All-Steel Home Wins Honors

It took Brian McGuire three months of research, but it paid off with a plaque: “Wexler/Harrison Steel Development House Number 2…has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places.”

The National Register honor, the first for a modern structure in Palm Springs, and only the second for any building there, was announced recently.

“It brings national recognition to Palm Springs,” says Ron Marshall, president of the Palm Springs Preservation Foundation.

McGuire’s home, at 3125 North Sunny View Drive, is one of seven modular steel-and-glass houses in the neighborhood designed by architect Don Wexler with partner Ric Harrison. The flat-roofed home is light and elegant. “Quite the little gem,” Marshall says.

All seven homes, built from 1961 to 1962, previously have been named Palm Springs Class 1 Historic Sites, a local designation.

McGuire considered seeking National Register historic district status for all seven homes, but when he began the paperwork not all were quite 50 years old, the cutoff for consideration, and the amount of work, he says, would have been daunting.

McGuire was motivated to seek national recognition because it would confer added protection against nearby “developments that could impact historic structures.” But more, McGuire says, “I wanted to do this in Don Wexler’s lifetime.”