Milford Wayne Donaldson

Milford Wayne Donaldson
Chair of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
In office 2010 – July 22, 2019
President	Barack Obama Donald Trump
Preceded by	John L. Nau III
Succeeded by	Aimee Jorjani
California State Historic Preservation Officer
In office 2004–2012
Governor	Arnold Schwarzenegger Jerry Brown
Personal details
Born	(1943-08-13) August 13, 1943 Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, U.S.
Education	California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo University of Strathclyde University of San Diego

Milford Wayne Donaldson (born August 13, 1943) is an American preservation architect and former public official. He served as California State Historic Preservation Officer from 2004 to 2012 and as chair of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) from 2010 to 2019. Donaldson was the first architect to chair the ACHP.

Donaldson founded a San Diego preservation architecture practice in 1978 and became known for restoration and adaptive-reuse work in the Gaslamp Quarter and elsewhere in California. He was elected to the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows in 1992 and received the California Preservation Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.

Early life and education

Donaldson was born on August 13, 1943, at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. His family later moved to Oceanside, California, where he grew up. He earned a degree in architecture from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, a Master of Science in architecture from the University of Strathclyde in Scotland, and a master's degree in public history and teaching from the University of San Diego.

Architectural career

After returning to the United States, Donaldson worked for the San Diego firm Architects Mosher Drew Watson. He opened his own architecture firm in 1978, focusing on historic preservation, restoration, and adaptive reuse. The firm later became Heritage Architecture & Planning, which Donaldson sold after his appointment as California State Historic Preservation Officer.

In San Diego, Donaldson worked on a number of Gaslamp Quarter preservation projects. A 1992 Los Angeles Times profile credited him with work on the Horton Park Plaza Hotel, the Horton Grand Hotel, and the San Diego Hardware Building, and described him as one of the architects most closely associated with preservation work in the district. He was elected to the AIA College of Fellows in 1992.

Donaldson was also active in statewide preservation organizations. He served as president of the California Preservation Foundation and chaired the State Historical Building Safety Board, the State Historical Resources Commission, and the Historic State Capitol Commission. The California Preservation Foundation named him Preservationist of the Year in 1996 and gave him its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.

California historic preservation officer

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Donaldson as California State Historic Preservation Officer in 2004; he remained in the office until 2012. In that role, Donaldson led the California Office of Historic Preservation and served as executive secretary of the State Historical Resources Commission. The office coordinates California's participation in federal and state historic-preservation programs, including review of nominations to the National Register of Historic Places and the California Register of Historical Resources.

During Donaldson's tenure, the State Historical Resources Commission voted in 2010 to list objects associated with the Apollo 11 lunar landing site on the California Register of Historical Resources, an action that treated the mission's remaining artifacts on the Moon as California-associated historical resources because they were controlled from facilities in the state.

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

President Barack Obama appointed Donaldson chair of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation in 2010. Architectural Record reported that Donaldson was the first architect to head the council since it was created by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. Obama announced his intent to reappoint Donaldson in 2013.

As chair, Donaldson emphasized tribal consultation, youth participation, and broader public involvement in preservation programs. The ACHP credited him with supporting the addition of a voting representative from the National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers, work on guidance for Native American traditional cultural landscapes, and reports on historic post offices and rightsizing federal historic buildings. Donaldson left the office on July 22, 2019, after the Senate confirmation and swearing-in of Aimee Jorjani as the first full-time ACHP chair.