RECENT COMMENTS
Public hearing set for Union Hill O&H
The Commission of Architectural Review last week sent out a letter (PDF) to all property owners in Union Hill as formal notice that the neighborhood is being considered for status as an Old and Historic District. A public hearing will be held on May 14 at 6PM at City Council Chambers in City Hall.
In addition, the updated response data from the latest neighborhood survey has been released. The bulk of the neighborhood (70%) did not respond. Of the property owners that did respond, 59% voted in favor of the designation, 32% voted in opposition, and 9% indicated that they had no opinion or sent back a blank card.
Of note, Better Housing Coalition, one of the largest property owners in the neighborhood, is said to be in favor of the O&H designation but is not included in the tally. Apparently the representative of BHC send in one card to vote for all of their properties, but the survey is not tallied like that.
From the released data:
In January of 2009 response postcards were mailed to the owners of all properties within the boundaries of the Union Hill Old and Historic District. The deadline for postcards was February 27, 2009, two weeks following a public information meeting.
The owners were contacted using information from the Assessor’s Office current as of 12-20-2009. This resulted in about 4 owners, representing about twenty properties, not receiving the original notification and post cards. Staff was contacted by these owners who wanted their response to be counted and confirmed that these were the owners of record. Staff accepted letters, e-mails, or post cards from these owners until March 16, 2009.
In addition on March 27, 2009, the Union Hill Historic District Initiative and Cedar Street Baptist Church contacted staff about responses that had been lost in the mail from the church. Cedar Street wished to have all of its properties included in the survey and staff has done so.
This revised tally of the survey reflects the input from Cedar Street Baptist Church. The data is this revised and final report is the survey data that will be used in the staff reports, with appropriate mapping of the data, for the CAR public hearing. If the project advances beyond the CAR public hearing stage it will be used in the staff reports to the Planning Commission and City Council as well.
The Union Hill Historic District Initiative is very pleased with the results of the survey, the outcome of which is very similar to the last successful historic district survey conducted in Church Hill North. In addition to BHC’s endorsement of the designation, it has been noted here and elsewhere that the Union Hill Civic Association endorsed it nearly unanimously.
The Union Hill Old and Historic District will be the best means of preserving the architectural integrity and historic housing stock of one of the City’s oldest and most diverse neighborhoods. We look forward to the public hearing before C.A.R. and the continuation of the process toward designation.
Thank you, John, for sharing this public information with our neighbors. This was the first I had seen the updated map.
how anyone can be pleased with a 30% voter response, and a less than 2/3 majority vote of those respondents for the initiative is beyond me.
but i guess that’s how it is when the few desire a mandate for the many.
Ben, every single property owner in Union Hill received the survey via First Class Mail. If property owners chose not to respond, or get involved in the process, that was their prerogative.
Voter turnout in local elections (when there isn’t a Presidential election on the ballot) is typically well below 30%. That’s just the way it is.
I think a 70% non-response rate is indicative of a neighborhood unprepared for such a restrictive overlay.
And this isn’t an election, or a democratic process. Cards in the mail are not ballots. The actual voting will be done by 7 council members, 6 of which don’t represent the neighborhood. Their decision will be based on the opinion of 18% of people.
Again, I don’t believe anyone should take a 70% lack of response as anything other than apathy towards the initiative. And said apathy certainly is non-indicative of a willingness to comply with such a restrictive overlay.
Not only that, but i remain convinced that most people, even some that mailed a card in the affirmative, don’t in fact realize the consequences and hardships that may arise for them because of the overlay. Look for yourself at some of the houses that turned in a positive response. There are at least a few that are decidedly non-historic in the work that has been performed on them, and some of it within the timeframe of this initiative.
John, thanks so very much for posting the study results!
I am curious, is the BHC’s endorsement of the designation relevant to the actual survey results? I understand the UHCA mentioning the BHC as allies –every bit of support helps make the case for historic designation. However, it makes me wonder, are the survey results subjective depending on who decides to change their vote (or vote) after the fact?
In Reply to Post #4,
You are making a huge assumption in why property owners chose not to respond to the surveys. Have you talked to these property owners? Have you surveyed them?
None of us are mind-readers, and none of us can say exactly why someone didn’t respond.
You claim folks are apathetic, uniformed or un-interested in gaining the benefits of a City O&H District.
It’s just as likely that these same property owners simply didn’t have a strong opinion on an O&HD and were willing to defer judgment to those who do have a strong opinion.
This we do know: property owners who felt strongly enough to respond to the surveys overwhelmingly supported a City O&H District zoning overlay for Union Hill.
