Thursday, February 03, 2000
Coalition discusses historic preservation
BY TERRY FLYNN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
NEWPORT — The possibility of a single historic preservation office for the Northern Kentucky river cities of Dayton, Bellevue, Fort Thomas, Newport and Covington was a key topic at the River Cities Government Coalition meeting Wednesday.
Wally Pagan — executive director of Southbank Partners, who serves in a similar position with the coalition — emphasized that any move toward a joint effort concerning historic preservation would be accomplished only if it could benefit the cities and be cost-effective.
“What we're looking at is uniform design standards for all the cities,” he said. “Each city would have its own design review board, however, and each board would make final decisions.”
Only Newport now has an active, full-time historic preservation officer.
Mr. Pagan emphasized that a joint historic preservation effort could be aided by a bill in the General Assembly in Frankfort that would establish a state tax credit for historic preservation, similar to an existing federal credit.
“The federal regulations now allow owner-occupants of historic structures to get a 20 percent tax credit,” Mr. Pagan said.
Newport City Commissioner Ken Rechtin, chairman of the coalition, said the river cities should make it clear to their legislators that they are in favor of the tax credit plan.
“This type of credit could attract people to the historic neighborhoods of the cities because they would realize a savings in rehabilitating homes,” he said.
The River Cities Government Coalition comprises elected officials from all of the river cities. The group was formed with the help of Southbank Partners to examine areas of common concern and ways to work together to help all the cities.
Other subjects discussed at the meeting included:
• Common curfew hours for all the river cities. Jurisdictions now have different juvenile curfews.
• Support for the 1 percent hotel tax in Northern Kentucky proposed as a funding source for expansion of the Cincinnati Convention Center.
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