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Home My WebLink About2006-11-09 MinutesMINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION A regular meeting of the Fayetteville Historic District Commission was held on November 9, 2006 at 5:30 p.m. in Room 111 of the City Administration Building, 113 W. Mountain, Fayetteville, Arkansas. ACTION TAKEN Commercial Local Ordinance District Boundaries Approved Historic District Commission September 14, 2006 Page 2 Leslie Belden Ethel Goodstein-Murphee Cindy Kalke Rob Merry -Ship Rob Sharp STAFF PRESENT Karen Minkel, Long Range Planning MEMBERS ABSENT Tim Cooper Tony Wappel STAFF ABSENT Historic District Commission September 14, 2006 Page 3 CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Chair Goodstein-Murphree at 5:39 p.m. I. Announcements A. Karen Minkel asked if commissioners needed the paper copy of the minutes that they receive at the meeting in addition to the electronic version they receive via email. If not, Minkel said that she would only send the electronic version and stop making copies. Commissioner Sharp said that he preferred receiving both, and Minkel said she would continue to provide the hard copy at meeting. IL Approval of the Minutes MOTION to approve the minutes of October 12, 2006: Leslie Belden SECOND: Cindy Kalke VOTE: The vote was unanimous to approve the minutes from the October 12, 2006 meeting, 5-0-0. III. Commercial Historic District Boundaries A. Commissioner Kalke began by asking what the commission wanted the district to look like. Commissioner Belden responded by saying that the task of the commission was to define and delineate a geographic area that receives an added level of protection to maintain the cultural and historical character of the area. Chair Goodstein-Murphree added that what was problematic was deciding to what degree would the commission use the creation of the district as a design planning tool. Kalke said that the question becomes, "Do we define the area and use it as a planning tool or are we looking at individual buildings?" Belden said that the commission is looking at an area. Commissioner Sharp said that whichever way, the commission will still survey property owners, which is the only advantage to the National Register status. Kalke responded that another factor is the tax credits. Kalke summarized by saying that there were three options: 1) Accept the boundary defined by the State office; 2) Modify the State's boundary slightly; or 3) Relook at the entire Downtown area. Belden asked what the advantages and disadvantages would be for each option. Kalke responded that the a disadvantage to the State's proposal would be that key infill areas would not be protected, but that an advantage would be that property owner within the local ordinance district would also benefit from a tax credit option. Sharp added that the State's 3 Historic District Commission September 14, 2006 Page 4 boundaries also lend credibility or a "stamp of approval." Belden added that another disadvantage would be that the State's area is not what the public perceives as the historic downtown. Belden summarized by saying that if the purpose was to provide a tax benefit to maintain historic buildings then the State's boundaries are appropriate, but if the purpose was to add an extra protection for what the commission considers the historic downtown, then redrawing the boundary was most appropriate. Commissioner Merry -Ship added that the State's boundary did not even include the Square, and Kalke stated that in terms of public perception of commercial historic, Block Street would definitely qualify. Goodstein- Murphree added that what was most important was to preserve the buildings that form the Dickson Street vista. B. The Commissioners then began a discussion regarding the tentative boundaries of a local ordinance district. Kalke first drew a boundary in orange marker that encompassed Dickson Street from Arkansas Avenue to East Avenue and buildings along West Avenue between Meadow and Lafayette. The western boundary extended south along University Avenue to Center Street and included Powerhouse restaurant. Belden then added to the boundary using a magenta marker, extending the boundary to include Block Street, three square blocks to the east of the Square, Mountain Street between Church Street and County Avenue, both sides of College Avenue between Mountain Street and Lafayette. There was brief discussion about whether to include the churches at the east end of Dickson Street. Goodstein-Murphree remarked that they had had significant additions. Merry -Ship asked if the Commission had anything to lose by adding them. Belden argued that they were part of the historic area and included them in her final boundary. Sharp then drew a boundary in a blue marker, adding the Magnolia Company Filling Station and rather than including all the structures encompassed by Lafayette, College, Dickson and St. Charles, Sharp only included the buildings that face Dickson Street. Belden asked for philosophical purposes whether the old library should be included. Goodstein-Murphree said that that question was a good example of what the Commission would be dealing with: How much of the architectural character and identity of a building has been retained? Kalke pointed out the library has been primarily a neighborhood institution rather than commercial. The other members concurred. C. MOTION to use the boundary outlined in blue marker on the map as the tentative working boundaries for the proposed local ordinance: Leslie Belden F1 Historic District Commission September 14, 2006 Page 5 SECOND: Rob Merry -Ship VOTE: The vote was unanimous to adopt the tentative boundaries for the proposed local ordinance district, 5-0-0. D. The Commission discussed the next steps for forming a local ordinance district and decided to hold a walking tour of the proposed area in lieu of an evening Commission meeting in December. MEETING ADJOURNED: 6:52 P.M.