On October 19, 2021, the City Council reviewed a petition submitted by residents of the Southside neighborhood.  The purpose of the petition is to obtain the City Council’s approval for a character overlay for a portion of the Southside Neighborhood. Upon review of the petition, the City Council requested a work session to discuss the request.

The request to create a Character Overlay is consistent with the adopted Southside Community Plan.  Staff is in process of preparing a scope of services with Matrix Design Group to begin work on Southside Community Plan implementation, the outcome of a recent competitive procurement.  Staff anticipates bringing a service contract for City Council consideration in February 2022.  A Character Overlay is very similar to the existing Flagstaff Historic Overlays which include design guidelines and development standards that reflect the unique architectural character of a neighborhood.  City Council approved a service contract to create a Character Overlay in La Plaza Vieja at the December 7, 2021, meeting.  

The proposed Southside Character Overlay is identified in the Southside Community Plan as a "Historic Preservation Focus Area" within the Neighborhood Core subarea, see attachment to this report.  That said, and the fact that this area specific to the citizen's petition has been well-preserved by property owners who are backing this petition, staff is supportive of advancing this work ahead of other aspects of the Southside Community Plan's implementation.  

The proposed overlay is one of a number of implementation tasks for the Southside Community Plan included in the Zoning and Subdivision Code work program.  If the City Council chooses to proceed with the proposed character overlay, staff recommends adding it to the scope of services with Matrix Design Group, the successful respondent to a Request for Statements of Qualifications for zoning code services.

The cost to create a Southside Character Overlay is estimated at $89,985. City Council approved $258,566 in the current fiscal year budget for zoning code amendments which are being used to implement the Southside Community Plan and the La Plaza Vieja Neighborhood Plan.  It is anticipated that staff will return to the City Council with a contract for services for Southside Community Plan implementation in February 2022.

For your reference, below are the questions on which staff is seeking the City Council’s comments and direction.

• (Citizen Initiated) Would the City Council like to initiate the required applications to create the proposed character overlay?
• (City Initiated) Would City Council like to include the Character Overlay in the upcoming scope of services with The Matrix Design Group ahead of other aspects of the Southside Community Plan's implementation?

Background:
Citizen Petition
On September 28, 2021, a Petition to the Flagstaff City Council was submitted by residents of the Southside neighborhood. The purpose of the petition is to obtain the City Council’s approval to create a character overlay for a portion of the Southside that is identified in the Southside Community Plan as a Neighborhood Core with a Historic Preservation focus. Based on staff’s communications with the petitioners, the area of the request is generally located east of South San Francisco Street and North East Butler Avenue. For reference purposes, the proposed character overlay zone area is referred to as WC Riles Area.

Previous City Council Meeting
On October 19, 2021, the City Council reviewed the petition and requested a Work Session with staff regarding the subject. Specifically, the City Council had questions pertaining to the petition, which are summarized below.

• How does the proposed character overlay relate and promote the goals and policies of the Southside Community Plan?
• How could the proposed character overlay be incorporated into the Zoning Code and Map?
• How would the provisions of the overlay be implemented?

WC Riles Area of the Southside Neighborhood:
The WC Riles Area is a component of the larger Flagstaff Southside Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This area is representative of the influence of Flagstaff’s minority immigrant working-class community on Southside’s history and culture. Many of the residents worked in the City’s railroad, lumber, sheepherding, tourism, and education industries in the early 1900s and earlier. Consisting primarily of African American, Mexican, and Chinese workers, the residents in the area developed a tight-knit community through churches, schools, and social and political clubs. Also, many minority men of the neighborhood served in both World Wars for the United States, extending the area’s historical influence beyond the local level. Furthermore, several homes in the area are connected with individuals who influenced early local and state politics.

In addition to the area’s community and culturally diverse historical significance, the WC Riles Area has a rich architectural history that is directly linked to the greater Flagstaff identity. Subdivided in 1894 as part of the Brannen Addition subdivision, many of the structures in the WC Riles Area were primarily developed with a simple one-story gable-wall Anglo vernacular cottage and bungalow/craftsman-style architecture.  Furthermore, many of the previous residents worked in the lumber and sawmill industry, and they had access to the scrap material generated by their employers to construct their homes. The use of these materials contributed to the historical significance of the area’s large variety of vernacular architectural styles.

Many of the originally developed structures in the WC Riles Area still exist, including the P.J. Brannen House located at 101 South WC Riles Drive.  Approximately 70% of the lots in the WC Riles Area contain historic structures, and many other lots contain structures that are believed to contribute to the historical character with minor modifications. The preservation of historic structures and the neighborhood’s character and quality aspects would significantly enhance Flagstaff’s sense of heritage.

