Historic District Goals

  1. Develop a historic preservation plan that aims to extend the full range of tools and techniques of historic preservation policy to all of Chapel Hill, including neighborhoods such as Northside that have been denied these benefits in the past.2
  2. Professionally staff and administer the historic preservation program in Chapel Hill.
  • Amend the LUMO so that the historic preservation provisions are clear, accessible and understandable to the public and comply with state and federal law and best professional practices.
  • Provide professional, experienced staff to assist the Historic District Commission in its quasi-judicial responsibilities, including adequate review and assistance to applicants so that all information required for a decision is provided to the HDC members, researched and properly completed staff reports that provide evidence needed for a proper decision by the HDC and monitoring of projects for compliance before and after HDC decisions.
  • Document and continually update surveys of the architecture, landscape and community design history of Chapel Hill and make these resources available to a wide audience.
  • Ensure that the other land use plans and zoning are compatible and complementary to the historic preservation plans within designated districts – to minimize property owner confusion and frustration and to emphasize the benefits of preserving community character.
  • Fully comply with the requirements of, and take advantage of, the many benefits of Chapel Hill’s designation as a Certified Local Government under the National Park Service partnership program. https://www.nps.gov/clg/

3. Provide the resources to engage, involve and educate the public with respect to the historic character and development of Chapel Hill and the University.

4.  Work closely with the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitor’s Bureau to tell a more  full, complex, authentic history of this unique community and university in the most creative and effective ways.

5.  Return Chapel Hill to its once revered position as a model for historic preservation in North Carolina and nationally.