On 50-year-old houses

Athens-Clarke County District 10 Commissioner Mike Hamby said, contrary to published reports, a proposal to grant an individual commissioner the ability to block the demolition of any building in Athens-Clarke County that is more than 50 years old is not on the table.

The proposed demolition delay ordinance, though, would let any individual commissioner temporarily stop the owner of a structure that is more than 50 years old, listed on the National Historic Register or is on a future list of historic buildings from tearing it down, regardless of whether the building is in a local historic district.

According to Hamby, the Legislative Review Committee, of which he serves as chairman, is not considering any measure that would permit a commissioner to block the demolition of any structure that is more than 50 years old. He said the idea was briefly discussed at the reported meeting, but dismissed by a majority of those present as not viable.

As a result, the focus of the historic preservation efforts would be beefing up protections for buildings located in nationally designated historic districts or are part of the National Historic Register. In addition, various options are being explored to identify various buildings in the community that might warrant protection but are not listed in either of those registries.

As an example, Hamby said there is an old school house located at or near the Athens-Clarke County landfill. It is not located in either a local or national historic district, but might be a structure the Historic Preservation Committee would be interested in cataloging and protecting. In addition, he said it would not be a large group of structures that would be targeted ...

There would be a very small group of buildings and structures that would fit into these guidelines, and it probably would be determined by the (Historic Preservation Committee). This isn't about blocking a demolition in Cedar Creek or Forest Heights.

A local historic district designation grants the Athens-Clarke County Commission the right to approve or deny demolitions, relocations or significant renovative work for structures in that targeted area. The national historic districts lack the same protection, which is a primary reason why there is a moratorium on demolition along Milledge Avenue as that area is currently in the process of earning a local historic district designation.