In considering an area, building, structure or work of art in the Historic District, the following criteria shall apply:
(a) Existing Structures, Buildings and Open Areas. Reconstruction and/or rehabilitation of structures within the Historic District shall conform to the distinguishing, original exterior qualities or character of the structure, its site, and its environment. The following elements shall also be considered:
(1) The character or value of a property or area as part of the heritage or cultural characteristic of the City of London;
(2) Whether the structure, building or open area is identified as the work of an architect or notable builder whose work has influenced the development of the City of London;
(3) Whether the structure, building or open area occupies a unique location or possesses a physical characteristic that represents an established feature of the Historic District;
(4) Whether the building, structure or open area occupies the site of a significant historic event.
(b) New Construction. The design of new structures and additions to existing structures, including new site improvements, shall take into account the architectural style, general design, arrangement, texture, material, and color of other structures and premises within the same location.
(c) Standards for Rehabilitation. The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation shall apply and are as follows:
(1) A property will be used as it was historically or be given a new use that requires minimal change to its distinctive materials, features, spaces, and spatial relationships.
(2) The historic character of a property will be retained and preserved. The removal of distinctive materials or alteration of features, spaces, and spatial relationships that characterize a property will be avoided.
(3) Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or elements from other historic properties, will not be undertaken.
(4) Changes to a property that have acquired historic significance in their own right will be retained and preserved.
(5) Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property will be preserved.
(6) Deteriorated historic features will be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature will match the old in design, color, texture, and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features will be substantiated by documentary and physical evidence.
(7) Chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken using the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to historic materials will not be used.
(8) Archeological resources will be protected and preserved in place. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will be undertaken.
(9) New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction will not destroy historic materials, features, and spatial relationships that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and will be compatible with the historic materials, features, size, scale and proportion, and massing to protect the integrity of the property and its environment.
(10) New additions and adjacent or related new construction will 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.
(d) Materials. All new structures and all reconstruction or remodeling of existing structures within the Historic District shall utilize natural traditional exterior materials such as brick, stone, masonry and wood. The use of contemporary materials, such as aluminum, other metals, fiberglass, and plastics for exterior surfaces on architecturally significant structures shall be prohibited unless the use of such materials would contribute to the preservation or enhancement of existing traditional materials and the overall integrity and longevity of a structure.
(e) Color.
(1) Traditional colors that are identified with the origin or the era in which the structure or property was originally built shall be used for exteriors for all new structures to be built, and the reconstruction, remodeling and exterior maintenance of existing structures within the Historic District.
(2) The Historic Review Board has the authority to adopt color pallets issued by manufacturers known as "historic colors". Once a color sheet has been adopted by the Board, the building inspector, upon application and submission of a color diagram or rendition and payment of all fees, may issue a certificate of appropriateness for the use of any approved colors as submitted in the application. The purpose of this is to avoid the necessity of an individual owner or occupant coming before the Board for the purpose of a change of color, as long as the change is a true historical color as approved by the Board. If the inspector feels the colors are not appropriate, he or she may submit the request to the Board for further action.
(f) Signs. All signs within the Historic District shall conform to the color and material standards of this section, be of a style, size, and/or design that reflects what is typically associated with the era during which the structure was built. Such signs shall also conform to the requirements in other sections of this chapter. The size and shape of signs shall also correspond to the existing proportions of period structures, and signs shall not be permitted to cover or close existing window and doorway openings or otherwise hide important architectural features.
(g) Awnings. All awnings within the Historic District shall conform to the color standards of this section.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97; Ord. 118-06. Passed 4-20-06; Ord. 119-10. Passed 5-20-10.)