WASHINGTON, D.C. – Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) Chairman Aimee Jorjani today welcomed new Expert Member Rick Gonzalez, swearing him into a term ending in June 2023. President Donald J. Trump appointed Gonzalez to the ACHP.

“We look forward to utilizing Rick’s expertise as the ACHP enhances opportunities for minority architects and incorporates a preservation ethic for those in the architecture and building fields,” Chairman Jorjani said. “Rick has a lot to contribute to the national historic preservation conversation, through his many efforts within Florida and the local preservation community. We have already enlisted his help in the Traditional Trades Training Task Force we recently launched.”

Born in Cuba, and raised in Miami and later, Costa Rica, Gonzalez earned two architecture degrees from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., where he first discovered his love of historic architecture. He also studied design in Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Italy. Gonzalez is president of REG Architects in Palm Beach, Florida, which he co-founded with his father Ricardo in 1988, with a focus on building a strong relationship with the community.

“I am honored that President Trump appointed me as a member of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation,” Gonzalez said. “As a Cuban American architect, never in a million years would I think that my work in historic preservation and urban renewal for more than 30 years would result in such an honor. Advocating for historic preservation statewide over the past decades will serve as inspiration to share my time and talents at the national level to help set historic preservation policy to protect our amazing American historic places.”

Gonzalez is known for his historic preservation work in the West Palm Beach area, including Mar-aLago, a National Historic Landmark built from 1924-27 by cereal company heiress and socialite Marjorie Merriweather Post; the Harriet Himmel Gilman Theater, which was constructed in the 1920s as the First United Methodist Church of West Palm Beach; and the historic 1916 Palm Beach County Courthouse. Gonzalez is a board member on the Florida Historical Commission, a past president of the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, former chairman of the Florida Board of Architecture and Interior Design, and is actively involved with community organizations such as the Palm Beach County Cultural Council. He also is the writer of a popular Facebook blog, Florida Historic Places.

Chairman Jorjani invited Gonzalez to join the Traditional Trades Training Task Force that was formed last month, which will work to promote the development of a robust workforce in the skilled preservation trades, and he participated in the first meeting that took place June 18.

Gonzalez replaces Terry Guen as an expert member. Guen, a Chicago landscape architect, served on the ACHP since 2012.

“Terry has served on the ACHP with distinction, actively participating and providing valuable input that has furthered our work in historic preservation,” Chairman Jorjani said. “We thank her for her eight years of service, and I know she will continue to serve as a great resource and friend of the ACHP.”

The National Historic Preservation Act provides that appointed expert and general public members shall serve for a term of four years and under that law, may not serve more than two terms.