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Auburn council directs staff not to pursue Certified Local Government designation, citing duplication and staffing concerns
Summary
After extended discussion, the Auburn City Council voted 4‑1 to direct staff not to pursue certification under the National Historic Preservation Act's Certified Local Government (CLG) program, citing overlap with existing protections, staff capacity constraints and limited grant benefit.
The Auburn City Council voted 4‑1 to provide direction not to proceed with pursuing Certified Local Government (CLG) designation under the National Historic Preservation Act.
City Manager Sean briefed the council on prior council consideration of the CLG designation on three prior occasions and staff’s recommendation against pursuing the designation now. “Staff’s recommendation is recommending the council not pursue this program right now, and of particular concern to staff is it's duplicative of what we already do,” the city manager said, summarizing concerns about permitting delays, additional review requirements and department workload.
City historian Carol (last name not specified in the record) told council the CLG program ‘‘is exceedingly complex’’ and could advance preservation work if the community was prepared for the administrative requirements, but she also acknowledged the designation would take significant time and resources to implement.
Council debate ranged from support for pursuing any additional preservation tools to firm opposition. Councilman Mike Holmes argued the city could qualify for CLG‑linked grants that other certified cities had received and asked staff to pursue the designation. Several other council members said Auburn already maintains a robust historic design review process and a local historic preservation ordinance and that the CLG program’s additional requirements — including establishing or expanding a historic preservation commission and requiring that commission review CEQA documents before council action — would duplicate existing work and could slow permitting.
City staff noted the nearest CLG communities in Placer County are Truckee and Sacramento was cited as nearby examples; staff also reported that grants available through CLG are limited and competitive. “The grants are incredibly, incredibly, competitive,” the city manager said, reporting comments from the State Historic Preservation Office that for Auburn the benefit would likely be small relative to the administrative burden.
A motion to provide direction not to proceed with CLG passed on roll call: Bridal Harris Aye; Davis Aye; Dowden Calvio Aye; Holmes No; Mayor Sandy Amara Yes. Council gave no additional formal direction to staff beyond the vote; staff said it will continue to use existing preservation tools and pursue available grants that do not require CLG status.
