Historic Preservation Commission asks Board of Supervisors to refine proposed façade-inspection ordinance

The Historic Preservation Commission on Feb. 4 unanimously adopted a resolution with recommended edits to proposed Board of Supervisors legislation that would require initial and periodic façade inspections, maintenance and repair for buildings five stories and taller.

Department staff described the pending ordinance (chapter 16e) and asked for the Commission's review and comment. Staff explained the ordinance would require initial façade inspections and submittals on a phased schedule, with the first reports for buildings constructed prior to 1910 due by Dec. 31, 2018, and that inspection procedures and maintenance standards would be detailed in an administrative bulletin adopted by the Department of Building Inspection.

Commissioners voiced concerns that the draft ordinance lacks historic‑building specificity and could produce unintended consequences, such as owners removing decorative cornices instead of repairing them. Commissioner Welfel cited a New York precedent where inspections led to removal of historic cornices. Commissioners recommended amending the ordinance to explicitly provide for professional qualifications and least-invasive inspection methods for historic buildings, to refer to the California Historic Building Code or best-practice preservation guidance, and to require that maintenance work identified by inspections be referred to preservation staff for review.

On a motion and second, the Commission approved a resolution forwarding the Commission's comments and amendments to the Board of Supervisors: expand coverage to buildings considered historic resources under CEQA (not just Article 10 and 11 landmark buildings), require maintenance in compliance with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards, and involve the HPC and Preservation Planning staff in drafting the administrative bulletin. The motion passed 7–0.