Sharing Hidden History, from Place to Policy
In this “Where Are They Now?” episode, we catch up with Elysha Paluszek (MHC ‘10), senior associate, architectural historian, and preservation planner at Architectural Resources Group. She’s been highlighting hidden history since her master’s thesis, The Los Angeles African American Heritage Area: A Proposal for Development. At ARG, she’s worked on award-winning studies revealing how policy and practice shaped the built environment in West Hollywood and Los Angeles. Elysha chats with co-host Cindy Olnick about these projects and more, including her career path, the field’s evolution, and what she’d change with a magic wand.
Photo from Elysha’s thesis of a mural on Central Avenue, celebrating the area’s rich history as a jazz hub. Photo by Elysha Paluszek. 
The Dunbar Hotel on Central Avenue, one of the sites proposed in Elysha’s thesis for inclusion in an African American heritage trail. Photo by Elysha Paluszek. 
Photo from Elysha’s thesis of the site of the Asuza Street Mission c. 2010; the plaque on the left reads “Azusa St. Mission: Site of the Azusa Street Revival from 1906 to 1931, cradle of the worldwide Pentecostal movement.” Photo by Elysha Paluszek. 
From the West Hollywood Historical Context Study: Isabel Crocker in 1946. She and her children were ordered to leave their West Hollywood home because of their Indigenous heritage. Her White husband could stay. Photo from Los Angeles Times Photo Collection. 
Gay Pride parade on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood, 1984. Photo from Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection. 
Members of the Gay Liberation Front picket Barney’s Beanery in 1969. For decades, the West Hollywood restaurant displayed signs reading “Fagots [sic] Stay Out.” Photo from USC Digital Libraries. 
1939 map of Los Angeles coded by the Home Owners Loan Corporation, showing that “redlined” areas were often chosen for freeway development after World War II. Image by Architectural Resources Group, from the Los Angeles Historical Housing and Land Use Study. 
Aerial view of Leimert Park, looking south, circa 1938, before the implementation of FHA guidelines. Photo from USC Digital Libraries, from the Los Angeles Historical Housing and Land Use Study. 
Aerial view looking northeast over the original sub-divisions of Westchester, 1949, after the implementation of FHA guidelines. Photo from USC Digital Libraries.
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Featuring
Elysha Paluszek is a Senior Associate, Architectural Historian, and Preservation Planner at Architectural Resources Group. She earned her USC Master of Historic Preservation degree in 2010 and has more than ten years’ experience in the field of preservation. Elysha specializes in historic context statements and landmark nominations, and she has a passion for telling the stories of marginalized communities through place. Her work has included historical context studies for the cities of West Hollywood, Los Angeles, and Pasadena; landmark nominations associated with the Los Angeles African American community; and the African Americans in California Multiple Property Documentation Form, which will facilitate the nomination of places significant to the community around the state.
Learn More
Thesis: The Los Angeles African American Heritage Area: A Proposal for Development by Elysha (Dory) Paluszek
Historical Context Study, City of West Hollywood
Historical Housing and Land Use Study, City of Los Angeles
Historical Housing and Land Use Study wins a 2025 L.A. Conservancy Preservation Award!
African Americans in California Multiple Property Documentation Form, National Register of Historic Places
Your Hosts
Co-host Trudi Sandmeier is Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Director of Graduate Programs in Heritage Conservation, and Professor of Practice at the USC School of Architecture. Her work centers on the conservation of the recent past and the impact of under-recognized communities on the historic built environment. Read more in her USC faculty bio.
Co-host Cindy Olnick serves as both Associate Director of Heritage Conservation at USC and a communications consultant for heritage conservation, historic preservation, and the built environment. Read more in her USC faculty bio.
Podcast producer Willa Seidenberg taught audio journalism and podcasting at USC’s Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, while pursuing a USC Master of Heritage Conservation degree. She retired from teaching and earned her degree in 2023.
A 20-year broadcast journalist and an inaugural fellow with USC’s Center for Excellence in Teaching, Willa founded Annenberg Radio News, the university’s radio news operation; and Intersections South LA, a reporting lab and community website for South Los Angeles.
With photographer William Short, Willa is the author of two oral history/photo projects: A Matter of Conscience: GI Resistance During the Vietnam War and Memories of the American War: Stories From Viet Nam. She is currently working on a podcast based on A Matter of Conscience.
