WASHINGTON - The National Park Service designated 38 communities from across the United States as Certified Local Governments (CLG) in 2016. There are now 1,966 communities that participate in the program, which provides local governments access to historic preservation guidance and grants. The current number of CLGs is a significant milestone as it also recognizes the 50th anniversary of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 that created the CLG program.
The CLG designation makes communities official partners in the federal historic preservation program, which engages local, state, and federal governments to promote historic preservation at the grassroots level. These communities gain access to expert technical historic preservation advice from the National Park Service and their respective State Historic Preservation Offices, as well as Historic Preservation Fund grants exclusively for CLGs.
“We are looking forward to working with these 38 newly certified communities to encourage historic preservation on a grassroots level," said Acting National Park Service Director Michael T. Reynolds. “The Certified Local Government program not only preserves social, cultural, and ethnic heritage of communities across the country, but also promotes local economic growth and job creation related to tourism and historic preservation."
Administered by the National Park Service through the states, the CLG program helps communities save their irreplaceable historic character through the identification, evaluation, and protection of historic properties. In order to become certified, a local government must meet several requirements, chief of which is a commitment to enforcing local and state historic preservation laws and establishing a qualified historic preservation commission. This local commitment is key to America’s ability to preserve, protect, and increase awareness of our unique cultural heritage found in the built environment across the country.
The following communities were designated Certified Local Government partners in 2016:
Dumas, Arkansas
Redlands, California
Buena Vista, Colorado
Florence, Colorado
Starkville, Colorado
Walsenburg, Colorado
Woodland Park, Colorado
New Castle, Delaware
Broward County, Florida
Cedar Key, Florida
Keystone Heights, Florida
Wakulla County, Florida
Euharlee, Georgia
McDonough, Georgia
Villa Rica, Georgia
Payette, Idaho
Washington, Illinois
Carmel, Indiana
Haysville, Kansas
Easton, Massachusetts
Framingham, Massachusetts
Gloucester, Massachusetts
Gaylord, Minnesota
Booneville, Mississippi
Sedalia, Missouri
Wentzville, Missouri
Seneca Falls, New York
White Plains, New York
Sandusky, Ohio
Amity, Oregon
Coos Bay, Oregon
Houston, Texas
Hanksville, Utah
Virgin, Utah
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Lynden, Washington
Bangor, Wisconsin
Gillette, Wyoming
For additional information on the Certified Local Government program, visit www.nps.gov/clg.
www.nps.gov
About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 417 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at www.nps.gov, on Facebook www.facebook.com/nationalparkservice, Twitter www.twitter.com/natlparkservice, and YouTube www.youtube.com/nationalparkservice.
Tags: historic preservation grants historic preservation fund certified local government california arkansas colorado delaware florida georgia idaho illinois indiana kansas massachusetts minnesota mississippi missouri new york ohio oregon texas utah virginia washington wisconsin wyoming
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