Unless you can provide some clear evidence to the contrary, the survey results and the vote by the Union Hill Civic Assoc. represent the voice of our neighborhood.
There are no less than 14 City Old & Historic Districts in town, in neighborhoods as diverse as Jackson Ward, Monument Avenue and Spring Hill.
Why would you assume that your Union Hill neighbors are unaware of what City O&H Districts are about when there are thousands of Richmond property owners living in one of the 14 City O&HD’s?
Have you ever considered that the folks who didn’t respond just don’t have a problem with the concept of being in an O&HD, and they’re ok with it?
Re:post #4
Well said… I also believe many, if not most, of those in support will not be affected or do not understand the result of being in an O&H district ,which entails being subject to the opinions(not necessarily decisions derived from the guidelines) of CAR membership. Historic preservation can be a good thing, but not under the current format of the City of Richmond Old & Historic Overlay.
The UHHDI is only playing by the rules set forth in the process. They have a majority of those responding (for and against) even if those responding account for less than 1/3 of the total property owners in the area. If only 10 surveys were returned and 8 of those were in favor, that would be 80% approval.
I’ll ask these questions again. How many have attended a monthly CAR meeting?
How many will be directly effected by the designation? If so, please don’t simply say “yes” somehow explain yourself. Are you making a change to the exterior of your home? Or are you hoping to gain some sort of increased value or equity for your home by being in an O&H district? Or do you just want to have some degree of influence over what improvements your neighbor makes?
CAR voted unanimously in favor of recommending the U&H designation for Union Hill. Â Planning staff will next draft an ordinance for City Council and the matter will be taken up by the Planning Commission prior to reaching them.
i went to the meeting at city hall and spoke against empowering a bunch of nosy parkers to make decisions for me and my property.the city already does that . CAR IN YOUR LIFE MEANS THAT A GROUP WITH AN UNDERLYING AGENDA HIDING BEHIND A MASK OF COMMUNITY CONCERN WILL BE TELLING YOU WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR PROPERTY. purpoting to preserve the historical integrity of the neighborhood CAR has been unable to stop large moneyed interests from building unsuitable projects in the historical district and consequently seems to spend most of its time bullying the very neighbors it professes to protect. plenty of ouality work is being done in union hill without interference from a group whose presence is not welcome. claiming to represent the neighborhood a ms.odell spent her first minutes attacking the comments of the very neihbors she lives amongst. this is what you can be sure to get more of when local yokels with an inflated sense of their own importance become unwanted partners in your home improvement plans. call your councilperson and tell them no thanks to having CAR in your life. otherwise some wannabe expert is gonna be telling you how to handle your business or home as THEY see fit. CAR says they will rule well,but make no mistake they mean to rule.buddycorbett
Buddy, you are exactly right. There are many, many examples of, using your words, “quality work” in Union Hill. And all of the folks who spoke at last night’s CAR hearing are associated with such quality work.
If all the current and future property owners were as resposible as those who were in attendance last night, we wouldn’t be seeking City Old & Historic District status for Union Hill.
This effort is for the remaining historic stuctures that have not enjoyed “quality work” and are at risk of being torn down, and the future new construction on our many empty lots.
The potential for irresponsible infill on the vacant lots throughout Union Hill is very real. Some of it has already happened.
If all our new infill was as good as what Better Housing Coalition builds, or a handful of other responsible builders, we wouldn’t be going through all this work.
There are plenty of examples of innapropriate new construction in Church Hill North (prior to designation) and Union Hill, as well. We simply want to influence the new construction so that it is in harmony with neighborhood, not creating a cookie cutter disneyland, but simply encouraging respect for exising historic structures.
Who is “ben” referring to when he says seven members of council? Do you mean City Council? Nine members.last time I checked. Since the entie CAR process is under review by Council, maybe this application ought to be held until that question is answered.
