Agenda - 04-23-2013 - 5a - Laserfiche WebLink

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4 1 Pete Sandbeck said this item is to conduct a joint public hearing between the Board of 2 Commissioners and the HPC to receive public comment on the application and proposed 3 ordinance to designate the Captain John S. Pope Farm as an Orange County Local Historic 4 Landmark. He said this is part of the statutory process and the owner of the property is eager 5 to obtain this designation. He said this application has been reviewed by the HPC and 6 approved and by the state cultural office and approved. 7 8 The background on this item is shown below: 9 10 In 1991, Orange County adopted the "Ordinance Creating the Historic Preservation 11 Commission (HPC) of Orange County", also referred to as the "Historic Preservation 12 Ordinance". A few years later, in 1997, the County adopted a voluntary program to designate 13 properties of local historic and architectural significance called the Local Landmark Program. 14 One of the HPC's duties is to recommend properties for local landmark designation. Properties 15 may be designated as individual landmarks or as part of historic districts. Properties must meet 16 a higher standard of historic and/or architectural significance to be designated as an 17 individual landmark. The higher standard is appropriate since landmark property owners are 18 eligible for a fifty percent (50%) property tax deferral as long as the site continues to retain its 19 historic character, as provided by North Carolina General Statutes under 160A-400.1-400.14. 20 21 The historic landmark designation process, outlined in Article 3 of the County's Historic 22 Preservation Ordinance, involves several steps culminating with the adoption of an ordinance 23 for each individual landmark site or historic district. At its January 23, 2013 meeting, the HPC 24 accepted a Part 2 application from Mr. Robert Pope to consider his property, the Captain John 25 S. Pope Farm, for designation as an Orange County Local Historic Landmark, thus initiating the 26 application process (Attachments 1 and 2). Mr. Pope's application materials were submitted to 27 the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) for review and comment as required by the 28 Historic Preservation Ordinance. The HPC received a favorable response from the SHPO staff 29 (Attachment 3). 30 31 The HPC concurred with the SHPO's evaluation that the Captain John S. Pope 32 Farm was worthy of consideration for local landmark designation (Attachment 4). The HPC 33 voted unanimously to request a joint public hearing with the BOCC, as required by Section 3.7 34 of the Historic Preservation Ordinance (Attachment 5). In addition to the landmark designation 35 process described above, members of the HPC endorsed a proposed National Register 36 Nomination for the Captain John S. Pope Farm and voted unanimously to support this 37 nomination at the January 23, 2013 regular meeting. The BOCC likewise endorsed the 38 proposed National Register nomination for this property at the regular BOCC meeting on 39 January 24, 2013. The Captain John S. Pope Farm was subsequently approved for final 40 nomination to the National Register of Historic Places by the State National Register Advisory 41 Committee and the State Historic Preservation Officer on February 14, 2013. 42 43 The Pope Farm is one of the best-preserved historic agricultural complexes still surviving in 44 northern Orange County, exemplifying a mid-sized tobacco farm of the type that prospered here 45 from the late 19th century until the 1960s. The farm complex consists of the original two-story 46 farmhouse, built 1870-74 for Captain John S. Pope, and twenty outbuildings dating from the 47 1870s to the 1960s. The farm has remained in continuous operation by the Pope family and 48 retains the original property acreage as well as the historic pattern of fields and forests. 49 50 This is a routine public hearing required by state enabling legislation and the County's