The Ahwahnee: Cultural Landscape Report, Yosemite National Park, National Park Service

AECOM, Contractor

The scope of work for the CLR calls for completion of Parts I and II as identifi ed in the April 2009 scope of services requested by the National Park Service and DNC. The scope of work requests an updated description of the cultural landscape boundary using the previously defi ned developed area boundary as a starting point; and a well-defi ned period of signifi cance, supported by the signifi cance evaluation. The preparation of the CLR for The Ahwahnee included the following tasks: Landscape History • Research primary and secondary source materials relating to the cultural landscape history of the project area. • Prepare a narrative history that documents the cultural landscape’s historic context and development. • Prepare historical period plans. • Compile a bibliography. Existing Conditions Documentation • Complete a fi eld survey to inventory and document existing conditions in the project area. • Update the existing survey to create an accurate planning-level base map. • Complete site photography to support existing conditions documentation. • Create a photographic station point map documenting the location and orientation of existing conditions photographs. • Prepare a condition assessment for the existing landscape features and systems. Analysis and Evaluation • Determine the extent of the cultural landscape, henceforth referred to as the study area, and map the proposed boundary using park GIS standards. • Describe current signifi cance information for the cultural landscape, recommend a proposed period of signifi cance. • Create an inventory of existing cultural landscape features and systems with a description of their contributing value. • Prepare a narrative comparative analysis of the cultural landscape’s remnant historic features. • Prepare a comparative analysis map that documents the location of contributing and non-contributing landscape resources. Treatment • Define the appropriate treatment approach for the project area. • Develop treatment recommendations that address the management and maintenance of cultural landscape resources in the project area as well as the appropriate inclusion of new design interventions that provide for continued visitor use, accessibility, and interpretation of the signifi cant cultural landscape. • Prepare a treatment plan to illustrate the proposed recommendations. The standards used to create the CLR were the A Guide to Cultural Landscape Reports: Contents, Process, and Technologies (1998) and the Director’s Order 28: Cultural Resource Management Guideline, Chapter 7- Management of Cultural Landscapes published by the NPS; these guides provide information on the appropriate content and format for the preparation of a CLR. Additional documents used to guide the CLR include: • http://workfl ow.den.nps.gov/staging/5_ProjectPlanning/CLR_ standards.htm • The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, with Guidelines for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes (1996) • National Register Bulletin 15: How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation • National Register Bulletin 18: How to Evaluate and Nominate Designed Historic Landscapes

The Ahwahnee: Cultural Landscape Report, Yosemite National Park, National Park Service

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