The Buena Vista Historic District passed the Newport Planning and Zoning Commission, leaving one more stop before finalization.
A Newport Planning and Zoning Commission meeting was held to consider the overlay zone for Buena Vista, not the merits related to adopting the historic district, including its guidelines. The Newport Historic Preservation Commission approved the guidelines and historic designation on Feb. 28.
Buena Vista consists of the areas between the north end of West 8th Street, the south part of West 12th Street, the west ends of Brighton and Lowell Streets, and the east side of Putnam and York Streets.
There are roughly 1,100 properties in the proposed district.
“It has long been the goal of the city to continue its preservation program and to expand that into the west side neighborhoods,” Newport Planning and Building Director Brian Steffen said. “As evident with the action tonight and previous actions with York Street (historic district.)”
Steffen said the application and consideration are based on identifying the area as having historical, architectural, natural or cultural significance suitable for preservation. He said it is also an area in an established corridor with character related to its location suitable for conservation.
York Street Historic District resident Ed Davis addressed the commission to support the adoption of the historic district.
“I’m a long-time resident of Newport and the west side of Newport,” Davis said. “I’m also a resident of the newest local historic district that we have in our city. I would like to encourage you to vote for this overlay. It has been a very positive thing that we have done here in Newport with the York Street District.”
The neighborhood is already a National Historic District but needs local designation for complete protection. The local designation allows the city to guide homeowners in preservation efforts, prevent exterior changes outside the city’s guidelines and halt unnecessary demolitions that may threaten the neighborhood’s structural integrity.
Executive Director of Cincinnati Preservation Association Beth Johnson spoke at the meeting in favor of creating the district. The Cincinnati Preservation Association is a Greater Cincinnati nonprofit that focuses on educational advocacy about historical preservation.
Johnson said since Buena Vista is already a national historic district, that goes to show its significance. Further, she said historic preservation is important to Newport’s identity.
“Obviously, as the planning commission, your prevue is to make sure anytime we have zoning changes that, it is in keeping with the adopted land use plan and comprehensive plan,” Johnson said. “Within the Newport comprehensive plan over and over and over historic preservation is mentioned. Historic resources are something that defines what Newport is. Specifically, it states that one of the objectives and strategies is to celebrate cultural and historical resources. Specifically, to restore and preserve when possible.”
Johnson also said the district would preserve housing itself.
“Within these (historic districts), especially the smaller housing that Buena Vista has, it is naturally occurring affordable housing that if it were demolished and tried to be rebuilt, it couldn’t be rebuilt affordably,” she said. “Most likely the purchase price or rent would be much more expensive than it is today.”
The Newport City Commission passed an ordinance last year to bring the planning and zoning commission into the process, creating an overlay onto the city’s zoning maps and creating the recorded land use restriction with the county.
“The whole point of all of this is to solidify the historic districts into the zoning process and land use restrictions and to put them onto the zoning maps,” Steffen said. “It makes it a little bit easier for people to find coming in from out of the area, buying a house here. We do get comments a lot, ‘I didn’t know I was in a historic district.’”
The item will now go before the Newport City Commission for two readings and a vote. Newport Assistant City Administrator John Hayden said it will appear in front of the commission at its meeting on March 25 for the first reading.
