SurveyLA Pilot Survey Program To Start

Pilot surveys for SurveyLA will be launched in May of 2008 and continue throughout the year.  The pilot program is a critical part of the first phase of SurveyLA and will test the efficacy of survey tools and methods currently in development. These include: a citywide Historic Context Statement, Field Guide to Survey Evaluation and associated survey database, field equipment, public participation and outreach program, and review and approval of survey findings. The surveys will lay the foundation for the successful completion of the citywide field surveys during the three-year Implementation Phase of SurveyLA, which starts in 2009.

The pilot survey areas and subjects described below were chosen to generate important "lessons learned" for the citywide surveys while also providing valuable survey data covering many areas of Los Angeles. The Boyle Heights pilot survey contract has been awarded to Architectural Resources Group (ARG) of Pasadena, who will begin the work in early May. A Request for Proposals (RFP) has been issued for the other two pilot surveys; the RFP and instructions for the submittal of proposals can be found on the City Planning Department web site.

The SurveyLA Speakers Bureau volunteers will help the OHR to spread the word about the Pilot Survey program and let community members know how they can get involved.

SurveyLA Pilot Survey Areas:  

• Boyle Heights Community, 1870s-1970s -. This survey will test the application of multiple citywide contexts within a geographic area that is extremely rich in ethnic and cultural history. The survey will focus on Boyle Heights' residential neighborhoods, and will complement the Community Redevelopment Agency's (CRA) historic resources survey of the Adelante Eastside Redevelopment Area which focuses on commercial and industrial properties in Boyle Heights.
• Streetcar Commercial Development, ca. 1910-1940s - Much of Los Angeles' early commercial development was shaped by the city's extensive streetcar system. This pilot survey will test this context, reviewing smaller-scale commercial architecture of our city. Two commercial corridors have been selected for this context: Vermont Avenue between Martin Luther King Boulevard and Manchester Boulevard, and Pico Boulevard from the 110 Freeway to Crenshaw Blvd.
• Post WWII Suburbanization in the San Fernando Valley, ca. 1945-1965 - A large proportion of Los Angeles' built environment dates from the post-World War II era, including much of the San Fernando Valley and the Westside. To evaluate the speed at which large residential tracts may be evaluated during the Implementation Phase of the project, this Pilot Survey will examine suburbanization in the San Fernando Valley. This pilot survey includes two subareas - the East Valley communities between Victory Blvd. to the north, the 101 Freeway to the south, Whitsett Avenue to the east, and Woodman Avenue to the West, and West Valley communities between Vanowen St. to the north, the 101 Freeway to the south, Balboa Boulevard to the east, and Winnetka Avenue to the west.

Maps for each pilot survey area are attached below.