FAQs: Living or developing in a Historic District Q. How do I know if the historic district guidelines apply to my property? A. The guidelines apply if you have a contributing structure and may apply if you have a noncontributing structure in any of Gainesville s five historic districts, or if your building is listed independently on the local or national register of historic buildings. A structure means any home, building, apartment, garage or accessory building located in a historic district. The maps and boundaries of the districts, color coded contributing and noncontributing structures and the Historic Preservation Rehabilitation & Design Guidelines are located on the City s website at: http://www.cityofgainesville.org/planningdepartment/historicdistricts.aspx Or call (352) 334-5023 and our staff can help you find the website or give you the needed information. The Guidelines are based on the Secretary of Interior Standards for Rehabilitation. To ensure compliance with the guidelines, you must obtain a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) from the City of Gainesville s Historic Preservation Board before beginning any of the following: exterior alterations or repairs new construction demolition or relocation of any structure Q. Why is it important to get a COA before I start working on my house or development? A. If you begin work without a COA, the City will issue a Stop Work Order and there is an afterthe fact COA fee. You may not continue work on the structure until you pay the fee and a COA is issued. If you make alterations that do not meet the historic guidelines, you may have to remove them. Q. What if I want to make changes to the inside of my house or building? A. You do not need a COA for interior changes as long the changes do not affect outside elements i.e. windows and doors. The COA applies only to exterior changes. Q. Can I paint my house or building any color I choose? A. Yes. The Board does not review color. You don t need a COA to paint the exterior of a building unless it is unpainted masonry. Heritage colors are available at most paint stores. Q. What about building permits? A. You will need a building permit if you make structural changes and/or require a subcontractor s permit to either the interior or exterior of a house or building. This is a building life safety code issue and applies to everyone in the City, regardless of whether or not the building is in a historic district. Q. What is the Historic Preservation Board? A. The Historic Preservation Board is an appointed nine member board. They review COAs on the first Tuesday of every month. If you want your application reviewed in an upcoming month, you must have your complete application submitted by the deadline date (usually about 4 weeks before the meeting). Incomplete applications submitted on the deadline date will not be reviewed. 1
The 2015 schedule is located at http://www.cityofgainesville.org/portals/0/plan/2015%20meeting%20schedule.pdf Q. Should I schedule a pre-coa application conference? A. Yes, please contact the Historic Preservation Planner for a preliminary design review appointment. At the conference, it will be determined if staff can approve the COA and you can apply for a building permit if needed or whether the COA needs approval by the Historic Preservation Board. Q. What are the guidelines if I own a contributing building or home? A. If you own a contributing building or home in one of the historic districts or are listed on the local or national register, it means your structure is officially considered historic. You will need to follow basic historic preservation guidelines to protect it. The Historic Preservation Rehabilitation and Design Guidelines establish a uniform document for review of the elements of a structure while accommodating the unique character of individual structures and districts. The continuity of the historic preservation guidelines promote a unified approach for review of applications in different settings throughout the city and assists in many ways the community of property owners, developers, community boards and city officials. The Rehabilitation sections of the Guidelines are organized around building elements as follows: Additions to Existing Buildings Roofs and Roof Surface Foundations Windows, Shutters and Awnings Entries, Porches and Balconies Doors and Entrances Exterior Fabric Painting, Texture and Color Auxiliary Structures Porte Cocheres and Garages Landscape Structures Fences and Garden Walls Sidewalks and Walkways Interior Space, Features and Finishes Mechanical Systems Sidewalks and Walkways Handicap Accessibility Exterior alterations or repairs Q. What kind of exterior alterations and repairs need a COA? A. If you own a contributing building or home and are planning any kind of exterior alterations or exterior repairs, you ll need to call the City s preservation planner at (352) 334-5023. While many minor repairs do not need a COA, they often lead to work that does. In general, the types of exterior alterations and repairs that need a COA include: 2
Abrasive cleaning Awnings or canopies Exterior doors/frames Exterior walls/stairs Window frames Fencing Fire escapes Handicapped ramps Porch fixtures Roofs and siding Security grills Screen windows/doors Skylights Painting exterior masonry Q. What are the guidelines if I own a noncontributing building or home? A. If you own a noncontributing building or home in one of the districts, it means your structure is not historic but is still part of the character of the historic neighborhood. You must obtain a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) from the City of Gainesville before beginning any of the following. Any additions/enclosures New construction New parking lots or fences Demolition or relocation Q. Is it hard to complete a COA application? A. No. The COA is a simple form to fill out and does not require anything more than photographs and hand sketches. To date, the board has approved 98% of all COAs. Q. How long do such approvals generally take? A. Approvals that can be handled by the staff take three working days or fewer, in most cases. Major changes, which require board approval, generally take at least 30 days. That's because the board meets once a month, and a homeowner's application for approval must be received by the board s cut-off date to be on the next month s agenda. The Historic Preservation Board meets the first Tuesday of each month, and the meetings are open to the public. Q. What are the COA fees and procedures? A. Many COAs can be approved with only City Planning staff review and there is no fee. Staff approves 50-60% of the COA applications, and for more extensive renovations or new construction the COA application goes to the Historic Preservation Board. Before submitting your COA, you are required to have a pre-application conference with the City s Historic Preservation Planner. Q. What materials do homeowners or developers have to provide when they are requesting project approval from the Historic Preservation Board? A. At minimum, a Certificate of Appropriateness application form and detailed drawings, photographs of the existing building and a dimension plan or site plan. Applying for approval of most major projects also requires one or more of the materials listed below. Meeting with the staff will guide the homeowner on what other specific materials are needed: Detailed plans, with dimensions, showing existing and proposed conditions. Indication on plans of demolition. Description and/or samples of building materials. 3
