Sec. 54-34Statement of the HPC's powers

The HPC shall be authorized to:

(1) Prepare and maintain an inventory of all property within the city having the potential for designation as a historic property;

(2) Recommend to the mayor and city council specific places, districts, sites, buildings, structures, objects, or works of art to be designated by this chapter as historic properties or historic districts;

(3) Review applications for certificate of appropriateness, and grant or deny same in accordance with the provisions of this chapter;

(4) Recommend to the mayor and city council that the designation of any place, district, site, building, structure, objects, or work of art as a historic property or as a historic district be rescinded;

(5) Restore or preserve any historic properties acquired by the city;

(6) Promote the acquisition by the city of facade easements and conservation easements in accordance with the provisions of the "Facade and Conservation Easements Act of 1976" (O.C.G.A. 44-10-1 through 5);

(7) Conduct educational programs on historic properties located within Ashburn and on general historic preservation activities;

(8) Make such investigations and studies of matters relating to historic preservation including consultation with historic preservation experts and the mayor and city council, or the HPC itself may from time to time, deem it necessary or appropriate for the purposes of preserving historic resources;

(9) Seek out local, state, federal, and private funds for historic preservation and make recommendations concerning the most appropriate use of any funds acquired to the mayor and city council;

(10) Submit to the historic preservation division of the department of natural resources a list of historic resources or historic districts designated;

(11) Perform historic preservation activities as the official agency of the city historic preservation program;

(12) Receive donations, grants, or funds with the consent of the mayor and city council;

(13) Partner with the development authority and/or the downtown development authority to receive gifts of historic property and acquire and sell historic properties;

(14) Review and make comments to the historic preservation division of the department of natural resources concerning the nomination of properties within its jurisdiction to the National Register of Historic Places;

(15) Participate in regional, state, federal, and private historic preservation programs, and with the consent of the mayor and city council, enter into agreements to do the same; and

(16) Issue cease and desist orders in the event work within a historic district or on a historic property is not performed in accordance with the respective certificate of appropriateness.

History: (Ord. No. 07-08, § III(D), 6-7-2007)