCNR 1460 AM

"We had urged ... Mr. Cooley to hire a preservation architect and tell them what he wanted and have them show how much of his needs could get in the old, historic building—but he declined to do that."

By Gene Nichols

"... it is a project that has been done in secret, and that's one of the issues on which the lawsuits are based."

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KSBW 8 (ABC) Action News

"The group wants to preserve the original features during demolition. They are also trying to keep trees in the area which are set to be relocated."

CBS 13 / Good Day Sacramento

"Organizers say, the new visitor’s center will negatively impact public access and future public activities on the West steps."

KCRA 3 (NBC) News

"We think it could be done in a much less expensive way, the whole construction, also without removing the trees that you see being removed and set up to be relocated."

FOX40 News

"They say the new visitor’s center will impact public access and future public activities on the West step; and a new underground parking garage along 12th street will impact both N and L street."

By Phil Cowan
KTKZ-AM

"I was just kind of shaking my head that a sensible and sadly, I think that happens all too often with the relationship between voters and government these days, sensible proposals are never even considered."

KSRO News

"The group Save Our Capitol continue to speak out against the project citing its $1.4-billion dollar price and insist there is a better way."

By Andy Caldwell
KZSB-AM, KSMA-AM & FM, KWWV-FM

"It's basically just the Joint Rules Committee, three people, you know, behind closed doors, just pushing this thing through."

By Richard Cowan & Paula Peper
Save Our Capitol!

"... urgently calling upon the JRC and DGS to promptly comply with State law and to submit a summary of the Capitol Annex project to OHP for its review before demolishing the historic Capitol building..."

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By Jon Coupal
Southern California News Group

"But rather than rehabilitate the Annex, the Legislature is bulldozing ahead with a demolish-and-rebuild plan to erect swanky new digs fit for a tech titan."

By Lou Desmond
KMET-AM

"... if you are building an office building to get the people's work done. No spas, no gyms, no beautiful sit down restaurants, because it's not an appropriate use of the money."

By Jennifer Horn
AB 870 The Answer

"A supermajority of Californians are vehemently speaking out against the expensive re-do and are calling on Californians to join in to #StopTheDemolition."

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By Charlie Simons
KAHI-AM

"It’s absolutely unconscionable to me. I sure appreciate you taking the time to let us all know about it. I think we need to get a little progress report from you. How much time do we got? When are they making this decision supposedly?"

By Matt Prichard
KUSI-TV

"... they don’t need to be building new. The building will adequately fit. All we have to do is do a rehabilitation on it."

By Rosemary Chalmers
KSCO-AM

But unfortunately, Mr. Cooley got started down the road on demolition, and now I think he’s a little embarrassed to backtrack."

By Sarah Downey
Northern California Record

Cowan noted that numerous environmental, taxpayer and other stakeholder groups have long pressed for more transparency from lawmakers, concerned that a commitment to demolition was made without thorough review.

By Bob Brill
KNX Morning News

"Over the 70-year life of the Annex, they’ve failed to upgrade it, so they now say, 'Wow it needs a lot of help, let’s tear it down.'"

By Jim Lacy & Don Romano
KABC-AM

"You know, it’s extraordinary. I just think that is shows the arrogance, the grandiosity of these so-called leaders we have in California. That’s about all I have to say about that."

By Raymond Girvigian, FAIA

"The Capitol Annex Project has not been reviewed by the various state agencies, including the Office of Historic Preservation, the State Historical Building Safety Board, and the Historic State Capitol Commission, as required by applicable statutes."

By Nikka Magahis
KFBK News Radio

"... taxpayers shouldn’t be burdened with these extra costs when less expensive alternatives are available. In a recent survey commissioned by the group, 76% of people oppose the project."

By Save Our Capitol!

More than three-quarters (76.6%) of Californians oppose the state Legislature’s plan to spend $1.4 billion in taxpayer dollars to demolish the historic Capitol Annex and build extravagant new legislative office spaces, a visitor center, and an underground parking garage.

By Save Our Capitol!

A majority of Californians (61.2%) support rehabilitating the historic Annex in its existing footprint.

By Quentin Kopp
CalMatters

"So why won’t legislators consider spending at least $500 million fewer taxpayer dollars on a safe and functional office space? It’s hard to know since the approval process ignored the California Environmental Quality Act."

By The Sacramento Bee

"Those of us who oppose the Capitol Annex Project do not oppose it because it will destroy a unique mid-century modern historic building, but because rehabilitation is completely feasible, cheaper and better for the environment."

By Good Day Sacramento

"Those against the demolition... also fear the project will ruin the character of capitol park and even impact future events on the West Steps."

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By CBS 13 News

"Those against the demolition call the project a waste of money saying that the existing building is solid and can be renovated to meet the needs of Capitol staff."

By FOX 40 News

"Preservationists, environmentalists, and tree experts hosted a public walking tour of Capitol Park. They say that project will negatively impact 100 big trees and are concerned of security risks associated with that new Annex."

