Davidson Historic Preservation Plan

Historic Preservation In Davidson 

Historic preservation has long been a priority for the Town of Davidson. In 1989, the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) was created, as well as the first local historic district. This local district gave the town control, through the HPC, over the design of structures built within the district. The Davidson Board of Commissioners affirmed the importance of historic preservation in their 2020 Comprehensive Plan and also more recently as one of the guiding tenets in their most recent Strategic Plan. Specific action items in the Strategic Plan include: 

• developing a historic preservation plan 
• expanding the historic district
• improving historic district guidelines
• supporting strategies for naturally occurring affordable housing with historic preservation principles
• supporting grants for local businesses who want to rehab structures in the historic district 

In the fall of 2020, the town began the process of working towards its first ever Historic Preservation Plan, and in early 2021, Heritage Strategies, LLC was chosen to produce the Historic Preservation Plan. 

Town staff views a historic preservation plan as a direct result of the community-input driven Comprehensive Plan and the 2020-2021 Strategic Plan. Based on the Historic Preservation Plan, town staff seeks to involve as many as possible in the input process, increase historic designations, update design standards, and craft an overall strategy for signage and storytelling. The Historic Preservation Plan’s goal is to provide a “roadmap” for historic preservation in the Town of Davidson for the next 10-15 years. 

Davidson community residents and business owners can watch for additional opportunities to offer feedback in the coming months. 

For questions and more information, please contact Senior Planner Lindsay Laird at llaird@townofdavidson.org.