A Message from Your Neighbors on the Armory Park Historic Zone Advisory Board:
DO YOU WANT TO SAVE TIME AND MONEY WHEN YOU PLAN TO MAKE CHANGES TO YOUR HISTORIC HOME IN ARMORY PARK?
Here’s what you need to know.
On your own, you can:
- Fix broken window glass,
- Paint the outside of the house,
- Make emergency repairs to a leaky roof,
- Replace a rooftop evaporative cooler or air conditioner in the same location,
- Add a window air conditioner,
- Fix a broken fence board or metal picket with identical material.
You need to get an Historic Preservation Zone (HPZ) review to:
- Change/replace windows or doors,
- Install or replace fences and gates,
- Put on a new roof or new shingles,
- Add walls,
- Add solar panels,
- Move exterior heating and/or cooling units,
- Add any structures,
- Other exterior changes.
Not sure? Contact Martha McClements, chair of the Armory Park Historic Zone Advisory Board (APHZAB), at mmcclements@earthlink.net or 520-820-6541 for guidance. Arranging for an informal review while you’re still considering ideas for changes could be a major time and money saver for you to avoid having to redo plans. Doing work without approvals could result in stop-work orders, fines, formal zoning violations, loss of the historic property tax break and even having to restore the property to its prior condition.
APHZAB is an official City of Tucson Advisory Board, made up of unpaid volunteers drawn from your neighbors. Our purpose is to help you plan appropriately and guide you thru the process of completing your project and our goal is to help you make decisions that maintain the aesthetic quality and integrity of our wonderful neighborhood. Your project may be subject to city fees, but APHZAB services are free. To be on the agenda, please make arrangements at least 1 week ahead of time to comply with the open meeting law requirements.
APHZAB meetings are usually held in the Community Center of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (on E. 16th St. just east of S. 5th Ave.) at 7 pm on the 3rd Tuesday of the month as needed. The time, place and agenda for a meeting, and the Legal Action Report documenting the results, are posted on the City’s Boards and Commissions website at https://www.tucsonaz.gov/clerks/boards?board=9.
In addition, a volunteer team is working on an “Historic Review Improvement Initiative” to help the process go more smoothly. Please contact Ken Taylor at ken@kmtaylor.com or Michael Means at micasaadobe4@gmail.com to share your experiences. If desired, your feedback will remain anonymous.
Contacts/References:
- Martha McClements APHZAB Chair: 520-820-6541 mmcclements@earthlink.net
- Michael Taku, Lead Planner, Planning and Development Services: 520-837-4963, michael.taku@tucsonaz.gov
- City of Tucson Historic Preservation Office: 520-837-6968
- APHZAB’s City of Tucson website page, with APHZAB members, agendas, Legal Action Reports, and meeting minutes: https://www.tucsonaz.gov/clerks/boards?board=9
- Tucson’s Unified Development Code (UDC): http://library.amlegal.com/nxt/gateway.dll/Arizona/tucson_az_udc/unifieddevelopmentcode?f=templates$fn=default.htm$3.0$vid=amlegal:tucson_udc_az
- Article 5.8 covers Historic Preservation Zones; Section 9-02.0.0 in the Technical Standards Manual (scroll down to find it) has more detail on HPZs, including guidance specific to Armory Park at Section 9-02.0.7.2.
Armory Park Neighborhood Association 