-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA1 My new favorite Philadelphia phrase: "councilmanic prerogative"
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/4391641.htm Posted on Tue, Oct. 29, 2002 Council bill holds group's historical hopes in balance By Linda K. Harris Inquirer Staff Writer Advocates of historic preservation in Philadelphia are rallying to oppose a City Council bill they say would undercut their efforts and give developers greater say in what is deemed worth saving. The bill, introduced by City Councilwoman Jannie L. Blackwell, would give City Council, rather than the Philadelphia Historical Commission, the final word in deciding which neighborhoods are granted a historical designation. Blackwell's motivation, according to her staff, is to make the designation process more democratic. But preservationists insist the process already includes all community residents. "It will ultimately profit the developers at the expense of our rich historical treasures that we may lose," said Bernice T. Hamel, who led the effort to make Society Hill a historic district in 1999. "We have this unique city, and if everybody is going for the bottom line, we're going to lose it." Philadelphia has created eight historic districts in an attempt to preserve the texture and fabric of one of America's oldest cities. The districts, designated by the Philadelphia Historical Commission after a lengthy review, put additional burdens on homeowners. They are required to maintain the historical integrity of their property. Renovations must be approved by the commission. At the center of the current conflict is the proposed designation of the Spruce Hill neighborhood in West Philadelphia. Sponsored by the Spruce Hill Community Association and the University City Historical Society, the proposed historic district's application has been in the works for 15 years. The designation has been opposed, in part, by developers and community activists opposed to gentrification of the area. Alan Krigman, who owns 18 apartment buildings in the proposed Spruce Hill district, is one of the few opposition members who speak openly about their side of the fight. Krigman said he was against the current process because it was not, in his mind, democratic enough. "They're all predisposed to favor historic designation," he said of the commission members. "There's nothing in the way that it's set up that provides guidelines on how they have to weigh [neighborhood] input at the hearings." Blackwell's bill was introduced last month and is now awaiting action in the rules committee. Under the legislation, Council would decide which neighborhoods would be designated historical, based on recommendations by the Historical Commission. Preservationists fear that developers, armed with large campaign contributions, could wield greater influence with Council members than the more independent commission. Blackwell, whose mother recently died, has been unavailable for comment. Blackwell represents Spruce Hill. "We asked her to table it or pull it," said Kate Stover, secretary of the Spruce Hill Community Association. "We felt that it was changing the rules halfway through the process if the way the nominations were going to be voted on changed." David B. Brownlee, a former commission member and current chairman of the art history department at the University of Pennsylvania, said he was concerned that Council would not vote independently as a body but would defer to the Council member who represented the affected district. That courtesy is deeply entrenched in Philadelphia and is referred to as "councilmanic prerogative." But he had other reasons, too. "City Council doesn't vote to say whether your neighborhood should be all residential or all commercial," he said. "That's determined in an expert review and hearing process. "It would be the same thing if someone said all zoning [board] decisions should be reviewed by City Council. There are certain matters of administrative law that can be handled appropriately by a level lower than City Council." To become a historic district, a neighborhood must make an inventory of all the properties within its boundaries. Properties are described and classified as to their historical contribution to the district. The application is presented to the commission, which then studies the significance of the neighborhood and contacts every property owner. It holds public meetings to discuss the issue and to answer questions. In the past, there has been no serious opposition when a neighborhood has sought such a designation. Laura M. Spina, a commission staffer, said that some neighborhoods distributed postcards, addressed to the commission, to property owners so they could express whether they favored the district. Such a postcard survey was done in Girard Estate, a South Philadelphia neighborhood of 480 properties designated historical in 1999. Almost 200 property owners replied - 169 in favor, 10 against, and three undecided, Spina said. "The Philadelphia Historical Commission has done a very professional job," Hamel, who worked to make Society Hill a historic district, said. "They do a very thorough assessment of any community that wishes to become an historical district. That system has worked. "If a developer wants to make some changes, he doesn't want to be bothered going through the city bureaucracy. It makes the process easier for them if they go directly to City Council rather than they go through this process." The commission is made up of 14 members appointed by the mayor. By law, City Council must be represented on the commission, which also has representatives from the city Departments of Commerce, Licenses and Inspection, Public Property, and Housing, and the City Planning Commission. The other eight members must include a historian, an architectural historian, a real estate developer, a representative of a community-development corporation, and a community organization. Michael Sklaroff, the new chairman of the Historical Commission, said the group would debate the issue on Nov. 8. The public meeting is to be held at 9 a.m. in the City Council Caucus Room on the fourth floor of City Hall. Thanks, John Ellingsworth Project Leader Virtual Curriculum PGP Public Keyring: http://ellingsworth.org/pubring.pkr -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: PGPfreeware 6.5.8 for non-commercial use <http://www.pgp.com> iQA/AwUBPb6QKwbexkNIm1OFEQIr5wCeLG7QfD4XAiakVJCmppfXU3ILkAgAoPb1 61zt/W8DZYYr3NygXlpjIoxj =J1ow -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
