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LOS ANGELES CONSERVANCY Preservation Report Card | 2014

METHODOLOGY: NEW FOCUS ON CLARITY, SUPPORT

This new version of the Preservation Report Card also reflects changes in
our methodology. While our basic process remained the same, we created
a more quantifiable scoring system to clarify how grades were determined
and identify areas of improvement. With the Digital Report Card, we will
also be able to provide more resources to help communities, as well as
update scores and grades as communities make
progress.

As with previous editions of the Report Card, Los
Angeles Conservancy staff conducted phone in-
terviews with representatives from each of the
local governments in Los Angeles County. These
interviews took place in the fall of 2013. For each
jurisdiction, we spoke with representatives who
participate directly in the specific community’s
planning review process, as well as staff members
responsible for overseeing historic preservation
programs in communities that have them.

We asked each interviewee about various elements of their preservation
program, including:

• How preservation fits into the structure and functioning of local
government (e.g., staffing, decision making)

• Incentives offered for preservation, such as the Mills Act Historical
Property Contract Program

• The existence and strength of a local preservation ordinance

• The existence and number of designated landmarks and historic
districts

Top: County of Los Angeles Hospital, • The existence and scope of surveys of historic places
Old Administration Building (1909), Lincoln Heights.
Photo courtesy Fields Devereaux.
• Community involvement (e.g., local groups, current preservation issues)
Bottom: Historic resources are not limited to buildings.
For more information about the elements of a strong preservation program,
La Laguna de San Gabriel Park (1965, San Gabriel)
is significant for its association with sculpture artist see page 15.
Benjamin Dominguez, whose whimsical concrete
forms were designed as children’s play spaces.
The City of San Gabriel designated the playground In addition to conducting interviews, Conservancy staff reviewed the exist-
as a local landmark in 2009. ingpreservation ordinances of communities that have them. In most cases,
Photo by Dean Cheng.
the historic preservation ordinance is accessible through the official website
of the jurisdiction, within the municipal code. When possible, we also ob-
tained and reviewed community surveys of historic resources.

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