Local Historic District Design Guidelines, Salisbury, North Carolina, May 2015

From introduction: "These guidelines were established to promote the stewardship of Salisbury’s unrivaled historic character while retaining the integrity of its architecture, neighborhood fabric, and overall sense of place. Salisbury has become a respected leader in historic preservation in North Carolina and beyond because of the vision and guidance of a few pioneers. These visionaries recognized the importance of Salisbury’s architecture, history and culture. More importantly, they realized the need to establish tools to preserve these assets for generations to come. Early preservation efforts included, among other things, the establishment of the West Square Local Historic District in 1975, the creation of the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC), and the drafting of the Historic District Design Guidelines in 1990. These guidelines have been used by the Historic Preservation Commission in encouraging and protecting the architectural integrity of Salisbury’s local historic districts. Salisbury has successfully expanded its preservation program to include a total of five local historic districts as of 2014. It was therefore necessary to continue to expand these guidelines to address the additional architectural features of the new districts, as well as accommodate changes and advances in preservation practices. The 2011 Salisbury Historic Preservation Master Plan process recognized this need and called for the guidelines drafted in 1990 to be updated. These resulting Historic District Design Guidelines are not only a tool for the Historic Preservation Commission to review the appropriateness of changes within the districts, but also a manual of best practices. It is the intent of these design guidelines to assist owners of historic properties in understanding the best methods of preservation and treatments to their historic structures, regardless of whether it is in a local historic district. Preserving Salisbury’s historic architecture and neighborhood fabric is critical to the community. It not only protects our historic resources, but also provides a sense of place and quality of life for which Salisbury is known. Preservation is a sustainable practice, conserving resources and also saving money through reuse of existing buildings rather than demolition and new construction. In Salisbury, preservation has proven to be economic development. Downtown and Salisbury’s neighborhoods are desirable because of their historic character and charm. Most importantly, Salisbury is known for its historic neighborhoods and downtowns, and define it as a place." Funding was provided in part by a 2012 Historic Preservation Fund grant to the City of Salisbury (project number NC-12-019) administered by the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office (grant number 37-12-41940) and the State, Tribal, and Local Plans and Grants Division, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Salisbury, North Carolina is a Certified Local Government.

Local Historic District Design Guidelines, Salisbury, North Carolina, May 2015

Collections