(A) Standards for rehabilitation. To be eligible for the special tax assessment, historic rehabilitations must be conducted according to the following standards.
(1) The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of historic materials or alterations or of features and spaces that characterize each property shall be avoided.
(2) Each property shall be recognized as a physical record of its time, place and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development shall not be undertaken.
(3) Most properties change over time. Those changes that have acquired historic significance in their own right shall be retained and preserved.
(4) Distinctive features, finishes and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property should be preserved.
(5) Deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new should match the old in design, color, texture and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features shall be substantiated by documentary, physical or pictorial evidence.
(6) Chemical or physical treatments, such as sandblasting, that cause damage to historic materials shall not be used. The surface cleaning of structures, if appropriate, shall be undertaken using the gentlest means possible.
(7) New additions, exterior alterations or related new construction shall not destroy historic materials that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the historic property and its environment.
(8) New additions and adjacent new construction shall be undertaken in such a manner that, if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired.
(B) Work to be reviewed. The following work will be reviewed according to the standards set forth above:
(1) Repairs to the exterior of the designated building;
(2) Alterations to the exterior of the designated building;
(3) New construction on the property on which the building is located, including site work;
(4) Alterations to interior primary public spaces, as defined by the reviewing authority; and
(5) Any remaining work where the expenditures for such work are being used to satisfy the minimum expenditures for rehabilitation, including, but not limited to, alterations made to mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems.
(C) Minimum expenditures for rehabilitation. To be eligible for the special property tax assessment, the owner or the owner’s estate must meet the minimum expenditures for rehabilitation.
(1) The minimum investment shall be 20% of the fair market value of the building which is to be rehabilitated.
(2) Fair market value means the appraised value as certified to the county by a real estate appraiser licensed by the state, the sales price as delineated in a bona fide contract of sale within 12 months of the time it is submitted or the most recent appraised value published by the County Tax Assessor.
(D) Expenditures. Expenditures for rehabilitation means the actual cost of rehabilitation relating to one or more of the following:
(1) Improvements located on or within the historic building as designated;
(2) Improvements outside of, but directly attached to, the historic building which are necessary to make the building fully useable (such as vertical circulation), but shall not include rentable/habitable floor space attributable to new construction;
(3) Architectural and engineering services attributable to the design of the improvements; and
(4) Costs necessary to maintain the historic character or integrity of the building,
(E) Scope. The special tax assessment may apply to the following:
(1) Structure(s) rehabilitated; and
(2) Real property on which the building is located.
(F) Time limits. If the project is not complete after two years, but the minimum expenditures for rehabilitation have been incurred, the property continues to receive the special assessment until the project is completed.
(Ord. 2019-007, passed 8-19-2019)