§ 1-5-52. Eligible properties.

(a)

Certification . Historic properties must be certified by the city council as eligible to receive the special tax assessment. The properties must then receive preliminary certification for the special tax assessment from the community appearance board prior to the commencement of any work. To receive certification, owners of property must meet all requirements of this [article].

(b)

Eligible properties . To be certified as eligible, properties must:

(1)

Be listed in the National Register of Historic Places, either individually or as a contributing property in a district; or

(2)

Be 50 or more years old and have been designated as historic by the city council, either individually or as a contributing property in a local historic district.

(c)

Designation . The city council may designate a property or district as historic if it is more than 50 years old and meets one (1) or more of the following criteria:

(1)

Has significant inherent character, interest, or value as a part of the development or heritage of the community, state, or nation;

(2)

Is the site of an event significant in history;

(3)

Is associated with a person or persons who contributed significantly to the culture and development of the community, state, or nation;

(4)

Exemplifies the cultural, political, economic, social, ethnic, or historic heritage of the community, state, or nation;

(5)

Individually, or as a collection of resources, embodies distinguishing characteristics of a type, style, period, or specimen in architecture or engineering;

(6)

Is the work of a designer whose work has influenced significantly the development of the community, state, or nation;

(7)

Contains elements of design, detail, materials, or craftsmanship which represents a significant innovation;

(8)

Is part of or related to a square or other distinctive element of community planning;

(9)

Represents an established and familiar visual feature of the neighborhood or community;

(10)

Has yielded or may be likely to yield, information important in history or pre-history.

(d)

Moved properties . The moving of historic buildings from their original site is generally discouraged. If such property is moved as part of a rehabilitation project, it may be eligible for the special tax assessment if:

(1)

It has been locally designated as historic but will retain, on the new site, the characteristics that made it eligible for historic designation on the former site;

(2)

It has not yet been designated historic but will meet designation criteria on its new site;

(3)

Is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and the movement meets all standards and procedures of the U.S. Department of the Interior and the South Carolina Department of Archives and History.

(e)

Removal of historic designation . A designated property may be removed from the list of eligible properties if it no longer possesses the qualities that made it eligible for designation, provided that:

(1)

The property has been removed from the National Register of Historic Places and has not been designated under the local criteria included in section 1-5-52(c) of this article.

(2)

Owners of property proposed for removal of designation shall be given 30 days' notice prior to such action and are given opportunity to present evidence why such removal should not be conducted.

(Ord. No. 2000-01-10(B), 1/24/00; Ord. No. 2009-05-11(A), 5/11/09)