As Memphis strives for continued growth and development, a team of planners and a City-appointed board of expertise-laden volunteers aim to preserve what makes Memphis special. 

The Memphis Landmarks Commission (MLC) was created in July 1975 by ordinance, tasking this newly formed board with preserving and protecting historically significant landmarks, neighborhoods, and homes within the City of Memphis. The staff planners who support this board—by meeting with neighborhood associations, reviewing application materials, and providing recommendations to the MLC—are referred to as Preservation Planners. 

The historic charm in Memphis can easily be seen in the residential architecture.  Many neighborhoods are more than 100 years old with historic architecture reflecting the City, its changes through history, and those who once lived here. Communities do not want to lose what makes them special, what connects them to the history of the City, so the Preservation Planners and MLC have a responsibility in ensuring preservation is  prioritized. 

For a neighborhood, community, or specific landmark to receive a local historic district or landmark designation, an application must be submitted to Preservation Planners and later presented before and approved by the MLC, the Land Use Control Board, and the City Council.  The ultimate decision is made by MLC, but they weigh their decisions with community feedback. Currently, there are nineteen local historic districts, all with their own specific design guidelines resulting from collaboration amongst neighbors. Without this approved designation, properties do not receive the consideration, inspections, and safeguarding extended from the Memphis Landmarks Commission and through the Division. 

Neighborhoods, in pursuing this designation, have to consider what significant architectural features they want to preserve into the future by creating unique design guidelines for their neighborhoods. These features on a property, if they are visible from the street,—like windows, doors, fences, deep-set porches, exposed brick, tight siding, and deep overhangs —then become points of preservation where only particular materials or changes can be made in keeping the historic character of the home. 

And when a resident, homeowner, or property owner within a historic district seeks to make a change or build a new structure, they should first consult a Preservation Planner to determine if a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) is required before proceeding. 

A Certificate of Appropriateness is the formal determination on changes to historic homes, anything from replacing the front door and windows to installing fences and gates to even  painting or replacing brick and masonry. “Most projects we hear about are repair and maintenance, so a COA isn’t required,” shared Margot Payne, Preservation Outreach & Grant Coordinator. “But we offer guidance to applicants regardless. It’s best to give us a call or an email early on in the planning stages of a project, before you start.” 

The Preservation Planners tend to hear about projects frequently when they are in-progress and have been reported by a concerned neighbor. In this situation, an Inspector visits the property to determine if the neighborhood design guidelines are not being followed and then issues a Stop Work order. Then, the project is delayed until the property owner applies for a COA and pays the retroactive application fee. This fee only applies when an application is the result of in-progress work or work completed without an issued COA and is the standard application fee for the project scope but doubled. 

The Develop 901 Citizen Portal even ensures that permit applicants within historic neighborhoods are aware of the potential requirement for a COA. Properties within historic neighborhoods are part of the historic district overlay, a component of the geographic information systems (GIS) maps used by Planners and Inspectors alike. 

That property data triggers a notification in the portal for both staff and applicants, so the application will be reviewed to ensure it has met any COA requirements; and when inspections occur during and after the project, Inspectors will verify that the approved changes or plans have been rightly followed. 

Some neighbors are concerned that the COA approval process adds more bureaucratic red tape to what otherwise should be simple and straightforward projects. But, all of this action comes back to the mission of preserving historically significant architecture in Memphis. “A homeowner can make a positive change and still keep the character, historic charm. This isn’t top-down but ground-up,” notes Payne. “The design guidelines are created by neighborhoods. The neighborhoods have applied for this historic designation. We are helping to facilitate the desire for preservation that communities have expressed.” 

To further meet the needs and desires of these neighborhoods, the Preservation Planners have engaged in more educational programming and outreach. In recent years, they have developed public information campaigns to notify property owners within historic districts of their property status and what that means, hoping to inform them before a project or change is even conceived.  

The Division of Planning and Development worked in partnership with Memphis Heritage to host a window restoration workshop for anyone interested in learning how to restore windows for historic homes. And there are plans to host an upcoming plaster repair workshop, another helpful and relevant skill for homeowners, contractors, and property owners alike within historic districts. 

Through all of their interaction with applicants and neighborhood associations, one sentiment remains clear: “We can help save money, time, and heartache if anyone who has questions just contacts us beforehand,” says Payne. “We just want to make sure it’s right from the start.” 

To learn more about the Memphis Landmarks Commission, visit this website.

If you have any questions for the Preservation Planners, contact them by phone at (901) 636-6619 or by email at [email protected]