TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THRU: Rick Otto, City Manager
FROM: William Crouch, Community Development Director
1. Subject
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Historic Preservation Agreements (Mills Act Contracts) for fifteen qualified historic properties.
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2. Summary
The Community Development Department Historic Preservation Program received fifteen applications for new Mills Act Contracts in the Old Towne and Eichler Historic Districts for the Spring 2020 application period. Staff recommends approval and execution of the contracts.
3. Recommended Action
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Approve fifteen Mills Act Contracts between the City of Orange and the identified property owners for the preservation and rehabilitation of qualified historic properties, and authorize the Mayor and City Clerk to execute on behalf of the City.
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4. Fiscal Impact
The City may incur a total reduction of property tax of approximately $10,441 per year. The actual amount of the property tax reduction under each Mills Act Contract will be determined by the Orange County Office of the Assessor, using a predetermined income-based approach to assessment, considering area rental rates and maintenance costs.
The $1,000 application fee for each contract offsets the cost of staff review, property inspection, and this public meeting. The $30 annual fee offsets ongoing costs of administration of the contracts. Rehabilitation will generate additional revenues from building permit fees, and the local economy will benefit from specialized work in historic preservation by local building contractors and material suppliers.
5. Strategic Plan Goals
Goal 5: Recognize, promote and preserve Orange’s rich heritage
b. Expand and strengthen processes and practices related to the protection of cultural resources.
6. Discussion and Background
The purpose of the Mills Act Program is to leverage property tax savings to support private investment in the preservation of historic properties.
Mills Act applications for fifteen qualified historic properties were received prior to the March 1, 2020 application deadline. Six properties are within the Old Towne Historic District and eight properties are in the Eichler Historic Districts. One property, 2056 N. Shaffer Street, is located outside of historic district boundaries. It has been surveyed and identified as a potentially significant historic property at the local level as an outlying farmstead property with high historic integrity. Therefore, it is eligible to participate in the Mills Act Program as it meets the definition of a “qualified historic property” representative of early development in Orange.
Staff reviewed the applications and met with each property owner at the historic property to review the proposed Rehabilitation Plan (Exhibit D) attached to the Mills Act Contract. Each Rehabilitation Plan has been tailored to the preservation needs of the specific historic property and has been determined to meet the Mills Act Program requirements and to be in conformance with the relevant design standards for the historic districts. The investment by property owners in these fifteen historic properties totals more than $1,071,475 over ten years.
Each Mills Act property owner agrees to complete the work described in the Rehabilitation Plan. Additional contract conditions include:
Preserve and rehabilitate the historic property and its character-defining features in conformance with adopted rules and regulations.
Meet City of Orange Historic Property Maintenance Standards for all buildings, structures, yards and other improvements on the property.
Agree to property inspections once every five years of the contract term and/or when work is completed to determine compliance with terms of the contract.
File annual status reports on progress of improvements and repairs and/or any changed conditions of the property.
Provide a ten-year update of proposed rehabilitation and repair items, 90 days prior to the tenth contract anniversary.
Meet all other contract terms and conditions as specified in the Historic Property Preservation Agreement.
A summary of each application is provided in the Attachments to the Staff Report.
7. ATTACHMENTS
• Table Summary of Fifteen Mills Act Applications
• Mills Act Contract No. 333.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 334.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 335.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 336.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 337.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 338.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 339.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 340.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 341.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 342.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 343.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 344.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 345.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 346.0-20 with photograph
• Mills Act Contract No. 347.0-20 with photograph