Category: Advocacy

CPA Presents to Cincinnati City Council

CPA Executive Director, Beth Johnson, presented at Cincinnati City Council on January 31, 2023 about the importance of Historic Preservation.

Watch her 20 minute section by skipping to the 2 hour marker on the recording.

She informed council members that Historic Preservation is beneficial to our city because:

it retains our unique CULTURE and makes this an interesting and vibrant place to be
it is more SUSTAINABLE and ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY than building new by keeping construction materials out of our landfills, reusing the embodied energy exerted in the initial build, and reducing demolition pollution
it’s smart INVESTMENT that creates local jobs, tax credits that attract development and brings heritage tourism
it creates HOUSING STABILITY in housing value and in population through popular historic district designations
promotes AFFORDABLE HOUSING by rehabilitating abandoned buildings like old schools, libraries or hotels for adaptive reuse
it tells our past and present STORIES around what it means to be a resident, business or visitor of Greater Cincinnati

Also noted is the importance to celebrate Cincinnati’s status as a national leader in preservation and maintain this status as we continue to grow.

Special thanks to Councilmember Jeff Cramerding for hosting CPA at the Equitable Growth and Housing Committee.

ADVOCACY ALERT: Help save historic canal building

The Canal Building, located at Central Parkway and Magnolia Street in OTR, is a pre-Civil War historic building, one of the last examples of commercial Erie Canal structures in Cincinnati. The building is a contributing building to both the National Register of Historic Places and the Over-the-Rhine Historic District.

For the past two years, a group of neighbors has been fighting a proposed demolition of the building by a developer and its partner, the longtime owner of the building, Downtown Property Management. This development group seeks to construct a hotel and claims the historic property must be demolished as it is economically infeasible to reuse the building. They claimed this while the building was being used as an office and had been used as an office prior to the historic district being in place. Early on in the case before the Historic Conservation Board, Cincinnati Preservation Association supported the legal fees with a $2,000 donation. While the Historic Conservation Board (HCB) UNANIMOUSLY rejected the demolition request, the developer appealed the decision to the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) which overturned the Historic Conservation Board’s Decision. The ZBA based its decision on its opinion that lack of profitability for a business is an economic hardship for the building. The ZBA’s review should have been limited to whether or not the Historic Conservation Board made any errors on how they made their decision, not to decide that case anew and second guess the Historic Conservation Board.

If the Zoning Board of Appeals’ decision stands, anyone will be free to demolish a historic building merely by showing that he or she has not realized a profit since owning it and purposely not investing in its upkeep other than for the bare minimum code compliance. On appeal, the Court is being asked to reverse the Zoning Board of Appeals’ misguided decision and restore the carefully calibrated balance between public and private interests that the City of Cincinnati’s Historic Preservation Ordinance creates.

This case has a great legal significance for historic preservation in Cincinnati and Ohio. As CPA works to support the case we are also asking our members and historic preservation advocates to help support the neighbors that are leading the fight and give to their legal fund so they can continue their fight.

Learn More and Donate to Help Save the Canal Building

CONGRESS PASSES BILL THAT PRESERVES BLACK BURIAL GROUNDS NATIONWIDE

The African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act, included in the omnibus appropriations bill, was passed by Congress authorizing up to 3 million annually! The bill was introduced by Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown and received bi-partisan support, also being sponsored by Utah Senator Mitt Romney. Congrats to the Coalition for American Heritage and all the partners who highlighted the need for federal action to safeguard historic African American cemeteries over five years.

The African American Burial Grounds Preservation Program will help identify burial grounds ahead of infrastructure projects and commercial development, thereby minimizing construction delays and avoiding unnecessary community heartache. These sacred sites, and the stories they tell, are an integral part of our American heritage.

The importance for this federal bill started right here in Cincinnati after the Union Baptist Cemetery was vandalized and church advocates brought Senator Sherrod Brown on site which led to his introduction of this legislation and advocacy to fund the bill. Pictured left are Cheryl New, Member of Union Baptist Church, Beth Johnson, CPA Executive Director and Louise Stevenson, Member of Union Baptist Church.

Watch coverage of Beth and Louise at the cemetery where it all began from Fox 19 here, from WCPO here, and listen on NPR here.

CPA is proud to be among the 150 groups across the country who joined the advocacy and support of this important federal legislation. Learn more about this legislation at the Coalition for American Heritage here.

