About CPF and the Awards

Held in conjunction with CPF’s 2026 Annual Conference in Riverside, the 2026 Mission Inn Preservation Design Awards Ceremony and Reception will spotlight excellence in historic preservation in a setting that reflects the very spirit of the work being honored. This special evening brings together award recipients, conference participants, preservation leaders, and supporters from across California to celebrate outstanding preservation projects and leadership through the Preservation Design Awards and President’s Awards.

Founded in 1978, the California Preservation Foundation (CPF) is California’s statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection of historic places and cultural heritage. Through education, advocacy, and community-centered programs, CPF supports the people, projects, and policies that keep California’s historic resources vital and valued. We now support a national network of more than 36,000 members and supporters. Click here to learn how you can become a member.

Geneva Team

Project Lead or Principal
Roslyn Cole – Aidlin Darling Design

Lead Architect, Engineer, or Designer Address
Tory Green – Aidlin Darling Design

Owner/Client
Melinda Sullivan – San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department

Architect/Landscape
Aidlin Darling Design

Structural Engineer
Dan Eilbeck – Wiss, Janney, Elstern Associates (WJE)

Mechanical Engineer
Jeff Blaevoet – Guttmann & Blaevoet

Civil Engineer
Eric Swanson – BKF Engineers

Green Building Consultant
Abenda Darden – Thorton Tomasetti

Landscape Architect
Scott Cataffa – Conger Moss Guillard (CMG) Landscape Architecture

Historic Preservation Consultant
Nancy Goldenberg – TreanorHL

Acoustical Consultant
Thomas Schindler – Salter Inc.

Code Consultant
Steve Winkel – The Preview Group

Specifications Consultant
John McCaffrey 

General Contractor
Wiss, Janney, Elstern Associates (WJE)

Theater and A/V Consultant
Mike McMackin – Auerbach Pollock Friedlander

Lighting Designer
Janet Nolan – JS Nolan + Associates

Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse

Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse is a winner for the 2021 Preservation Design Award for Rehabilitation. Award recipients are selected by a jury of top professionals in the fields of architecture, engineering, planning, and history, as well as renowned architecture critics and journalists. Tickets and sponsorship options are available at californiapreservation.org/awards.

Read more about the Preservation Design Awards

About Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse

Built in 1901 as the home of San Francisco’s first electric railway, the Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse is one of the last physical reminders of the system. In 2009, an effort began to adaptively reuse the building as a community cultural and education center. Finished in 2020, the transformation of the Powerhouse into a 300-person event and performance space completes the first phase. The adaptive reuse of the Powerhouse highlights layers of history while deftly inserting new program elements into the historic shell. Due to the building’s decay and lack of seismic stability, every surface was touched in the rehabilitation. In adapting the Powerhouse as an arts event space, elements were introduced in a manner that respected the existing structure. Throughout the space, the interplay of new and old enlivens the reading of each, creating a revitalized historic building that serves the community while honoring its past.

Interior view of the restored Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse in San Francisco, featuring exposed brick walls, large windows, high industrial ceilings, and modern lighting. A blue banner highlights its preservation award.
A spacious, industrial-style interior with large arched windows, high ceilings, a metal staircase, and glass panels on the floor reflecting the architecture. Warm sunlight fills the space, highlighting exposed brick and concrete walls.
A spacious industrial-style interior with high ceilings, large windows, exposed beams, and wooden walls. A person sits on a bench in the corner, and a staircase leads to a mezzanine level. Natural light fills the space.
Sunlight casts geometric shadows on an empty industrial interior with exposed brick, concrete, and steel beams. A wooden partition and a metal bench are visible in the minimalist space.
A renovated industrial-style building with large windows and brick and concrete exterior is lit up at dusk. A sign above the entrance reads “FORMER HOUSE.” Overhead power lines cross the scene.
Modern building entrance labeled POWERHOUSE with large glass doors, illuminated sign, and a mix of gray and red brick facade. Two people are visible inside, and the sidewalk leads to the entryway.
Spacious industrial-style interior with high ceilings, exposed beams, large arched windows, metal staircase, polished concrete floor, and modern lighting; natural light enters through skylights and windows.
Large, red, wooden double doors with small rectangular windows and black graffiti at the bottom, set in a concrete wall with tall windows above, letting in natural light.
A worn, red metal sliding door is set in a weathered brick wall with peeling paint. The door shows patches of rust and scratches, and a metal track is visible above it. The floor is concrete.
A spacious industrial-style interior with exposed brick walls, a high metal ceiling with skylights, large arched windows, and a mezzanine accessible by a black metal staircase, lit by warm natural sunlight.
Exposed brick interior wall with visible metal beams and a hanging white industrial light fixture, creating an industrial, minimalist aesthetic.
A room with rough, unfinished concrete walls and floor, illuminated by overhead industrial lights. There is a doorway in the back wall leading to another similar space, and black steel beams cross the ceiling.