More Overreach from Chapel Hill’s Historic District Commission

Chapel Hill’s Historic District Commission (HDC) is tasked with preserving the character of the town’s three local historic districts, each located close to UNC’s campus. The boundaries of the district are clear –but that hasn’t stopped the HDC from trying to expand its purview to adjacent properties.

Last year, the HDC wanted the Town Council to allow it to review a proposed housing development near, not in, a historic district.

Now, it wants to influence all development near a historic district. In a July 19, 2024 memo, the HDC proposes that the town create “Transition Zones” around the three districts:

The HDC is defining Transition Zones as overlays extending 250 feet in to neighborhoods immediately adjacent to the 3 historic districts. Within Transition Zones, similar dimensional standards and select design reference features should be applied to ensure a cohesive, harmonious architectural and design system. The HDC is willing to aid in outlining guidelines to be applied.

Think of the transition zones like a moat around a castle, except instead of protecting castle residents from marauding enemies, it would protect historic district residents from seeing something they find unattractive on the drive to Wegmans.

If you own a property in the proposed transition zone, how can you know if the proposal is a good or bad idea? If you’re the type of person who wishes your homeowners association was more meddlesome, you’re going to love it. If not, read on.

What effect would transitional zones have?

That depends on what the Town Council does the with HDC proposal. Hopefully nothing.

But to get a feel for how the HDC shapes changes to the built environment, check out their 180 page bible, the Chapel Hill Historic Districts Design Principles & Standards, which covers everything from how big your porch can be to building materials you should use to the “rhythm of door and window openings on building facades.”

If you don’t have that kind of time, it’s pretty easy to summarize what the HDC appears to like and not like. Likes include single family homes like you might see in in Southern Living – the kind that make you wonder if they were actually built by slaves, or just designed to give that impression. Dislikes include multifamily homes and anything tall.

In their June 17, 2024 meeting, they acknowledge that height is top of mind in proposing the transition zones. One member of the HDC discussed the need for the LUMO rewrite to reflect “considerations around sort of what it looks like when you’re in town immediately adjacent to the historic districts and making sure that there’s some thought through process around building heights and design principles. That’s really kind of what we’re after here.” Another member believes that the development of 150 E. Rosemary St. wet lab will lead other developers “to feel like they are entitled to build something of equal scale.”

While the HDC to my knowledge has not stated what limitations they would like to see in the transition zones, it seems safe to assume that height restrictions would be a top priority, the effect of which would be to limit further redevelopment of East Rosemary St. as a commercial and residential hub. But watch an HDC meeting and you know no detail – brick color, business signage, lighting – is too small to draw their attention.

Where would the transition zones be?

Any parcel within 250 feet of a historic district would be including in the proposal. Here are the three districts in the HDC’s purview:

And here in green are parcels that would be included in the transition zones.

Gimghoul detail

Gimghoul is certainly an interesting neighborhood. It has an actual castle (no moat). It was established as a whites-only neighborhood (worth noting is that Chapel Hill has black neighborhoods as old and with as much “character” as its old white neighborhoods, but only the latter have been granted the wealth-generating protections of a historic district). It’s the sort of historic neighborhood where you tear down a nice home to build a ridiculous home.

The HDC transition zone would primarily affect parcels along Raleigh Rd., as most of it extends into state-owned Battle Park. It also extends into the adjacent Greenwood neighborhood conservation district (not shown), setting up a potential showdown that could keep local real estate attorneys busy for decades.

Franklin-Rosemary detail

As designed, the transition zone grabs some parcels on East Rosemary St. that would presumably prevent development perceived by the HDC to be too tall or unsightly. But it’s also ensnaring parcels on MLK Blvd., which is on the BRT line, that are suitable for transit-oriented development. It’s also grabbing University United Methodist Church, which makes me wonder if the HDC finds their LGBT-friendly “God’s Doors Are Open To All” yard art a bit too garish.

Cameron-McCauley detail

In their most aggressive move, the HDC is staking claim to the center of town and a good chunk of West Franklin St. A lot of unexpected places become worthy of protection in this scenario, like Panera Bread, the High Life Smoke Shop, and He’s Not Here (which, the be fair, has historic smelling bathrooms). We’re probably not going to get a new Raising Cane’s Dean Dome downtown if the HDC proposal goes through.

But hey, we might get some new historical markers around downtown.

How to tell if your property is in the proposed buffer

Click the image below to open a PDF of all addresses within 250 feet of a historic district. A few caveats:

• The list includes parcels owned by UNC, which won’t be affected by any decision the town might make.
• Some parcels that would be affected do not appear in the list because address data are missing. Check the maps above if you are unsure, or shoot us an email.
• I taught myself GIS to write this stupid post. Apologies in advance for any errors.
  

How to let Town Council know the HDC should stay in its lane

Send a quick email to [email protected].

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander

Look for future posts from TBB on shrinking the boundaries of Chapel Hill’s historic districts.