{"nrhp_refnum":"93000547","name":"University Heights Junior High School","other_names":["Eastside Social Services Center","Riverside Historic Landmark"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"2060 University Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Riverside","county":"Riverside County","state":"CA","lat":33.97495589700003,"lon":-117.35637631299994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1993-06-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, cross-shaped, poured concrete Spanish Colonial Revival junior high school at 2060 University Avenue in Riverside, California, opened in 1928 and designed by John C. Austin of Austin & Ashley, with a nearby vocational education building.","why_significant":"The nomination argues local significance under Criterion A as the most intact of Riverside's three earliest gender-integrated junior high schools of the progressive era. Under Criterion C, it is an important example of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in Riverside's public buildings, and the only remaining work in the city by architect John C. Austin.","narrative":"Opened on October 15, 1928, University Heights Junior High School at 2060 University Avenue in Riverside is a cross-shaped, two-story concrete building with a red tile roof and an octagonal tower. John C. Austin of Austin & Ashley designed it, and a Churrigueresque-style entrance with Corinthian columns marks the front. A plain vocational education building stands to the east but is counted as non-contributing because of heavy alterations. The school was one of three gender-integrated junior highs built after Riverside voters approved bonds in 1922, and it is the only one that remains intact. It also reflects the city's push to use Spanish Colonial Revival design for major public buildings, and it is the last Austin-designed building in Riverside. The school closed after a 1972 inspection found it unsafe under earthquake standards. The city bought it in 1974 and converted it to a community center, keeping original classroom windows, blackboards, lockers and the auditorium.","period_of_significance":"1928","architect_builder":"Austin, John C. (Austin & Ashley); constructed by Cresmer Manufacturing Company, with H.G. Lehrabach as consulting engineer","architectural_style":"20th Century Revival/Spanish Colonial Revival","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Now used as a social services center and community center within Bobby Bonds Park and Sports Complex, with office space for nonprofit organizations; the vocational building houses a Head Start school.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:28.006405-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/93000547.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123860526","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/riverside-county/university-heights-junior-high-school-93000547/"}