Historic preservation ordinance gets new look in Libertyville

The old is new again in Libertyville.

Years after a historic preservation ordinance was extensively studied but never acted upon, Libertyville officials have agreed to take a fresh look.

Village trustees on Tuesday resurrected the idea by establishing a historic preservation committee to advise them on the merits of creating specific rules to preserve Libertyville's heritage.

"They had a historic preservation committee once before. It fell by the wayside," Mayor Terry Weppler said Wednesday. "We'll start from square one."

As a candidate last spring, Weppler heard cries from well organized residents who contended the proposed expansion of the First Presbyterian Church just south of downtown would overwhelm the neighborhood. Demolishing an old home on Maple Avenue as part of that would diminish the character of the area, they added.

Weppler and three new trustees were elected convincingly and the reconstituted village board wants to determine one way or another whether guidelines for historic preservation should become part of the village code.

Libertyville does not regulate building, renovations or additions based on historical considerations.

"I'm not saying definitely what we're going to do," Weppler said. "We have to be very careful how we regulate a residential home."

He did advocate some type of official protection for the downtown commercial area.

"Right now a developer could come in and tear down buildings and there's not much we could do about it."

Considering a historic preservation ordinance is an objective in the village's updated comprehensive plan, approved in 2005. Under the guidance of MainStreet Libertyville, public forums were held and a draft ordinance crafted. But no official action has been taken.

"It doesn't say that every old building or house needs to be preserved. It says if it's in a certain area things have to be done appropriately," explained Mike Kollman, a Libertyville resident and architect who lead the previous effort.

Residents could petition to establish their neighborhood as a historic district, or the designation can be made by a standing commission based on a survey of buildings.

The scope and extent of what would be regulated and how requests for changes would be reviewed are to be determined.

"There will be some people who don't want to do it and there will be different layers," said John Spoden, the village's director of community development.

The committee will be comprised of seven residents appointed by Weppler with consent of the board. The terms would be two years with the mission of conducting public hearings and crafting a preservation ordinance, if so directed.

Weppler said there has been ample interest in joining the committee. He said he hopes to have recommendations at the Oct. 13 board meeting.