Misplaced Pages

#182817

52-589: The national historic district encompasses 252 contributing buildings and was developed between 1907 and about 1935. It includes notable examples of Queen Anne , Colonial Revival , and Bungalow / American Craftsman style architecture. Boylan Heights is named after the Boylan family who first moved to Raleigh in 1799. Originally from a prominent family in New Jersey , William M. Boylan Sr. moved to Halifax, North Carolina to work for his uncle sometime before 1797. After

104-498: A Certificate of Appropriateness (COA), and the historic commission or architectural review board may decide upon the changes. The COA process is carried out with all aspects of due process, with formal notification, hearings, and fair and informed decision-making. According to the National Park Service, historic districts are one of the oldest forms of protection for historic properties. The city of Charleston, South Carolina

156-419: A National Historic Landmark. Five years before the neighborhood submitted an application of its own. Today, Boylan Heights is celebrated community. Hosting an annual art walk showcasing local artiest. Boylan Heights was explored in the book Everything Sings: Maps for a Narrative Atlas which maps the neighborhood in unusual ways. Maps include the location of jack-o'-lanterns on porches, radio waves permeating

208-444: A State Historic Preservation Office, not all states must have a "state historic district" designation. As of 2004, for example, the state of North Carolina had no such designation. Local historic districts usually enjoy the greatest level of protection legally from any threats that may compromise their historic integrity because many land-use decisions are made at the local level. There are more than 2,300 local historic districts in

260-558: A federal designation, such as granting qualifications and tax incentives. In addition, the property can become protected under specific state laws. The laws can be similar or different from the federal guidelines that govern the National Register. A state listing of a historic district on a "State Register of Historic Places", usually by the State Historic Preservation Office , can be an "honorary status", much like

312-546: A handful of these developments on the outskirts of the city. Cameron Park , and Historic Glenwood near Five Points were developed at the same time. For the Boylan Heights project, twelve partners came together to form the Greater Raleigh Land Company, including Thomas Henery Briggs Jr. whose father helped build Montfort Hall in the 1850s. According to the company's certification of incorporation, their object

364-591: A historic district per U.S. federal law , last revised in 2004. According to the Register definition, a historic district is: a geographically definable area, urban or rural, possessing a significant concentration, linkage, or continuity of sites, buildings, structures, or objects united by past events or aesthetically by plan or physical development. A district may also comprise individual elements separated geographically but linked by association or history. Districts established under U.S. federal guidelines generally begin

416-530: A mesh of structures, streets, open space, and landscaping to define a historic district's character. As early as 1981, the National Trust for Historic Preservation identified 882 American cities and towns that had some form of "historic district zoning " in place--local laws meant specifically to protect historic districts. Before 1966, historic preservation in the United States was in its infancy. That year

468-472: A person of mixed or negro blood; Provided, that this shall not be construed to prevent the living upon the premises of any negro servant whose time is employed for domestic purposes by the occupants of the dwelling-home." Boylan Heights was marketed as the highest point in Raleigh. Perfect for builders, investors, or families. A large lot was set aside for Boylan Spring Park, though it would later be developed as

520-514: A price per square foot basis increased in value significantly more than non-designated properties. The original concept of an American historic district was a protective area surrounding more important, individual historic sites. As the field of historic preservation progressed, those involved came to realize that the structures acting as "buffer zones" were key elements of the historical integrity of larger landmark sites. Preservationists believed that districts should be more encompassing, blending

572-416: A result of the restrictions, lots on Boylan Ave. have large front lawns, many featuring wide porches. The rest of the development is a collection of smaller lots with little if any yard space. Also included in the deed restrictions was an attempt to keep the neighborhood segregated. Every deed included a clause that barred black people from becoming residents. "The premises shall not be occupied by negros or

SECTION 10

#1732869436183

624-423: A school for the neighborhood's children. An advertisement from 1909 instructed citizens to "let the pennies pay for a beautiful lot [in] Boylan Heights." It further claimed that if you could save just fifty cents a day for a few months you'd be able to afford one of the desirable lots. As part of their marketing for the new development Greater Raleigh Land Company donated a lot valued at $ 700 to be actioned off at

676-843: A school. If the City of Raleigh, now Wake County Public Schools ever stops using the land as a school it would return to the Improvement Association. On the 20th of the same month Raleigh voters approved a school bond that called for a six-grade school house with an auditorium to be built in the lot. Raleigh was not immune to the Great Depression . As manufacturing output dropped along with textile wages, unemployment rose and many of Boylan Heights' blue-collar residents became unable to afford their homes. Others turned their homes into apartments in an effort to save their land. When economic trends started looking up white-collar voters flocked out of