as i found out to my chagrin CAR is voting on whether or not CAR should be allowed to hold sway in union hill. a bunch of foxes voting on whether or not they should be allowed free run of the henhouse. this process is about as transparent as the free elections in iraq.if CAR is so concerned about the historic integrity of the neighborhood then everyone on the board with a financial interest in the direction of the neighborhood should step down and allow unbiased interpretation of these socalled guidelines by an unbiased group to be hired or appointed on the basis of their knowledge . otherwise you run the risk of appearing to be what you are,a bunch of people who want to tell your neighbors what to do with their own property. at this point arguing with self appointed neighborhood spokespeople is like smacking a mouthy punk and then standing in front of their daddy the judge expecting any justice. howzabout we in opposition get a chance to speak in front of an IMPARTIAL judge about our concerns. let a little sunshine in this shady little circle jerk and see what people really think about this closet racist bullshit. 70% of the neighborhood did not respond. whats the hurry? is CAR SO DESPERATE to ram this through that a huge majority can be ignored?lets take sometime to make sure that the people who have lived here for their entire lives understand exactly what they are about to subject themselves to. otherwise this certainly has an appearance of being a power grab by a bunch of real estate mavens trying to improve their bottom line by squeezing out people who have lived here for generations. im just saying whats the hurry? is your ARM about to reset? BUDDYCORBETT
Buddy, This entire process has been public and transparent, and you have simply chosen to call it not so because you disagree.
I’ll try to address your concerns in order:
1. CAR isn’t pushing this through at their own behest. They were asked to consider the designation by a group of residents of Union Hill.
2. As far as I know, no CAR member owns property in Union Hill. Thus, none of them have a financial stake in the neighborhood.
3. In April of 2007, a group of Union Hill residents got together at Cedar Street Baptist Church with a member of City Staff to learn more about the designation process. This meeting was publicized on CHPN and notices were emailed to every one on UHCA/FOJP mailing list (most of whom are not members of either group, but have asked to have their email address added so they can keep abreast of neighborhood news.)
4. In June of 2007, many of the neighbors who attended the meeting at Cedar St. formed the Union Hill Historic District Study Group, and every meeting we had for the following year was publicized on CHPN and sent to the same email list cited above.
5. After a year of meetings, research and work with the VCU School of Urban Planning (Graduate course in Historic Preservation) the citizen study group decided to pursue the designation process and formed the Union Hill Historic District Initiative.
6. In June of 2008, the Union Hill Historic District Initiative raised the funds (about $850.00) to print and mail first class an informational flyer that invited everyone to a public information meeting. This mailing went (via first class us mail) to every property owner’s address of record in Union Hill. That meeting at EDI was held in late June of 2007 and also publicized on CHPN.
The mailing list above was provided by the city of Richmond, and is the same list used to mail Real Estate Property Tax assessments.
The meeting was hosted by neighbors, with City Staff in attendance. It was open to the public and there was a public Q&A period.
7. In the late summer/early fall of 2008, volunteer citizens went door to door in our neighborhood asking folks how they felt about UH becoming a City O&H.
Of the folks we canvassed, many already thought UH was a City O&H…and 85% of the folks canvassed were in favor of designation.
8. In the Fall of 2008, the UHHDI wrote a letter to the CAR with letters of support from ACORN and HRF, asking that the CAR consider Union Hill for City O&H Status.
9. One of the steps in the city’s designation process is a hearing hosted by CAR members and City Staff held in the neighborhood. The citizen-based, all volunteer UHHDI had to again raise funds to send a mailing and survey to every property owner (this cost about $1000.00 and used the city’s mailing list for tax assessments and was sent via first class.)
The meeting was held at EDI in February of 2009, and the surveys were due by the end of that month.
10. It’s been a little over 2 years since members of this community started working for City Old and Historic District designation. And just this week, CAR decided to approve our request and allow the matter to go before the Planning Commission.
There is no rush here, just simple dogged process and procedure. And we’ve been at it for over 2 years already.
11. For those in attendance at the CAR hearing this week, we heard Tyler Potterfield cite that CHNorth’s “non-response rate” was 66% with a smaller number of properties than Union Hill. Our “non-response rate” as 70% and we have almost 150 more properties than CHNorth.
Voter participation in local elections never garners anything near a 30% response rate. So, actually, a 29 or 30% response rate is outstanding for Union Hill.
12. Lastly, every single property owner in Union Hill received an invitation to last week’s hearing. What could be more transparent than that?
Buddy, there is an urgent concern about our multitude of vacant lots and existing fragile historic structures in Union Hill. That is what gives us a sense of dedication and commitment to this effort of City Old and Historic District Status for Union Hill.
There are now 14 City Old & Historic Districts in Richmond, and the thousands of home owners in those neighborhoods enjoy the benefits of this zoning overlay: a check on inappropriate new construction and protection of existing structures.
Yes, a small, vocal minority has been very, very busy. The list above cites the work of “a group of UH residents”, “the UH Historic District Study Group”, “the Union Hill District Initiative”, and “Volunteer Citizens” It almost (almost!) seems like there has been a ground swell of neighborhood support for the initiative.
Are the records of the Study Group and the UHDI available for public inspection?
