Thursday, May 20, 2010

New Funding For L.A. Preservation Projects

From the National Trust for Historic Preservation...

National Trust for Historic Preservation Opens New Round of Funding to Aid Los Angeles County Preservation Projects

San Francisco, CA (May 14, 2010) –Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced the opening of the application period for the second round of grants from the Los Angeles County Preservation Fund. Funded jointly by the Ahmanson Foundation, the Getty Foundation and the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the Los Angeles County Preservation Fund provides seed monies (typical award $5,000 to $10,000) to nonprofit organizations and government agencies for preservation, stewardship, and community revitalization involving historic resources across Los Angeles County.

“We created this dedicated source of financial support to increase public awareness of the wealth of heritage resources, advocacy efforts, and historic preservation projects in greater Los Angeles County,” said Anthea Hartig, director of the National Trust Western Office in San Francisco. “The first twelve grants highlight chapters in the diverse heritage of America’s most populous county. In addition to fostering civic pride and encouraging thoughtful stewardship of sites of community memory, projects funded by the Los Angeles County Preservation Fund also inspire additional fundraising and yield substantial economic activity.”

Intended to build credibility and public awareness of historic preservation activities, the seed grants give momentum to community preservation projects getting off the ground, providing capital in early stages and at critical junctures. A required dollar-for-dollar match means that the grants act as fundraising catalysts, leveraging additional financial support and community buy-in.

Grant awards will support activities and projects such as:

  • Professional consulting services in areas that include architecture, archaeology, engineering, preservation or land-use planning, economics, organizational development, media relations and law;
  • Bricks-and-mortar construction activities at historic sites and structures;
  • Surveys and inventories of historic resources;
  • Educational workshops, outreach activities, or community forums; and
  • Designing and producing printed materials or other media communications to advance historic preservation.

The initial round of the Los Angeles County Preservation Fund generated a thematically and geographically diverse group of projects, including preservation of two 19th century ranch homes, the gateways to Chinatown’s Central Plaza, and a mid-century modern resource with intimate links to architects Richard and Dion Neutra’s evolving design ideas. To learn full details of first twelve projects go tohttp://www.preservationnation.org/about-us/regional-offices/western/los-angeles-county-1.html

City governments, government agencies, and 501(c) (3) nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply. The application deadline for the second grant round will close on June 15, 2010 (postmarked). Individuals and private, for profit businesses are not eligible to apply. For the Los Angeles County Preservation Fund application, as well as complete guidelines and instructions, please see: www.preservationnation.org/lapf.

Funds may not be used: to acquire property or purchase equipment; to conduct academic research; for salaries, operating, or overhead expenses; or to raise general operating funds towards capital campaign goals.

The Los Angeles County Preservation Fund is coordinated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation Western Office, in San Francisco, in collaboration with the Los Angeles Conservancy, a Partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Applicants are required to contact the National Trust for Historic Preservation Western Office for assistance in identifying an appropriate eligible project prior to submitting an application. For further information, please contact Melita Jureša-McDonald, Elizabeth Boylan or Hugh Rowland in the Western Office, 415.947.0692

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Write a Book about Your Community History

A message from Arcadia Publishing...


Arcadia Publishing is constantly on the search for worthwhile local photo-history book subjects. If certain Los Angeles Heritage Alliance members has a particular interest that would lend itself to a photo-history volume, we would be interested in discussing the matter. Perhaps that idea might be a suitable subject for our Images of America series. For more information, contact Jerry Roberts, Acquisitions Editor, Arcadia Publishing at 310-733-7080 or email jroberts@arcadiapublishing.com

Speak at the 2011 CA Preservation Conference

The California Preservation Foundation announces its Call for Proposals for the 2011 California Preservation Conference & 2010-11 CPF Workshop Series

The 2011 Call for Sessions is now posted on the CPF Website, www.californiapreservation.org and your can download the application here: http://www.californiapreservation.org/PDFs/Call for Sessions 2011.pdf. Deadline is July 2, and details are below and online.

From the California Preservation Foundation website...

CPF is now accepting proposals for the 2010-11 Education Programs! Proposals are being accepted for workshops, annual conference sessions, and study tours. Please visit www.californiapreservation.org to download the “Call for Proposal” Form.

2011 California Preservation Conference
The 2011 California Preservation Conference, with the conference theme “Preservation on the Edge” will be held in Santa Monica in the spring. The audience for the conference includes: City and County Planners, Historic District Commissioners, Preservation Educators, Main Street Communities, Architects, State and Federal Employees, and Public Historians and interested community members. Each year the Conference presents high quality sessions, workshops, and study tours that address some of the most important issues facing preservationists in California. The Conference Program Committee seeks sessions that will be interactive, engage the audience, present fresh approaches, and be easily applicable to participants.

The conference will approximately have five educational tracks. The track topics and the conference theme relate to identified issues or subjects that are relevant to the region where the conference will be held. Within each track, four 90 minute education sessions and one mobile workshop will be developed. The proposals, which are selected for inclusion in the conference, must appeal to a broad, statewide audience. Potential session topics include, but are not limited to:

- Sustainability- Economic, Environmental, Social/Cultural
- Innovative Practices in Historic Preservation
- Atypical Adaptive Re-use
- Landmarks of the Future and Recent Past- Identification and Preservation
- Cultural Landscapes- From Beaches and Parks to Sites of Historical Interest
- Integration of Preservation in Local, State and Federal Government
- Economic Development and Heritage Tourism

2010-11 Workshop Series
CPF has a reputation for providing high quality, interactive workshops focusing on topics of interest to our members, design professionals, building officials, planners, attorneys and other preservation practitioners. CPF is a certified continuing education provider for the American Institute of Architects (AIA), American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) and the California State Bar (MCLE). Our programs meet the high standards required by each of these organizations as we strive to present the “current and best practices” in historic preservation. Staff and Commissioners of Certified Local Governments can also satisfy the requirement for continuing education by attending CPF workshops. Topics of
interest include the following:
- Historic Integrity/Significance
- Tax Incentives for Historic Preservation
- Design Review for Historic Buildings, Landscapes, Districts, etc.
- Finding Preservation Funding
- Historic Resource Surveys
- California Environmental Quality Act
- Preservation Ordinances
- Adaptive Reuse
- Alterations and Additions, and also Infill Construction within Historic Districts
- Cultural Landscapes
- The California Historical Building Code
- The Secretary of the Interior's Standards

Proposal Submission Guidelines
We invite you to submit your recommendations for workshops and conference sessions by completing the online “Call for Proposal” Form. Please submit your proposal on the electronic form posted on our website: www.californiapreservation.org.

Your proposal should include:
- Session Title;
- Level of Session (Advanced, Intermediate, Beginner);
- Format/Time (Session, Workshop, Tour/90mins, 3 hrs);
- Session Coordinator’s and Speaker Address/Phone/Email;
- Brief description of proposed session including anticipated AV/equipment needs; and
- At least four learning objectives for the session.

Deadline for submitting proposals is July 2, 2010.
Participants will be notified by fall 2010 of their proposal status.