2009 Year in Review

Morrison Historic Preservation Ordinance Sets Direction

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The Mayor and City Council passed a Historic Preservation Ordinance to become effective following a sixty-day notification period. This Ordinance is the culmination of years of work by the Morrison Historic Preservation Commission and a recent study and review conducted by the Mayor's ad-hoc Downtown Historic Review Committee. This was followed by an in-depth assessment of historic preservation ordinances by City Staff, Preservation Commission members and City legal counsel. Preparation of Morrison's Ordinance was done in-house with the assistance of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and the Illinois Landmarks Preservation Association, with multiple reviews by the Historic Preservation Commission, the Planning and Zoning Board, and members of the City Council before bringing the document up for final approval at the regular Council meeting of March 23, 2009.

Morrison has a wealth of beautiful old buildings and streetscapes. As demonstrated in many other cities, the uniform presentation of a community' s historical character and its related sense of community life attracts visitors, retirees, young families, artisans and entrepreneurs looking for something different than cookie-cutter development. See Preservation Nation, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and Landmarks Illinois for more information on Illinois and national historic preservation efforts and outcomes.

The Historic Preservation Ordinance is designed to preserve the exterior historic character of many of the structures in the historic central business district and along the U.S. Route 30 corridor. A Morrison Historic Preservation District has been in existence for over a decade, but delineated an area subject only to voluntary compliance and having, only a small facade improvement grant fund as incentive. The District was expanded in 2007 to its present area under the same voluntary standards. The attached map is the present delineation of the District as defined in the new Ordinance.

The adoption of the Ordinance begins the effort to assist building owners to renovate and enhance property values within the district without exposing themselves to higher property assessments and real estate taxes. The adoption of the Ordinance does not regulate or pertain to the interior remodeling, repair, or redecorating of any structure within the District, or the regular, recurring, routine maintenance, repair or surface refreshment of a building's exterior.

One of the "tools" provided by adoption of the Ordinance allows properties located within the District to apply for a property tax assessment freeze. For instance, a deteriorated building has an appraised taxable value of S50,000; the owner of the building undertakes an approved exterior rehabilitation / restoration of the building, raising its taxable value five-fold to $250,000. The taxable value of the building remains frozen at the S50,000 level, because the Property Tax Assessment Program freezes the assessed valuation of the historic property for eight years at its level the year before rehabilitation began.

Passage of the Ordinance also paves the way for the City's successful application to become a "Certified Local Government," a designation which brings with it the opportunity for federally funded awards and grants for both public and private restorations. In addition, this Ordinance enhances the possibility' of a commercial building owner receiving significant tax credits for their restoration and rehabilitation expenses.

Tim D. Long
City Administrator

by  Editor, theCity1.com
April 10, 2009