District would protect historic structures downtown

Richmond’s Historic Preservation Commission voted June 9 to initiate the process of forming a downtown conservation district to protect important architecture and historic structures.

All six members attending voted in favor of the motion, setting the district’s proposed boundaries as the Whitewater Gorge to 13th Street from North A Street to South A Street. Both sides of the boundary streets would be included.

Many steps remain for the area to become a conservation district. The commission must present rationale for creating a conservation district; provide a map with legal descriptions of included properties; identify all included properties as outstanding, notable, contributing or non-contributing to the district; conduct a public hearing; and forward a recommendation to Richmond Common Council, which makes the final decision.

According to Richmond’s ordinance, half of the property owners within the district must agree to have a district. A conservation district enables the Historic Preservation Commission to protect historically significant structures by issuing certificates of appropriateness for demolitions, new construction or major outside changes. The commission then would monitor compliance, as well.

An ordinance to form the conservation district would likely include a provision that the district would become a historic district after three years as a conservation district. A historic district permits additional guidelines for work done on historic structures.

Commission members discussed moving forward by partnering with Main Street Richmond’s board to begin meeting with property owners within the proposed district.

The city has four conservation districts overseen by the Historic Preservation Commission: Depot, Linden Hill, Harry A. Frankel House and Lauramoore House. The Frankel and Lauramoore districts involve single properties, and the Linden Hill district is the stretch of U.S. 40 from 18th Street to 23rd Street.