The document provides an overview of historic preservation in the United States and California, including key legislation and programs. It discusses the National Historic Preservation Act, State Historic Preservation Offices, the California Office of Historic Preservation, the California Environmental Quality Act's role in historic preservation, and incentives like the California Historical Building Code and Mills Act.

1. Community Preservation ~
Current Historic Preservation Topics
Presented by:
Jennifer M. Gates, AICP, California Preservation Foundation,
in partnership with National Trust for Historic Preservation
American Planning Association, Orange County Chapter
Lunch Lecture

2. Overview
 What is Historic Preservation
 Key Components of a successful Preservation
Program
 CEQA compliance
 California State Historical Building Code
 Mills Act changes and updates

3. Why Historic Preservation?
“The spirit and direction of the
Nation are founded upon and
reflected in its historic
heritage;”
“The historical and cultural
foundations of the Nation
should be preserved as a living
part of our community life and
development in order to give a
sense of orientation to the
American people;”
National Historic Preservation Act

4. Why Historic Preservation?
“The preservation of this
irreplaceable heritage is in
the public interest so that its
vital legacy of cultural,
educational, aesthetic,
inspirational, economic, and
energy benefits will be
maintained and enriched for
future generations of
Americans;”
National Historic Preservation Act

5. Early Preservation Efforts
United States California
 1813 Philadelphia State House  1871 The California Historical
(Independence Hall) saved Society was first established.
from demolition.  1875 The Society of the
 1853 Mount Vernon Ladies' Native Sons of the Golden
Association formed to save West was organized “to
Mount Vernon. perpetuate memories of the
 1906 Antiquities Act passed, Days of ’49.” Native Daughters
the country's first national of the Golden West was
preservation legislation, founded in 1886.
designating national  1889 The Association for
monuments on federal land Preservation of Missions was
and establishing penalties for founded in Los Angeles.
destroying federally owned  1902 Native Sons established
sites. a Historic Landmarks
Committee to survey state
buildings and develop
restoration and preservation
plans and priorities.

6. Early Preservation Efforts
United States California
 1916 National Park Service  1915 The State Legislature
established. established the Historical
 1926 John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Survey Commission
begins funding the restoration  1931 The passage of
of Williamsburg, Virginia. Assembly Bill 171 authorized
 1931 Charleston, South the Department of Natural
Carolina establishes its "Old Resources to establish a
and Historic District," the California Historical Landmark
country's first designated Registration Program providing
historic district. for the designation of privately
 1933 Historic American
and publicly-owned properties.
Buildings Survey (HABS)
authorized by President
Roosevelt.

7. Early Preservation Efforts
United States California
 1935 Historic Sites Act passed  1949 The State Legislature
by Congress to establish established the Historical
historic preservation policy; it Landmarks Advisory
"established policy ...to Committee.
preserve for public use historic  1972 As a result of the
sites, buildings and objects of National Historic Preservation
national significance for the Act of 1966, the California
inspiration and benefit of the History Preservation Section
people of the United States." was established in the
 1949 National Trust for Historic Department of Parks and
Preservation established. Recreation to administer the
 1966 National Historic federal historic preservation
Preservation Act program.
 1978 Revenue Act  1975 The Office of Historic
Preservation was established
by the Director of the
Department of Parks and
Recreation.

8. National Historic Preservation Act
 Established in 1966, last
amendment in 2006
 Establishes:
 Historic Preservation Fund
 National Register of Historic
Places
 Advisory Council on Historic
Preservation
 Established State Historic
Preservation Officers and State
Commissions
 Established Tribal Historic
Preservation Officers
 Certified Local Government
Program

9. Office of Historic Preservation
 Mission -
“To preserve and enhance
California's irreplaceable historic
heritage as a matter of public
interest so that its vital legacy of
cultural, educational, recreational,
aesthetic, economic, social, and
environmental benefits will be
maintained and enriched for
present and future generations.”
 State Historic Preservation Officer
Milford Wayne Donaldson, FAIA,
LEED AP http://ohp.parks.ca.gov

