(a) Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a means for the designation and protection of Landmarks and Landmark Districts in the City of Wooster pursuant to the procedures and standards of this code in order to preserve, protect, and perpetuate places, buildings, structures, works of art, and other objects having a special historical, community, or aesthetic interest or value, all for the reasons described below:
(1) To safeguard the heritage of the City by preserving sites and structures that reflect elements of the City's cultural, social, economic, political, archeological, or architectural history;
(2) To stabilize and improve property values;
(3) To enhance the visual and aesthetic character, diversity and interest of the City;
(4) To foster civic pride in the beauty and notable accomplishments of the past;
(5) To promote the use and preservation of historic and archeological sites and structures for the education and general welfare of the people of the City; and
(6) To take necessary measures to safeguard the property rights of the owners whose property is declared to be a Landmark or is located in an area designated as a Landmark District.
(b) Designation of a Landmark or Landmark District. The City may, from time to time, consider the designation of structures, buildings, or places within the City as Landmarks or Landmark Districts through the procedure established in Section 1105.09.
(c) Certificate of Appropriateness Required. A certificate of appropriateness may be required for any construction, reconstruction, demolition, relocation, or other exterior alteration of a structure, building, or use as defined in Section 1105.08.
(d) Determining the Significance of a Structure.
(1) When making decisions or recommendations about changes to Landmarks or structures in a Landmark District, the Design Review Board shall have the authority to make a determination of the historical significance of the structure based on this section.
(2) For structures that the Design Review Board finds are not historically significant, the board may relax or waive the standards or guidelines found in the City of Wooster Design Guidelines for Landmarks and Landmark Districts.
(3) If the Design Review Board finds that the structure is historically significant, the standards and guidelines of the design guidelines or this chapter may be fully applied at the discretion of the Design Review Board and as further described in the design guidelines or in this chapter.
(4) The Design Review Board shall determine whether a structure or site is significant based on the structure's:
A. Value as a reminder of the cultural or archaeological heritage of the City, State, or nation;
B. Location as a site of a significant local, state, or national event;
C. Identification with a person or persons who significantly contributed to the development of the City, State, or nation;
D. Identification as the work of a master builder, designer, or architect whose individual work has influenced the City, State, or nation;
E. Value as a building that is recognized for the quality of its architecture and that it retains sufficient elements showing such architectural significance;
F. Example of an architectural style or period;
G. Contribution to the historical nature of the overall site; and/or
H. Character as a contributing element in a Landmark District.
(e) Review Standards and Guidelines.
(1) In addition to any applicable standards of the applicable zoning district or standards found in this chapter, any construction, modification, expansion, or other changes subject to a certificate of appropriateness review shall be subject to the applicable design standards and guidelines that are established in the City of Wooster Design Guidelines for Landmarks and Landmark Districts, as adopted by City Council. The manual shall hereafter be referred to as the design guidelines.
(2) The following design criteria shall apply to all buildings, site elements, structures and property designated as Landmarks or within a Landmark District:
A. All construction, reconstruction, exterior alteration, demolition, or other exterior structure or site element change shall preserve the character, historical significance, and architectural style of the existing buildings, site elements, structures and property. Such changes shall be visually compatible with the subject structure, property and area, and a false sense of history shall not be created.
B. Traditional building materials such as wood, brick, metal, or stone shall be used for construction, reconstruction, exterior alteration, or other exterior structure or site element change. Modern man-made materials may be utilized at the discretion of the Design Review Board if the proposed project keeps in character with the existing building, site, area structures, and design guidelines.
C. For new construction and additions, the structure's width, height, surrounding setbacks and style shall be considered in relationship to adjacent structures. This relationship between structures shall allow for consistency of style, size and density in each given neighborhood area.
D. Where possible, elements which can contribute to the quality of the pedestrian environment and other public amenities should be promoted. Included among these may be benches, water features, seating areas, arcades, awnings or canopies.
E. Signage shall be proportionally scaled and appropriately designed to coalesce with the subject building, site and area.
(f) Changes Not Prohibited. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to prevent the ordinary maintenance or repair of any exterior architectural feature of any property which has been designated a Landmark or which is situated in a designated Landmark District, and which does not involve a change in design, material, or outer appearance thereof; nor to prevent any environmental or changes to the building that the Building Standards or Fire Divisions shall certify in writing is required by the public safety because of an unsafe or dangerous condition.
(Ord. 2018-009. Passed 5-7-18.)