Last year there was a Planning Commission recommendation to deny a special use permit in one of the town's few (and threatened) historic districts. Christiansburg Town Council, however, rejected this after accepting last minute conditions which were made only when it looked as if the application would fail. (There's an entirely different side conversation about that property and idle project which could be written about.)
In March 2008, council tasked the commission with reviewing options for preserving or expanding historic districts, or making recommendations for historic district overlays. While this item has infrequently appeared on the commission's agenda, it has been more than a year now since the assignment was handed out.
When is the due date and what progress, if any, has been made in preparing recommendations to council? Or did a dog eat this homework assignment?
As blogged about here, there are numerous resources available -- financial and specialized experts at our finger tips. There are economic benefits, including shoring up historic assets and cultivating additional tourism or leisure destinations for people interested in genealogy, architecture, railroads or antiques, just to name a few. And there have been grants available for rehabilitating declining properties, preserving our town's heritage while increasing property values and creating jobs.
Guess this is another one of those "back burner" items that gets shuffled off to the side -- until another major flap brings it back into focus. One flap should be council not receiving regular updates. Another should be appointed commission members, instead of town staff or administrators, leading the project. Maybe the mayor is hoping with just a few more flaps the matter will simply fly away and disappear forever.