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APPENDIX C <br />THIRTY-SIXTH NATIONAL PRESERVATION CONFERENCE <br />NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION <br />HISTORIC DISTRICT TRACT <br />Design Review by a Historic District Commission <br />- Keep accurate records. This is especially important in cases that go to court, have <br />adequate documentation. <br />- Require complete and honest documentation of homeowner for Certificate of Appropriate- <br />ness Applications. Be sure you understand what he wants to do; even poorly constructed <br />details can spoil a project. With new construction (in -fill), if the applicant has no <br />architectural renderings, have him bring in photographs of similar examples and then be <br />sure he knows how to do it if he is doing the work himself. <br />- Remember that the Design Review is a Public Action and treat it as such. <br />- Maintain official demeanor during hearings. It is good to have a lawyer as chairman - <br />because he is aware of the legal process. <br />- Steer away from personal preference statements at the public hearings such as, "I don't <br />like..." or "I think it's ugly..." Instead discuss what is "appropriate" to the building, <br />and/or. district. <br />- Don't be apologetic, if it was not importaht ,,the district wouldn't have survived <br />designation. <br />- Set priorities within the standards for each landmark and district. Signs should have <br />lower priority because they are less permanent. <br />- Use the power of your Ordinance only as a last resort. <br />Manaqinq Historic District Commissions and Designated Historic Districts <br />Speakers were from Charleston, S.C. and Cincinnati, Ohio. They spoke on these topics as it <br />related to their regions. <br />- The socio-economic impact must be considered when designati a landmark or districts. <br />- The Commission should try to maintain a non -threatening, helper role. <br />- Back off on creating a district where there is not a majority in favor of it. Eventually <br />you will probably get the district anyway and you will avoid the image that you are trying <br />to "shove it down their throats." <br />- In Cincinnati, the staff can sign off on any C. of A. that involves work not seen from <br />the street. <br />- Cincinnati's C. of A. is made up of 3 parts: the Staff Report, the Application, and the <br />Final Action. <br />- Set priorities in the review process so that you do not spend 20 minutes reviewing <br />paint colors and 5 minutes on a major construction. It then appears to the public that <br />the paint decision is the more important of the two. <br />Litigating a Historic Preservation Case <br />Processing a Certificate of Appropriateness Application <br />- Follow procedures <br />- Make a checklist of steps to be followed <br />- Record the proceedings at the public hearing <br />- Write up the final decision <br />Litigating a case <br />�--- Be able to identify the facts of the case and the law that applies to it <br />- Work closely with your attorney and give him all the facts of the case <br />- Don't litigate."bad" cases - those which you -have a good chance of losing. Try to com- <br />promise and get out. Each case sets a precedence and when a case is lost, it weakens your <br />authority <br />