Page 124 - Reflect DSM (City of Des Moines, IA)

Services
Investigate other potential funding opportunities to connect Services
community members with, and the possibility of stacking funds, such
as Iowa Economic Development Authority; the State Historic
Preservation and Cultural and Entertainment (HPCED) Tax Credit
Program; Low Income Housing Tax Credits; Neighborhood Finance
Corporation; Iowa Finance Authority; Home Investment Partnership
Program; and National Trust for Historic Preservation grant programs.

Program Administration and Internal Collaboration
Improve the functionality of the City's preservation program tools
N3
and processes.
Conduct regular meetings between department leaders to discuss
ongoing and upcoming projects that may directly or indirectly impact
historic and cultural resources in the City (designated and/or
recognized as important by community members).
Evaluate staff's capacity to maintain the existing historic preservation
program activity and enhance the program's community reach, and
identify additional resources as needed.*
Expand the list of Administratively Approved Certificate of
Appropriateness (AACOA) topics to reserve the most complicated and
detailed topics for the HPC, while also reducing the number of
applications that make it to the HPC meeting to reduce meeting
length. Publish this list as a matrix to the historic preservation
webpage.
Evaluate the demolition review process for properties outside local
historic districts.

Create a diagram to illustrate the Certificate of Appropriateness (COA)
process. Design it to be interative and accessible – available in printed
and digital formats, multiple languages, and to include links that
direct people to appropriate locations on the City's website.

Update the architectural design guidelines to be clear, concise, and
full of visual examples to make interpretation and application as
simple as possible for the applicant, staff, and the HPC.
Evaluate the existing COA application process to make it more
efficient for residents and staff. This may include publishing more
detail on the City's historic preservation webpage and actively
promoting a pre-application meeting with staff.
Eliminate the Landmark Review Board. Instead, nominations for local City of Des
landmarks and alterations to existing landmarks should be part of the NEAR-TERM Moines, City of Des Moines,
HPC's agendas, as needed. (0-5 Years) Development City Manager's
Enhance, and publish to the historic preservation webpage, the City's Services Office
salvage and documentation policy for historic properties and
infrastructure slated for demolition by:
Creating a clear step-by-step process to assist a property owner in
understanding what is expected for the salvage process, including
what constitutes "documentation and salvage to the satisfaction of
the director";
Identifying a staff point of contact to oversee the process and ensure
each step is completed before demolition begins;

112 DES MOINES Citywide Historic Preservation Plan