Historic Property Record: Bozeman J.C. Billion Dealership

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MONTA AHISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD
Forthe Montana National RegisterofHistoric Places Program and StateAntiquities Database
MontanaState Historic Preservation Office
MontanaHistorical $ociel)
PO Box 201202,1410S"Ave
Helena, MT 59620-1202
Propen)' Address: 1919West Main Street Site umber: 24 GA1794
(Anhistoricdistrict numbermayalsoapply.)
Hislorie Address(ifapplicable): 1919WestMain Street
Cityffown: Bozeman Counl)': Gallatin
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Historic arne: Robert F. Dye,Inc. Legal Location
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OriginaIOwner(s): Robert F. Dye i PM: Montana Township: 2S Range: 5E
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CurrentOwnership X Private Public i SE~ SE V. NE V. ofSection: 11
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Current Propen)'Name: Billion Auto Group i Lot(s): 1 & 2A
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OWl1er(s): CVS Phannacy ! Block(s): 8
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OwnerAddress: 1919West Main Street : Addition: West Park Manor1"Addition Yearof
Bozeman, MT !Addition: Unknown
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Historic Use: Car dealership i, UTM Reference w\\'".nri!\.JnLt!(I\/tnpoiindtOr2
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Current Use: Cardealership NAD27 X NAD 83 (preferred)
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Construction Date: 1968 Estimated XActual Zone: 12 Easting: 495079 onhing: 5058492
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XOriginal Location Moved DateMoved:
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National RegisterofHistoricPlaces Dateofthisdocument: June 17, 2010
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NRHP Listing Date: : Form Preparedb)': Diana J. Painter, PhD
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Historic District: Address: 3518 N. C Street, Spokane, WA 99205
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NRHP Eligible: XYes No Da)'time Phone: [phone]
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MTSHPO USEONLY ! Comments:
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Eligible rorNRHP: X),es 0 no j
Criteria: 0 A D B XeD D
Dale: 1111712010
Evaluator: KateHampton
MONTANA HISTORICPROPERTY RECORD
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PropertyName: Billion Car Dealership SiteNumber: 24GA1794
ARCHITECT RAt.DESCRIPTIO X SeeAdditional Infonnation Page
Architectural Style: Googie IfOther,specify:
PropertyType: Commercial SpecificPropertyType: Cardealership
Architect: Oswald Berg Jr. Architectural Firm/City/State: Oswald Berg Jr. Archilects, Bozeman, MT
Builder/Contraclor: Emil Martel & Sons Company/City/State: Bozeman. MT
SourceofInformation: HABSdocumentation
locationand setting. TheBillioncardealershipisaone-storybuilding with an irregularfootprint. The auto showroom
portion ofthe building faces south onto W. Main Street, whileauxiliaryuses, which includea'quicklube:an auto glass
shop, and offices, extend toward the rearofthe lotinaseries ofadjoined buildings.
Thebuilding is prominentlylocated in the northwestquadrantofthe intersection of S. 19'"Avenue (alsoknown as
Route412) and W. Main Street(also known as StateRoute 191). It islocatedtoward the southeast cornerofthe block,
in the area closest tothe intersection. In addition to the streets named above, the block is bounded byW. Beall Street
on the north, and the curving N. 20'h Avenueon the west.
This stretch ofW. Main Street is characterized bylargeand small commercial sites surrounded byparking. To the
northwestofthe block thatthe Billion Dealership is located on is Kirk Park, alarge parkwith playing fields.
Materials. The materials ofthe Billion Dealership includelaminated wood 'ribs'and cladding thatincludes stucco
finished composite panels and plate glass,contemporarycorrugated metal, and concrete block. Aluminum-frame
windows and doorsand metaloverhead garagedoors completethe list ofmaterials on the building. The foundation is
concrete and the roofis built-up.
Massingand design. TheBillion Dealership todayiscomprised ofthe mainshowroom building at the front ofthe lot
and several adjunct additions to the rear. The main showroom building isafaceted, nearlyround building with curved,
laminated wood ribs that extend from the baseofthe building to beyond the roof. At the base ofthis building is a
short concretestemwall. The lowerportion ofthe building isglazed and the upperportion is finished inanincised,
stucco-finished, composite panel. Both the windowsand panels are setwithin an aluminum frame. The building has
deepeavesunderwhich can be seen the laminated beams that support the roofand eaves. Atall fascia thatis finished
with stuccoand capped with anarrowmetalcoping covers thisensemble. Around the base ofthe building areparking
stalls. Signs for "customerparking" are painted on thewindows.