728-456: A separate process unrelated to zoning. Local historic districts are identified by surveying historic resources and delineating appropriate boundaries that comply with all aspects of due process . Depending on local ordinances or state law, property owners' permission may be required; however, all owners are to be notified and allowed to share their opinions. Most local historic districts are constricted by design guidelines that control changes to

780-563: A short relocation to Fayetteville in 1797 the pair moved to the newly created state capital to publish Federalist Party newspapers, the North Carolina Minerva and Raleigh Advisor. In 1818 Boylan Sr. purchased 197 acres of land for $ 3,000, which included what was the mainhouse of Wakefield Plantation, formerly owned by Raleigh and Wake County founding father Joel Lane. Along with his first wife Elizabeth Stokes McCulloch, who died in 1825 and his second wife Jane Elliot, he would live in

832-580: A smaller area with just one or a few resources. Historic districts can be created by federal, state, or local governments . At the federal level, they are designated by the National Park Service and listed on the National Register of Historic Places ; this is a largely honorary designation that does not restrict what property owners may do with a property. State -level historic districts usually do not include restrictions, though this depends on

884-423: A specific definition in relation to the National Register. All but the eponymous district category are also applied to historic districts listed on the National Register. A listing on the National Register of Historic Places is a governmental acknowledgment of a historic district. However, the Register is "an honorary status with some federal financial incentives." The National Register of Historic Places defines

936-447: A vision of its future character and social composition. Utilizing restrictive covenants they set a minimum construction value for each lot, with the highest value required on Boylan Avenue alongside the renamed Boylan Mansion. Lot 72 to the immediate left of the mansion was sold to A.I. Kaplan for $ 900 in 1909, requiring at least a $ 3,000 home to be constructed. Lot 150, further down Boylan Ave. between Cabarrus Street & South Street

988-405: Is artificially restricted and the supply of new housing permanently capped in area so designated as 'historic'. Critics of historic districts argue that while these districts may offer an aesthetic or visually pleasing benefit, they increase inequality by restricting access to new and affordable housing for lower and middle class tenants and potential home owners. Housing advocates have argued that

1040-407: Is credited with beginning the modern-day historic districts movement. In 1931, Charleston enacted an ordinance which designated an "Old and Historic District" administered by a Board of Architectural Review. Charleston's early ordinance reflected the strong protection that local historic districts often enjoy under local law. It asserted that no alteration could be made to any architectural features

1092-471: Is little more than recognition by the government that the resource is worthy of preservation. Generally, the criteria for acceptance to the National Register are applied consistently, but there are considerations for exceptions to the criteria, and historic districts influence some of those exceptions. Usually, the National Register does not list religious structures, moved structures, reconstructed structures, or properties that have achieved significance within

SECTION 20

#1732869436183

1144-482: Is not involved, then the listing on the National Register provides the site , property or district no protections. For example, if company A wants to tear down the hypothetical Smith House and company A is under contract with the state government of Illinois, then the federal designation would offer no protections. If, however, company A was under federal contract, the Smith House would be protected. A federal designation

1196-670: The Joel Lane House until his death in 1861. Boylan Sr. deeded his son William M. Boylan Jr. 100 acres in 1855. The boundary for the newly divided track was less than a quarter mile away from the Joel Lane House.Three years later Boylan Jr. hired English architect, William Percival and Raleigh builder Thomas H. Briggs Sr. Construction of Montfort Hall started shortly thereafter and was completed by 1858. When Union Army soldiers set up camp at Dorothea Dix Hospital in Raleigh during April 1865 as many as 30,000 soldiers scattered across

1248-560: The U.S. Conference of Mayors penned an influential report which concluded, in part, that Americans suffered from a sense of "rootlessness." They recommended historic preservation to help give Americans a sense of orientation. The creation of the National Register of Historic Places in 1966, on the heels of the report, helped instill that sense of orientation the mayors sought. The mayors also recommended that any historic preservation program not focus solely on individual properties but also on "areas and districts which contain special meaning for

