Title
LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project Final Draft Historic Context and the Historic Building Survey Findings (M24-005)
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FileID
File ID: 2024-1878
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Location
Location: Citywide
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Recommendation
Recommendation: Pass a Motion to accept the LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project’s Historic Context Statement and the Historic Building Survey findings concerning potentially historically significant resources.
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Contact
Contact: Sean de Courcy, Preservation Director, (916) 808-2796, sdecourcy@cityofsacramento.org, Community Development Department
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Presenter
Presenter: Henry Feuss, Preservation Planner, (916) 808-5880, hfeuss@cityofsacramento.org, Community Development Department
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Attachments
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Background
3-Final Draft Sacramento LGBTQ+ Historic Context Statement and Property Evaluations
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Description/Analysis
IssueDetail
Issue/Detail: The City of Sacramento's Community Development Department, with funding from the California Office of Historic Preservation, has undertaken a significant initiative to document and evaluate the city's LGBTQ+ historic resources. This project, titled the LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project, aims to recognize and preserve sites of cultural, social, and political importance to Sacramento's LGBTQ+ community. The project involved comprehensive research, oral history collection, community outreach, and detailed surveys, culminating in a historic context statement (HCS) that outlines key themes, significant individuals, and crucial events shaping the LGBTQ+ experience in Sacramento. The project also included the documentation (survey) of five potential landmark structures and a potential historic district in the Lavender Heights neighborhood.
A supplemental Historic Preservation Fund grant of $5,000, with $5,000 matching funds provided by Preservation Sacramento, helped support a stipend program for individuals who made significant contributions to the project. The project was also carried out with significant in lieu staff support from the Planning Division, and the Economic Development Manager for Community Engagement. An assortment of community partners, community outreach liaisons, subject matter experts, and community volunteers provided additional invaluable support for the project.
Staff is requesting City Council review the final draft of the LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project HCS and survey findings (Attachment 3) and pass a motion accepting the final document. Additional details about the project can be found in the Background document (Attachment 2).
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PolicyConsiderations
Policy Considerations: This project is part of a larger effort by the City’s historic preservation office to recognize and celebrate the historical experiences of Sacramento’s underrepresented and minority communities. This effort recently resulted in the successful completion of the African American Experience Project (2023) which included a similar scope of work.
The development of an LGBTQ+ HCS and the associated survey aligns with the 2040 Sacramento General Plan’s objectives within the Historic and Cultural Resources Element. This project supports the following goals and policies:
Preservation of Historic and Cultural Resources Policy 1 - Historic Surveys and Context Statements
• It is the policy of the City to prepare updated historic resource surveys and context statements, evaluating the eligibility of properties 45 years and older for listing in national, state, or local registers.
Preservation of Historic and Cultural Resources Policy 3 - Public Involvement and Awareness
• The project fosters an awareness of the significance of LGBTQ+ history and cultural resources, promoting social and cultural diversity. Through a robust public outreach process, this project helps achieve the City’s policy to involve the public in identifying and preserving important historic and cultural resources.
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EconomicImpacts
Economic Impacts: The LGBTQ+ Historic Experience Project stipend program, with funding from the National Trust Preservation Fund and Preservation Sacramento, provided $10,000 in stipends to community members in exchange for assistance with public outreach, oral history interviews, graphic design services, or as subject matter experts.
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..EnviromentalConsiderations
Environmental Considerations: The council’s acceptance of the historic context and survey findings is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is an administrative activity, such as general policy making. (CEQA Guidelines, § 15378(b)(2)).
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Sustainability
Sustainability: Not Applicable.
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Commission/CommitteeAction
Commission/Committee Action: The Preservation Commission has received periodic updates regarding the project and has been provided an opportunity to review drafts of the HCS. On November 20, 2024, the Preservation Commission reviewed the final draft Historic Context Statement and Historic Buildings Survey Findings and recommended the City Council accept the document.
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RationaleforRecommendation
Rationale for Recommendation: An LGBTQ+ historic context statement and documentation effort will provide guidance for identifying and evaluating potential historic resources related to Sacramento’s rich LGBTQ+ history. Historic resources associated with Sacramento’s LGBTQ+ community are the product of the dynamic, conflicting, and intersecting perspectives of personal identity, public attitudes about human sexuality, and behavioral science theories concerning sex and gender.
The final project deliverables reflect the project mission and justify acceptance by the City Council for use as a reference document that will enhance the City’s effort to highlight the significance of historical resources and individuals associated with the LGBTQ+ community.
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FinancialConsiderations
Financial Considerations: Not Applicable.
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LocalBusinessEnterprise
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not Applicable.
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