Sixth Ward protections get commission's OK

The Chronicle's Mike Snyder reports on the City Hall blog that the City Planning Commission yesterday approved the creation of a protected historic district for the Old Sixth Ward — a move unprecedented in Houston that would exclude historic homes in the near-downtown neighborhood from the city's 90-day demolition waiting period. (That measure means that, if they city denies the owner of a historic building a permit for demolition or inappropriate alteration, the owner may do whatever he or she wants after waiting 90 days — and it's part of what makes Houston's preservation ordinance a joke.)

As Snyder notes:

Some preservationists believed the Planning Commission was the toughest hurdle for the proposal, which will be considered later this month by the City Council's quality of life committee before it moves to the full council for final approval. Councilwoman Sue Lovell, one of the council's most outspoken preservationists, predicted before today's vote that the measure would gain approval by the committee and the full council if it survived the Planning Commission vote.

Well, we'll see — especially since the Planning Commission doesn't even seem to be totally behind protections for unique historic neighborhoods. Commissioner Jeff Ross urged City Council members to think carefully about the precedent it might set by approving the protected district in the Sixth Ward: "Cherryhurst will be 100 years old in 15 years, and we'd better get ready for the Cherryhursts of Houston," he said. Because God forbid the city should do more to save the city's unique old neighborhoods, right?

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Photo: flickr user WesternGulf