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D.2

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	John Kopchik, Director, Conservation & Development Department
Date:	August 15, 2023

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

Contra Costa County Historical Landmarks Advisory Committee (HLAC) on advocating for a County historic preservation ordinance

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 08/15/2023

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Diane Burgis, District III Supervisor
Ken Carlson, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:

Dominique Vogelpohl, HLAC staff (925) 655-2880

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: August 15, 2023
Monica Nino, County Administrator

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

CONSIDER the recommendation of the Historical Landmarks Advisory Committee to prepare a historic preservation ordinance for the County and PROVIDE any direction.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The cost of providing staff support to the Historical Landmarks Advisory Committee is absorbed by the Department of Conservation and Development and the cost to develop an ordinance would need to be as well.

BACKGROUND:

The purpose of the HLAC is to advise the Board of Supervisors on matters relating to the identification and preservation of historical resources within the county, including identifying eligible sites and places to be listed in the County's Historic Resources Inventory (HRI). Inclusion in the HRI provides some protection for sites, precluding the County from approving certain activities that would harm the historical resource. State and federal agencies issue historical designations that offer protection. The County locally administers the state's Mills Act, which enables property owners to qualify for tax reductions for certain actions to restore or protect historical resources. The California Environmental Quality Act also requires analysis of potential impacts to historic resources and consideration of actions to mitigate impacts, but only for actions requiring a discretionary permit.

The HLAC has requested time at the Board of Supervisors meeting to explain its recommendation that protection of historical resources in the unincorporated area of County could be enhanced if the County were to develop a historical preservation ordinance such as have been developed in other jurisdictions. The HLAC members have consulted historical societies throughout the County and believes such action would be supported by these organizations. The HLAC conveyed this recommendation when it was consulted for input on the update to the County's General Plan and the draft General Plan to be released in September includes updated provisions regarding historical resources, including policy language to consider such an ordinance.

Staff have not yet engaged in a detailed analysis of historical preservation ordinances nor other approaches for augmenting consideration and protection of historical resources. If the Board wished to consider this issue in further detail at this time, it could consider referring the matter to a Board Committee.

CLERK'S ADDENDUM

Speaker: Caller 1

CONSIDERED the recommendations of the Historic Landmarks Advisory Committee; REFERRED the matter to the Transportation, Water and Infrastructure Committee; and DIRECTED staff to further analyze a proposed ordinance and return to the Board with options.