* WARNING: THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL, INTRODUCTORY COPY OF THE BILL.
THE OFFICIAL COPY CONSIDERED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE FIRST READER COPY.
INTRODUCTORY*
CITY OF BALTIMORE
COUNCIL BILL R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: President Rawlings-Blake
A RESOLUTION ENTITLED
A COUNCIL RESOLUTION concerning
Title
Informational Hearing - Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP)
FOR the purpose of requesting the Executive Director of CHAP to report to the City Council on the evolution of the Commission since its inception in 1964; the success of CHAP in fulfilling the mission of preservation of the aesthetic, historical, and architectural history of Baltimore City; and the vision for the future structural and programmatic direction of the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation.
Body
Recitals
In a pioneering effort, the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation (CHAP) was established in 1964, by the City of Baltimore to protect historic buildings near Mount Vernon Place, and more than 40 years later, the 11 volunteer commissioners appointed by the Mayor and their professional staff continue the important mission of the most extensive historic commission in Maryland.
CHAP, like other historic commissions throughout the state and nation, recommends buildings and neighborhoods for designation, provides follow-up design review, and initiates a variety of actions to encourage care and preservation of valued sites of historic significance. CHAP's program is linked by law to the Baltimore City permit process and, in 2004, protected over 8000 buildings in 26 historic districts, as well as 120 local landmarks.
The mission of CHAP "is to enhance and promote the culture and economy of Baltimore through the preservation of buildings, structures, sites, and neighborhoods that have aesthetic, historic, and architectural value", and CHAP's goals "include preserving historic architecture and monuments; reclaiming broken neighborhoods; preventing demolition by neglect; and integrating our City's past into its future."
In 2005, an Ordinance was adopted, reconstituting the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation as an independent unit of the Planning Department, modifying the composition of the Commission, providing that the Department of Planning serve and staff the Commission, charging the Department of Housing and Community Development with enforcement responsibility, and specifically requiring that one of the Commissioners be an historian knowledgeable in the African American history and culture of Baltimore City.
CHAP has been invaluable in preserving much of the City's history from the developer's wrecking ball. We must continue to ensure that our desire for modern progress and economic development does not overwhelm our responsibility to protect and to honor the buildings and structures that are imprinted with the stories of our ancestors - forged into the history of our noble, and sometimes ignoble, past.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, That the Executive Director of CHAP is requested to report to the City Council on the evolution of the Commission since its inception in 1964; the success of CHAP in fulfilling the mission of preservation of the aesthetic, historical, and architectural history of Baltimore City; and the vision for the future structural and programmatic direction of the Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Executive Director of the Commission of Historical and Architectural Preservation, the Director of Planning, the Commissioner of Housing and Community Development, and the Mayor's Legislative Liaison to the City Council.
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