An entryaccessed byaramp with ametal rail is locatedat the southeast corner ofthis building. Itiscomposed ofa
single. aluminum frame doorwith full-height glass. To the leftofthe doorisabroad, full-height window and to the
right isanarrowwindow ofthe sameheight. Two narrowtransomwindowsarelocated abovethis ensemble. Where
the showroomjoins the servicewing to the north isasinglepedestrian doorwith full-height glass, accessed byan open
concrete stoopwith three steps. This doorhasafull-height sidelight to the left.
MONTA 'A HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD
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Prope.rtyName: Billion Car Dealership SiteNumber: 24GA1794
ARCHITECT RALDESCRIPTION
To the rearofthe showroom isalong rectangular building that houses the servicedepartment. It isconstructed of
concrete block. This wing has seven entrybays with overhead doors. Each doorhas sixlarge, horizontally-oriented
lights. Each bay is separated byprojecting pilastersofconcrete block. Toward the front ofthis wing isapedestrian
doorwith full-height glass. Also in this location isasmall concrete blockbuilding. This addition hasashallow-sloped
shed roof and atwo-part windowwith an aluminum frame and concrete sill on the east face. This wing also displays
deepeaves covered by atall fascia finished with anarrowmetal coping.
To the rear ofthiswing isanotheraddition with arectangularfootprint that isperpendiculartothe servicewing. This
addition isalsoconstructed ofconcrete block. Itis primarilyoriented toward the northorrearof the building. On the
north fa~adeare six overhead doorswithin seven bays. The overhead doorsare ofthe same designasthe doorson the
servicewing. The second bay from the leftoreastis astorefront. It hasapedestrian doorwith full-height glass within
an anodized aluminum frame and aslightlyhorizontally-oriented, fixed, single lightwindow. Botharecovered with a
tall canopyon which ispainted, "The PitStopQuick Lube." There isonebaywith an overhead dooron the south fa~ade
ofthis addition. On thewest fa~ade aretwo flush, metal pedestrian doors.
The west fa~ade ofthe building adjacent totheaddition described above displaysashallowaddition with three
overhead doors and one pedestrian door. This addition isslightly taller thanthe adjacent addition tothe south, and is
clad in contemporary corrugated metal siding. On thesouth sideisaroll-up metal doorat loadingdock heightand a
flush metal pedestrian door.
The central west fa~ade is the rearofthe east-facing service bays. Itdisplaysthe same overhead doors separated by
projecting concrete pilasters as the east fa~ade ofthis wing.
Tothe south isanother slightlyprojecting wing that isclad in corrugated metaland hasaroll-up metaldoorofthe
samedesign asthe roll-up doorfacing ittothe north,Tothe leftofthis doorisan aluminum-frame, two-part sliding
window. Thewest faceofthiswing has two openings, atwo-part flush metaldoorand afour-panel overhead door.
Landscaping and site design. Almost all thearea around the building ispaved in asphalt and used for parking. A
landscaped strip at the front orsouth side ofthe siteis planted in lawn, as is the planting strip onneighboring
properties. There isapublicsidewalkon the east and south sides ofthe parcel.
Changesovertime. Changes to the building appearto be as follows. Itappears as though the auto showroomand
servicebays are theoriginal portion of the building. Additions havebeen constructed to the north and west to add
servicebays and provide foradditional uses. The upperportion ofthe showroom windows havebeen enclosed with
stuccopanels. Doors havebeen altered over time. which is not unusual.
MONTANA HISTORICPROPERTY RECORD
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PropertYName: Billion Car Dealenlhip SileNumber: 24GA1794
ARCHITECTURALDESCRIPTION
Archite<:tural context
The showroom portion ofthe bUilding isagood example of"Googie"architecture. The original service baysto the
north ofthe building areutilitarianin design, but areintegral with the showroom, in that they represent the 'working'
part ofthe auto dealer/servicebusiness, whilethe round showroombuilding isdesigned to showcasetheautomobiles
forsale.
Googiearchitecture grewout ofthe carculture of southern California beginning in the 1930s. This isaperiod when
commercial building owners and designers began catering to their automobile-driving clients, creating buildings that
were eye-catching and meant to behighlyvisible at automobile speeds and along suburban commercial corridors and
highways. This is certainlythe casewith the Robert F. Dye, Inc. building, although theyadvertised that theywere
moving to their suburban location from the eastern edge of downtown Bozeman in orderto expand their facility.
