Contact:
Leigh Burns, preservation planner & Certified Local Government coordinator
leigh_burns@dnr.state.ga.us   phone 404-651-5181  fax 404-657-1040

The Certified Local Government (CLG) program extends the federal and state preservation partnership to the local level. Any city, town, or county that has enacted a historic preservation ordinance, enforces that ordinance through a local preservation commission, and has met requirements outlined in the Procedures for Georgia's Certified Local Government Program is eligible to become a CLG.

List of local governments with historic preservation ordinances

The benefits of becoming a CLG include eligibility for federal historic preservation grant funds, the opportunity to review local nominations for the National Register of Historic Places prior to consideration by the Georgia National Register Review Board, opportunities for technical assistance, and improved communication and coordination among local, state, and federal preservation activities.

Read the Local Government Historic Preservation Commissions article on the New Georgia Encyclopedia Web site at http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?path=/TheArts/ArchitectureLandscapeArchitectureandHistoricPreservation/HistoricPreservationTheSupportSy/LocalPublicandPrivateOrganizatio&id=h-1135

CLG program fact sheet

Download the Certified Local Government Application (Word) (pdf) 
Application and procedures outlines the requirements for becoming a CLG.

Georgia CLG facts and figures

What's the difference between a National Register Historic District and a Local Historic District?

The Model Historic Preservation Ordinance can be easily adapted for use by any municipal or county government. It is already in compliance with the Georgia Historic Preservation Act. (Word) (PDF)

How to Designate a Local District -  Follow this step by step process for locally designating historic property or historic districts.  The Model Designation Ordinance (Word) (PDF) can be adapted for any community to use for designating a property or district.  This Statement of Significance is an example of what should be included in the historic preservation commission's report to the local governing board.  This is also the information that is sent to the Historic Preservation Division 30 days prior to designation. This process is derived from the Georgia Historic Preservation Act.

model design guidelines - If you're ready to start design review, you need design review guidelines. Design guidelines current in use by local governments can be found at the H.B. Owens Resource Center collection www.sed.uga.edu/facilities/owenslibrary/designguidelines.htm

Once you've designated local districts, and written design guidelines, the following procedural items may be helpful.
sample staff recommendation
sample HPC agenda
sample HPC decision
sample district notification letter (Word) (PDF)
sample public hearing letter (Word) (PDF) 

Read our Architectural Technical Assistance articles.

Introduction to Robert's Rules of Order
Robert's Rules of Order is the established set of rules for conduct at meetings that allows everyone to be heard and to make decisions without confusion.
 
Guide to Historic Preservation Commission Meetings
Developed by two national HPC trainers, this guide is to help HPC Chairs and staff structure public meetings on COA applications to ensure that decisions are made defensibly.
 
How To Make a Motion
This page can be used to develop a Motion Sheet for your HPC which will help structure decisions concerning Certificate of Appropriateness applications.  The HPC's decisions should be properly tied to the standards in your ordinance and your design guidelines in order to be legally defensible.

Problems Facing Historic District Commissions
Despite a rapidly growing body of law dealing with the powers of local historic preservation commissions, there are troubling hints that in many communities existing commissions do not (because they cannot) do an adequate job of protecting local resources. There may be several reasons for such a problem.  Read about common problems and suggested remedies.