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Feds approve historic designation for The US Department of the Interior notified the City of Park Hills in late March that its application for National Register historic district designation was approved. Close to 600 homes within the city now carry the distinction of being part of a national historic district recognized by the National Park Service. NKAPC staff administered the application process on behalf of the city. “This means that most of the homes northwest of Dixie Highway in Park Hills are now deemed as contributors to the historic district,” said Sharmili Sampath, AICP, senior planner in NKAPC’s long-range planning department. “Owners of these properties can now apply for tax credits when they want to pursue certain remodels to their homes.” Being part of a national historic district does not mean that individual structures in Park Hills are subject to overlay zone regulations found in some Northern Kentucky jurisdictions. Instead, the designation provides assistance for rehabilitation of homes in the district. “This provides a win-win situation for property owners,” explains Sampath. “They get help in rehabbing their homes and will be able to better maintain the integrity of the neighborhood.” An outside consultant employed by NKAPC surveyed the 243 acres and 719 properties that constitute the City of Park Hills. Almost 83 percent (599 homes) were deemed eligible for inclusion in this designation. The city will host an information session soon to provide property owners with more information. The date hasn’t yet been set. City officials hope to have an historic specialist from the Kentucky Heritage Council present to assist owners with information on applying for tax credits, knowing what types of things are covered, deadlines, and more details of the process. “We’re proud of this designation,” said Sampath. “It will help maintain the housing stock in the neighborhood and help increase property values.” For more information on this designation and a description of the architectural styles found in the district, click here. Staff readies new aerial photography LINK-GIS will soon include updated aerial photographs as part of its hundreds of layers of information. NKAPC staff is nearing completion of work with Photo Science of Lexington to make available detailed aerial photography of Campbell and Kenton Counties taken last year. The new photography is expected to be ready by the end of next month. “This is an upgrade effort for us for a few reasons,” said Trisha Brush, GISP, deputy director for GIS Administration. “The photographs are in color and all at one inch equals 100 feet scale. In the past they were one inch equals 100 feet scale in the north and one inch equals 200 feet scale in the south.” she said. This scale is larger and provides more detailed images for the user. In the past it was used only for urbanized areas to show necessary detail. But, because technology has prompted a decrease in the price of providing the larger scale, all aerial photographs produced from this latest flight will be produced at the more detailed level. This update also includes revised topography lines produced through Light Detecting and Ranging (LiDAR), a state-of-the-art technology for creating elevation contours. “LiDAR is sort of like radar, but uses light,” said Brush. “It helps with density and making the contour lines much more accurate.” Now that the photographs have been provided to NKAPC, Brush and her team are pursuing a quality assurance/quality control (QAQC) process. “We’re updating the planimetric data,” said Brush. “That includes things such as building footprints, the edge of pavement, parks, playgrounds, and fences—anything that defines structures or boundaries on the ground.” Once it completes the QAQC process, staff will send all errors to the consultants for correction and updating. It will then be returned to NKAPC for release. “There are many benefits to this update,” she said. “Aside from the data being more accurate and precise, it will be useful to the development community. The sanitation and water districts will benefit too,” she concluded. The flyover that provided aerial photographs currently in use was in 2004. The next update is planned for 2010. Public provides preferences for visual Citizens concerned with Covington’s major north-south thoroughfare were asked recently how new development along that corridor should be made to blend with its historic roots. The opinions of over 200 people are now being used by NKAPC staff to develop proposed overlay regulations that will help the city guide the redevelopment of its historic Madison Avenue. “We held two public meetings at Holmes High School and gave people the chance to participate online from their homes,” said Andy Videkovich, AICP, principal planner in NKAPC’s current planning department. “Two-hundred twenty-six people responded and provided us with their opinions.” The survey sought residents’ preferences on: transportation issues and street improvements; housing types and styles; landscaping standards; signage; and property usage. “The point of the survey was to lay the foundation for new form district regulations to be employed within the corridor,” said Videkovich. “This survey and the public participation process are the reasons the regulations are being drafted the way they are.” Videkovich says the final product won’t be a “city proposal” or an “NKAPC proposal.” Instead, he contends, the proposed draft will be rooted in responses from the people who live and work in the area. The next step in the process will be working toward goals expressed by the public. While data from the transportation portion of the study is still being analyzed, Videkovich and his team have found the responses to other portions helpful. “We found that the majority of respondents do not want to see more residential housing of any kind,” said Videkovich. “They did, however, have a positive response to the idea of row housing in the area.” Once the regulations are drafted, staff will seek feedback from city officials and the steering committee before the regulations are set for public hearing. “We are aiming to have the regulations completed by the first of June,” said Videkovich. “If we can accomplish that, the public hearing should be scheduled for July.” Videkovich encourages people to go online and view the results of the survey. Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission |
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