The City of Tarpon Springs has chosen to be the terrapin rather than the hare in its approach to creating a preservation district south of the Sponge Docks - and that pace is just about right.
Setting up a preservation district seems deceptively simple. If an area is worth preserving because of its history or unique character, why not just create a few rules to keep out new development and to guide remodeling of the existing buildings?
Simple, right?
Actually, extremely complicated and sometimes, explosively controversial.
People who already own property in a preservation district aren't always happy about the government telling them what they may and may not do with their property, especially when property owners in other parts of town don't have to abide by the same rules. They don't like being told that they can't tear down their house and build a new one on the same lot, for example, or that they must meet design guidelines to add on a room, or that they must keep their front porch or other unique architectural details if they remodel.
For the government, there is also the challenge of figuring out how to keep properties in the district from becoming eyesores if their owners don't want to meet the new rules. And how do they keep property values from falling in the new district if new development is not allowed?
The City of Tarpon Springs has started meeting with residents to determine the level of interest in a preservation district in the neighborhood south of the docks, an area with a look and feel of an old European fishing village. Similar discussions in 1999 and 2001 dissolved after opposition to the proposed rules arose.
The motivation for the latest round of talks was a proposed 10-unit townhome development on 0.8-acre in the neighborhood. Zoning in the area allows up to 15 units per acre, and residents are afraid that modern townhome developments will sweep the old neighborhood. The City Commission has imposed a 90-day moratorium on development proposals there to buy time to consider changes to the zoning code and the idea of a preservation district.
That is a smart move, though 90 days may not be long enough. The city staff needs time to explore all the options and obstacles and to survey the true historic value of the neighborhood. People who live there need time to mull over the issue and share their opinions with the city. City commissioners need to consider what they would like the neighborhood to look like in 10 years, 20 years, 50 years and how to achieve that look through city codes.
They can look around them and see the impact of wrong decisions in other communities. Ybor City is a particularly painful example of a historic area that lost touch with the past and is suffering the consequences. Tampa's Hyde Park is another example of a historic district now struggling with the impact of having one foot in the past and the other in the future. Hyde Park historically accommodated single-family homes, apartments and businesses, but a redevelopment trend that brought proposals for dense new developments and high-rise condo towers threatens the area's character and its ability to accommodate so many new residents.
If the neighborhood south of the Sponge Docks is to be preserved, the city will need strict rules that existing residents, business owners and would-be developers will have to follow for the privilege of having property in a protected district. Much work lies ahead. Slow and steady is the best speed for now.
