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1. What is historic preservation and why is it needed?

Historic preservation is a “conversation with our past about our future,” says the National Parks Service. It provides us opportunities to ask, "What is important in our history?" and "What parts of our past can we preserve for the future?" Historic preservation is an important way for us to share our understanding of the past to future generations.

Our city’s history has many stories, and historic preservation helps tell these stories. Sometimes historic preservation involves celebrating events, people, places and ideas that we are proud of; other times it involves recognizing moments in our history that can be painful or uncomfortable to remember.

2. What does NOT go into a historic preservation plan?

• Regulations, including paint color – those must be approved by City Council as an ordinance.
• Budget amendment – this plan does not make budget changes or fund projects, which are made by City Council, but it does identify funding and timing priorities for historic preservation work.
• An inventory or survey of historic properties in Fayetteville (although that is a project that can come out of the plan).

3. What is a Heritage and Historic Preservation Plan?

Fayetteville’s Heritage and Historic Preservation Plan is a guidance document for: 1) what the community’s priorities are, 2) what our historic preservation programs and projects look like and 3) what kind of funding and partnerships are available to us to do the work. The planning process begins by asking a lot of questions, such as:

• Should regulations and design-review requirements be implemented for private properties? 
• Are there any neighborhoods that could benefit from or want historic zoning protections? 
• Are there historic sites that we are unaware of or need to know more about? 
• Do we need to offer more education or resources on how to maintain and repair historic properties? 

After we receive community input on those questions, we can look at what the plan will recommend and the types of activities we’ll work on once the plan is adopted. Some examples include:

• Improving our online resources for historic preservation.
• Conducting more research into our history or working with community partners to learn more.
• Creating a program and dedicating funding for a historic marker program.
• Deciding if we need surveys of historic properties or historic neighborhoods to document those properties so they aren’t forgotten.
• Identifying and applying for grants to support our historic preservation projects.

4. What are different types of historic designations and which ones include regulations/oversight?

Here are some important details about the types of historic districts and where we have them in Fayetteville:

• National Register Historic Districts are federally recognized historic districts. These have been around since 1966 as a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate and protect America's historic and archeological resources. This designation can help qualified historic properties receive preservation benefits and incentives.
• We have nine National Register Historic Districts in Fayetteville! Please view the Historic Sites Map to see where most of them are located.  
• Because zoning is at the local level (not at the federal level), there are no zoning protections for properties on the National Register of Historic Places. Some protections exist when a project is undertaken with federal funds, like a transportation project, but being listed on the National Register is not a protection from demolition, additions or exterior/interior changes.
• Arkansas has its own recognition of important places, which includes more than buildings. The Oaks Cemetery is recognized by the state as a historic African-American cemetery; in 2014 it was placed on the Arkansas Register of Historic Places. 
• Many of the state historic preservation grants require that the state be granted a historic preservation easement to protect the reservation work on a building into the future. That way, any future changes must be approved by the state before carried out. State easements are enforced by the state, not by the City of Fayetteville.
• Fayetteville has one local ordinance district – or, just one building protected by historic zoning. It’s the White Hangar at Drake Field! This means the White Hangar is its own local historic district.
• The White Hangar has its own set of design guidelines or guidance for exterior changes to the building that are considered when any change is proposed. These are based on guidance from the U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
• Local zoning districts can have their own unique design guidelines to address unique structures or needs. These guidelines can regulate some things, like demolitions and new construction, while not regulating other things, like paint colors and window replacement. It’s important to decide ahead of time what is important to protect and where flexibility is needed so that regulations can reflect that. Call the Planning Division if you’re interested, and we can discuss the details! 
• In Arkansas there are requirements that must be met before a city can adopt an ordinance for historic zoning protections, and we would be looking for property owners to want to have those requirements in place. That’s why it’s important for neighborhoods to communicate their goals with City staff if they want to explore this option.

5. What types of information are typically included in a historic preservation ordinance? How can communities shape an ordinance to meet their needs?

When you create a local historic district, it’s a type of zoning, and the first thing zoning needs is a description of the property being zoned. This creates a clear boundary so it’s understood what’s included in the boundary or regulations – and what is not.

When you create a local historic district, you also need clear requirements or regulations for the area in the district. For historic districts, this usually comes in the form of adopted design standards or design guidelines that spell out and illustrate what compatible changes to properties look like, and what requirements are for those changes.

Local historic districts also need to specify who is responsible for approving any changes that need special approval. For some historic districts, the changes can be approved by City staff. For others it’s the Historic District Commission. Sometimes it’s a combination of the two.

Because local historic districts are local and specific to a neighborhood, the regulations need to be specific to and fit that neighborhood. Some historic neighborhoods have a historic style residents would like to protect, and they want the regulations to require that any new structures or additions to existing structures match the historic appearance. Some historic neighborhoods have more variation, but they may have common characteristics (like having garages at the rear of the property or facing the side instead of being prominent at the front). 

Historic preservation ordinances don’t prevent changes to properties, but they do guide what those changes look like. A historic preservation ordinance can also provide some flexibility when alternative approaches help protect historic structures.

6. What are the benefits and responsibilities of owning a property with a local historic designation?

A benefit of owning property in a local historic district is there are requirements in place that manage change to properties, so that any new or additional development has to fit with the existing neighborhood, according to the adopted design standards. It creates some certainty. There is often a public hearing for proposed changes so the neighborhood can be informed on what is being proposed and can comment on new development. 

The responsibility to comply with the design standards and get the required approvals is also applied to the neighborhood, with the expectation that exterior changes, additions and new construction will meet the adopted standards. When you have put a lot of investment into a historic property, this is a way to ensure that investment can be maintained after the property changes owners.

7. What is a typical process for making changes to a property with a local historic designation?

Properties that have a local historic district designation usually must go through a design review process when changes to the property are proposed to make sure the changes meet the adopted design standards. This is in addition to any building permits that may be required. For example, if you want to add a garage to your house, before you could get the building permit for the garage you would have to submit your garage design to City staff or to the Historic District Commission. This way they can review the design and check that it meets the requirements. There may be requirements (like the garage being set behind the front of the house, or the roof of the new garage needing to match the roof on the existing house and using the same exterior materials). Once the design is approved, you can move forward with the building permit.

It’s important to note that ordinary maintenance and repair usually do not require design review approval – those are necessary items to keep the historic structure in good condition and do not need special approval.

8. What are the alternatives to historic districts, if a neighborhood wants to manage changes and new construction?

Local historic districts are the most commonly used tool to protect historic structures and neighborhoods from incompatible changes, but there are other options that have become popular. One of those options is a Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District. Both a Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District and a historic district are overlay districts; however, a conservation district will typically regulate fewer features and focus more on significant character defining features, such as lot size, building height, setbacks, streetscapes and tree protection. Unlike historic districts, conservation districts rarely consider specific elements, such as windows, buildings materials, colors and decorative details. In addition, most conservation districts do not include demolition delays, a tool utilized in historic districts.