Advocate for Aberdeen’s Historic Commercial Buildings
Change: the act of making something different; to alter or modify.
Change is all around us, we see it everyday on our drive to work, we read about it in the news and we hear about it in our local government meetings. Change is a permanent part of our lives, and yet we often struggle with change. Change can often be a force for good, it can improve our lives, our health and our happiness. But change that come too fast, or without much thought for the future, can sometimes result in more negative outcomes.
Historic preservation, while often framed as a way to manage change in our communities, also experiences change. On April 22, 2024, at an Aberdeen Board of Commissioners meeting, what was supposed to be a straightforward request to allow the Aberdeen Historic Preservation Commission to apply for a grant to update the National Register District, turned into a moment of change - and it came hard and fast. The Aberdeen HPC was suddenly, and without warning, criticized of standing in the way of development within the commercial historic district and making it more difficult for rehabilitation projects to be completed.
Historic Commercial buildings on the south side of W Main Street in Aberdeen’s Historic District
This month, the town released a proposed amendment to the ordinance that revokes review of projects in commercial buildings in the historic district from the HPC and places it in the hands of the Aberdeen Planning Board. The HPC would continue to review projects in non-commercial buildings located in the historic district of Aberdeen. Any appeal would go directly to the Board of Commissioners for their review.
We commend collaboration between all local government boards when it comes to preservation, and members of Preservation Commissions bring a lot of knowledge to that partnership. HPC volunteers meet educational and professional requirements that are established by the State Historic Preservation Office and National Park Service in historic architecture and building technology. The body of the Aberdeen HPC is made up of a structural engineer, architectural historian, a designer, as well as other valuable members of the Aberdeen community. They attend training established by the State Historic Preservation Office on a regular basis and utilize standards established and approved by the same office for their reviews and recommendations. The knowledge this group brings to the review of Certificates of Appropriateness is key to ensuring that development in a historic downtown commercial district honors the heritage and architecture of a community. In comparison, Planning Boards are not required to meet these training requirements and are not familiar with historic architecture or building technology. What basis does a Planning Board use for the review of projects? What knowledge base (beyond an interest in historic buildings) does the Planning board have as it relates to this work?
What has The PPG done?
The PPG has been monitoring the situation as it has moved through the process and has reached out to several state agencies to discuss the proposed changes to the ordinances. We have reached out to Aberdeen town leadership with a request that they reach out to both North Carolina Main Street and the State Historic Preservation Office for support and review of the plans. We have also offered to host educational forums on the significance of the HPC. As of this writing, we have not received any interest from the town in our offers.
What Can You Do?
The Pines Preservation Guild urges its members to reach out to the Town of Aberdeen Planning Department and the Board of Commissioners to voice concerns regarding sudden changes.
Questions to ask include:
How will this change impact Aberdeen’s Main Street Accreditation through the North Carolina Main Street program?
Why wasn’t helpful input requested from the State Historic Preservation Office?
What training will the Planning Board have to prepare them for the review of historic structures?
We also ask that you consider attending the public meeting scheduled for June 24th at 6pm to voice concerns and to ask questions.
We all know that change is inevitable, we see and feel it every single day, but our historic buildings deserve a more thoughtful and respectful approach to change. We hope you, our supporters, will help us slow this change so that we can all benefit from a better, more productive, conversation about the importance of protecting Historic Downtown Aberdeen while bringing preservation and economic development together to support the change we want to see.
Aberdeen town contact information for your letters:
Mayor Robbie Farrell: rfarrell@townofaberdeen.net
Mayor Pro Tem Bryan Bowles: bbowles@townofaberdeen.net
Commissioner Tim Helms: thelms@townofaberdeen.net
Commissioner Teressa Beavers: tbeavers@townofaberdeen.net
Commissioner Wilma Laney: wlaney@townofaberdeen.net
Commissioner Elease Goodwin: elease@oandpcares.com
Town Manager Paul Sabiston: psabiston@townofaberdeen.net
Please feel free to reach out to us at hello@pinespreservation.org with any questions or to find out more.