10. California Preservation Foundation
 Mission -
“To provide statewide leadership,
advocacy and education to ensure
the protection of California's
diverse cultural heritage and
historic places.”
 Field Services Program
 In Partnership with the National Trust
for Historic Preservation
 To provide on-site technical assistance
and direct support to property owners,
developers, local officials, local
organizations and others with
information and tools essential for
successful preservation projects and
initiatives. www.californiapreservation.org

11. Historic Preservation is Not Just
About the Past, its about…
 Continuity
 Places with historic
buildings give
people a sense of
their place in time;
understanding that
others came before
them, living their
lives in similar yet
different ways, and
that others will come
after us.

12. Historic Preservation is Not Just
About the Past, its about…
 Community
 Places with
neighborhoods
served by walkable
commercial centers
foster community
interaction and
pride, building a
sense of belonging.

13. Historic Preservation is Not Just
About the Past, its about…
 Character
 Places that people
love and care about
do not spring up
overnight; they are
built over time,
giving them a sense
of those who came
before and
developing
character that is
unlike anywhere
else.

14. Historic Preservation is Not Just
About the Past, its about…
 Future
 Historic preservation
helps keep exciting,
viable, interesting
places for future
generations.
http://shedblog.historicshed.com/2009/01/
historic-preservation-is-not-about-
past.html
http://www.vivadowntownredding.org/about.html

15. Preservation is…
 Neighborhoods and Historic Districts

16. Preservation is…
 Sustainability
"The Greenest
Building is the
One Already
Built."

17. Preservation is…
 Cultural Diversity

18. Preservation is…
 Cultural Landscapes

19. Preservation is…
 Properties of the Recent Past

20. Is Not a Violation of Property
Rights
 Penn Central
Transportation Co. v.
New York, 1978
 U.S. Supreme Court found
that communities could
protect their historic
resources as long as
property owners had a
reasonable use of their
property left open to them
and that their property
rights were not violated by
this action. http://www.landmarks45.org/archives/248

21. ALL PRESERVATION IS LOCAL!
 Public Sector – National, State, Local
 US Dept. of Interior/Advisory Council on Historic
Preservation
 State Historic Preservation Offices
 County or City Preservation/Planning
Departments and Commissions
 Non-Profit Sector – National, State, Local
 National Trust for Historic Preservation
 California Preservation Foundation
 Local Historical Society

22. Comprehensive Preservation
Programs
 Identify Resources
 Eligibility
Requirements, Survey,
Register
 Protect Resources
 NHPA (Sec 106), State
Plan, CEQA, General
Plan, Ordinance
 Assist with
Maintenance &
Rehabilitation of
Resources
(Incentives)
 Historic Tax Credits,
Mills Act, Zoning
Incentives

23. California Environmental Quality
Act (CEQA)
 Identify potential
environmental impacts
 Reduce potential
impacts
 Changes to project
 Mitigation
 Transparent process
 Environmental review is
really mediation –
looking to balance
competing interests

24. CEQA Compliance
 Historical resources are
considered part of the
environment and a
project that may cause
a substantial adverse
effect on the
significance of a
historical resource is a
project that may have a
significant effect on the
environment.

25. CEQA Compliance
 Public Resources Code Section 21098.1:
 Historical resources included in a local register of historical
resources, as defined in subsection (k) of Section 5020.1, are
presumed to be historically or culturally significant for purposes of
this section, unless the preponderance of the evidence
demonstrates that the resource is not historically or culturally
significant. The fact that a resource is not listed in, or determined
to be eligible for listing in, the California Register of Historical
Resources, not included in a local register of historical resources,
or not deemed significant pursuant to criteria set forth in
subdivision (g) of Section 5024.1 shall not preclude a lead
agency from determining whether the resource may be an
historical resource for purposes of this section.

