(A) It shall be the duty of the Commission to review all plans for the construction, addition, alteration, repair, moving, excavation, or demolition of structures in a historic district and it shall have the power to pass upon such plans before a permit for such activity can be granted by the Building Inspector.
(B) The review of plans shall be based on established preservation standards and guidelines as established by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior in its publication Standards for Rehabilitation and Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings. The Commission shall also consider all of the following:
(1) The historical architectural value and significance of the resource and its relationship with the historic value of the surrounding area;
(2) The relationship of any architectural features of the resource to the rest of the resource and to the surrounding area; and
(3) The general compatibility of the design, arrangement, texture, color, and materials proposed to be used.
(C) The standards developed and used by the Commission shall describe criteria related to the general compatibility of exterior design, structural height, mass arrangement, texture, and proposed building materials. In addition to the above, it is the intent of this section that the Commission shall act as a facilitator in order to work out feasible design and restoration solutions and shall provide guidance to the property owners in its judgment of plans for new construction, rehabilitation, repair, restoration, or moving of district resources of little historic value.
(D) The Commission shall have the power to issue a certificate of appropriateness if it approved the plans submitted for its review. The City Building Inspector shall not issue a building permit except as otherwise noted in this section until such certificate of appropriateness has been issued by the Commission.
(E) The Historic District Commission shall not review and act upon interior arrangements unless the interior work will cause visible change to the exterior of the resource.
(F) The Historic District Commission may:
(1) Carry out, assist, and collaborate in studies and programs designed to identify and evaluate additional district resources and historical districts worthy of preservation;
(2) Consult with and consider the ideas and recommendations of civic groups, public agencies, and citizens interested in historic preservation;
(3) Inspect and investigate district resources which it has reason to believe are worthy of preservation;
(4) Disseminate information to the public concerning those district resources deemed worthy of preservation, and may encourage and advise;
(5) Consider methods other than those provided for in this subchapter and in Chapter 153 for encouraging and achieving historic preservation, and make appropriate recommendations to the City Council and other bodies and agencies, both public and private;
(6) Establish such policies, rules, and regulations as it deems necessary to administer its duties as herein provided; and
(7) Maintain and use its own funds to acquire property or gifts of historic purposes, grants from state or federal governments, and to administer such resources and acquisitions in accordance with the purposes provided in this subchapter and in Chapter 153.
(2011 Code, § 2.08.030) (Ord. 95, passed - -1978; Ord. 192, passed - -1992; Ord. 224, passed - -1997; Ord. 276, passed - -2002)