News From Terre Haute, Indiana

Local & Bistate

Discussion

Welcome to our online comments feature. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including unpopular ones. We ask only that you keep the conversation civil and clean. We reserve the right to remove comments that are obscene, racist or abusive and statements that are false or unverifiable as well as posts that are attacking other users. Repeat offenders will be blocked. You may flag objectionable comments for review by a moderator.
comments powered by Disqus
May 24, 2012

Historic preservation proposal discussed during open forum

Ordinance would set up a commission to develop historic preservation districts

Arthur Foulkes The Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE — More than three dozen people turned out Wednesday to ask questions about a proposed Terre Haute ordinance that would set up a formal process to preserve historic properties in the city.

City Councilman Todd Nation and Vigo County Area Planning Department Director Jeremy Weir conducted a two-hour meeting in the Vigo County Annex to discuss the ordinance. Among those attending were local developers, city officials and other concerned citizens.

“The goal of the meeting was to have an open forum for everybody who’s concerned about this, or has questions about it,” Nation said after the meeting.

The centerpiece of the meeting was a proposed ordinance that has been introduced in the Terre Haute City Council. The ordinance would establish an eight-person Historic Preservation Commission, which would have the authority – subject to City Council approval – to establish historic preservation districts within the city.

Five members of the proposed commission would have voting rights and be appointed by the mayor, also subject to council approval.

Several people attending the meeting asked whether the proposed commission would be able to hamper a property owner’s ability to demolish or renovate a building within a historic district. Others asked whether the commission could force someone to renovate a historic building that had been badly damaged.

Once a historic district would be designated by the commission and approved by the City Council, any demolition or major alteration of a building within that district would require a “Certificate of Appropriateness” from the commission, according to the ordinance.

Before an area could be deemed a local historic district, certain objective criteria would have to be met, Nation said. “It’s not just an eye-of-the-beholder kind of thing,” he said.

The ordinance, which is subject to change, is expected to go before the Area Plan Commission at its June 6 meeting, Weir said. Once through the Area Plan Commission, the City Council would have 90 days to act on the ordinance, he said. Adoption or rejection of the ordinance is ultimately up to the council.

State law allows local governments in Indiana to set up historic preservation commissions, Nation said, adding that more than 50 local government entities in the state have done so. Communities that have adopted such ordinances have seen property values in historic districts perform better than historic areas without historic designation, said Tommy Kleckner, director of the western regional office of Indiana Landmarks, a not-for-profit historic preservation organization.

The ultimate goal of having a historic preservation commission in place is to recognize that “our ‘built’ heritage has value and can be a tool in economic development,” Nation said after the meeting. In the past 20 years, “we’ve seen some demolition happen in areas where it affects the integrity of the whole neighborhood. There has also been new construction in some historic districts that would fit better if we had some kind of process in place.”

Reporter Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes

@tribstar.com.

Text Only | Photo Reprints
Local & Bistate
Latest News
Community Calendar
Loading…
Events by eviesays.com
TribStar.com Poll
AP Video
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash Coffee Run Leads to Hatchet Hitchhiker Arrest NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country Conn. Commuter Trains Collide; 60 Go to Hospital Fmr. IRS Head Insists No Politics in Targeting NM Mom Chases Down Child Abductor Raw: Gun Scare Mars Cannes Film Festival Raw: Suicide Bomber Kills 2 Americans, 13 Others CDC: Fecal Bacteria Common in Swimming Pools Raw: Texas Gov. Flies Over Tornado Damage China, Others Want What's Under the Arctic Ice $1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest Music Therapy Bonds Parents and Preemies Raw: 6 Die in Russian Ship Fire Raw: Obama Sits Down With Elementary Kids Raw: Driver Ejected From Truck, Over Bridge One Million Evacuated As Cyclone Hits Bangladesh Wash. State Releases Draft Rules for Legal Pot Raw: Germany Protestors Picket Barbie House
NDN Video
Twiggy, the Water Skiing Squirrel Sailor Surprises His Mom At Her CU Denver Graduation Ceremony Official: ‘Amazing’ No One Was Killed In CT Train Crash Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country Coffee Stop Leads To Arrest Of YouTube Sensation Wanted For Murder Bearded Dragon Reunited With Owner Marine Reunited with Warzone Companion Raw: Crash Sends Car Into Fla. Pool Beyonce Is Pregnant! SF baseball player overpaid $500,000 RETURNS money -- and team says KEEP IT $1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest Dad returns from Afghanistan, surprises family during Rays' first pitch See Jennifer Lopez's New $10m Hamptons Mansion Woman tricked into taking abortion pill Emma Watson Goes Pantless IRS scandal: Republicans seek to tie Obama to agency's woes Play of the Day: Flipping to Safety Pregnant Kim Kardashian Squeezes Her Swollen Feet Into Stilettos Top Videos of the Week: Angry Taco Bell Guy, Glacier Moves on House, Dog Hates Baths Cindy Crawford Stuns At Cannes
Parade
Magazine
Click HERE to read all your Parade favorites including Hollywood Wire, Celebrity interviews and photo galleries, Food recipes and cooking tips, Games and lots more.
  • -

     

    March 12, 2010

activity
Real Estate News