HOLDING DOWN THE CASTLE HOUSE IS NOW PROTECTED.Byline: Dan Laidman Staff Writer A well-known Sunland-Tujunga home that resembles an Irish castle gained Historic-Cultural Monument designation from the City Council on Friday. Without discussion, the council voted unanimously to grant the distinction to the Blarney Blarney, village, Co. Cork, SE Republic of Ireland. Those who kiss the Blarney Stone, placed in an almost inaccessible position near the top of the thick stone wall of the 15th-century castle, are supposed to gain marvelous powers of persuasion and cajolery. Castle, making it more difficult to alter or destroy the building. ``I want to preserve this house the way it was for the people of Sunland-Tujunga as well as myself,'' said Sarah Olson, who owns the castle and sought the designation. ``I really believe that this is such a unique structure that it would just break my heart that it could be torn down or an apartment building put in here.'' Olson's effort came after a conflict last summer over attempts to raze raze also rase tr.v. razed also rased, raz·ing also ras·ing, raz·es also ras·es 1. To level to the ground; demolish. See Synonyms at ruin. 2. To scrape or shave off. 3. the nearby Weatherwolde Castle to make way for new houses. That structure was preserved following a neighborhood struggle. While there is no immediate threat to Olson's castle, she said she sought the designation as a preventive measure. The area's castle-style residences are legacies of the Depression Era, when Tujunga's abundant natural stone was the cheapest available building material, said Lloyd Hitt, president of the Little Landers Historical Society. ``The actual dream of 'your home is your castle' became a reality with some people,'' he said. The Blarney Castle was built in 1919, supposedly modeled after the Irish landmark, Hitt said. While little is known of the original builder, Hitt said the home was purchased in 1921 by Virginia Smith Virginia Dodd Smith (June 30, 1911 – January 23, 2006) was an Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 1991 from the Third Congressional District of Nebraska. , the first female doctor in Tujunga and the proprietor of a nearby hospital. The castle had various owners in the ensuing decades, and Olson, who works for Warner Bros BROS Brothers BROS Benefits and Retirement Operations Section (King County, Washington) BROS Barnes and Richmond Operatic Society (London, UK) ., bought it a year and a half ago. City planners surveyed the Blarney Castle and called it an ``excellent example of Craftsman-style architecture'' in one report. Despite the castle's fortress-like composition of stone, wrought iron wrought iron: see iron. wrought iron One of the two forms in which iron is obtained by smelting. Wrought iron is a soft, easily worked, fibrous metal. It usually contains less than 0.1% carbon and 1–2% slag. , dark wood, stained glass stained glass, in general, windows made of colored glass. To a large extent, the name is a misnomer, for staining is only one of the methods of coloring employed, and the best medieval glass made little use of it. and arched doorways, Olson said it is not an imposing place to live. ``It's actually very warm. I've made it very comfy com·fy adj. com·fi·er, com·fi·est Informal Comfortable. comfy Adjective [-fier, -fiest] Informal comfortable Adj. 1. ,'' she said. Dan Laidman, (213) 978-0390 dan.laidman(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Sunland-Tujunga's Blarney Castle, on the 12000 block of Tujunga Canyon Boulevard, was named a Historic-Cultural Monument by the City Council on Friday. Owner Sarah Olson requested the designation to make it harder to raze the building. (2) Ivy creeps up the side of Sunland-Tujunga's Blarney Castle, a smaller version of the one in Ireland. Michael Owen
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