These earlybuildings reflected the interest inconveying speed at this time through streamlined effects. "Googie" is
namedafterarestaurant in Los Angeles designed byCalifornia architect John Lautner. It was coined as the nameofthe
architectural stylein 1952byarchitecturecritic Douglas Haskell (Hess, 1985). As defined byHaskell,aGoogiebuilding
had an abstracted appearance, often seemed to 'float' above theground, withoutthe sense ofgravity(in both senses of
theword) ofordinarybuildings, and displayed modern materialsand often amixofstructural systems. Car dealerships,
being by definition automobileoriented, often borrowed this style fortheirshowrooms, creating adramatic backdrop
fortheir merchandise.
The evidence ofGoogiearchitectureon this bUildingincludes itunusual, eye-catching form and dramatic, curved
laminated wood 'ribs.' The original appearance ofthe mainshowroom has been somewhat altered bythe addition of
stucco-clad panels in the upperportion ofthe windows where there originallywas full-height plate glasswindows.
These would haveincreased the dramaticappearance ofthe building, particularly at night. when the interiorcould have
been litto enhance thedisplayofcars.
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PropenyName: Billion CarDealership SileNumber: 24GA1794
HISTORYOF PROPERTY X SeeAdditional Infonnation Page
Historyofbuilding. The Billion cardealershipwas developed byitsoriginal owners, Roben F. Dyeand his partnerLou
Jonesas aGM dealership (RobertF. Dye, Inc., 2009). Itwas designedand constructed byBozeman architectOswald
Berg Jr. in 1968to housethedealership, which was originallylocated at 512 E. Main Street. Thepropertywas sold in
May 1978to Joseph Billion. Overtheyears at leasttwo majoradditions havebeen made tothebuilding, theservice
bays to the north and the two loading bays on the west side ofthe building.
The area inwhich the automobiledealershipislocated was annexed to the cityin 1997 aspart ofthe441-acreValley
West annexation. Thepropertywas sold to Susan Pederson in 2002, although JC Billion,Inc. continues to operate the
business onthesite(RobertF. Dye, Inc., 2009). Susan Pederson sold the propertytoCVS Pharmacyin2008,who plan to
redevelop the siteabout 2012 foralarge, mixed-usecommercial developmentrCVSeyes dealership location forstore,'
2008). The Billion Auto Group plans to relocatethe business to their property on HuffineLanein Bozeman
Historyofthe business. TheBillion Dealershipis owned byJosephC. Billion and hiswife Susan. TheBillion Auto
Group has three businesslocations in Bozeman and Livingston. the latterin astreamline moderneshowroom. There are
several divisionswithin the business that handlesales, financing, aservice departmentand aquick lubebusiness. The
businesshas been inoperation atthis locationsince 1978.
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INFORMATIONSOURCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY See Additional Information Page
"BillionAuto Group,"http://billionoutogroup.com/accessed June 2010.
Bowker, R. R.,AmericanArchitectsDirectory(Firstedition). BowkerLLC/American InstituteofArchitects, 1956(Second
edition, 1962;Third edition, 1970).
Hess, Alan, Googie Redux: Ultramodern RoadsideArchitecture(revised edition). San Francisco: ChronicleBooks, 1985.
MontanoArchitecturalDrawings -Montano State UniversityDigitalInitiatives
http://arc.lib.montana.edu/architect/index.phpaccessed March 2010.
'Oswald Berg Jr.," (obit.), Bozeman DoilyChronicle, September28, 2008.
Ricker, Amanda, 'CVSeyes dealershiplocation forstore," Bozeman DailyChronicle, June17, 2008.
Ritter, Nicole Rosenleaf, "ThanksaBillion: Local dealershipownerwould liketo set an exampleforcharitable giving
but hewould prefer to do it out ofthe spotlight: Bozeman DailyChronicle, December19, 2005.
RobertF. Dye, Inc. AutomotiveDealership & ServiceCenterHABSLeve/IISurvey. Prepared byIntrinsikArchitecture,Inc.
Prepared forCity ofBozeman. March 2009.
Schontzler. Gail, Annexation proposal takesastep:Bozeman DoilyChronicle, July2, 1997.
MONTANA HISTORICPROPERTYRECORD
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PropertyName: Billion Car Dealership SiteNumber: 24GA1794
HISTORYOFPROPERTY
Joe Billion's farther, HenryBillion, entered the car sales businessin Sioux Fallsin 1935. Hebegan in sales, eventually
owninghisown dealership. JoeBillionjoinedhis fatherin the business butdecided to open hisown dealershipin
Bozeman. Both fatherand son, as partnersin the business, relocated to the cityfrom SiouxFalls in 1978 ('Thanks a
Billion... 2005). Henry Billion died inJuly 1, 1991.
