A
Casey’s General Store representative and Lincoln property owner
Larry Riva, who would like to sell his Fifth Street lot just west of
the Postville Courthouse to the Casey corporation, came to the
meeting to ask if the proposed ordinance would prevent the new
business from being built. Property owners in a historic district
who want to remodel, change or demolish a structure would need to
get permission from the historic preservation commission and would
be restricted to the changes outlined in the ordinance.
Although
no specific building or location was named in the 13-page document,
Lincoln Mayor Beth Davis has already said she would like the area
from the Postville Courthouse west to Postville Road to be
designated a historic preservation district. This would include the
property Riva wants to sell and Casey’s wants to buy.
"Can
they declare this a historic site while we are getting permission to
build?" Casey representative Diane Ahern asked.
"They
can, but the city council will have the final word," newly
appointed City Attorney William Bates answered. "There are a
whole lot of things that would have to happen before you would be
regulated by that ordinance."
He
pointed out that the time element did not favor the historic
preservation designation and that a lot of "ifs" stood
between the proposed historic district and limitations on the use of
Riva’s property.
"If
the historic preservation committee were appointed, and if it would
hold public hearings to decide that the area should be a historic
district, and if the committee voted ‘yes,’ and then if the
council accepted the committee’s recommendation, restrictions on
what could be built in the area would apply," he said.
He
emphasized that the final decision of designating a historic
preservation district or a historic landmark would be up to the
council.
The
time it will take to get the proposed ordinance passed is another
"if." The ordinance committee has just begun discussions
of the proposal and has a lot of work to do before passing it,
according to committee chairman Michael Montcalm.
For
the Casey store, the time element could be much shorter. Before any
construction can begin, Riva’s lot must be rezoned from
residential to commercial use and approved by several commissions. A
hearing is scheduled before the city’s planning commission on Aug. 16
and another before the zoning board of appeals on Aug. 20. Then the
plan for the new store must be approved by the full council.
Although
Mayor Davis said she welcomed the Casey store to Lincoln, she said
she had tried to persuade the company to choose another location.
She had hoped the city would buy Riva’s lot, which is presently
empty, and develop it as a parking area for tourists visiting the
Postville Courthouse next door.
However,
she said she would not contact either the planning commission or the
zoning board of appeals to influence their decisions.
