ADVOCACY
Historic Ithaca engages with the community in speaking out about preservation and built environment issues, from promoting the cultural, economic, and sustainability benefits of historic preservation to opposing projects and actions that threaten historic buildings. While our primary focus is on Ithaca and Tompkins County, we also support and work with our preservation colleagues outside this area by advocating for preservation issues within New York state and across the nation. Check here often for updates on various local, state, and federal advocacy alerts and issues.
Local
The City of Ithaca has a preservation ordinance. To find notices of upcoming Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission meetings, maps of local historic districts and properties, forms (such as Certificate of Appropriateness applications) and guidelines for properties owners in the local historic districts and owners of individually listed properties, please see the City of Ithaca website.
State
To stay updated on preservation policy and advocacy alerts within the state of New York, please see the advocacy page of the Preservation League of New York State.
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You can also check the New York State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) website for resources and updates.
Federal
• October 2026: Section 106 is under threat! As the Cultural Heritage Partners website notes: "On Sept 30, 2026, the Senate released a long negotiated bipartisan bill titled the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA). The bill guts the National Historic Preservation Act and would fundamentally alter historic preservation review, consultation duties, review timelines, and access to judicial remedies." If passed, this will fundamentally change the way we protect our historic places and restrict input from the public. Read more about this issue here on the National Trust for Historic Preservation's website.
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• To learn more about the advocacy activities of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, please visit their Action Center for information and resources.
• To learn more about Historic Preservation activities within the National Park Service, please visit their website.
• To learn more about the agency advising the President and Congress on national policy, please visit the website of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.