The Advanced Planning staff drafted an update to the Historic Preservation Ordinance and formed a stakeholders group in order to solicit community input. The City Council adopted the new Ordinance on July 6, 2011.

New Historic Preservation Ordinance

Background

• Adopted by the City Council on April 4, 1979.
• Amended: May 16, 1979 to change the number of voting members from 5 to 7.
• Amended: September 19, 1979 to include "Points of Historic Interest" as a designation.
• Amended: April 2, 1980 to include a provision for the protection of proposed landmarks by prohibiting alterations or demolition of a proposed landmark until a final determination on the landmark status could be made by the Historic Preservation Commission or the City Council.
• Amended: May 21, 1980 to include language that further clarified the roles of the City Council and the Historic Preservation Commission in the process of landmark designation.
• Amended: March 2, 1988 to include a penalty for the violation of the Ordinance and the types of civil penalties available in the event of a violation.
• Amended: May 26, 1993 to allow the City Council to designate the Planning Commission as the Historic Preservation Commission, which vested powers to:
  • Administer the provisions of the Ordinance.
  • Perform such other advisory functions as may be delegated from time to time to the Historic Preservation Commission by the City Council.
  • Maintain a current register of landmark and point of historic interest designations for public use and information.
  • Recommend to the City Council the designation of a "landmark" or "point of historic interest" based on the landmark designation review criteria set forth in the Ordinance. The commission may also recommend to the City Council the amending or rescinding of a landmark or point of historic interest designation pursuant to the same procedure set forth for original designation.
  • The Historic Preservation Commission may approve, approve with modifications, or disapprove applications regarding landmark change of use and/or landmark alterations, upon receiving an application by staff.
• Last amendment: July 6, 2011 to delete Chapter 2.24 (Historic Preservation Ordinance) and replace it in its entirety with a new, updated version.