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LOS ANGELES CONSERVANCY Pre ser vatio n Report Card | 2008

In the majority of Los Angeles County cities that
have implemented the Mills Act program, proper-
ties eligible for participation must either be desig-
nated as a local landmark or be a contributor to a
locally designated historic district. Many more
property owners will initiate or approve the desig-
nation of their properties if they can reap tax sav-
ings through the Mills Act program. In the report
card rankings, cities with Mills Act programs in
place received higher ratings than those that did
not, and cities with a larger number of Mills Act
contracts rated even higher.

The Mills Act program is the single most important
preservation incentive in California, providing property The City of West Hollywood has an active Mills Act program and currently
tax relief for owners of qualified historic properties. holds seventy-three contracts with property owners. Of particular note is
Mills Act benefits are currently available in nineteen West Hollywood’s expansion of their Mills Act program to include, as
cities throughout Los Angeles County, with many
property owners seeking landmark designation to take eligible properties, individual condominium units within historic buildings.
advantage of the tax savings. Pictured: Lydecker House
(1939), Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument
No. 918 (courtesy Lydecker House).
HISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEY

A comprehensive survey documenting the historic resources within an
area is another powerful preservation tool. Historic resources surveys are
often done as part of the preparation of a city’s general or specific plan.
Surveys that meet state standards may identify properties as “historical
resources” for the purposes of the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA), which confers its own level of protection against egregious al-
terations and demolition in some cases. Surveys also serve as an in-
valuable educational tool to inform city officials and residents about the
rich built heritage of their communities, and to assist in thoughtful devel-
opment and environmental planning.

The mere existence of a comprehensive historic resources survey is not
a particularly good indicator of the strength of local preservation efforts.
To be truly useful, a survey must be regularly reviewed and updated, so
that historic structures or sites that have lost their significance can be
noted, and buildings or sites whose significance was not appreciated at
the time the survey was prepared can be recognized. A number of the
Several Los Angeles County cities are in the process
of updating surveys of their architectural and cultural cities we contacted for the report card did have comprehensive historic
resources. The City of Burbank is currently working resources surveys, but many of those had not updated their surveys in
on a citywide windshield survey and historical over twenty years, limiting their practical utility.
context study. Pictured: Burbank City Hall (1943).
Photo by Conservancy staff.

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