By Anisca Miles, Ashley Zavala
FOX 40 News

Lawmakers say they expect the bulldozing to begin around March 2022, depending on how the courts rule in the multiple lawsuits filed against the project. “The legislature’s job was to maintain that building for the last 70 years, but they didn’t do that..."

By Save Our Capitol!

"SOC’s purpose in bringing the suit is singular: to force the JRC and the DGS to follow the law that requires them to consult with the California Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) concerning the Capitol Annex Project..."

By Hannah Wiley
The Sacramento Bee

“There’s no question that the annex needs renovation, rehabilitation,” Peper said. “... there is a history that will be lost. My personal thought is move to the swing space, enjoy it. And renovate the existing annex.”

By Dustin Gardiner
San Francisco Chronicle

"Demolition on the old Annex is expected to start early next year, pending the outcome of lawsuits filed by activists who say the project could displace rare and historic trees on the Capitol grounds."

By Save Our Capitol!

"Plaintiff Save Our Capitol! ("SOC")... seeks to enjoin the imminent demolition, and planned reconstruction, of California's historic Capitol Annex building... as unlawful, pending Defendants' full compliance with California Public Resources Code ("PRC") Sections 5024 and 5024.5.

By Nicole Nixon
Capital Public Radio

"Milford Wayne Donaldson, a preservation architect who advised the Obama administration and former governors Jerry Brown and Arnold Schwarzenegger, accused Cooley and other state officials of not making a genuine effort to save the historic annex."
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By Uriel Espinoza-Pacheco
Capitol Weekly

“The Legislature, they’ve been a poor steward. And it’s always been too inconvenient to do that upgrade. To me, it’s a little wrong to say now, ‘We should tear it down because of these needs, which we’ve ignored over the years.’”

By Richard Cowan
The Sacramento Bee

"Had the Legislature consulted the state historic preservation officer early in its planning as required by law, she could have warned them that this dishonored practice is used so often by greedy developers. It has a name: Demolition by neglect."

By FOX 40 News

"People rallied at the State Capitol to protest changes that are in the works there. That group, Save Our Capitol!, says that renovations planned for the Capitol Annex would potentially demolish the East Annex Building and eliminate more than 100 trees in the process."

By Good Day Sacramento

"People rallied at the State Capitol to protest the construction project of the building itself - the Capitol. Organizers of Save Our Capitol Rally say the Capitol Annex Project is shortsighted and unnecessary."

By KCRA 3 (NBC) News

"A rally outside the State Capitol targeted the governor and lawmakers. The group says they are violating state law with a $1.4 billion plan to demolish the Capitol Annex and remove trees."

By Hannah Wiley
The Sacramento Bee

“Yes, it’s a 70-year-old building. But the state knows how to rehabilitate old buildings,” ... “The Legislature, they’ve been a poor steward. And it’s always been too inconvenient to do that upgrade..."

By Paul Kitagaki, Jr.
The Sacramento Bee

Environmental and historic preservation activists protest on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021, the demolition of the Capitol Annex – the east wing of the statehouse – and the removal of a number of historic trees from Capitol Park in Sacramento.

By Save Our Capitol!

The time is NOW. Join Save Our Capitol! and Public Accountability for Our Capitol on Wednesday, November 17 at 11:00am on the West Steps to stop the destruction of the historic Capitol Annex and surrounding Park. The voice of the people must be heard.

By Save Our Capitol!

The California Department of General Services (DGS) has not complied with state law regarding the Capitol Annex Project, although a fleet of demolition equipment is mobilizing around the Capitol Annex.

By Judd Spicer
California Business Journal
October 24, 2021

What California lawmakers are doing is prioritizing their “self-interest over the needs of struggling Californians by moving forward with a fiscally and environmentally irresponsible expansion,” Donaldson says.

By Michael Leighton

The Independent

As a former Marine, current architect, and long-time Californian, I have concerns... They lie in the fact that no legislator or architect involved in the project discussed how an all-glass exterior poses security risks for state employees.

By Bruce Lee

Carmichael Times

It should not be too much to ask that a luxury project which sidelines the needs of Californians should itself be sidelined.

By Save Our Capitol!

Considering the Annex is at 70 years of age, the need for major improvements is a given. However, the opportunity exists to rehabilitate the Annex rather than to demolish this historic site.

Sacramento Patch
Jeri Karges

Controversy is a-brewin' at the Capitol.

By Public Accountability for Our Capitol

More than 60 trees, including many massive historic trees, will be removed and others threatened. All at a staggering cost of up to $1 billion, using General Fund monies sorely needed for our state’s infrastructure and economic recovery.

By Save Our Capitol!

The public-interest association filed the Petition for Writ of Mandamus on Friday, July 9, to enforce existing environmental laws and protect the legacy of the Golden State's historic Capitol Annex and Park.

