Georgetown’s Historic and Architectural Review Commission, or HARC, will see several policy changes, but its authority over alterations to historic properties in the city is likely to remain intact. The seven-member Georgetown City Council voted unanimously March 26 to approve an initial reading of an ordinance that amends parts the city’s unified development code related to HARC’s purpose and function. A final version of the ordinance will include recommendations approved March 19 by the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission. A second vote, expected April 9, is needed before anything is official. But the council’s united front could resolve some of the tension that has flared over the past six months among city leaders and residents, particularly those who live in Georgetown’s Downtown and Old Town districts. The tension followed a proposal by Council Member Kevin Pitts in August 2018 to amend HARC’s bylaws and remove the commission’s ability to grant certificates of appropriateness for alterations to historic structures. Since the proposal was introduced, council members and city staff have held multiple workshops and public-outreach events to consider policy changes that pertain to an array of historic property owners in Georgetown. Along with keeping HARC’s authority on final decisions for certificates of appropriateness, the Planning and Zoning Commission recommended having HARC continue reviewing certificates for historic buildings designed as either high priority or medium priority in Georgetown’s most recent historic resource survey, which was adopted by council members in August 2017 and included 1,677 properties. The recommendations would have the city’s historic preservation officer review certificates seeking to alter historic buildings designated as low priority, although HARC would continue to review demolition requests of low-priority buildings located inside Georgetown’s historic districts. Those requests would also require public notifications and reviews. Additional recommendations that will be part of City Council’s final ordinance include:

• Single-family and two-family residences in historic districts will no longer be exempt from certificate of appropriateness reviews, and owners of those properties will need certificates approved by HARC in order to make alterations.
• Owners of low- and medium-priority buildings can use “in-kind” materials when making alterations to preserve historic character.
• A 60-day holding period will continue on demolition requests for high- and medium-priority historic buildings located outside of Georgetown’s historic districts, with high-priority demolitions reviewed by HARC and medium-priority requests reviewed by the city’s historic preservation officer.

The Planning and Zoning Commission's recommendations followed additional recommendations approved by the city’s Unified Development Code Advisory Committee on March 18. Additional details are available here. Prior to the City Council vote, residents opposed to limiting HARC’s authority urged council members to preserve the commission’s role in historic building alterations. Linda McCalla, who was Georgetown’s first Main Street Manager and led downtown revitalization efforts in the 1980s, said HARC’s oversight has been a central force in sustaining the city’s historic areas, which along with the Downtown and Old District districts include four smaller historic districts listed in the National Register of Historic Places. “If we lose this, we have lost something significant and irreplaceable forever,” McCalla told council members. Pitts said before voting in favor initial reading that his intent when he introduced possible changes to HARC was to “make the city easier to do business with.” “I think this amendment will do exactly that,” he said. The March 26 meeting was the first one held in Georgetown's new Council Chambers at 501 W. Ninth St., Georgetown. City officials and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce led a grand-opening ceremony earlier in the day for the city's new court and council building, which houses the council chambers, and the new City Hall at 808 Martin Luther King Jr. St., Georgetown. Both buildings comprise a new municipal campus called City Center.