At the Oct. 15 meeting the Historic District Commission discussed one of the conditions of registering a property with the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. Commissioners had granted conditional approval for a project, provided that the AHPP would approve the project.
St. James Episcopal Church, at 28 Prospect St., had asked to replace two doors. The property has an easement on the façade, requiring AHPP approval for changes to the exterior. That approval was received Oct. 20, and Cassie Dishman, director of Planning and Community Development, explained more about the process during the Nov. 5 HDC meeting.
Dishman said some properties would be eligible for grants to help with exterior restorations. Although those grants place some restrictions on subsequent alterations, Dishman said the state imposes reasonable standards, to “try to keep our historic homes historic.”
Commission Chair Dee Bright agreed with Dishman’s explanation. “Don’t fear the process,” she said. Bright said the grants are helpful, and the AHPP is easy to work with. Dishman said property owners can come to her office for help with the process.
In other business:
- Jeff Chapman received approval to extend a roof over his patio at 304 Spring St. The roof will extend his current roofline. Commissioners noted that the area in question was located behind a privacy fence at the side of the house. In response to a question, Chapman said the patio cover will be far from any property lines. The approval also included a gas fireplace. Chapman said he has only a small front porch and looks forward to sitting outside even with rain or snow. The property dates to 1950 and is considered contributing.
- A foundation repair at 40 Pine St. was approved for Larry Newhart. Trevor Halliday represented Newhart and explained the need to also replace some deck boards and a rotten rim joist. He also said original materials will be retained wherever possible or replaced with similar material.
- Dishman discussed potential Certified Local Government grants. The grants are administered through the AHPP, and Dishman will apply for funds to re-survey the historic district. She said the last survey was 25 years ago. A new survey would start with the downtown commercial core, and a separate grant would be required to survey the rest of the district.
- Dishman outlined several seminars in the coming year, including a summer forum in Minneapolis and a Preserve Arkansas conference in the fall.
- A workshop focused on refinishing floors had been planned for the following weekend, but it was cancelled. Bright said she hopes the workshop will be rescheduled in January.
- The HDC will next meet at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 19. Level III applications were due
Nov. 6, and Level II applications were due Nov. 12.