Demand a Vote!

The proposed Design Guidelines severely restrict what you can do with your property. That includes restoration, rehabilitation, additions, exterior alterations, new construction, relocation and even the demolition of what's known as "contributing structures," which are essentially the buildings that are preserved as playing a key role in maintaining the historic character of the district.

We think you should have a vote in them. To that end, we have created an online petition. We will take your affirmation by signature about wanting a vote, and any comments, to City Council.

HISTORY

Back in 2010-11, the City of Houston's Historic Preservation Ordinance went into place, designating 19 different historic districts throughout the city. Now there are 22 districts. 5 of these historic districts are actually in the Heights: Houston Heights East, West, South, Norhill, and Woodland Heights, not including nearby Freeland and Germantown.

The goal is to have a reference for what specifically constitutes appropriate construction or alteration within the districts.

Well, after over a year and a half of working with the Heights community, the City of Houston's drafted design guidelines for Houston Heights Historic Districts (East, West, and South) are now available.

These guidelines will mean major changes for the Heights! In short, they will tighten additions, improvements, and new construction.

I encourage you to check out this post on our Rediscovering Houston blog for a detailed breakdown of the significance of the guidelines.

You should have gotten to review the guidelines to decide if you wanted these restrictions BEFORE you were asked to sign up for historic district. Since you were not given that opportunity, we hope Council will allow you to decide now that the restrictions are going to have a big impact on what you can do with your property.

Since your property is affected by the Guidelines, we think you should get a vote!