The Epoch Times
By Jamie Joseph

California state lawmakers are preparing to demolish and reconstruct part of the state’s historic Capitol grounds to add more office spaces, costing somewhere between $775 million to $1.2 billion, according to critics.
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Tree Inventory and Impact Assessment Report related to the Proposed Double T Expanded Annex Footprint at the California State Capitol and Capitol Park. Prepared by Dr. Kent Julian, ISA Certified Arborist & California Professional Forester.

The Sacramento Bee

By Hannah Wiley

“How tragic that after the Joint Rules Committee failed for decades to maintain and upgrade our world-recognized Capitol Annex, Californians are now asked to accept needless demolition to make it safe and useful again,” Richard Cowan.

Sacramento Business Journal

By Ben van der Meer

"... the suit in Sacramento County Superior Court states that the memorandum of understanding for the project calls for demolishing the existing annex and building in its place, causing impacts that aren't mitigated."

"The nearly $1 billion Capitol Annex Project is being decided in private by only three voting members: two legislators and one Governor's representative. This governance structure prevents the public from knowing what decisions are being made and how they are made."

By Sarah Downey

Northern California Record

"A coalition of business and environmental leaders oppose the project and question how the Capitol Annex, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, could possibly be demolished."

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The Andy Caldwell Show

"If this were a private developer who owned a building listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as this one is, and they came to the State Historic Preservation Officer with this idea, they’d be kicked out of the office."

The DeMaio Report

"Our idea is that we ought to take a few steps back, and truly plan the Capitol Annex Project in a transparent way."

The Phil Cowan Show

"Although the legislature funded the cash to build the project at one time, as COVID hit California, those funds were swept out of that fund. And so, now the plan is to sell bonds which of course increases the cost tremendously."

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By Save Our Capitol!‍‍

Why are our state’s elected officials prioritizing a billion-dollar luxury project when small businesses like ours are still reeling from the pandemic?

By Save Our Capitol!

The Capitol Annex Project is being managed through a dictatorship, not a democracy – and Californians deserve better.  

By Public Accountability for Our Capitol

PAC is opposed to AB 706 (Cooley) because it is trying to correct authority granted in AB 1826, an urgency measure, which appropriated $20 million for renovating and restoring the historic State Capitol.

KRLA Sunday Morning Newsmakers

By Larry Marino

Alongside another Commission member who resigned, Dick Cowan and others founded the Public Accountability for Our Capitol to get legislators to pause and replan the Capitol Annex Project.

By Save Our Capitol!

On April 8, 2021, the California Joint Committee on Rules distributed a memo to all legislative staff containing an update and FAQs about the Capitol Annex Project. Are the answers accurate? Save Our Capitol! takes a look...

By Ben van der Meer

Sacramento Business Journal

With less than six months before its current occupants begin moving into a new state office building to the south, replacing the Capitol Annex is beginning to see more opposition.

By George Skelton
Los Angeles Times

"One of his last preservation efforts was opposing the current under-the-radar $1-billion project to replace the state Capitol annex. It needs repairs and updating but not the planned demolition that would tarnish the Capitol’s grandeur."

By Mike Blount
NewsRadio KFBK

A project to demolish the State Capitol Annex and build an underground parking garage visitor center in its place is being met with criticism from a group who say it's too costly and environmentally irresponsible.

By KCRA News

"A lot of people may not have heard of the project, but a group is working to change that. They met on the steps of the State Capitol today and they say the state cannot afford this project and it will damage or destroy more than 100 historic trees."

By Mark Hulbert

Preservation Architect and Historic Research Consultant

"The choice is between erasing or embracing a central part of California’s history."

By Brandon Rittiman

ABC10

Leaders of the California legislature are pushing to demolish and replace a 1950’s annex building attached to the Capitol to make more space.

By ABC10

California state lawmakers are considering a billion-dollar project to demolish and replace the 1950's annex on the East side of the Capitol building, which houses the Governor's office and legislator offices and hearing rooms.

By Save Our Capitol!

"The Capitol Annex is in need of upgrades and repairs, but the California Legislature's Joint Committee on Rules ... has put off making those upgrades and repairs for nearly seventy years... Destroying the Golden State's history is not a solution."

By Dick Cowan

Capitol Weekly

"I resigned (from the commission) in protest so I would be free to let the public know what was taking place at the taxpayers’ expense."

By California Capitol Historic Preservation Society

"That's the result of stepping on the toes of the past preservationist Senate leaders Jim Mills and Nick Petris, who fought to restore and save the historic Capitol," the former UC Regent commented.

By W. Bruce Lee

Sacramento News & Review

"Even without the COVID crisis, the Capitol Annex project is a stunning waste of taxpayer dollars, especially when the state has so many pressing matters that need to be addressed."

By Michael Turnipseed

InsideSources

"The Capitol Annex Project is a wasteful venture that needs to be put on hold."