SurveyLA, the Los Angeles Historic Resources Survey, is the first-ever comprehensive program to identify significant historic resources throughout the City of Los Angeles.
SurveyLA
SurveyLA, the groundbreaking citywide historic resources survey, serves as the primary planning tool for identifying, recording, and evaluating historic properties and districts in Los Angeles.
The results of the survey provide the foundation for the City’s historic preservation program. Survey data provides baseline information on potential historic resources to guide long-range planning decisions, inform project review, and support City policy goals.
Field surveys conducted from 2010 through 2017 covered the entire City of Los Angeles—over 880,000 legal parcels in an area of almost 500 square miles. The project was the largest and first all-digital citywide historic resources survey in the nation.
SurveyLA was made possible by a partnership between the City and the J. Paul Getty Trust, involving a multi-year grant from the Getty Foundation as well as significant technical assistance from the Getty Conservation Institute. The survey is now serving as a model for similar citywide surveys around the nation and worldwide.
For answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) on SurveyLA, click here.
For additional background and articles on SurveyLA collected by the Getty Conservation Institute, click here.
SurveyLA Findings
SurveyLA findings are organized by Community Plan Area. Each area’s section includes a survey report and three appendices summarizing survey findings by resource type. The Survey Results Master Report is intended for use as a cover document for the plan area reports. It explains the tools and methodology used to conduct the field surveys, provides an introduction to the citywide historic context statement, and outlines the resource evaluation and documentation process. SurveyLA results are also accessible at HistoricPlacesLA.org the City’s online historic resources inventory and management system.
SurveyLA Findings by Community Plan Area
HistoricPlacesLA
HistoricPlacesLA is the City’s online historic resource inventory and management system. The website includes information collected for SurveyLA and other historic resources surveys. Also included are City Historic-Cultural Monuments, Historic Preservation Overlay Zones, and properties listed in the National Register and California Register.
HistoricPlacesLA is a collaboration between the City and the Getty Conservation Institute. It uses Arches, an open-source, geospatial, and web-based software built as a platform for documenting and cataloging cultural heritage places worldwide. The GCI chose the City of Los Angeles for the first large-scale U.S. customization and implementation of Arches.
For more information on HistoricPlacesLA and SurveyLA, please contact the Office of Historic Resources at (213) 847-3676 or planning.ohr@lacity.org.
Contribute Information
Although SurveyLA is complete, surveys are an ongoing process, and it is never too late to submit information about potential historic resources. Los Angeles City Planning welcomes additional information about resources already recorded by SurveyLA, as well as queries about properties the survey may have missed.
SurveyLA Reference Materials
SurveyLA: Preserving Los Angeles (videos)
MyHistoricLA Guide to Public Participation in SurveyLA
SurveyLA Citywide Historic Context Statement Resource Guide
Inventories and Surveys for Heritage Management: Lessons for the Digital Age
By David Myers and Janet Hansen
This open-access publication provides essential guidance on digital inventories and surveys for the identification, conservation, and management of heritage places.
For guide documents on how to use the context statement, see Using the Context Statement on the Historic Themes webpage.
