On Sunday, April 16, 2023, at 2 p.m. at the Mark Taper Auditorium in the Central Library, we held our second lecture in the 2023 Marie Northrop Lecture Series. It was a discussion with Ken Bernstein based on his book Preserving Los Angeles.

Los Angeles has developed one of the most successful historic preservation programs in the nation, culminating with the completion of the nation’s most ambitious citywide survey of historic resources. Across the city, historic preservation is now transforming Los Angeles, while also pointing the way for other cities to use preservation to revitalize their neighborhoods and build community. Ken Bernstein, who oversees Los Angeles’s Office of Historic Resources, tells this under-appreciated L.A. story: how historic preservation has revived neighborhoods, created a Downtown renaissance, and guided the future of the city. 

Younger than many American cities, Los Angeles has a remarkable collection of architectural resources in all styles, reflecting the legacy of notable architects from the past 150 years. As one of the most diverse cities in the world, Los Angeles is breaking new ground in its approach to historic preservation, extending beyond the preservation of significant architecture, to identifying and protecting the places of social and cultural meaning to Los Angeles’s communities. 

About Ken Bernstein

Ken Bernstein has devoted much of his career to preserving and enhancing the unique architecture and cultural heritage of America’s second-largest city, using historic preservation to transform communities. For Los Angeles City Planning, he directs the Office of Historic Resources and Urban Design Studio and has directed the department’s citywide planning and community planning initiatives. He has led the creation of Los Angeles’ comprehensive historic preservation program and the completion of SurveyLA, a ground-breaking citywide survey of L.A.’s historic resources. He previously directed the preservation advocacy work of the Los Angeles Conservancy, the nation’s largest membership-based local preservation organization, and lectures frequently on preservation and urban planning.

Recording

This lecture was recorded and is now available to stream here on our YouTube channel.

This lecture series is co-sponsored by Los Angeles City Historical Society and the History Department of the Richard J. Riordan Central Library.