PRESENTER
Katie Totman, HPO
SUBJECT:
Case DM2024-3455: A Request for Review of Landmark Eligibility in Response to a Demolition Permit for the property at 158 S Academy.
HISTORIC DISTRICT/LANDMARK NAME: N/A
APPLICABLE CITATIONS:
Sec. 66-56. Criteria for the designation of historic landmarks and districts.
A historic landmark or district may be designated if it meets at least one of the following criteria:
(1) Possesses significance in history, architecture, archeology, or culture.
(2) Is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of local, regional, state, or national history.
(3) Is associated with the lives of persons significant in our past.
(4) Embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction.
(5) Represents the work of a master designer, builder, or craftsman.
(6) Represents an established and familiar visual feature of the neighborhood or city.
(Ord. No. 96-9, § I, 2-26-96)
Sec. 66-60. Demolition and house move permit review for non-designated properties.
Applicability. The provisions of this section apply to any request to demolish or move any building, object, site, or structure that is not a historic landmark and is not located within a historic district. Please reference sections 66-57, 66-58 and 66-59 in this Code for the demolition and relocation process pertaining to historically designated properties.
(1) Initiation. All applications for permits to demolish or move buildings, objects, sites, or structures which are not already covered under the processes outlined in sections 66-57, 66-58 and 66-59 shall be referred to the city historic preservation officer for the purpose of determining whether the building, object, site, or structure may meet the eligibility criteria for local historic landmark designation found in section 66-56.
(2) House/building moves. If a non-historically designated structure located within the boundaries of the city limits is being moved to a new location within the city limits, the historic preservation officer may approve the move administratively. If a structure within the boundaries of the city limits is being moved outside the city limits including the ETJ, the historic preservation officer shall follow the process outlined in subsection (3) and evaluate the structure against the historic landmark criteria outlined in section 66-56.
(3) Assessment and recommendation. Following receipt of a complete demolition or house move application, properties shall be evaluated for eligibility under the criteria for the designation of historic landmarks and districts outlined in section 66-56. The city historic preservation officer shall determine whether the building, object, site, or structure may meet the criteria for landmark designation in section 66-56 within 30 days after receipt of the completed application. If the building, object, site, or structure is determined to have no cultural, historical, architectural, or archaeological significance, a demolition or house move permit may be issued immediately, provided such application otherwise complies with all City Code requirements.
(4) Decision. If said building, object, site, or structure is determined by the historic preservation officer to meet the landmark eligibility criteria, the demolition or house move permit shall not be issued and the historic preservation officer shall make such information available to the historic landmark commission for review and recommendations as to whether it should be designated a historic landmark. If the commission determines that the structure meets the eligibility criteria, the commission shall recommend to the city council that the building, object, site, or structure be historically designated. If the property owner objects to the historic designation, a three-fourths vote of the historic landmark commission or the planning commission and of the city council shall be required for historic designation of the property in question.
(Ord. No. 2024-52, § 1, 7-8-24)
FINDINGS:
a. A demolition permit application was submitted to the building department by Flash Demolition on behalf of the property owner of 158 S Academy, located in the Sophienburg neighborhood (this property is NOT in the Sophienburg Historic District).
b. DEMOLITION AND DESIGNATION SUBCOMMITTEE: The Demolition and Designation Subcommittee held a site visit on January 24, 2025. Two (2) Commissioners and city staff were in attendance and walked inside and around the structure in question.
c. HISTORIC CONTEXT: The property at 158 S Academy is a one-story wood frame vernacular residence with simple cottage influence with a rear addition and was built between c. 1902 and 1907 based on Sanborn map evidence. It is in the Sophienburg Hill neighborhood of City Council District 1. The property belonged to Ernst and Pauline Heidemeyer at the time of its construction. Ernst Heidemeyer was a German immigrant and a saddler by trade who owned his own shop. Together, Ernst and Pauline had a daughter, Erna, born in 1896. Erna married Otto Rohde in 1917 and together they moved into the house at 158 S Academy as early as 1920 according to census records. Otto worked as a retail merchant in a grocery store in the 1920s, and by 1950 he was working as a county clerk. The property was transferred to their daughter, Ellen Rohde Watson, in 1988.
d. ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION: The house is a vernacular cottage with elements of early 20th-century rural architecture. It is a single-story structure with a rectangular footprint and a gable roof covered in metal sheeting. The front facade is symmetrical, featuring a full-width front porch supported by simple, unadorned square columns. The porch is slightly elevated, with a concrete foundation and a straight concrete walkway leading to the entrance. The exterior walls are clad in horizontal wooden siding, with visible signs of wear and weathering. The windows are double hung wood with screens covering them. The house features two front doors, a common feature in homes that were sometimes designed as duplex-style dwellings or built to accommodate separate living spaces under one roof. The simplicity of the structure, with minimal ornamentation, suggests it was built with functionality in mind rather than as an elaborate architectural statement. The house reflects a regional vernacular influenced by the practical needs of its inhabitants, typically using locally available materials and straightforward construction methods.
e. EVALUATION: To be eligible for historic landmark designation, properties shall meet at least one (1) of the six (6) criteria listed. Staff found that the property potentially met the following criteria, consistent with Code Section 66-56:
4. Embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction; the style of the home features traditional building methods that might speak to the broader development of New Braunfels.
f. If the HLC determines that the property meets the criteria for eligibility, they may initiate landmark designation in which case staff will take the property forward to the Planning Commission for a recommendation and then to the City Council for final action. If the HLC does not find that the property meets the eligibility criteria, staff may administratively approve the demolition permit following the HLC meeting.
STAFF ANALYSIS:
While the structure retains identifiable historic characteristics, it is not immediately clear that it exemplifies the significance required under Criterion 4. The existing architectural features are consistent with vernacular design but do not necessarily distinguish the property as a particularly strong or unique example of its type. Based on the available information, the structure’s eligibility under the criterion is subject to interpretation. The commission may consider whether the property sufficiently meets the standard for designation.