Preservation tied to tax credits

When Christiane Quinn and her husband, James, moved to Columbia from Michigan in 1996, they were delighted to find a brick bungalow-style house on the corner of Broadway and Anderson in the Garth’s Addition neighborhood. She says she would like to see the neighborhood be rezoned by the city as a Historic Preservation Overlay District because then she might have a better shot at state tax credits to help her replace the house’s generic glass-pane windows with wooden ones that match the 1920s style and architecture of the house.

“Several years ago, someone changed the windows, and some of the character of the bungalow was lost,” Quinn said. “New windows that open and close would be much more efficient and match the style of the house.”

The Columbia Historic Preservation Commission hopes the results of a survey commissioned by the city will empower residents like the Quinns to apply for rezoning status, as well as local, state and federal tax credits. The results of the survey conducted by Ruth Keenoy, senior preservation planner with TRC-Garrow, concluded that the neighborhood had high “potential as a historic residential district eligible for the National Registry of Historic Places” because of its original architecture.

Keenoy presented her findings to members of the commission, city officials and a few residents Wednesday night in a public meeting.

Keenoy’s survey of Garth’s Addition included 241 properties, most of which were built in the early 20th century, and contained unique architecture and many different types of houses, craftsman-style, bungalows, Tudor-revival housing, ranch-style dwellings, American foursquare, colonial and Dutch revival among them.

Timothy Teddy, planning director for the city of Columbia, said the study cost approximately $15,000, and 60 percent of the cost was covered by a historic preservation grant through the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

City Planner Mitch Skov said Missouri offers tax credits for renovations and improvements on properties, but that residents must guarantee the renovation will equal a certain percentage of the property’s total cost. He said if residents want to establish a city-recognized Historic Preservation Overlay District to receive protection from changes to historic structures, at least 60 percent of the area’s taxpayers must approve the nomination for rezoning.

Neighborhoods can also apply for federal Historic District status, said Skov, but this requires 50 percent of membership and would only award recognition and not offer protection from change.

He also said that it is up property owners to take their own steps in pursuing the rezoning of their properties, and that they can view the survey results Friday when they are posted on the city’s Web site.

Brian Pape, chair of the Historic Preservation Commission, said residents should focus on protecting their property through rezoning and then expect tax credits and other benefits to be easier to obtain.

“The protections for individual homeowners come first, then the monetary benefits,” said Pape.

Keenoy estimated that less than 10 percent of the houses in the subdivision had lost their architectural integrity because of extensive renovations or modernization.

“Overall it is an eclectic, great collection of architecture,” she said. “I enjoyed being outside looking around, even on 20 degree days. It is a great neighborhood, there are little things on some of these houses you may never think about that make the neighborhood really unique.”

Keenoy showed slides of the houses’ unique features and historic architecture, pointing out homes with original storm doors and windows, fish-scale shingles, large chimneys and unique features on gables.

“The neighborhood is looking really great, and people are taking care of it,” Keenoy said.

“Admittedly, it is a daunting task,” Pape said. “This survey is a tool for citizens to use. When the city established the Historic Preservation Commission, the charge was to start making an inventory of the resources in Columbia. So we’re going to continue doing surveys, building up an inventory and moving forward.”

Quinn said she would like to see Garth’s Addition become a historic district so more people will notice the architectural value of the houses.

She said after hearing the results of the survey, she is interested in working with her neighbors in the rezoning process and hopes her property values will increase in the end.

“I think there are beautiful homes around here, and people are unaware of the value and high quality of the property,” Quinn said.