Through the Review and Compliance program, the SHPO assists federal, state, and local agencies in meeting their preservation responsibilities as defined by federal and state laws. The SHPO cooperates with the national Advisory Council on Historic Preservation 
to ensure that significant properties are taken into consideration at an early stage in federal project planning.
The SHPO staff provides technical assistance through accessing state resource inventory files; reviewing federal, state, county, and city projects to determine their possible impacts on cultural resources; explaining state and federal compliance procedures; ensuring application of professional standards; and providing opinions on the National Register eligibility of resources. For further information call Ann Howard or David Jacobs at (602) 542-4009.
861 KB PDF) 3 MB PDF) 1.3 MB PDF) 165 KB PDF) 160 KB PDF)SHPO Guidance Point Series: The State Historic Preservation Office’s Guidance Point Series (Series) provide a means for meeting goals and objectives in the State Historic Preservation Office’s (SHPO) State Plan (Plan), which was updated in 2009.
According to three of the Plan’s goals (i.e., Goals 6, 7, & 8), SHPO should foster a constituency in Arizona that is informed and supportive of historic preservation issues. One of the goals targets the public, anther focuses on policy makers, and the third one identifies historic preservation professionals. Specific objectives in the Plan that the Series addresses include updating and broadening information available to the public, enabling citizens to make informed decisions on current historic preservation issues, and advising professionals on “best practices” for the treatment of historic properties.
SHPO Guidance Points assist agency and tribal officials, professionals, and members of the public to consult effectively, to select best practices for identifying, evaluating, and treating historic properties, and to make informed decisions about historic preservation. The Guidance Points are especially useful for consultants and applicants working at behest of state and federal agencies complying with historic preservation laws. The Series, which began in 2000, shares the SHPO staff’s research and experience on historic preservation issues in Arizona with audiences identified in the State Plan.
Topics are usually chosen for the Series that are related to recent preservation issues or project-specific solutions that the SHPO staff identifies as having broader appeal or application. At present, the series includes papers stressing the importance of Agency officials determining the eligibility of a property in terms of the State or National Registers of Historic Places’ criteria, describing different types of archaeological testing and their appropriate roles, guiding the use of mechanical boring under historic properties, evaluating the continued adequacy and accuracy of old survey data, understanding when site burial as a mitigation measure is appropriate, deciding when surface artifact collection during survey is not an adverse effect, guiding mitigation programs within linear rights-of-way, and conducting meaningful and effective tribal consultation for state and federal undertakings.
SHPO staff is always willing to entertain ideas for new topics that can be addressed in a Guidance Point. Feel free to contact SHPO staff with your ideas.
317 KB PDF) 332 KB PDF) 307 KB PDF) 448 KB PDF) 328 KB PDF) 1.15 MB PDF) 119 KB PDF) 427 KB PDF) 265 KB PDF)The following Thematic Studies are made available via hyperlink to the National Park Service to provide additional guidance and background on selected topics on Arizona history and prehistory. These studies are similar to the SHPO-sponsored Historic Context Studies (e.g., Rock Art in Arizona, Historic Trails in Arizona from Coronado to 1940, Paleoindian and Archaic Sites in Arizona) that have been published earlier, but have the advantage that they were produced in support of actual submissions of historic properties to the National Register of Historic Places. Additionally, these studies provide a framework and specific criteria for evaluating cultural resources relative to specific themes, time frames, and locations and are useful for many types of preservation-planning activity.
As professional courtesy, be sure to accurately reference the study author(s), date, and sponsoring agency as you would any other citation.
AZ Paleoindian Point Survey ( 1 MB PDF)
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