The Fort Worth Stockyards
The Stockyards
The Thursday editorial “There will be a historic district in the Stockyards” closed with a comment that the National Trust for Historic Preservation had notified the Army Corps of Engineers to protect Marine Creek from environmental impacts of future development.
Actually, the National Trust’s concern is the 23 demolition permits that the city has already issued to the developer.
The corps’ future involvement is likely because of the project’s impacts on Marine Creek.
Under federal preservation law, the corps is required to consider the impact of the project on historic structures.
Historically, some developers have tried to get around this preservation review requirement by demolishing historic structures before applying for necessary federal permits. (Historic structures? What historic structures?)
To discourage this practice, the law imposes penalties on what is commonly known as “anticipatory demolition.”
Our letter was simply alerting the developer that demolishing historic structures for a project that would later require federal permits could actually jeopardize those permits.
We understand that Mayor Betsy Price has said that the developer now plans to analyze the buildings and consider repurposing them.
We and others would certainly welcome that.
Paul Edmondson, chief legal officer, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Washington, D.C.
As the consultant who completed the new Stockyards building survey, I was disappointed when the City Council selected the “small” district as the new Stockyards Historic District.
Created in November without research or fieldwork, the “small” boundary is poorly drawn.
Buildings that should be excluded are included.
Buildings that should be included are excluded.
I asked the City Council if it will accept the legal liability of this bad decision.
A legitimate historic district is created according to standard guidelines.
The council should have selected the larger boundary because it was delineated with methodology used by the state of Texas and the National Register.
It was recommended by the city’s Historic and Cultural Landmarks Commission and Zoning Commission, the Texas Historical Commission and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
City Council members will tell you they are not experts in historic preservation, and this was proven unequivocally.
Acting in an arbitrary and capricious manner, the council has exposed the city to lawsuits over the legitimacy of the “small” district.
By creating a boundary drawn without sound factual information, the City Council has created a historic district that is indefensible in a court of law.
Elliott “Kip” Wright,
Fort Worth
This story was originally published April 12, 2016 at 5:07 PM with the headline "The Fort Worth Stockyards."