Conservancy Wins High Grade

By Oliver Lukacs
Staff Writer

Nov. 27 -- For those who consider Santa Monica to be their communal child, prepare to break out the “my child” bumper stickers. Out of 89 other “children” in Los Angeles County, Santa Monica was among only six cities to be awarded an “A” on its report card from the Los Angeles Conservancy for most progressive preservation policies.

Actually an “A-,” the report card ranks Santa Monica “near the top of the class” of the nearly 100 other jurisdictions in the county, according to the Santa Monica Conservancy (SMC).

It would have been an “A,” but alas, the City’s landmarking fees were considered too high, and the City lacked a full-time staff member dedicated exclusively to handling preservation matters.

The minus notwithstanding, the honor is much welcomed by the City’s preservationists.

“It’s a positive things for us,” said Bruce Cameron, founding and current member of the local conservancy. “It’s rewarding to see that the efforts we're making are being recognized by folks in the city, that there is a real commitment to preservation going forward.”

Noting that the top grade is only for the City's preservation policies and not how well it is actually saving “architectural treasures,” SM Conservancy President Tom Cleys warned that the real “struggle” still lays ahead.

"Preserving Santa Monica's distinctive identity is a struggle that is coming to a head as the City begins to create new downtown development guidelines and to institute more incentives to encourage preservation of historic homes and commercial buildings," Cleys said.

“Rising property values and modernization needs often have been accompanied by pressure to tear down preservation-worthy gems at the expense of our history.

“We'll need even more cooperation between residents, property owners and the city if we are to safeguard the architecture and character that residents and visitors from around the world have come to recognize as uniquely Santa Monica," Cleys concluded.

Among the Conservancy’s future goals are strengthening the City’s existing preservation policies and creating more incentives for homeowners to landmark their historic properties, Cameron said.

The full LA Conservancy report is available online at www.laconservancy.org