Thanks to hard work by the Richmond Planning Department, especially Planner Lina Valesco, the City of Richmond has been awarded a $75,000 matching grant to help pay for an expanded reconnaissance survey of historic structures in the Iron Triangle, Coronado, and Santa Fe Neighborhoods.  There will be an official ceremony in Washington DC on July 12^th and a press release will follow. 

Identifying historic structures to both apprise owners of opportunities for economic incentives for preservation and to avoid surprises when alterations, additions or demolitions are planned is considered excellent public policy.

On July 25, 2006, the Richmond City Council unanimously passed Resolution 91-06, which authorized an application to become a Preserve America Community. An application was prepared by the Richmond Visitors and Convention Bureau and Rosie the Riveter Trust. Subsequently, our city was selected. One of the benefits of being a Preserve America Community is access to grant funds for historic preservation planning projects.

The Preserve America Communities program recognizes and designates communities that protect and celebrate their heritage, use their historic assets for economic development and community revitalization, and encourage people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through education and heritage tourism programs. Preserve America is a White House initiative in cooperation with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. National Register of Historic Places partnership products are an integral part of the Department of the Interior's leading role in supporting the Preserve America initiative. Since the program's inception, hundreds of localities have been designated as Preserve America Communities.

Many Preserve America Communities are highlighted in the National Register of Historic Places' Discover Our Shared Heritage travel itinerary series. These travel itineraries are created in partnership with local organizations to promote public awareness about history, historic preservation and economic development through heritage tourism. Richmond is now identified in the link World War II in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In honor of the Preserve America initiative, Teaching with Historic Places has posted on the web lesson plans that feature historic sites in Preserve America Communities. These lessons, based on sites listed in the National Register of Historic Places, are free and ready for immediate classroom use by students in history and social studies classes. Richmond is listed as follows:

• Richmond, California, Liberty Ships and Victory Ships, America's Lifeline in War
  Learn how the United States mobilized a massive construction effort to build a large merchant fleet to serve in war and peace.

For more information about the Preserve America initiative and other designated communities, please visit the Preserve America website.

For more information about the grant, contact:

Lina Velasco

Senior Planner

City of Richmond Planning Department

1401 Marina Way South

Richmond, CA 94804

Direct Line (510) 620-6841

FAX (510) 620-6858

www.ci.richmond.ca.us/planning