Neighbors,
Recently residents living on N. Virginia, Stillwood, Hudson, Todd, etc. - approx. 300 homes - received a letter and a map encouraging our portion of Virginia-Highland to re-consider pursuing "Historic District" status with "Historic District Overlay Zoning." The organizers of this effort are seeking local support for this idea which they hope to have approved by the VAHI Civic Association and then taken directly to the Atlanta Urban Design Commission for adoption.
We respect the high regard the organizers have for our community; however, we believe seeking Historic District status for VAHI is a bad idea, all the way around. Several reasons for concern are listed below.
1. The effort is ill-timed. Just a few years ago, the VHCA spent significant funds surveying the neighborhood regarding the pursuit of Historic District status, resulting in no further action to pursue such designation. Why is this issue being revisited again so quickly? The timing of this effort is especially odd given that the VHCA is currently preparing a master plan which has a component focused on zoning and historic preservation. VAHI residents needs to debate historic preservation as a whole community, and then decide if it is something in which the VHCA should invest.
2. The effort divides our VAHI community. This effort applies only to residents of the following streets: N. Virginia Ave., Stillwood Dr., Virginia Ave. (east of N. Highland), Los Angeles Ave. (east of N. Highland), Lanier Blvd. (from N. Highland to approx. 1135/1136), Hudson Dr., Kentucky Ave., Rosewood Dr. (south half of the street only), N. Highland Ave. (east side of street only, from corner of Rosewood Dr. to the YWCA property), Rupley Dr., Todd Rd. (east side of street only, from Virginia Ave. to Adair Ave.), and Adair Ave. (north side of street only, between Todd Rd. and N. Highland). This is an assortment of partial and half streets based, as explained in the letter, around the old "Adair Park" and "F.A. Ames Property" from 1914 and 1922, respectively. We are concerned about our neighborhood being broken down into small pieces in this manner, and the attempt to then treat this one area differently from the majority of VAHI. Not to mention the oddities that this overlay would create when one house has "Historic District” status and the neighboring one does not.
3. Historic Districts put limitations on homeowners beyond the Zoning Ordinance. The letter mentions that the "Historic District Overlay Zoning" is the least restrictive form of regulation but offers "significant protection." Historic preservationists speak of protections, but the truth is that these are limitations, not protections, to what a homeowner can do to their residence. The current zoning ordinance reflects the values of our community as it relates to land use. We value the public-ness of the neighborhoods – the streets, the sidewalks, the variety of commercial and residential land uses, its parks, and its community schools. And we value the freedom to improve our properties as we see fit.
4. This Historic District will restrict the fronts of ALL houses from renovations or tear-down, not just historically significant properties. Let’s face it, only a few of these 1930-1940 middle class homes are worth saving solely on their historic merits. Some should be replaced on obsolesce alone. Many have been substantially updated over the years and don’t resemble their original design or layout. Many more have been replaced with homes with the feel of VAHI – small scale, front porches, rear garages, etc., regardless of their visual style. A Historic District designation, unlike the zoning ordinance, pre-ordains the appropriateness of style and perceived taste, views which typically change over time. The houses built on these parcels in the 1930s and 1940s were MODERN compared to the houses of the time – both visually and functionally. Owners should have the freedom to build structures of any style that comply with the community’s zoning ordinance.
This whole effort seems unwarranted when many in the neighborhood soundly opposed this idea just a few short years ago, and it is concerning in the way it attempts to break VAHI into smaller discreet chunks based on land divisions from almost 100 years ago. Please do not support the needless limitations this effort is placing on one corner of the Virginia-Highland community. This community has physically survived, prospered, and evolved to meet the changing needs of families over the years. There is no reason to stunt its future evolution with this district overlay.