American Bungalow Magazine - The Magazine published in the interest of preserving and restoring the modest American 20th Century Home, the Bungalow, and the rich lifestyle that it affords.

A Preservation Ordinance with Teeth?

Starting in June of this year, a task force of preservation enthusiasts and real-estate-industry representatives appointed by Houston Mayor Annise Parker recommended, and the City Council enacted, several steps intended to strengthen the protections given to historic structures by the city’s 15-year-old Historic Preservation Ordinance (HPO).

Probably the most meaningful of these steps at the time was the temporary suspension by the Council of a provision that has allowed property owners in Houston’s 16 designated Historic Districts, several of which are late-19th- and early-20th-century residential neighborhoods, to move ahead with plans to demolish or relocate historic properties despite the refusal of the Houston Archeological and Historic Commission (HAHC) to grant them permission to do so, in the form of an approved Certificate of Appropriateness (COA).

In the past, if the commission refused to grant a COA, all a property owner had to do was wait 90 days before proceeding. As Houston Chronicle reporter Mike Snyder wrote in an October 5 story on the Council’s deliberations over the issue, “Preservationists have long argued that this waiver makes the ordinance toothless, saying at least some historic properties are deserving of laws that amount to ‘no means no.’”

Some real-estate interests and homeowners in historic districts have long resisted strengthening protections for historic properties, arguing that they would inhibit or prevent the city’s homeowners from adapting the city’s housing stock to accommodate growing families and changing tastes in residential design.

The result has been what some of the city’s reporters and bloggers have called a “war” between preservation advocates on one hand and the real-estate and development communities—with the backing of property-rights hard-liners—on the other.

On July 21, Mayor Parker proposed that the 90-day waiting period be eliminated, making the HAHC’s refusal to approve a demolition or property modification permanent unless it is overruled on appeal to the Planning Commission and the City Council.

At its meeting on Oct. 13, the Council approved this proposal in amending the HPO, a move praised as a victory by preservationists.

But the Council’s amendments to the HPO also include several controversial changes to the requirements for creating a historic district and opened a 30-day door for residents of existing districts to “reconsider” whether they want to keep the designation. If those who want their neighborhood to lose its designation can submit the signatures of 10 percent of the neighborhood’s property owners to the city’s planning department by Nov. 17, the department will be obliged to petition all of the neighborhood’s owners for a vote. If 51 percent vote to give up the designation, the planning director must recommend that the City Council either reduce the district’s size or eliminate its designation altogether.

Mayor Parker and her supporters on the City Council and in the historic districts have vowed to fight, and the “war” seems to have shifted to a bigger stage, from scattered conflicts over individual properties to calling into question the existence of entire historic districts.

John Luke

For more background and ongoing reports and comment, follow these links, which will be updated frequently over the next few weeks:

New! Added January 6th, 2011: Houston’s Historic Districts Will Remain as They Are

Houston Planning Dept. - Link to Historic Preservation documents

Greater Houston Preservation Alliance: GHPA News

Houston Puts (Some) Teeth Into Its Historic Preservation Code

Historic preservation facts online

Houston’s Push for Preservation

City Council Approves Historic Preservation Ordinance

Houston can halt razing of historic buildings: But new preservation law opens door for districts to lose protected status

Houston Association of Realtors: Historic Preservation Ordinance

An opt-out provision included in ordinance: Opponents gather signatures to trigger a vote

The facts about the ordinance: Opponents, supporters seek to sway others

Save the Bungalows (Blog by Sheila Sorvari, who called American Bungalow’s attention to Houston Heights)

Blogs:

Swamplot: Houston’s Real Estate Landscape

This entry was posted on Friday, November 12th, 2010 at 4:04 pm and is filed under American Bungalow Magazine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.