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Consultant: Downtown Alpine, Coconi/Coconut Field moving toward National Register review
Summary
Consultants for the City of Alpine told the council the nomination for Coconut Field is under Texas Historical Commission review and a preliminary Downtown Alpine district nomination has been submitted; staff asked residents to provide historic photos and information for the draft.
Alice Munford Russell, a preservation consultant with Post Oak, told the Alpine City Council on March 18 that the city’s nomination files for two local historic properties are moving through the state review process. She said the Determination of Eligibility for Coconut Field was submitted in November to the Texas Historical Commission and the full National Register nomination had been delivered to THC for review on March 12.
Russell said, “THC usually reviews National Register nominations for about 2 months,” and that the Coconut Field file is already in the THC review queue. She added the process typically includes two rounds of edits before a nomination goes to the State Board of Review.
Why it matters: National Register listing can make properties eligible for preservation grants and historic tax credits and creates an official record of community history. The council earlier authorized Post Oak to prepare nominations covering the baseball field (Coconut Field) and a proposed Downtown Alpine Historic District.
Russell showed council a draft boundary map for the proposed Downtown Alpine Historic District and the inventory of resources. She said her team expanded the district boundary after input from council and local stakeholders, particularly on the south side, and that the draft identifies roughly 339 resources within the proposed district, of which 262 are listed as contributing. “The period of significance we’ve established runs from 1884 to 1975,” she said, noting the district centers on intact, historic-age buildings on both sides of the railroad tracks.
Russell said the district nomination emphasizes the area’s commercial history, community planning and development, and ethnic or Hispanic heritage tied to South Side migration and adobe building traditions. She asked residents to share historic photos and documentation via the project email while the consultants work through review rounds with THC.
Councilmember Darren Dance asked whether federal-level staffing or policy changes had affected review or benefits. Russell answered that National Park Service review staff have not been reduced and that nominations continue to be processed, though some federal grant programs may be subject to temporary uncertainty: “The grants are a bit more of a question mark,” she said, while calling historic tax credits “fairly safe.”
The consultants and staff said the Coconut Field nomination is ahead of schedule and the Downtown district DOE was submitted March 3. Post Oak and staff said they are targeting the Texas State Board of Review later this year, with mosquito scheduling depending on THC feedback. The consultants requested continuing public records and photographs to strengthen the final drafts.
The presentation closed with staff and the consultant offering to post the historic-photo call and nomination information on VisitAlpine and the city’s social channels to widen community outreach.
