Historic Resources Board Biographies

bower, david

David was born in Palo Alto and has worked in residential construction for close to 40 years, including seven years of residential construction consulting.  He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from San Francisco State University.  His community activities include serving on the boards of Western Ballet in Mountain View, the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra and the Infrastructure Blue Ribbon Commission.

heinrich, gogo

Gogo Heinrich is an architect and has lived in Palo Alto for the past 32 years.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from UC Berkeley, is a licensed Architect in California, and is a LEED accredited professional.  She has over 40 years of experience in the construction industry specializing in program management, design management, project management, and construction management of large complex projects.  Projects included airport terminals, fire stations, correctional facilities, office buildings, zoo facilities, education facilities, and civic buildings.  As a resident of the Professorville neighborhood, she was active in serving the community with her volunteer work on the draft of the Professorville Design Guidelines (2012), which included researching, documenting and categorizing the residences within the historic district.  

Historic preservation requires careful analysis of the buildings and the context of the neighborhoods as well as a sense of the era in which the structures were built.  The determination of whether a building contributes to the City as an historic resource is vital to the future growth of Palo Alto.

makinen, michael

Mike Makinen served three years in the United States (U.S.) Army as a Captain where he worked as an aeronautical engineer at the U.S. Army Aviation Test Board in Fort Rucker, Alabama testing prototype helicopters.  His career continued at National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) from 1966 to 2005, first in Cleveland, Ohio and then at Moffett Field, California.  

Mike worked as an Aerospace Engineer, a Design Engineer, a Facilities Planner, and a Project Manager.  Additionally he worked as Chief of the Ames Facilities Planning Office and as the NASA- Ames Historic Preservation Officer.  Mike has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in mechanical engineering. 

Mike currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Historic Resources Board and previously served as the Chairman; he has served on the Historic Resources Board since 1999.

pease, christian

I grew-up in Palo Alto, left, and returned years later. In that regard, I don’t believe my story is unusual among others who did so. It is more a testimony to the enduring qualities of this community. My father, a naval officer, was sent to Stanford to run its NROTC program while getting a master’s degree. He and my mother fell in love with this town: Its good schools, fine parks, many libraries, tree-lined streets, and moderate weather. Over the years we lived in different homes, most of them Eichlers. It was a good time to be in Palo Alto. Not better than now, just different. Yet in my late teens, I was eager to find my own way, so I moved to San Francisco, found work, and put myself through college. But in the end, I was compelled to come back to Palo Alto; my wife and I having agreed there was no better place to raise our own family. Doing so was challenging, but it also one of the most important and best decisions we ever made.

shepherd, deborah

Debbie Shepherd is a resident of a Category 2 historic property in Palo Alto and has restored a number of historic residential properties around the country. She has a long standing interest in and knowledge of American architecture and historic preservation as a student (B.A. Stanford, M.A. and Museum Certificate, Michigan, auditor in architecture/preservation Columbia, Wellesley and Boston University), homeowner and museum professional (Detroit Institute of Arts, FAMSF, Cantor, National Gallery of Art).

Debbie served for many years on the board of the Cow Hollow Association in San Francisco, a neighborhood organization seeking to preserve the historic residential character of this community. She is a 2018 graduate of Leadership Palo Alto and will serve a two-year term as chair of the Membership Executive Council of the Cantor/Anderson Museums at Stanford in 2018-20.

willis, caroline

Caroline Willis is a California Architect living in a 1909 Palo Alto home where she enjoys gardening and admiring the woodwork. She is a former President of PAST Heritage and has enjoyed giving tours of Professorville, Homer Avenue and Downtown.

She received her architectural training at the Rhode Island School of Design and worked in Philadelphia and DC before migrating to Palo Alto in the early 80s.

wimmer, margaret

Margaret Wimmer is a Palo Alto based Residential Designer with over 24 years of professional experience in the San Francisco Bay Area.  She is a Graduate from the College of Architecture and Environmental Design from Arizona State University.  Margaret enjoyed working as a Docent and Intern at the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation at Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona prior to moving to California. 

With a special interest in Historic Architecture and Design, Margaret currently serves on the Historic Resources Board for the City of Palo Alto.  In addition, she volunteers at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House and at the Stanford Jazz Workshop.