26. CEQA Compliance
 CEQA section 15064.5(b)(1) defines “substantial
adverse change” to a historical resource as “physical
demolition, destruction, relocation, or alteration of
the resource or its immediate surroundings such that
the significance of an historical resource would be
materially impaired.”
 Categorical Exemption: Class 31 consists of projects
limited to maintenance, repair, stabilization,
rehabilitation, restoration, preservation, conservation or
reconstruction of historical resources in a manner
consistent with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards
for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

27. CEQA Compliance
 Mitigation
 CEQA requires that all feasible mitigation be undertaken even if the
impact is not reduced to below a level of significance
 Project follows Secretary of the Interior's Standards
 Implements locally adopted mitigation measures
 Project redesign to eliminate objectionable or damaging aspects
 Relocation if only feasible alternative to demolition
o New location compatible with original character and use of the
historical resource
o Resource retains its eligibility for listing on the California Register
 Documentation of an historical resource -- narrative, photographs or
architectural drawings
o May not reduce impacts to a less than significant level
 Make sure mitigation is enforceable – permit conditions, agreements, or
other measures

28. CEQA Compliance
 Alternatives:
 The range of alternatives analyzed in the Draft EIR should include
those “that could feasibly accomplish most of the basic objectives
of the project and could avoid or substantially lessen one or more
of the significant effects.” (CEQA Guideline § 15126.6(c))
 Public agencies must “deny approval of a project with significant
adverse effects when feasible alternatives or feasible mitigation
measures can substantially lessen such effects.” (Sierra Club v.
Gilroy City Council (1990) 222 Cal.App.3d 40, 41; see also Public
Resources Code § 21002, 21002.1)
 Local Jurisdictions can approve a Statement of Overriding
Conditions for a project which reflects the ultimate balancing of
competing public objectives (including environmental, legal,
technical, social, and economic factors) that is based on substantial
evidence in the record.

29. Preservation Incentives
 California State Historical
Building Code
 Zoning Incentives (Parking,
Transfer of Development
Rights)
 Historic Tax Credits (can be
combined with New Market
Tax Credits and Low
Income Housing Tax
Credits)
 Grants: CLG, Preserve
America, CDBG, NTHP,
Grants.gov
 Mills Act

30. California’s State Historical
Building Code (http://www.dgs.ca.gov/dsa/AboutUs/shbsb.aspx)
 SHBC provides alternative building regulations for
permitting repairs, alterations and additions
necessary for the preservation, rehabilitation,
relocation, related construction, change of use, or
continued use of a “qualified historical building or
structure.”
 The California Historical Building Code is Part 8 of
Title 24 of California's Code of Regulations. The
California Historical Building Code is also published
as Chapter 34, Division II of the California Building
Code.

31. SHBC
 Listed below are some of the
issues the SHBC addresses, all of
which facilitate sensitive and cost-
effective rehabilitation:
 Accessibility - Both ADA and
the SHBC make provisions for
reasonable levels of
equivalency for, and - under
special circumstances -
exemption from, accessibility
mandates.
 Seismic/Structural - SHBC
governs these issues,
permitting design based on
real values of archaic
materials, and solutions based
on engineering principles and
judgment rather than on
prescriptive formulas.

32. SHBC
 Listed below are some of the
issues the SHBC addresses, all of
which facilitate sensitive and cost-
effective rehabilitation:
 Energy - Qualified historic
buildings are exempt from
California energy standards, which
most vintage structures cannot
meet without alteration or loss of
historic features.
 Triggers - The "triggers" for full
upgrading to current standards,
with respect to length of vacancy,
change of occupancy, or
percentage of value of the work
proposed, and which exist in other
codes, are not recognized by the
SHBC, which concentrates instead
on the sensitive resolution of
genuine safety considerations.

