UPDATE:

At its November 15, 2016 meeting, Raleigh City Council forwarded discussion of the updated Design Guidelines for Raleigh Historic Districts and Landmarks to its Safe, Vibrant and Healthy Neighborhoods Committee. The meeting was held Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 5:00 in the Council Chambers. Subsequent to this meeting, the entire Design Guidelines were forwarded by City Council to the Planning Commission for review as a text change, as the Design Guidelines are referenced in City Code. Discussion at the Safe, Vibrant and Healthy Neighborhoods Committee meeting prompted the commission to offer a final amendment to the proposed Design Guidelines, which will be reviewed by the Planning Commission at its January 3, 2017 meeting. The memo may be found here, and the updated text may be found here.  More information on the process is here. 

At the January 19, 2016 meeting the RHDC approved the draft of the Design Guidelines for Raleigh Historic Districts that combines the 2011 proposed updates and the 2014 proposed updates to the new construction and additions section. This update includes an expanded glossary.  The draft may be viewed here.  Written comments were provided to the commission  at the December 15, 2016 RHDC meeting.  

Background.

In 2011, after a year-long public effort of updating the Design Guidelines, the draft document is in the hands of the City Attorney prior to going to the RHDC and City Council for formal adoption. 

Adopted in 2001, RHDC identified several key historic preservation issues where the current Design Guidelines do not provide clear direction. The sections that are new or have been extensively revised in the final draft include:

Section Topic (new sections of text) Page

1.5 Historic Preservation and Sustainability 6
2.9 Cemeteries 26 - 27
4.4 Downtown Urban Commercial Additions 62 - 63
4.5 Downtown Urban Commercial Infill 64 - 64, 67

Section Topic (major edits of existing text) Page

1.1 Raleigh Historic Districts and Historic Landmarks 2
2.2 Archaeological Sites and Resources 12 - 13
3.10 Sustainability and Energy Retrofit 50 - 51
6.2 Glossary of Terms 76 - 82
All review of individual historic landmark sites throughout
All post-World War II and Modern architecture throughout

Design Guidelines Review Group

COA Committee of the RHDC

Nick Fountain
Fred Belledin
Curtis Kasefang
Will Alphin
Scott Shackleton

Blount Street HOD

Peter Rusmey

Local Historical Societies

Betsy Haywood

City of Raleigh Historic Cemeteries Advisory Board

Terry Harper

Downtown Raleigh Alliance

Hallie Mittleman

Institutional Properties

Dennis Davis

Raleigh Historic Districts Commission (non-COA member)

Greg Hatem

Raleigh Historic Landarks

Linda Edmisten

Society for the Preservation of Historic Oakwood

Kiernan McGorty

Department of City Planning, Urban Design Center

Elizabeth Alley

Department of City Planning, City & Regional Planning

Tania Tully (Project Manager)
Martha Lauer