The United American Cemetery (pictured above) was founded in 1848 in Avondale. It’s the oldest cemetery in Ohio designated for Black people and was forced to move in 1883 after white property owners nearby declared it a public nuisance. Currently, the historic cemetery in Madisonville is owned and maintained by Union Baptist Church.

Perseverance on Vine is a multi-building project that combined LIHTC and HTC. 3CDC and Over-the-Rhine Community Housing partnered on the project. New Republic Architecture was the architect. Image provided by New Republic Architecture.

Statement on House Bill 45 from CPA Executive Director, Beth Johnson

Click here for information on how to contact your state elected officials about your concerns on House Bill 45 and sample language for your communication

On Friday January 6^th Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed budget legislation containing two provisions that both historic preservation and affordable housing advocates urged him to veto. One provision of House Bill 45 prevents property owners from pairing federal low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs) with state historic tax credits (HTCs) for the preservation and rehabilitation of historic buildings. This new law prevents future projects from combining those incentives and also applies to properties in development but not placed in service.

Another provision allows county auditors to assess the value of affordable housing properties based on the market rate, rather than their income-based rent ceilings–a change that is expected to lead to higher property tax bills for those properties that can’t afford the added expense. This could potentially cause existing affordable housing projects to be converted to market rate causing residents to be displaced and historic buildings to become vacant.

The above 2 provisions will put Ohio’s affordable and workforce properties at risk: both of being created, and from being able to continue operation. This will reduce availability and exacerbate the severe shortage that Cincinnati already faces. Cincinnati has been a tremendous example of of the positive impact of using Low Income Housing Tax Credit and Historic Tax Credit together. Both are vital tools to transforming communities and retaining an economically diverse population within changing neighborhoods. Using these tools together are key for equitable development and healthy communities. These are essential tools for Cincinnati to address the dire need for quality affordable housing for our citizens, while saving and using Cincinnati’s historic buildings as sustainable and attractive places for affordable housing.

The passing of House Bill 45 prevents this from happening and is an assault on Cincinnati and other communities that leverage their historic buildings for holistic community development. CPA will be working with our partners locally and statewide, as well as the City of Cincinnati, to advocate for state policy and legislative changes that are vital for Cincinnati to continue to do equitable historic preservation development reusing our historic buildings.

We encourage all of our historic preservation advocates, partners, and members to contact your state elected officials to express your concerns regarding these provisions and to encourage legislation to reverse them.

Language that you can use in your communications is below. Thank you for being an advocate for historic preservation and affordable housing in your community

“My name is (your first and last name) and I am a (advocate/community member/resident) who resides in your district.

We oppose the provisions in HB 45 that disqualify the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit properties from Historic Tax Credit eligibility and allow auditors to assess the value of affordable housing based on market rate rather than income-based rent ceilings. These provisions will have a detrimental impact on the redevelopment of vacant historic buildings and continued operation of existing affordable housing in historic buildings within Cincinnati, Hamilton County and our region. We encourage you to provide new legislation and policy that will reverse these provisions.”

To contact Governor Mike DeWine
Governor’s Hotline: (614) 644-4357
Office of the Governor, Mike DeWine
77 S. High Street – 30th Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43215

Find your Senate and House district

To contact Senator Catherine D. Ingram- Senate District 9
Phone: (614) 466-5980
Senate Building
1 Capitol Square
Ground Floor-056
Columbus, Ohio 43215

To contact Senator Louis W Blessing III- Senate District 8
Phone: (614) 466-8068
Senate Building
1 Capitol Square
Ground Floor-041
Columbus, Ohio 43215

To contact Senator Steve Wilson- Senate District 7
Phone: (614) 466-9737
Senate Building
1 Capitol Square
1^st Floor- 124
Columbus, Ohio 43215

To contact Representative Dani Issacsohn- House District 24
Phone: (614) 466-5786
77 S. High St
10th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215

To contact Representative Cecil Thomas- House District 25
Phone: (614) 466-1645
77 S. High St
10th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215

To contact Representative Sedrick Denson- House District 26
Phone: (614) 466-1308
77 South High Street
10th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215

To contact Representative Rachel Baker- House District 27
Phone: (614) 644-6886
77 S. High St
10th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215

To contact Representative Jessica Miranda- House District 28
Phone: (614) 466-8120
77 South High Street
14th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215

To contact Representative Cindy Abrams- House District 29
Phone: (614) 466-9091
77 South High Street
13th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215

To contact Representative Bill Seitz- House District 30
Phone: (614) 466-8258
77 South High Street
13th Floor
Columbus, OH 43215