Why is Timrod Park part of the Florence Overlay District?
Due to it's historic significance and close proximity to downtown, Timrod Park Neighborhood became part of the Downtown Overlay District. Why is this important?
The Importance of the Timrod Park Neighborhood Overlay District
- The intent of this district is to promote good urban residential design and maintain and build upon the attractive and significant historic architecture that exists throughout this District.
- The intent of this District is to maintain the general quality and appearance of the neighborhood and to encourage redevelopment while preserving and promoting the cultural, economic and general welfare of the public.
- The District does so by providing a mechanism for the identification, recognition, preservation, maintenance, protection and enhancement of existing architecturally valuable structures and other properties which make up the Timrod Park Residential District. Similar to the other Downtown Development Districts, the goal is to implement and enable redevelopment by providing compatible residential development immediately adjacent to the "traditional" Downtown Core Area.
- Of basic importance to this effort is the maintenance, restoration, and careful redevelopment of the historic residential area known as Timrod Park Neighborhood. The boundaries are shown in yellow diagram.
- General Guidelines for the Timrod Park Residential District, Certificates of Appropriateness are issued by the Design Review Board or the Downtown Planning Coordinator for all actions set out in Section 2.9-4 of the County Municipal Consolidated Zoning Ordinance.
To maintain, protect and preserve the scale and basic character and salient architectural details of homes within a historical district. A historical district is not a static museum, but rather a living, changing neighborhood. There is room for private renewal and architectural creativity, within appropriate controls and standards. Historical designation in a neighborhood will encourage continuous research into a community's human past and culture for the benefit of future generations and protect our high-quality architecture, mature landscaping and pedestrian orientation of our historic community by denying demolition of existing older homes to simply build out-of-scale super-houses that overwhelm the neighborhood. The character of a neighborhood is threatened by the teardown phenomenon, which is destroying the architecture and heritage of many communities. A historic district will provide protection from demolition, insensitive alterations and out-of-character new construction and emphasize the value of the historic neighborhood.