33. SHBC
 California law (H&S 18959) requires that the jurisdiction "administer
and enforce" the SHBC. Thus, jurisdictions may not deny an owner
the protection of the SHBC; but rather should inform owners and
agents of historic properties of the provisions of the SHBC, and its
applicability to their project, just as they routinely inform owners of
the applicable codes with respect to non-historic buildings.
 "New work" within an historic property is routinely expected to
conform to the requirements of current codes and regulations.
However, that new work is also governed by the SHBC, so that
whenever the historic character or the historic geometry interface
with new work, the new work is expected to accommodate existing
historic conditions.

34. Mills Act
 A Program Tailored to
Your Community, CA
Government Code 50280
 “…the legislative body of a
city, county, or city and
county may contract with
the owner or agent to
restrict the use of the
property in a manner which
the legislative body deems
reasonable to carry out the
purposes of this article…”

35. A Program Tailored to Your
Community
 Over 80 communities participate in the Mills Act
program
 Number of properties per program range from 0 to
over 400
 Most programs were established in the 1990s
 Some programs have been amended to meet
current needs or limitations

36. Mills Act Overview
 An economic incentive to encourage preservation of historic
properties by reducing property taxes.
 Local Governments establish a program based on their
communities’ priorities.
 A voluntary program.
 A contract between the local jurisdiction and the owner of a
designated historic property.
 Can be used by properties that are “qualified historical
properties” and that are subject to property taxes.
 Includes a commitment to preserve and maintain the property
for a minimum period of ten years, renewed annually.
 Assessment is based on the Income Capitalization Method.

37. Mills Act Changes- January 2012
 This bill would instead require these contracts, where
applicable, to include an inspection of the interior and
exterior of the premises by the city, county, or city and
county prior to a new agreement, and every 5 years
thereafter.
 This bill would delete from the list of required contract
provisions the requirement that the owner notify the
Office of Historic Preservation, and would instead require
that the contract include a provision that requires the
owner to record the contract with the county in which the
property is located.

38. Processes and contracts
 What is outlined in the Contract? (per Code)
 10 year term, renewed annually
 The preservation, restoration, and/or
rehabilitation, when necessary, of the qualified
historical property.
 Inspections every five years and periodic
examinations of the interior and exterior.
 The contract stays with the property when
transferred.

39. Restrictions and clauses
 What is outlined in the Contract?
 Property Description
 Terms for cancellation (per Code)
 Notice of non-renewal (per Code)
 Additional clauses???
 List of improvements
 Maintenance requirements

40. Penalties for non-compliance
 CA Government Code 50286-7
 Legislative body may cancel a contract if it determines that the
owner has:
 Breached any of the conditions of the contract;
 Allowed the property to deteriorate so that is no longer a qualified
historical property; or
 Failed to restore or rehabilitate the property in the manner specified in
the contract.
 “If a contract is canceled the owner shall pay a cancellation fee
equal to 12 1/2 percent of the current fair market value of the
property…”
 As an alternative to cancellation of the contract for breach of any
condition, the county, city, or any landowner may bring any action in
court necessary to enforce a contract including, but not limited to, an
action to enforce the contract by specific performance or injunction.

41. Upcoming Events & Education
 Preservation Design  Webinars
Awards- Los Angeles  Section 106:
October 13 Consultation Process
July 24
 Workshops
 SHBC: Fire and Life
 CEQA- San Francisco
Safety
September 12
August 14
 Disaster Planning- SoCal
 SHBC: ADA and Historic
November
Buildings August 28
 SHBC: Cultural and
Landscapes and the
Building Code
September 11

42. 2013 California Preservation
Conference
 May 1-3, 2013
 Anaheim Crowne
Plaza Resort
 Tracks:
 Modern Resources
 New Preservationists &
Diversity
 Economic
Development &
Heritage Tourism
 Technical

43. Contact Information
Jennifer M. Gates, AICP
Field Services Director
California Preservation Foundation
In partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation
5 Third Street, Suite 424
San Francisco, Ca 94103
T: 415-495-0349 ext. 204
F: 415-495-0265
Email: jgates@californiapreservation.org