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According to Teresa Long, member of the board of the Friends, rehabilitation work, which started in September 2020 when the Friends raised the money to purchase the adobe from developers J&J Ranch LLC, included bringing the building back to its 1840's footprint, adding a new roof, doing extensive interior and exterior work, installation of reclaimed redwood floors, upgrading electrical wiring, providing ADA access, earthquake retrofitting, restoring the historic wooden trim, and adding a new bathroom and storage building. Restoration is now in its final stages of completion.
"The rehabilitation has taken longer than we originally expected," FJMA President Kent Long observed, "but it is worth the extra time and effort to preserve its historic attributes. Fortunately, the J&J Ranch developers, who are responsible for the rehabilitation, have worked collaboratively with us in getting the result we were hoping for."
FJMA, a nonprofit volunteer organization formed in 2009, has been busy planning the next steps for this oldest home in Contra Costa County including purchasing traditional furnishings, creating museum exhibits, installing a security system, and finalizing landscape plans. Commemorative pavers and a donor wall will be featured in the landscape implementation, taking advantage of the amazing views of Moraga Valley, Mt Diablo and the Las Trampas ridgeline. Faculty and students from the Saint Mary's College Anthropology Department met with FJMA last month to explore the possibility of conducting a future archaeological dig on the Adobe property.
There is a wealth of information about the entire project, including videos, on the Friends' YouTube Channel, which can be accessed at www.youtube.com/channel/UC4vRiBoqHtI6ENW_Ti8J8JA
Reach the reporter at:
Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA