Act Now! Defend the Landmarks Program

The Heritage Society of Austin calls upon you to act in defense of preservation as a core community value and key component of Austin’s economic vitality. As you probably know, the Austin Independent School District (AISD) Board of Trustees has recently opted out of participation in the Historic Landmarks program tax abatement for the 2010-2011 year, which will save AISD about $95,300 for the year.

The Heritage Society of Austin believes this move to suspend participation in the incentive program for historic preservation is precipitous and ill-advised, as it pre-empts the City’s thorough review of the Landmarks program. In acting without benefit of the full study, this action risks unintended consequences that could harm not only Austin’s historic assets, but our City’s economic goals and property values as well.

We ask you to take a moment to urge the AISD Trustees to reverse this action and reconsider this issue after the City of Austin has completed its review of the Landmarks program and made recommendations for adjustments. The Travis County Commissioners Court and the Central Health District Board of Managers have prudently chosen to wait on the City’s review before considering changes in their abatements.

Anyone who values historic Austin is asked to click here to send an e-mail to the AISD Trustees urging them to forestall their decision on abatements until the City of Austin has concluded its Landmarks Program review. Time is of the essence, to please Act Immediately and send your message. Below is a sample letter, but your own words may improve the content:

Dear AISD Board of Trustees,
As a citizen of Austin, I urge you to maintain your support of Austin’s Historic Landmarks Program until the City of Austin has concluded its review of the program. Your action to rescind AISD’s long-standing participation in the program may result in unintended harm to historic preservation efforts and the economic vitality of our city. Some potential outcomes include the inability of property owners to maintain these irreplaceable structures as protected landmarks for our city; reversal of the growing success in attracting commercial and retail ventures to Landmark buildings in downtown’s revitalizing areas, and an erosion of Austin’s profile as an attractive destination with a unique and authentic community character.
Preservation benefits our community in many ways, including the following:
- According to the Texas Historical Commission, preservation generates more than $140 million in annual economic activity in the Austin area
- An active and effective preservation program creates local, skilled jobs – 20% more jobs than new construction – especially valuable in an economic downturn.
- More money spent on restoration and rehabilitation stays in the Austin economy than new construction, as local companies perform most of the work.
- An active and effective preservation program recognizes that business location decisions are increasingly being made based on the quality of place – Google’s decision to come to Austin and locate in the historic Scarborough Building and Patagonia’s first Texas location in the historic W.B. Smith Building highlights the role preservation should play in economic development.
- The return on investment of an active and effective preservation program comes from stabilization of neighborhoods and long-term increase in property values and taxes for historic properties and areas, and from the increased hotel occupancy taxes and sales taxes from those drawn to Austin.
- An active and effective preservation program reinforces sustainability and smart growth, lowers greenhouse gases, improves water quality, saves raw land, lowers demand and need for landfill space, preserves healthy and walkable communities, and makes better use of existing infrastructure

I urge the AISD Board of Trustees to join the City of Austin, as invited by Mayor Lee Leffingwell, in a cooperative effort to assure that our historic preservation program delivers the best benefits for our city. Thank you for your consideration.