Los Angeles | Los Angeles Conservancy
Photos (clockwise from upper left): Broadway in downtown L.A. by Annie Laskey/L.A. Conservancy; Hollywood Sign by Joey Lax-Salinas on Flickr; Kansas Sebastian on Flickr; Wilshire Boulevard by Flora Chou/L.A. Conservancy

Los Angeles

Los Angeles has established itself as a preservation leader on several fronts.

The city’s historic preservation ordinance, adopted in 1962, is one of the earliest in the nation for a major city.

Los Angeles established an Office of Historic Resources in 2006 to coordinate the city’s historic preservation activities and support its Cultural Heritage Commission.

Los Angeles became a Certified Local Government in 2007, and its active Mills Act program is the second-largest in the state.

Los Angeles has designated over 1,000 local landmarks and twenty-nine historic districts (HPOZs) that encompass more than 14,000 properties.

Los Angeles is in the process of conducting its first-ever citywide historic resources survey, SurveyLA. This survey is the largest such project ever undertaken by a single municipality, spanning over 800,000 parcels.

The scoring details for this community appear below. To see scores for all communities, compare specific communities and categories, and learn more about the Report Card, visit our Report Card microsite.

Category (points available)
Score
Total Score (out of a possible 245, plus Extra Credit): 
240
Historic Preservation Ordinance (150) / Honorary Ordinance (10): 
150
Dedicated Historic Preservation Commission (5): 
5
Dedicated Preservation Staff (15): 
15
Ability to Designate Historic Districts (15): 
15
Owner Consent Not Required for Designation (10): 
10
Active Landmark Designation (at least annually) (5): 
5
Survey of Historic Resources: Citywide (15) / Partial (10): 
15
Notes: 
In progress
Survey Updated Within Past 5 Years (5): 
5
Mills Act Incentive Program (10): 
10
Additional Incentives (5): 
5
Certified Local Government (5): 
5
Historic Preservation Element or Plan (5): 
0
Extra Credit (1-25): 
0

If you'd like to get involved in preservation in Los Angeles, you have a large number of options, depending on your location and interests. 

City Office

Office of Historic Resources

SurveyLA

Ken Bernstein
Manager, Office of Historic Resources
ken.bernstein@lacity.org
(213) 978-1200

Local Groups

Given its vast size, Los Angeles has a number of local preservation groups. Just a few include:

Art Deco Society of Los Angeles

Fremont Place Association

Friends of Griffith Park

Highland Park Heritage Trust

Hollywood Heritage  

Museum of the San Fernando Valley

West Adams Heritage Association

If any of this information is out of date, or to suggest other groups or ways to get involved, please contact us at info@laconservancy.org or (213) 623-2489.

Most of the following resources are specific to Los Angeles. For general resources related to local preservation and our Preservation Report Card, please visit our Report Card microsite.

Historic Preservation Ordinance

Designated Local Landmarks

Landmark Designation Process

Mills Act Application Process

Historic Resources Surveys

Guide to CEQA (Conservancy website)

If any of these links are broken or incorrect, or if you would like to suggest other resources for preservation in Los Angeles, please let us know by emailing info@laconservancy.org.

Featured Location(s)

Photo courtesy Los Angeles Office of Historic Resources

Balboa Highlands

A rare regional example of a development by one of the state's leading proponents of modern living, the modest yet striking homes of the tract embody Eichler's vision of modern architecture for everyone.
Photo by Michelle Lee on Flickr

Chinese Theatre

Developed by impresario Sid Grauman, this world-famous theatre has been a Hollywood icon since the day it opened.
Photo by Jessica Hodgdon/L.A. Conservancy

Casa de Cadillac

A well-known landmark of San Fernando Valley Modernism, Casa de Cadillac has been showcasing cars continuously since 1949, but only recently has it been restored to its original grandeur.
Photo by Michael Locke

Los Angeles Central Library

The Los Angeles Central Library blends the past with the modern age. Its proposed demolition in the 1970s led to the formation of the L.A. Conservancy.
Pann's Coffee Shop
Photo from Conservancy archives

Pann's Coffee Shop

One of the last and best of the iconic futuristic coffee shops designed by the prolific firm of Armet & Davis, its traffic island is an oasis of subtropical planting beneath an immense, hovering "tortoise shell" roof.
Hyatt Regency Century Plaza
Photo courtesy Yamasaki Associates

Century Plaza Hotel

Designed by Minoru Yamasaki for ALCOA, the hotel opened in 1966 and illustrates Yamasaki's love of ornamentation through materials and pattern.
Photo by Hunter Kerhart

Bullock's Wilshire / Southwestern Law School

The former Bullock's Wilshire department store building is a spectacular gem that exemplifies the height of the Art Deco style in Los Angeles and beyond.
Photo by Eric Staudenmaier Photography

28th Street Apartments

Paul Revere Williams, the first African American member of the American Institute of Architects, designed this YMCA to serve the African American community.
McManus & Morgan Fine Art Paper

McManus & Morgan

This stationer shop has been in business since 1923.
Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) Application

Crenshaw Women's Center

The first women's center to be established in Los Angeles from 1970-72 and significant for its LGBTQ+ associations, the Crenshaw Women's Center was a ground-breaking facility serving women in a variety of capacities.
Fairfax Theatre photo courtesy of the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles

Fairfax Theatre

Photo by Tim Street-Porter/Koning Eizenberg Architecture

Beverly Laurel Hotel

Thanks to a loving renovation of the Beverly Laurel Motor Hotel, one of Los Angeles’ most iconic examples of Mid-Century Modern roadside architecture is once again firing on all cylinders.