(a) Creation; membership; appointment.
(1) There is hereby created a landmark commission to be composed of 15 members. Each city council member shall appoint one member to the landmark commission. The city council may appoint three alternate members to the landmark commission who serve in the absence of one or more regular members when requested to do so by the chair or by the city manager. The membership (including alternate members) must include at least: one real estate developer with experience in redevelopment of commercial historic properties, one architect, one historian, one urban planner, one landscape architect, and one real estate appraiser. All members must have demonstrated experience in historic preservation and outstanding interest in the historic traditions of the city and have knowledge and demonstrated experience in the fields of history, art, architecture, architectural history, urban history, city planning, urban design, historic real estate development, or historic preservation.
(2) The city council shall solicit for consideration nominees for appointment to the landmark commission from, but not limited to: the Dallas County Historical Commission; the Dallas County Heritage Society; the Dallas chapter of the American Institute of Architects; the Dallas Historical Society; the Dallas chapter of the American Planning Association; the Dallas chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects; the Dallas Bar Association; the North Texas Chapter of the Appraisal Institute; the city plan commission; Preservation Dallas; Black Dallas Remembered; the African-American Museum; ACAL de Mexico; the Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce; the Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; the Greater Dallas Asian American Chamber of Commerce; the local Urban Land Institute Section; the Dallas Real Estate Council; the CCIM Commercial Real Estate Network; the Board of Realtors; and such other individuals and organizations experienced in historic preservation. The membership of the landmark commission must, as nearly as may be practicable, reflect the racial and ethnic makeup of the city’s population.
(3) Each member of the landmark commission shall be appointed for a two-year term beginning on October 1 of each odd-numbered year. All members shall serve until their successors are appointed and qualified. A vacancy for the unexpired term of any member shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment was made. Alternate members serve for the same period and are subject to removal the same as regular members. The city council shall fill vacancies occurring in the alternate membership in the same manner as full city council appointments to other boards. The members shall serve without compensation. The mayor shall appoint the chair and the full council shall appoint the vice-chair.
(4) In addition to the 15 regular members, representatives from the city plan commission, department of development services, the building inspection division of the department development services, code compliance department, the department of planning and urban design, and the park and recreation department shall sit on the landmark commission as ex officio members. The ex officio members are not entitled to vote but assist the landmark commission in various functions. The office of management services shall provide adequate staff support to the landmark commission and shall assign a member of the staff to act as the historic preservation officer.
(b) Quorum and voting. A quorum exists when there are physically present a simple majority of the number of members officially appointed to the landmark commission, regardless of the total number of members actually provided for the landmark commission, except that a quorum may not be fewer than six members. Issues are decided by a simple majority of the members present. Each member who is present and entitled to vote must vote in accordance with Chapter 8 of the Dallas City Code.
(c) Powers and duties. The landmark commission has the following powers and duties:
(1) To thoroughly familiarize itself with the structures, land, areas, and districts within the city that may be eligible for designation as historic overlay districts.
(2) To create, examine and update the historic preservation plan and present any modifications to the city plan commission for inclusion in the comprehensive plan of the city. The historic preservation plan must:
(A) identify and catalog places and areas of historical, cultural, architectural, or archeological value along with factual verification of their importance and significance;
(B) identify criteria to be used in establishment of historic overlay districts;
(C) identify guidelines and review procedures to be used in determining whether to grant or deny predesignation certificates of appropriateness, certificates of appropriateness, or certificates for demolition or removal;
(D) formulate a program for private and public action to promote the preservation of historic structures and districts;
(E) suggest sources of funds, including federal, state, municipal, private, and foundation sources, for preservation and restoration activities and for acquisitions; and
(F) recommend incentives for preservation.
(3) To recommend to the city plan commission that certain places and areas be designated as historic overlay districts.
(4) To recommend to the city council that certain places and areas which cannot be preserved without acquisition, be acquired in fee simple or in some lesser degree by gift or purchase.
(5) To recommend changes in use where conditions exist under which the required preservation of a property subject to the predesignation moratorium or a historic structure would cause undue hardship to the owner of the property.
(6) To review the application for a building permit for proposed work and design on a property subject to the predesignation moratorium or a historic structure and determine whether a predesignation certificate of appropriateness or a certificate of appropriateness should be issued.
(7) To recommend, when appropriate, the amendment to or removal of a historic overlay district.
(8) To review applications for the demolition or removal of a structure on a property subject to the predesignation moratorium and structures in historic overlay districts and make recommendations, when appropriate, concerning the applications to the city council.
(9) To annually review the status of properties subject to the predesignation moratorium, and historic overlay districts and include a report of the review in the landmark commission minutes.
(10) To initiate, when appropriate, the procedure for adopting an ordinance to establish or amend a historic overlay district.
(11) To establish taskforces as needed to make recommendations to the landmark commission on applications for predesignation certificates of appropriateness, certificates of appropriateness, and other issues.
(12) To identify cases of demolition by neglect and initiate remedial actions.
(13) To establish guidelines for selection of projects for the historic preservation fund.
(d) Meetings, records and rules.
(1) The landmark commission shall meet at least once each month, with additional meetings upon the call of the chair or upon petition of a simple majority of the landmark commission members.
(2) All meetings and hearings of the landmark commission must be open to the public in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code Chapter 551.
(3) All records of the landmark commission are public records open to inspection at reasonable times and upon reasonable notice in accordance with the Texas Open Records Act, Texas Government Code Chapter 552.
(4) The landmark commission shall adopt, subject to approval of city council, rules, not inconsistent with state law or city ordinances, governing its proceedings.
(e) Effect of decisions. Unless appealed, the determinations of the landmark commission on predesignation certificates of appropriateness, certificates of appropriateness, and certificates for demolition or removal are final. Actions taken or recommendations made by the landmark commission that are subject to review by the city plan commission or the city council are not binding on those bodies, and the reviewing body may decide a matter contrary to recommendations or actions of the landmark commission. (Ord. Nos. 19455; 19499; 20487; 20585; 21153; 21512; 23694; 24163; 25047; 26596; 27892; 28073; 29478; 29645; 29882; 32002)