Agenda #10
memorandum
to: Mayor and Town Council
from: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
Ralph D. Karpinos, Town Attorney
subject: Possible Historic Preservation Easement for Old Library
date: October 10, 2005
The purpose of this report is to provide information on the possible establishment of a historic preservation easement for the old Chapel Hill Public Library building. The attached resolution would refer this matter to the Historic District Commission for comment and recommendation.
BACKGROUND
The old Chapel Hill Public Library building was constructed in 1966 and served as the Town’s public library until 1994, when library services were relocated to the new building off Estes Drive near East Franklin Street. The old library site is zoned R-2 and, in addition, is in the East Franklin Historic District, an overlay zoning district. The building presently is under lease to the Chapel Hill Museum, a not-for-profit corporation. Under the terms of the lease, the Museum is responsible for “proper safekeeping and security and repair” of the building, “all operating costs, including utilities” and “all repairs not covered by insurance”. No rent is charged under the terms of the lease. All alteration and renovation plans, both interior and exterior, require review and approval by the Town. In addition, because the property is in the Historic District, most alterations to the exterior of the building would require certificates of appropriateness from the Historic District Commission.
Last spring, during the process of analyzing the Town’s finances and making recommendations on a proposed budget, the Citizen’s Budget Review Advisory Committee proposed the possible sale of certain Town-owned buildings not currently being used for Town-operated public purposes. Of the buildings identified for possible sale, attention was focused primarily on the old Chapel Hill Public Library at the corner of Franklin Street and Boundary Street. The proposal was considered but not pursued as part of the Council’s budget deliberations.
Following the conclusion of the budget work, a petition (Attachment 1) was presented to the Council proposing that the Council consider granting a historic preservation easement on the old Library building. Included with the attached petition was a report on the structure and a sample Historic Preservation Agreement.
In 1979, the North Carolina General Assembly enacted the State’s “Conservation and Historic Preservation Agreements Act”, codified as Article 4, Chapter 121 of the North Carolina General Statutes. Attachment 2 is a copy of that Act.
We believe the Act contemplated primarily the possibility of establishing preservation easements on land and structures in private ownership in order to assure protection of those properties. Private property owners granting such conservation easements to public agencies or non-profit organizations can realize some tax benefits from the granting of easements. In addition, the community receives the benefit of an enhanced assurance that the property will be protected and preserved. In this case, establishment of a historic preservation agreement would add protection in addition to that provided by present Town ownership and historic district regulation. The current assurances provided by Town ownership and location in the Historic District are limited in two key ways: a) as discussed during the budget development meetings, the property could be sold by the Town; and, b) location in a historic district can delay, but not prevent, the demolition of a structure if the owner wishes to remove an existing building.
In this case, the proposal to establish a historic preservation agreement conservation easement would provide some additional assurance as to the preservation of the structure. The attached resolution would refer the petition to the Historic District Commission for its comment, to be considered by the Council at a future meeting.
As an alternative to establishment of a preservation easement with an independent non-profit agency, the Council might wish to consider, and ask the Historic District Commission, to evaluate the option of designating the property a historic landmark under the provisions of Part 3C, Article 19, Chapter 160A of the North Carolina General Statutes. Attachment 3 is a copy of relevant sections of that Part. If the property were to be established as a landmark by ordinance, the designation would be recorded in the register of deeds office. The Town as owner could record a document in the register of deeds office specifying that the Historic District Commission has jurisdiction to review interior as well as exterior changes to the property. The granting of this review authority would bind future owners and successors in title to the property to the extent that the document so provided.
Either of these alternatives, a historic preservation agreement or a historic landmark designation, would have the effect of limiting the Town’s flexibility and the options available to the Town’s governing body, the Town Council, in the future. Because we cannot predict what circumstances might develop in the future that might make consideration of alternate options for this site desirable, we believe the Council should reserve for itself, as an institution, the authority to make decisions on this site and the building. We believe the authority of this Council and future Councils to exercise their fiduciary duty on behalf of the Town would best be preserved by not encumbering this property at this time with limitations vested in the hands of either an independent third party or an advisory board of the Town. In the event this Council or a future Council determined that the sale of this site were desirable, deed restrictions could be considered at that time if the preservation of the structure were deemed a Council goal.
RECOMMENDATION
The Manager recommends that the Council take no further action in response to this petition. The attached resolution would refer the petition to the Historic District Commission for a recommendation on the establishment of a Historic Preservation Conservation Agreement on the Town-owned property at the northwest corner of East Franklin Street and Boundary Street or other means to ensure preservation of the Town-owned building on this site. If the Council wishes, this resolution could be revised to include evaluation of the option of a historic landmark designation.
1. June 15, 2005, Agenda #15a(1) (p. 5).
2. Article 4, Chapter 121, North Carolina General Statutes (p. 23).
3. Excerpt from Article 19, Part 3C, Chapter 160A, North Carolina General Statutes (p. 26).