Proposed WC Riles Area Character Overlay:
A character overlay zone may be used for many purposes and a description is attached to this report.  Based on staff’s discussions with the petitioners, the proposed character overlay zone is intended to be similar to the Townsite Overlay (TO) zone.  Through the incorporation of historic preservation provisions and references to The Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and design guidelines, the proposed character overlay will assist in the protection of the historic structures and the nearby area setting. Furthermore, the provision of the overlay will assist in promoting new development and modifications to existing structures that are compatible with the area's historic vernacular architectural styles.  Also, the adoption of the proposed character overlay zone will assist in implementing many of the Regional Plan and Southside Community Plan goals and policies.

Regional Plan and Southside Community Plan:
Regional Plan
The Regional Plan encourages the preservation of Flagstaff’s heritage, including its design of buildings, traditions, and cultural preservation, to enhance the quality of life for the residents in the Flagstaff area. To accomplish these objectives, historic resources must be preserved, protected, and enhanced. The creation and subsequent adoption of a character overlay for the WC Riles Area will assist in implementing the objectives, and several of the Regional Plan goals and policies. A summary of the goals and policies of the Regional Plan that the character overlay would assist in implementing include:

• Goal CC.2. Preserve, restore, and rehabilitate heritage resources to better appreciate our culture.
• Policy CC.2.2. Formally recognize heritage resources through designation as local landmarks and historic districts.
• Policy CC.2.3. Mitigate development impacts on heritage resources.
• Policy CC.2.4. Support restoration and rehabilitation of historic housing, buildings, structures, and neighborhoods.
• Policy LU.10.3. Value the Historic Neighborhoods established around downtown by maintaining and improving their highly walkable character, transit accessibility, diverse mix of land uses, and historic building form.
• Policy NH.1.2. Respect traditions, identifiable styles, proportions, streetscapes, relationships between buildings, yards, and roadways; and use historically appropriate and compatible building and structural materials when making changes to existing neighborhoods, especially in historic neighborhoods.
• Policy NH.2.1. Encourage the rehabilitation of historic downtown structures and contextual new structures as office, retail, entertainment, and residential space to reinvigorate the area as a destination of culture, shopping, government, and the arts.
• Policy NH.2.2. Plan for future downtown development and contiguous development that respects the established historic core, historical architecture, and urban design

Southside Community Plan
When the Southside Community Plan was developed, community outreach identified the Southside neighborhood’s cultural and architectural history as one of the most essential elements of its heritage that contribute to its historical identity. Located in the Flagstaff Southside Historic District, the creation and subsequent adoption of a character overlay and associated guidelines for the WC Riles Area would assist in preserving the existing buildings, and maintaining the neighborhood's historic character. In addition, the overlay is anticipated to assist with keeping the historic buildings intact and allow new development to be sensitively incorporated through a variety of elements (style, materials, colors, form, etc.) that contribute to compatible development. A summary of the goals and policies of the Southside Community Plan that the character overlay would assist in implementing include:

• Goal S 2 Protect the landmarks and historic character that make Southside a unique community in Flagstaff.
• Policy S 2.2. Preserve the integrity of contributing and individually significant historic commercial and residential buildings, through targeted landmark overlays and local historic or character preservation overlays.
• Policy S 2.3. Protect and promote the adaptive reuse of landmarks in the Southside, including Route 66 signs, architecture and history, and cultural and familial landmarks and places of importance.
• Policy S 2.4. Replicate patterns, materials, and architectural features of historic building in new construction.
• Policy S 3.1. Encourage the preservation and rehabilitation of, and allow for appropriate additions to small historic structures, such as cottages and family homes, over demolition and replacement in all subareas.

Zoning Code and Zoning Map Implementation Process Overview:
To implement the proposed character overlay zone, the City Council would need to approve:

• A Zoning Code Text Amendment to create the proposed character overlay zone and related provisions in the Zoning Code;
• A Zoning Map Amendment to apply proposed character overlay zone to the lots and parcels within WC Riles Area; and
• The overlay development standards and design guidelines.

Staff recommends the City initiate amendments associated with the Southside Community Plan.

Implementation after City Council Adoption of the Overlay:
From the perspective of the Zoning Code, the proposed character overlay zone would be implemented and regulated as a Historic Overlay Zone. Therefore, upon the adoption of the proposed character overlay zone, new development and modifications to existing structures would be reviewed by, and require approval from, the Historic Preservation Officer (Mark Reavis) or the Heritage Preservation Commission. The purpose of the review is to ensure that new development and modified structures maintain consistency with the overlay’s design guidelines.

Zoning Code Work Programs:
On January 26, 2021, City Council provided direction to staff on the 2021 - 2022 Zoning and Subdivision Code Work Program, which includes the order of priority for the Zoning and Subdivision Code amendments. The Work Program includes a graphic summary of the staff's approach regarding these priorities.  The proposed character overlay zone is part of the larger Southside Community Plan Implementation, which is the letter 'I' in the Work Program.  Consultant Services will be paid from budgeted funds for zoning code amendments.