Ada County, ID Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)
Key Facts
- Body created
- Historic Preservation Council
- Appointing authority
- Board of County Commissioners
- Member terms
- 3 years, reappointment allowed
- Demolition review trigger
- Structures 50+ years old
- National Register role
- Reviews and can nominate properties
- State authority cited
- Idaho Code § 67-4601 et seq.
Summary
Ada County Code section 8-9-5 creates a Board-appointed Historic Preservation Council that surveys local historic sites, nominates properties to the National Register, and reviews any demolition permit request for a structure fifty years old or older before the permit can be issued.
8-9-5: HISTORIC PRESERVATION: A. Purpose: The purpose of this Section is to promote the educational, cultural, economic, and general welfare of the public of Ada County through the identification, evaluation, designation, and protection of those buildings, sites, areas, structures, and objects which reflect significant elements of the County's, the state's, and the nation's historic, architectural, archaeological, and cultural heritage. ... D. Powers, Duties And Responsibilities: The council shall be advisory to the Board and shall be authorized to: ... 11. Review nominations of properties, within the County's jurisdiction, to the National Register of Historic Places and provide comments to the state historic preservation office. 12. Nominate properties within the County's jurisdiction to the National Register of Historic Places. 13. Review requests for demolition of any structure fifty (50) years old or older for historical significance prior to the issuance of a demolition permit.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-15: Code current through: Ord. 1018, passed 3-24-2026).
Full Breakdown
Section 8-9-5 states its purpose is to promote the county's welfare "through the identification, evaluation, designation, and protection" of buildings, sites, areas, structures, and objects reflecting significant historic, architectural, archaeological, and cultural heritage. The Board of County Commissioners appoints the Council's members to staggered three-year terms, and the Board must try to seat at least two members with professional training in architecture, history, architectural history, urban planning, archaeology, engineering, or law. Membership standards track the National Park Service's certified local government program and Idaho Code section 67-4601 et seq.
The Council operates under Idaho's open meeting law, elects its own chair and vice chair, and can recommend that the county contract outside technical experts. Its powers are advisory to the Board: it may survey local historic properties, recommend county acquisition or preservation of historic properties, draft ordinances for the Board's consideration, and coordinate with federal, state, and city preservation efforts. Two functions carry real teeth for property owners. First, the Council reviews and comments on nominations of county properties to the National Register of Historic Places, and can itself nominate properties.
Second, before Ada County issues a demolition permit for any structure fifty years old or older, the Council must review the request for historical significance, inserting a mandatory review step ahead of permit issuance regardless of the structure's zoning district.
Violations & Fines
The code ties enforcement to the permit itself rather than a fine: under 8-9-5(D)(13), a demolition permit for a structure fifty years or older cannot be issued until the Historic Preservation Council has reviewed the request for historical significance. Skipping that review leaves the demolition permit unissued and any demolition undertaken without it unauthorized under Title 8.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Ada County have a historic preservation board?
Do I need county review before demolishing an old building in unincorporated Ada County?
Can the Ada County Historic Preservation Council block a demolition?
Can the county nominate a property to the National Register on its own?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ada County
Compare Ada County to another location·View the Idaho historic preservation overview
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