(A) Criteria for historic district designation. Nominations shall be made to the Historic Preservation Commission on a form provided by the Commission.
(1) The following criteria shall be utilized by the City Historic Preservation Commission in determining the designation of historic districts:
(a) The historic district contains one or more landmarks along with such other buildings, places or areas within its definable geographic boundaries which contribute to the overall visual characteristics of the landmark or landmarks located in such district;
(b) At least 50% of the structures meet the standards of § 157.04(A)(2) of this chapter;
(c) Establishes a sense of time and place unique to the city; and
(d) Exemplifies or reflects the cultural, social, economic, political and/or architectural history of the community, county, state or nation.
(2) A preliminary determination as to whether a district or an area meets one or more of the foregoing criteria shall be made within 60 days of the filing of a nomination with the Commission.
(B) Historic district designation procedure. The Building and Zoning Department shall supply, upon request, the application forms. Completed forms shall be submitted to the Community Development Department which shall forward them to the Commission for its consideration.
(1) The application form must be accompanied by a petition signed by no less than 51% of the property owners.
(2) Upon receipt of the application, the Secretary of the Commission shall schedule a public hearing to be held within 45 days after preliminary approval of application.
(a) During the public hearing, the Commission shall review and evaluate the application according to the criteria established by this chapter.
(b) If the Historic Preservation Commission finds at the time that the application merits further consideration, then the Commission may table the request until its next regularly scheduled meeting.
(c) A certificate of appropriateness shall be required for alteration, construction, removal or demolition of a proposed landmark from the date when the nomination form is presented to the Commission until the final disposition of the request.
(3) Notice of date, time, place and purpose of the public hearing shall be sent by mail to owner(s) of record and to the nominator(s) as well as to the adjoining property owners, not less than 15, nor more than 30, days prior to the date of the hearing. A public hearing notice also shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the city. The notice shall state the location of the property and a statement summarizing how the proposed historic district meets the criteria set forth in division (A) above.
(4) Upon notification, any owner or owners of a property who wish to object shall submit to the City Clerk a notarized statement certifying that the party is the sole or partial owner of the property, as appropriate, and objects to the listing.
(5) A decision shall be made within 30 days following the date of the closing of the public hearing.
(a) Following the public hearing, the Secretary of the Commission shall prepare the Commission’s evaluation, recommendation and all available information for submission to the City Council within 30 days.
(b) If the Commission determines that the proposed historic district should be designated, it shall do so by a resolution passed by a majority of the Commission.
(c) The owner(s) of record shall be notified within five days by a letter containing information of the Commission’s decision.
(d) A simple majority vote by the City Council is necessary for approval of a historic preservation designation. If the City Council approves the application for a designation, a notice will be sent to the property owner, the Community Development Department, the Building Commissioner, the City Clerk’s office and recorded with the County Recorder of Deeds that the area has been designated as such and that buildings located within the boundaries of the historic district shall be subject to issuance of a certificate of appropriateness.
(e) If the City Council denies the application, no petitioner can file for 90 days to the Secretary of the Commission.
(Prior Code, § 158.05) (Ord. 11-144, passed 10-11-2011)