ArchitectOswald Berg Jr. Oswald Berg Jr. was aMontana native, born intoaranching family in Lewistown, Montana
on October8, 1918. Heattended 51. OlafCollegein Northfield, Minnesota and then Washington State College (now
University),where hewas awarded aBSin Architecture in 1941. Heworked forthe Civil ServiceCommission and the
Departmentofthe Navyin Washington DC during World War11 and attended nightschool atGeorgeWashington
University. Afterthewarhe was employed bythecollege architecture office at WSU and as an architect for N.W.
Fabricators, Inc. untilopening his own firm ofOswald Berg Jr. Architect in 1949. Between 1949and 1983 Oswald
practiced underthe names ofOswald Berg Jr.and Associates, Berg-Grabowand Partners, BGSArchitects, and Berg
Grabow-Schofield.
Berg hadalongand prolific career, designing over 200buildings. Heand his partners designedchurches and chapels,
schools and universitybuildings, banks, libraries, shops, some commercial buildings, and some residential projects. He
designed several buildings for Montana StateCollegein Bozemanand Montana StateCollegein Havre. Among his
mostwell-known buildings the Museumofthe Rockies in Bozeman(1971) and the South Hedgesdormitoryand food
servicebuilding at MSU- Bozeman. Hedesigned projects throughout thestate ofMontana.aswell as Wyoming and
Oregon. Hetaught at Montana StateCollege as avisiting professorand was licensed as an engineerin addition to
being an architect.
MO TANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD
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Pro ertyName: BillionCar Dealershi SiteNumber: 24GA 1794
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CONGRl\lULATIONS
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ROBERT f. DYE, Inc.
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GE ERAt CONTRL\C
EMIL MARTEL & SONS
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MANNIX ELECTRICAL INC•
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fULLERTON PLUMBING &HEATING
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PInSBURGHPAINT1GLASSCO< K·D.EC.OR.l.TORS
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CAlLAlINVl.UEY FURNI l'REell.
Advertisement. Bozeman DailyChronicle, 1968
MONTANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD
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ProocrtyName: BillionCarDealershiD SiteNumber: 24GA1794
NATIONAL REGISTEROF HISTORIC PLACES
NRHPListingDate:
0 0 0
NRHPEligibility: X Yes 0 X Individuall) ContributingtoHistoricDistrict oneontributingtoHislorieDistrict
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NRHPCriteria: A B XC 0
AreaofSignificance: Commerce PeriodofSignificance: 1968
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STATEMENTOFSIG IFICA CE Sec Additional Information Pa«
The Billioncardealershipbuilding issignificantas an excellent exampleofGoogiearchitecture. Whilethe building's
integrityisonly fair, thedramaticand iconic form ofthe showroom ensures that this portion ofthebuilding iswhat are
most noticeable, notbuilding additions orwindow replacements.
The building isalso agood and verytypical example ofwhere and whyGoogiebuildings were constructed. II isan auto
showroom (and service) building, which was apopularbuilding type for Googiearchitecture. Itwas constructed fora
companythat wanted to expand, and chose asuburban area outsidethe citylimits. Googiearchitecturewas often
constructed along suburban arterials. Itseye-catching forms and expressionswere designedto attract notice from
driverstraveling athigherspeeds than would be thecase on downtownurban streets. Finally, Googieis known as an
auto-related architectural style. This isalso the case in both the formand useofthis building.
Thebuilding is scheduled to be demolishedand the site redeveloped sometime before 2012. HABSdocumentation
was prepared forthe structure.
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INTEGRITY SecAdditionallnfonmation Page
Thebuilding displays fairintegrity. It hasintegrityoflocation. Design hasbeen alteredin both theform ofthe building
and some details. The setting is likelysimilar to what itwas historically, orwithin the historic period ofthe building
(notethat the latest Sanbam maps forthis area dateto 1943,and atthat timethis area was outside the citylimits).
Newermaterialshavebeen added to the building, includingstuccopanels and corrugated metal siding. Workmanship
is intact. The feeling and association ofthe buildingin intact. Insummary, thebuilding retains integrityoflocation,
setting, workmanship, feeling and association. Itdoes not retain integrityofdesignand materials.
MO TANA HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD
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Pro ert'Name: BillionCar Dealershi , , Site umber: 24GA 1794
MAY 12-20
Robert F. Dye is
J. C. BILLION INC.
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TREMENDOUS SAVI NGS
The:.omegreo'people the!oomi!greetprocuCl!o
with0 proudnewnome
Advertisement, BozemanDailyChronicle, 1978
MONTA A HISTORIC PROPERTY RECORD
PHOTOGRAPHS
Pro rt Name: BilliortCar Dealershi SileNumber: 24 GA 1794
Description: Auto showroom, viewed from south
Description: Buildingoverview,viewed from southeast