Athens City Council members will be discussing an ordinance declaring the buildings ravaged by the West Union Street fires historical.
Athens City Council members will soon contribute to the outpour of assistance for the West Union Street property owners affected by last year’s fire.
At Monday night’s council meeting, Councilwoman Chris Fahl, D-4th Ward, will introduce an ordinance to adopt the fire-affected buildings as a historical district, which would allow building owners to apply for historic property tax credits.
“The idea is by supporting the property owners in this way, nothing will be pulled down,” Fahl said.
The credits would offer a 25 percent match for reconstruction, City Planner Paul Logue said.
At last week’s council meeting, officials discussed what they could do to assist in the area’s reconstruction efforts.
Logue proposed the buildings’ inclusion into a historic district; the designation would qualify West Union Street building owners for historic property tax credits as well.
“One of the best potential ways to assist those property owners … is to apply for historic property tax credits,” Logue said.
To qualify for a historical designation, a building has to be a minimum of 50 years old.
Previously, when city officials applied Athens buildings for historical designations, most of the buildings in the West Union Street area were not yet eligible or did not apply.
Logue said the buildings that housed Uptown Dog T-Shirts, 10 W. Union St., and Jack Neal Floral, 12 W. Union St., qualified at the time of the previous application and are already on the federal registry of historical buildings.
The building that housed Jack Neal Floral was built in 1898, according to the Athens Historical Society’s records.
Record also show the buildings that house Jackie O’s Brewpub and The Union Bar & Grill were built in 1900, but do not currently have a historical designation.
The home of Kismet was constructed in 1966, and the home of Campus Sundry was constructed in 1905.
Though most of those buildings were lost to the ravages of the fire, Logue said there is hope for them as far as a historical designation goes. As long as the facades are still intact, he said, they qualify.
To receive a designation, the buildings first have to be recognized by the city.
“One of the things we can do as city council is support the designation of this area,” Fahl said.
Council members will also discuss improvements to the East Washington Street parking garage. Improvements will include structural repairs to the deteriorating garage as well as the replacement of a deteriorating elevator.
The project is estimated to cost around $2 million.
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