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June 19, 2004 <br />Page 3 <br />Mary Clark stated she had brought some out of town guests to the downtown <br />area and they were able to spend an entire day eating and shopping in the <br />area, so historic tourism is good news. <br />Councilwoman Karen Wilkerson stated that 95% of her business is from out <br />of town and had recently hosted some visitors who had never been the Paris <br />before but loved it because of the historical homes and some visitors have <br />expressed interest in purchasing some of these homes and returning to Paris <br />to live. <br />Melissa Wickersham wondered how the City could establish a moratorium <br />without a survey. Arvin Starrett explained that the survey was of the entire <br />city. Mrs. Wickersham questioned if landscaping typically requires a COA, <br />and Ms. Zaboroski stated it did. She added that this prevents inappropriate <br />materials (gravel, etc.) from being used. Arvin Starrett stated that most <br />landscaping rules have been removed at the present time. Mrs. Wickersham <br />stated that home owners are doing work on their own and should not have to <br />ask a committee what they can do. <br />Skipper Steeley stated that historic preservation does nothing to stop <br />deterioration and questioned if the real problem was not code enforcement. <br />He stated that we failed in southwest Paris to save historical structures in the <br />past. Barbara Wilson advised Mr. Steeley that demolition by neglect would be <br />addressed in the future to help with this issue. Councilman Don Wilson <br />stated that the Building and Standards Commission has a huge inventory to <br />address. Currently, the focus is on those with health and safety issues, but <br />the City does not have much money left for demolition in the current budget. <br />Becki Norment stated that the HPC was working on an endangered property <br />list, and Brian Wear added that there was a need for funding to help protect <br />landmark- designated homes <br />There was further discussion over a need to revise zoning laws that allow <br />inappropriate businesses, because this discourages the purchase and <br />rehabilitation of historic structures. <br />7. The meeting adjourned at 11:06 a.m. <br />