Jackson to hold hearing today on historic preservation plan

Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify that Jackson will hold a town-hall meeting.

Jackson city government will hold a town-hall meeting this evening to discuss a proposed historic-preservation ordinance.

The ordinance is designed to “promote the educational, cultural, economic and general welfare of the community,” its text states. It would protect buildings considered historic or architecturally distinctive by regulating what changes can be made to their exteriors.

The ordinance would establish an uptown historic district and a process by which historic buildings and landmarks in Jackson can be made subject to similar protections.

A five-person commission will be created by the ordinance to assess nominated properties for inclusion on the city’s historic-preservation register.

If the ordinance passes, property owners may nominate their properties for consideration at no charge.

The ordinance would complement several other recent decisions that have intended to enhance and preserve an uptown aesthetic, including the upgrade of materials in the recently finished roundabout.

It also is intended to improve property values of designated landmarks or buildings within historic districts and spur economic growth in Jackson.

Once designated under the ordinance, exterior work would require permission from the commission.

The majority of the designations would be structures, but other historically significant sites would be eligible as long as the commission deems it sufficiently important to Jackson.

The town-hall meeting will be held at 6 p.m. today in the Missouri Room of Jackson city hall. All interested parties are encouraged to attend the meeting to ask questions or offer commentary.

The city has posted a draft of the proposed ordinance for viewing on its website at jacksonmo.org.

tgraef@semissourian.com

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