Athens Residents Want Street Declared As Historic District

Athens-Clarke County commissioners are now asking for a moratorium on building and demolition permits in that neighborhood.

A few years ago, homeowners on West Rutherford Street said no thanks when they were asked to be part of a historic district. 

“There’s been a change of heart, so that’s where we are right now, giving that street another chance,” says Bruce Lonnee, a senior planner with Athens-Clarke County.

The homeowners saw what happened a couple of blocks away where a historic home was demolished and a bigger one took its place. More recently, a neighbor on West Rutherford Street did get a demolition permit. So now more than 50 percent of homeowners on the street say they don’t want that to happen on their street by having West Rutherford Street declared a historic district. That would mean stricter zoning laws.

Amy Kissane is executive director of the Athens-Clarke Heritage Foundation. She says the homeowners on West Rutherford Street have been discussing taking action on it for a few years now. 

“It’s a very desirable area to live, so what we’re seeing is people buying homes smaller than what they want, tearing those down and building back something much bigger,” Kissane says. 

John Waters says Athens is not unique in losing historic homes. He was director of the graduate studies for historic preservation program at the University of Georgia.

“Most communities realize the value of historic preservation in terms of property values as well as attracting people to come to the community as heritage tourists because they want to learn about our past and our architecture,” Waters says. “And of course if you destroy that, you’ve lost that opportunity.”

If the moratorium is approved next month, it will buy officials time to designate the street as part of a historic district.