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CITY OF BAKERSFIELD
HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
MEETING OF OCTOBER 16, 2018
AGENDA
MEETING 4:00 P.M
City Hall North, 1600 Truxtun Avenue, Bakersfield California First Floor, Conference Room B
A. ROLL CALL
B. PUBLIC STATEMENTS
C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
1. Minutes of the August 21, 2018, meeting for approval.
D. CLOSED SESSION
None
E. CORRESPONDENCE
None
F. PUBLIC HEARINGS
None
G. REPORTS
None
H. OLD BUSINESS
1. Mills Act Program
Recommendation: Staff recommends update and draft letter for Commission
discussion.
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CITY OF BAKERSFIELD
HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
SPECIAL MEETING OF August 21, 2018
MINUTES
Chair Fieber called the Special meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission to order on Tuesday,
August 21, 2018, at 4:00 p.m. at Conference Room A, 1600 Truxtun Avenue. Roll call was as follows:
MEMBERS PRESENT: Stephen Montgomery
Susan Stussy
Cathy Butler
Scott Fieber
MEMBERS ABSENT: Ellie Height
STAFF PRESENT: Cecelia Griego
Christine Gutierrez
Joshua Rudnick
Viri King
Kevin Coyle
PUBLIC STATEMENTS:
Mr. Matthew Martin spoke to the Commission regarding his concern of saving The Dome property
through the City purchasing this property to claim it as a cultural resource. Mr. Martin stated that
currently the purchase price of the property is 2.2 million. He stated that this would be very costly to
the City and taxpayers.
Mr. Ken Hooper, President of the Kern County Historical Society, stated that he is in favor of the motion
that Commissioner Montgomery included in his comments presented to the Historic Preservation
Commission. For the owner of the property to be required to provide an Environmental Assessment in
compliance with CEQA.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
Motion to approve minutes from the June 19, 2018 meeting.
(MCS Montgomery/ Stussy)
CLOSED SESSION:
None
CORRESPONDENCE:
None
PUBLIC HEARINGS:
None
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REPORTS:
None
OLD BUSINESS
None
NEW BUSINESS:
1. The Dome (2201 V Street)
Staff member Cecelia Griego presented statements regarding requirements for a property to
be designated as a cultural resource.
In her presentation Cecelia Griego stated that the City has adopted an historical preservation
ordinance which outlines ways structures and places can be designated as a cultural resource.
The requirements, which Cecelia did briefly describe are outlined in the staff report. One of
the key items for designation is the Local Cultural Resource Designation – an application
process at the request of property owner or by City Council if the City has made the step to
purchase the property which meets at least one of the criteria points stated in the ordinance.
The same process is for the City to recommend placement on either the State or Federal list of
historical sites, but the property also needs to meet certain criteria set by the State and Federal
agencies.
Per the Ordinance, the Commission serves as an advisor board to the City Council and does
have the authority to determine which property can be presented to City Council for
designation.
COMMISSION STATEMENTS:
Commissioner Montgomery:
a slide presentation by Commissioner Montgomery showing photos (past and present) of the
property at 2201 V Street, The Dome. Also, comments and a motion was passed out to the
commissioners.
Commissioner Stussy:
asked Mr. Martin where he works – Mr. Martin stated he works with Keep Bakersfield Beautiful
and other organizations within the City.
Mentioned that the last plaque still needs to be installed
Suggested that the commission use the website to promote the search for potential properties
for registration.
Asked staff how many of the criteria does the Dome need to meet. Staff member, Cecelia
Griego, responded that we only need to meet one.
Commissioner Fieber:
Recommended that in future HPC meetings steps to be more pro-active in searching out
properties that are eligible for registration.
Suggested drafting a letter to the new owner of The Dome to present the option of re-use of
the building. This would be a good first step. The letter would also be sent to City Council.
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A motion was made to draft the letter, send out to staff and commission for review and approval
before sending to owner and City Council: (MCS Montgomery/Butler)
ADJOURNMENT:
The meeting adjourned at 4:57 p.m. by Commissioner Montgomery.
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A D M I N I S T R A T I V E R E P O R T
Meeting Date: October 16, 2018 Agenda Section: Old Business Agenda Item: H. 1.