New construction Q. Can I build a new home/building on a lot in the historic districts? A. Yes. The following criteria are used to evaluate the compatibility of new construction proposed for the historic districts. The terms are adapted from the eleven standards of visual compatibility found in the City s Land Development Code. Rhythm of the Street Setbacks Height Roof Forms Rhythm of Entrances & Porches Walls of Continuity Scale of Building Directional Expression Proportion of the Front Facade Proportion & Rhythm of Openings Rhythm of Solids to Voids Detail and Materials Demolition or relocation Q. Can I demolish a structure/building in the historic districts? A. Yes provided the applicant obtains: A decision by the Historic Preservation Board approving a certificate of appropriateness for the demolition of buildings located in the Northeast Residential, Southeast Gainesville, University Heights North & South Historic Districts are guided by: In the districts, the decision requires findings concerning: The historic or architectural significance of the building, the importance and ambience of the building to a district. The difficulty or the impossibility of reproducing such a building because of its design, texture, material, detail or unique location. Whether the building is one of the last remaining examples of its kind in the neighborhood, the county or the region. Whether there are definite plans for reuse of the property if the proposed demolition is carried out, and what the effect of those plans on the character of the surrounding area would be. Whether reasonable measures can be taken to save the building from collapse. Whether the building is capable of earning reasonable economic return on its value. Demolition of historic building without definitive plans for redevelopment is discouraged. This factor evaluates the proposed reuse of the property if the proposed demolition is carried out, and what the effect of those plans on the character of the surrounding area would be. 4
The Historic Preservation Board will evaluate the structural integrity, weather tightness and the economic feasibility of rehabilitation based on the condition of the roof, foundation and walls as well as the cost of replicating features and details on the historic building in any proposal for new development, and will determine if reasonable measures can be taken to save the building, structure, or object from collapse. The applicant shall allow the city manager or designee to inspect the structure with reasonable notice. Q. How does the Historic Preservation Board make decisions about demolitions in the Pleasant Street Historic District? A. A decision by the Historic Preservation Board approving or denying a Certificate of Appropriateness for the demolition of buildings, structures, or objects in the Pleasant Street Historic District shall be guided by the significance of the property. Significance concerns historic or architectural aspects of the building. A property shall be considered to be significant if it meets one the following criteria: The property is located on an important street and within a cluster of historic buildings. Cluster of historic buildings is defined by the presence of three historic buildings adjacent to each other on the same block as the property proposed for demolition, either on the same side of the street, across the street, or on adjacent side street of the block containing the property. Important streets are defined as NW 2nd, 3rd, or 4th Street, NW 2nd, 3rd, or 4th Avenue, NW 4th or 6th Place, the 200 600 block of NW 1st Street, the 200 400 block of NW 7th Avenue, and the 300 block of NW 5th Avenue. The property is located on an important street or within a cluster of historic buildings, and meets one of the following criteria: It maintains its basic plan; additions, if any, were made to non-prominent elevations and porches were not enclosed. Its features are unique and there are few remaining occupied buildings of its type in the neighborhood. It is associated with an important person based on original ownership documentation contained in the nomination of Pleasant Street to the National Register of Historic Places. The property is not on an important street and not within a cluster of historic buildings, but it has been evaluated for its architectural quality and structural condition and merits preservation. Q. How does an owner show evidence of hardship? A. If an owner claims that the decision of the Historic Preservation Board will cause economic hardship, he or she may petition the Board for a hearing to consider relevant evidence of hardship. The owner must submit all evidence to the city manager or designee within 60 days of the Board's original decision. The hearing shall then be held at the next regular board meeting taking place at least 24 days after the evidence is submitted. A written estimate from a licensed engineer, contractor or architect with experience in rehabilitation of the cost of the proposed construction, or alteration, and a written estimate of any additional cost that would be incurred in order to comply with the recommendation of 5
the Historic Preservation Board. "Experience in rehabilitation" means work on certified rehabilitation projects where federal tax credits for historic preservation were received, or work on a building or structure in Florida which required a local Certificate of Appropriateness. A written report from a licensed engineer, contractor or architect with experience in rehabilitation as to the structural soundness of the subject structure and its suitability for rehabilitation. The report shall include detailed documentation (including scope of work, and cost of materials and labor) of the cost of complying with the recommendation of the Historic Preservation Board. An independent written appraisal by an appraiser with competent credentials of the estimated market value of the property in its current condition; after completion of the proposed construction, alteration, demolition, or removal; after any changes recommended by the Historic Preservation Board; and, in the case of a proposed demolition, both after renovation of the existing property for continued use and after demolition and new construction (an appraiser must at least have a state license to be considered competent). In the case of a proposed demolition, an estimate from a licensed architect, contractor, certified appraiser or other professional experienced in rehabilitation as to the economic feasibility of rehabilitation or reuse of the existing structure on the property. Estimates of the proposed construction cost shall include the cost of replacing the historic structure with one of similar design and character-defining interior and exterior features. The amount paid for the property, the date of purchase and the party from whom purchased, including a description of the relationship, if any, between the owner of record or applicant and the person from whom the property was purchased, and any terms of financing between the seller and buyer. Relocating a building is a last resort to avoid demolition. From a preservation perspective, relocating a building has many negative consequences. First, the context of the building is lost. The association with the surrounding natural and built environment is destroyed. Left behind are sidewalks, retaining walls, and landscape features that make each building unique. Related Links There are extensive related link at http://www.cityofgainesville.org/planningdepartment/historicdistricts/relatedlinks.aspx which can be helpful for researching your property, restoration best practices briefs and bulletins from the National Park Service and historic preservation economic studies. 6