By DAVE HAMRICK
Staff Writer

Owners of historic properties in Fayetteville will have to get “certificates of appropriateness” for any changes to the sites under a proposed historic preservation ordinance.

A new historic preservation commission will shepherd Fayetteville's heritage and rule on the appropriateness of any changes to historic properties if the City Council approves the new law.

And don't even think about tearing down any historic buildings until the new law is in place. Council Monday enacted a moratorium on demolition in the historic Main Street District to hold the line for now.

“There's a concern that we might lose a valuable resource if we are considering this ordinance over a period of time,” said Councilman Al Hovey-King, chairman of Fayetteville's Main Street Board, which is recommending the new ordinance. “The board felt very strongly that [a demolition moratorium] needed to accompany this,” he said.

Council conducted a formal first reading of the new law during its first meeting of 2000 Monday night, and could act on the proposal at its next scheduled meeting, Jan. 17.

As proposed, the new law would create the historic preservation commission, appointed by the mayor and council, which would recommend to the council “specific sites, buildings, structures or objects to be designated as historic properties or historic districts.”

If your property is designated as historic by the commission, you would have to get a “certificate of appropriateness” from the commission before undertaking any changes. And new construction in areas designated as historic also would come under commission scrutiny.

Currently, site plans for changes to any existing structures in the city must be approved by the Planning Commission before any work is done, and that wont' change under the new law. The difference will be that the new historic commission will rule on aspects of the plans that affect the historic nature of the structure, while the Planning Commission will consider the overall site plans, using the city's development regulations as its guide.

The group also would be involved in restoration of any historic properties obtained by the city, would seek out state and federal grants for such projects and would receive grants and donations on behalf of the city. It also would conduct educational programs on the city's historic sites.

Commission members would be city residents “who have demonstrated special interest, experience or education in history, architecture or the preservation of historic resources,” according to the proposed ordinance.

“It's much easier to get properties on the National Register [of Historic Places] with a commission of this type,” said Maurice Ungaro, the city's planning director. Listing on the National Register makes properties more easily eligible for grants, he added.

And as a Main Street City under the state of Georgia's Main Street program, Fayetteville should have a historic preservation law in place, said Hovey-King. “It's almost a requirement,” he said.

“And with the pressures of development in the downtown area, we felt that it was about time we looked at a preservation ordinance,” he added.

A Main Street Fayetteville subcommittee has been working on the proposal for three months, Hovey-King said, and now it's ready for council scrutiny.

Council will discuss the matter again at its Jan. 17 meeting, 7 p.m. at City Hall.