TO: Historic Preservation Commission
FROM: Development Services Department
DATE: October 2, 2018
SUBJECT: Mills Act Program
Background: The creation of a Mills Act program was initially researched by staff and brought to the
City Council Legislative and Litigation Committee in September of 2014 and again in November. In
both cases, it was referred back to staff for additional information to be gathered, program materials
developed and to reach out to the community to gage interest.
At the June 2018 Historic Preservation meeting, your Commission asked what could be done to
encourage progress on development of the Mills Act program. During the last presentation to the
Legislative and Litigation Committee, councilmembers inquired about the level of property owner
interest in the program. Therefore, staff recommended the Commission contact historic property
owners to find out their interest to participate in a Mills Act contract and willingness to send a letter of
support for the creation a Mills Act program.
Attached is a draft letter to be sent to historic property owners for the Commission to consider; the
current list of historic properties; and a letter of support received from the Fox Theater Foundation.
Program Status: Staff is developing the program guidelines and evaluating the different ways it can be
implemented. Currently various documents are being prepared including a draft ordinance, program
guidelines, property owner agreement template, cost recovery analysis for application fee, and
public information sheet.
Revised Program Implementation Schedule:
Oct – Dec 2018: Historic property outreach, compile letters of support for a Mills Act Program
from property owners.
Jan – Mar 2019: Continue to develop Mills Act program guidelines and vetting of options by
staff.
Apr – Jun 2019: After City staff evaluation, bring draft Mills Act Program and ordinance to
Legislative and Litigation Committee.
July – Aug 2019: If approved by Leg & Lit, bring Mills Act Program and Ordinance to City
Council for adoption.
Recommendation: Staff recommends update and draft letter for Commission discussion.
Dear Mr./Ms. (proper inside address and property owner’s name using a print merge practice):
The purpose of this letter is to inform you that you possess a property that [is eligible to be
designated] or [was designated] by the City of Bakersfield as a cultural resource due to its cultural
and/or architectural qualities that are significant and/or unique. In an effort to preserve
Bakersfield’s various historic and cultural resources, the City is considering adopting a Mills Act
ordinance that would allow the City to enter into an agreement with an owner of a qualified
historical property who agrees to rehabilitate, restore, preserve, and maintain the property in
exchange for property tax reductions as calculated in accordance to state law by the Kern County
Assessor’s Office.
As background, the Mills Act was enacted in 1972 to help preserve properties listed as cultural or
historical properties, and provides tax savings that benefit both the property owner and the
community at large.
The advantage of owning a historic property
Many of the communities that have a Mills Act ordinance have seen benefits to the overall
increase in property values with a corresponding increase in tax revenue to the community and
increased profits to property owners at the time they sell their homes or building.
Questions about the rights of the property owner
In a Mills Act community, the owner signs a contract that, in exchange for tax reassessment,
agrees to maintain the quality of the property that resulted in its cultural and historical
designation.
The granting of historic or cultural recognition by the City does not restrict a property owner’s
rights to improve and/or repair the property. If the City grants historic or cultural designation
to a property and the owner modifies the property in a manner that removes that quality that
resulted in its special designation, then the cultural or historical designation may be removed
in accordance with the City’s existing historic preservation ordinance.
If the property owner who has signed a Mills Act contract and then decides it’s in their interest
to either cancel their Mills Act contract and/or modify their property in such a manner that the
historic quality is lost and is no longer eligible to be on the City’s cultural resource register, the
property’s assessed value returns to its pre-Mills Act assessed value, and pays a one-time
12.5% assessment penalty.
Tax benefits to the community
A Mills Act ordinance that encourages and incentivizes property owners to preserve their
historic properties fosters greater community by encouraging the citizenry at large to take care
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of their property. Citizens that have pride in their community take better care of both public
and private property thereby reducing costs, such as cleanup, code enforcement and removal
of blight expenses paid by the taxpayers of Bakersfield.
Support by the Commission
We invite property owners that are thinking about the prospect of having their property
considered for reassessment to contact members of the Historic Preservation Commission to
consult on the matter and send in letters of support for the City to create a Mills Act Contract
program.
Supporting the adoption of the provisions of the Mills Act
If you agree that the adoption of a Mills Act ordinance would be a benefit to you and the
community, please contact your member of the city council and share your interest.
Sincerely,
____________________________
Chair of the Bakersfield
Historic Preservation Commission
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