April, as you know, I live three blocks from you. You also have my phone number and email address. Any document the UHHDI has produced is open to inspection, not because we are required to make them so, but because this has been an open process from the beginning and will continue to be until and after designation. Feel free to contact me using any of the methods you have used before.
elaine,i disagree because while the process has been public it has been anything but transparent to us hoipolloi(common folk).nobody has said CAR itself is the driving force behind the push to bring its odious bureaucratese to union hill. no it took a group of our fellow neighbors to do that. but while we are discussing your well spoken response lets examine your disingenuous assertion that no CAR member lives in church…. i mean union hill.i mean union hill is part of church hill right?several past and present members own property in our neighborhood and all your truthparsing wont change that fact. i see the real estate industry is well represented….. hey dont those guys work on commission? i can see how that might look to some as a conflict.hey maybe we could try a little harder to talk to the 70% and not congratulate ourselves that, after all everybody that realllly matters responded and after all its only maybe gonna affect anybody who really oughta do it the way I see fit anyway. slow down biff. did you ask to speak about the proposal in front of other local civic groups? local area churches? no? finally, i am sorry you guys elected to pay 1000 dollars of your hardearned cash to pay for your little mailer but maybe you should have elected to use a different mode of communicatin. peopl are daily subjected to a barrage of junk mail. is it any wonder you got a crappy response? saying its a better respone rate than CHN is damning with faint praise. well unionhillrva i thank you for the opportunity to respond to your response and i will see you around our everchanging neighborhood. buddycorbett
Buddy,
Obviously, you can say what you want about any assertion I might make, but I still don’t know of any any CAR members who own property/live in Union Hill.
And since there are already 14 City Old and Historic Districts in Richmond, which include thousands of properties, there is a pretty good chance a CAR member (or 2 or 3) does live in a O&H district somewhere in the city.
Do you know who on CAR lives in Church Hill? I don’t, and honestly, I don’t care because it’s not relevant.
As for realtors, there is one realtor on the CAR, and actually, there is a pretty good reason for that. Realtors are often the first person to convey what a City O&H is to a home buyer considering a purchase in an O&H.
As I understand it, the “realtor” postition on CAR is desigated with the thinking that that person will work with their own Realtor trade association(s) to keep awareness current of where the a City O&H districts are and their respective guidelines for property owners.
The thinking is that homebuyers should be informed of the benefits and guidelines of a City O&H before they buy a home in one. So, that’s why a realtor serves on CAR.
It’s interesting how you suddenly seem so concerned about other civic associations & churches (I never knew you were so civic-minded, Buddy.) Well, yes, Ann Wortham & I walked over to a Saturday morning New Visions Civic League meeting in the summer of 2007. We made a presentation to the ladies and gent, John Murden who were there. Mary Thompson and the members were particularly interested in our efforts because, hush now, Fairmount might be next.
Also, Cedar Street Baptist Church is onboard with the O&H for Union Hill. Come to a UHCA meeting sometime, and you’ll get to know the pastor and deacon, there, too.
We have not made a presentation to the membership at large of the CHA, tho we did send a letter to the CHA Board of Directors and received their support.
As for using the US Mail for the most vital communications, the City Procedures require us to do so. We don’t have a choice there.
And actually, the industry-wide typical response rate for direct mail is 1%. So our response rate of 29-30% is extrordinarily good.
The UHHDI does have an online web page that serves as another disemination site for documents folks might want to download It’s http://unionhillrichmondva.blogspot.com
Oh, and UH has not surpassed the survey response rate of CHN. As of last week, the CHN non-response rate on the surveys was 66%, and UH is 70%. Is 4% really that big a deal? I don’t think so.
Any other questions, Buddy?
