Consultant presents near-final Wildwood historic preservation plan; commission asks for prioritization in one week

Marsha Boyle, a consultant with MIG, walked the Historic Preservation Commission through a formatted draft of Wildwood's historic preservation plan and the results of a recent virtual open house, and asked commissioners to prioritize goals and actions over the next week so the team can prepare a final packet for the March meeting and subsequent adoption hearings.

The consultant said the draft organizes seven overarching goals with 17 short-term, 14 medium-term and 19 long-term actions, plus additional long-term items in an appendix. Boyle asked commissioners whether some goals should be combined, whether items should be recast as vision elements rather than action items, and whether any timing (short/medium/long) ought to change. "We've taken all of that input and folded that into the next rendition of the historic preservation plan," Boyle said during her screen presentation.

Commissioners raised concerns about overlap among goals, especially those intended to "enhance visitor experience," boost economic opportunity around the Historic Town Center and focus on Route 66. "To me, those are one and the same," a commissioner said, urging consolidation to keep the plan concise and implementable. Another member recommended a flow diagram showing how the goals were derived; Boyle agreed the team could prepare such a chart to clarify priorities.

City staff and commissioners also emphasized implementability given limited staff capacity. Department staff said some items moved to the appendix to avoid overwhelming available staff resources and suggested commissioners treat the plan as guidance that the work program can implement over time. "An unsuccessful plan is one with great words that never gets done," a staff representative told the commission, urging realism in what can be achieved without additional capacity.

The commission agreed to a one-week window for written comments: commissioners will annotate the formatted document and send edits to staff, who will consolidate feedback for the consultant. Boyle said she expected the final formatted document to return for the commission's review in March before moving to planning commission and city council for public hearings and potential adoption. Staff also agreed to add requested map material and clarify visual references in the formatted package.

Next steps: commissioners will submit written comments within a week; staff will consolidate those comments for the consultant to integrate into a final packet for the commission's March meeting and the subsequent public hearings.