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When the pandemic hit in 2020, La Casa Founders Holding Company purchased the building at auction. Our nonprofit organization partnered with the new ownership to reopen its doors to the community. Soon after, the building received official landmark designation, restoring its historical name: La Casa de la Raza. Today, the Restorative Justice Education Center continues to serve from this iconic space — supporting families in crisis, uplifting community voices, and keeping the doors open while the building undergoes its final transformation.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, La Casa Founders Holding Company purchased the building at auction. Our nonprofit organization partnered with the new ownership to reopen its doors to the community. Soon after, the building received official landmark designation, restoring its historical name: La Casa de la Raza. Today, the Restorative Justice Education Center continues to serve from this iconic space — supporting families in crisis, uplifting community voices, and keeping the doors open while the building undergoes its final transformation.
About Casa
Our building was originally constructed in 1917 and was completed in the Spanish Colonial Revival architecture style in 1931.
In 1970, La Casa de la Raza became a center for the Chicano and Latinx communities to access resources about the United Farm Workers, the Brown Berets, the Crusade for Justice, La Raza Unida, and many more movements.
Today, it stands as Santa Barbara’s first Latinx City Landmark, a testament to its long-standing influence on the local community and its enduring legacy in Mexican-American culture.
As we look back on the history of Casa de la Raza, we honor the dedication of community leaders and activists who have made it a vibrant and essential part of Santa Barbara’s cultural landscape. Today, La Casa de la Raza continues to thrive as a beacon of hope, resilience, and solidarity for future generations.
Historic
Preservation
The founding members of this historical center and cultural movement continue to care for our community by maintaining careful protection of the newly established La Casa Founders Holding Company.
The building was purchased in 2020, was moved through a historic preservation process, and became a designated historical landmark.
View our Historic Landmark Designation Report prepared by Nicole Hernandez, MFA, City Architectural Historian
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