hey elaine you dont know anything about me because i dont like you so i dont talk to you. what you think about me personally is of no concern because i am only involving myself because your fake concern for anything but your own net worth is affecting my ability to mind my own business. so if you will quit making snarky comments about whether i really even own anything in this neighborhood i will try not to call you out on your patronizing racist bullshit. any more questions?buddycorbett
i do have one question elaine. are you also unionhillrva and if so why do you feel the need to misrepresent yourself? why would you defend an obviously racist post on another thread with the lameass assertion that the culprit isnt mocking people under the cover of his cowardly anonymonity but is instead using the voice of an “old prospector”. your old richmond upbringing is showing elaine and it isnt pretty.and before you accuse me of being a crpetbagger please know that i am so homegrown you could roll me up and smoke me.any more questions elaine? hmmm?buddycorbett
my wife told me if i indulged myself in personal invective i would be sorry later and she was correct. i apologize for allowing myself to get sidetracked by personal animus when there is still the looming problem of putting CAR in charge of peoples properties and futures. if 80 year old mrs. jones wants to leave her home to her favorite nephew will he fall under CAR guidelines when he wants to fix up his new home? if he cant afford to jump thru theCAR hoops will he sell the house and leave the neighborhood he grew up in? these are questions some of the neighbors are asking. can anyone answer them without an axe to grind?if a member of CAR owns property in the neighborhood is this a conflict of interest? if a member of CAR is a real estate agent who has sold property in the neighborhood is this a conflict of interest? these are questions that should be answered. again i apologize for personal attacks. i know better than to allow myself the self indulgence with the future direction of union hill at stake.buddycorbett
Post#20,
Mrs. Jones’ nephew (new owner) would be held to the same building code the entire city of Richmond complies with for any major renovations.
Keep in mind that Mrs. Jones’ house would be “grandfathered” for it’s current exterior building materials, design features and paint colors, should her neighborhood become a City Old & Historic District.
If the terms “fix up” means repair or replace existing siding (be it vinyl, asphalt shingles, wood clapboards, hardi-plank or masonite) then the nephew could repair and replace with like materials and not even have to contact the City Staff in Historic Preservation or CAR.
If the nephew wants to repair the porch, and use the same materials (upgrading them with new in-kind materials,) he can do that without contacting the CAR staff in city hall.
The only time a Certificate of Appropriateness would be required is if he wants to make a significant change to the structure (see the Richmond Old and Historic Districts Handbook and Design Review Guidelines for the complete list, download information below.)
Many things folks might want to change about the exterior of their home can be ok’d by the Staff in City Hall, Historic Preservation Office, without waiting for the monthly CAR hearing. There are over 60 colors in the paint pallet, and that is available in the city historic preservation office. It also matches the “Duron Preservation Pallet” which you can pickup at Duron paint stores.
Paint colors, porch railings, decks and fences fall into this category of “staff approved” changes. There are some other items staff can approve, too.
To learn more about the Guidelines City Old and Historic Districts, go to this page on the City’s website http://www.ci.richmond.va.us/departments/communitydev/car.aspx and scroll down to the section titled: Additional Information.
Click on the link that says: “Richmond Old and Historic Districts Handbook and Design Review Guidelines” and you’ll download the PDF file.
Lastly, should the elderly Mrs. Jones wish to “fix up” her house while she’s still living in it, she could be eligible for low-cost/no cost repairs via Richmond Elder Homes, which utilizes Federal Community Development Block Grant funds to repair homes in urban neighborhoods.
For many of the supporters of the proposed Union Hill Historic District, the driving force for their advocacy is the plethora of vacant lots in our neighborhood, and the risk of inappropriate new structures being built on them.
90% of the blocks in Union Hill have at least one vacant lot. Most of these blocks have more than one vacant lot.
Supporters of the proposed O&H district have seen several examples of out-of-place suburban-style homes that were built in Church Hill North prior to it becoming a City O&H. And that was one of the driving forces behind the CHN O&H effort, too. We’ve even had a few new structures in Union Hill get built (before the real estate bust) that neighbors would have liked to see designed differently.
Supporters of the O&H are not advocating a cookie-cutter, disney-esque neighborhood for new infil.
Union Hill is already on the National Register of Historic Places (aka a Federal and State Historic District. Restorations of historic structures can qualify for Federal & State Tax Credits
We are advocating the same thing the National Park Service advocates for new construction in historic districts: modern architecture that respects the existing mass and scale, and building materials of the existing historic housing stock which surrounds it.
Becoming a City Old and Historic District would allow citizens to have input on proposed new-house construction, prior to it being ruled on by CAR.
Jackson Ward, Shockoe Bottom, Shockoe Valley, Spring Hill, The Boulevard and 9 other Richmond communities enjoy the benefits of City Old and Historic District Status.
Jackson Ward, in addition to Church Hill North, is our closest neighbor in terms of vacant lot risk. The venerable Eggelston Hotel collapsed a month ago, and another vacant lot was added to the inventory surrounding what is one of the nations’ most important working-class, African American heritage sites. It, too, is a City Old & Historic District, and Union Hill deserves the same protection and respect as Jackson Ward.
UnionHill RVA – thanks for mentioning Richmond Elder Homes in your last paragraph. Across the street from my place is a house that was renovated through that program. The entire home was resided and the roof repaired/replaced as needed last summer. It took a while to happen but it did.