NEIGHBORS   URGENT

An average of 2.4 houses a week in the Heights are being demolished or moved.  In ten years, if this continues, we would lose the equivalent of 45 blocks as well as our historic neighborhood character which is a unique asset to Houston and the reason many of us have chosen to live here. 

A package of information and a blue petition form should have been left at your house. This described how we are trying to have two historic districts designated in the Heights. Currently, this is the only legal way we have of trying to intervene to stop the destruction of the Heights.  A Historic District designation would not stop the wholesale tear- downs but it would deter the builder/developers who remove our Heights houses overnight.

We have to act now!

Please, fill in the petition form I have enclosed with this letter.  You can mail the form in or, if you prefer, you can call 713-426-3240 and a volunteer will be glad to come by your house, answer any questions you have, fill in the details of lot and block numbers and turn it in for you.  Remember, all owners of the property must sign to make the petition valid. 

Thanks!

REMEMBER:  IF YOU HAVE NOT READ OR DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE CITY OF HOUSTON PRESERVATION ORDINANCE OR THE SUMMARY THAT WAS IN YOUR ORIGINAL PACKAGE DO NOT SIGN THIS PETITION.  CALL 713-426-3240 AND ANOTHER PACKET WILL BE DELIVERED WITH THIS INFORMATION AND THE ORDINANCE WILL BE EXPLAINED TO YOU.

LIVING IN A HISTORICAL DISTRICT:

We believe that our neighborhood should be a City of Houston historical district, because historical districts tend to:

            •  Preserve the historical character of the neighborhood

            •  Stabilize the neighborhood, and

            •  Deter demolition of historical buildings in the neighborhood.

B. How the City’s Historical ordinance applies to buildings in historical districts.

1. The ordinance applies to the alteration, restoration, construction, relocation or demolition of any building within a historical district.

2.  The ordinance does not apply to or affect:

                        a.  Ordinary maintenance and repair of a building.

                        b.  Paint colors.

                        c.  The interior of buildings.

                        d.  The use to be made of buildings.

3.  A permit called a “Certificate of Appropriateness” is necessary for work which is subject to the ordinance.  There is no fee for this certificate.

4.  The ordinance is administered by the City’s historic preservation officer (presently Randy Pace, a Heights resident) and by the Houston Archeological and Historical Commission (“HAHC”), an 11 member body appointed by the Mayor and City Council.

The ordinance is educational, not coercive.  When a property owner wants to make a significant change to his or her property, he or she discusses the changes with the historic preservation officer to assure compliance with the ordinance, and applies to the HAHC for a Certificate of Appropriateness:

1.  The change should  be compatible with the historical character of the building.

2.  A new home should be compatible with the historical character of the neighborhood.

3.  Demolition of historical buildings is allowed only under extreme circumstances.

4.  If the owner disagrees with the decision of HAHC, he or she can wait 90 days from the time the application was filed, then perform his or her project.

5.  The ordinance works 80% to 85% of the time, probably because most people want to do the right thing once they know what the right thing is to do.

D.  A partial property tax abatement for City of Houston taxes for 15 years is available for significant improvements to historical buildings in historical districts.

(PLEASE READ THE HISTORICAL DISTRICT PACKAGE PREVIOUSLY LEFT WITH YOU FOR A MORE COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF THE ORDINANCE AND ITS EFFECT.  IF YOU DO NOT HAVE THAT PACKAGE, CALL 713-426-3240, AND THAT PACKAGE WILL BE DELIVERED TO YOU.) 

Economic Incentives for Designation as a

City of Houston Landmark/Protected Landmark or Historic Building Within a Historic District

A historic building that has been designated as a City of Houston landmark or Protected Landmark, or is located within a designated City of Houston Historic District, qualifies for a city property tax exemption for appropriate renovation or restoration work of the exterior that is APPROVED by the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission (HAHC).  See Chapter 33 Code of Ordinances – Historic preservation Ordinance at http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/historic_pres/hist_pres.htm.
 

The value of the exemption could be as high as 100% of the City of Houston property taxes for the improvement expense for 15 years. 

EXAMPLE:  An improved tract of land is worth a total of $300,000, such as:

••         Improvement:    $100K

••         Land:                $200K

If the owner/buyer of this historically designated building spends the following amounts on rehab/restoration AND the EXTERIOR work is APPROVED by the HAHC (amount spent may also include expenditures for the interior work as well but interior work is NOT reviewed by HAHC): 

→If $50K spent on improvements, qualifies to apply for a 50% city property tax exemption for fifteen years;

→If $75K spent on improvements, qualifies to apply for a 75% City property tax exemption for fifteen years;

→If $100K+ spent on improvements, qualifies to apply for a 100% City property tax exemption for fifteen years.

As a designated City of Houston historic building, your property will be exempt from compliance with Energy Code requirements in the Building Code.

50% discount on building permit fees if the project work has been approved by the HAHC.

City of Houston Historic Preservation staff can guide and help you through the application process to accomplish the elected work, while at the same time maintaining the architectural integrity and historical character of your building.

Other incentives for owning/purchasing Historically Designated buildings:

A historic building may also qualify for a property tax exemption from Harris County.  For more information visit www.co.harris.tx.us or contact Harris County.

A historic building that is classified as “income producing” may also qualify for federal tax credits when the building is eligible for listing or is designated individually and listed in the National Register of Historic Places or the building has been classified as “contributing” to a historic district listed in the National Register of Historic Places, U.S. Department of the Interior.  For more information please visit Texas Historical Commission website at http://www.the.state.tx.us/ or contact the U.S. Department of the Interior at www.doi.gov.

State Comptroller, State of Texas, also offers an exemption from paying sales tax on labor for historically certified projects.  For more information, please visit their website at http://www.window.state.tx.us/.

For information about other programs, many of which may be available only for specific projects or those projects located in specific geographic areas, you can contact Randy Pace, Historic Preservation Officer, City of Houston, Planning & Development Department at 713.837.7796 or randy.pace@cityofhouston.net.