1300-462: The 1908 Masonic Carnival. G.N. Walters was reported as the winner of the action, though there is no evidence the lot was ever deeded to him. Once all of the development's lots were sold in 1915 The Greater Raleigh Land Company dissolved. Two remaining lots, one intended to be Boylan Spring Park and the other a triangular lot at the corner of Kinsey Street and Boylan Avenue were deeded to The Boylan Heights Improvement Association for $ 10. The association

1352-632: The 1960s Boylan Heights transitioned into a wholly working-class neighborhood. Flanked by Norfolk South railroad tracks to the North, Central Prison to the East, and Dorothea Dix Hospital to the South a disconnect formed between the neighborhood and the rest of the city. It wasn't until the late 1970s that revitalization efforts within the community took hold. Lead by the owners of Montfort Hall, then operating as Boylan Heights Baptist Church, who applied for registration as

1404-470: The National Register of Historic Places. If such an objection occurred, then the nomination would become a determination of National Register eligibility only. This provision is controversial because of the presumption that owners who do not file a formal objection support the designation, placing the burden on opponents. Most U.S. state governments have a listing similar to the National Register of Historic Places. State listings can have similar benefits to

1456-639: The National Register. For example, in Nevada , listing in the State Register places no limits on property owners. In contrast, state law in Tennessee requires that property owners within historic districts follow a strict set of guidelines from the U.S. Department of Interior when altering their properties. Though, according to the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, all states must have

1508-467: The United States are designated historic districts recognizing a group of buildings, archaeological resources, or other properties as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects, and sites within a historic district are normally divided into two categories, contributing and non-contributing. Districts vary greatly in size and composition: a historic district could comprise an entire neighborhood with hundreds of buildings, or

1560-424: The United States is primarily based on arguments that such laws creating such districts restrict the supply of affordable housing, and thus the result of such districts is that of enforcing caste structures and class divisions by region and segments of urban areas. Several historic districts have been proposed not for a true preservation purpose but to prevent development. The issue of local historic districts and

1612-425: The United States. Local historic districts can be administered at the county or the municipal level; both entities are involved in land use decisions. The specific legal mechanism by which historic districts are enacted and regulated varies from one state to the next. In some areas, they are a component of zoning (where they are sometimes referred to as "overlay districts." In other places, they are created under

Boylan Heights - Misplaced Pages Continue

1664-646: The Vieux Carré Commission and authorizing it to act to maintain the historic character of the city's French Quarter . Other localities picked up on the concept, with the city of Philadelphia enacting its historic preservation ordinance in 1955. The regulatory authority of local commissions and historic districts has been consistently upheld as a legitimate use of government police power, most notably in Penn Central Transportation Co. v. City of New York (1978). The Supreme Court case validated

1716-407: The air, the light from street lamps, and other attributes of Boylan Heights that cannot be mapped in a traditional way. The book was written by resident and critical cartographer Denis Wood . Indy pop/rock band and Raleigh nativities, The Connells named their second album Boylan Heights after the neighborhood in 1987. Historic district (United States) Historic districts in

1768-421: The designation process through a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. The National Register is the official recognition by the U.S. government of cultural resources worthy of preservation. While designation through the National Register does offer a district or property some protections, it is only in cases where the threatening action involves the federal government . If the federal government

1820-431: The excitement of city life. Inturn creating a housing crisis that inspired real estate firms across the state to plot suburban developments. William Boylan's 100+ acre plantation was a perfect location. Only a ten-minute walk from North Carolina's Capital Building , a short distance from Pullen Park , and just outside of the then-city limits to ensure privacy and tranquility. Raleigh Real Estate & Trust Company oversaw

1872-522: The historic designation process has in many places been hijacked by NIMBY homeowners to block housing. The first U.S. historic district was established in Charleston, South Carolina in 1931, predating the U.S. federal government designation by more than three decades. Charleston city government designated an "Old and Historic District" by local ordinance and created a board of architectural review to oversee it. New Orleans followed in 1937, establishing

1924-489: The homes. In contrast, residents of Cutler and Stokes worked blue-collar jobs. Enough families moved in to justify the construction of a local school in the mid-1920s. On April 28, 1926 a meeting of the Boylan Heights Improvement Association voted in favor of selling the lot reserved for Boylan Spring Park to the then-town of Raleigh for the sum of $ 1 with the requirement that the land only be used as

1976-404: The hospital's campus, with some spilling over onto Boylan Jr's land. Montfort Hall was of the few surviving grand mansions left in Raleigh from the pre-Civil War era. Following William Boylan Jr's death in 1899 the property passed to his wife Mary along with the majority of his holdings. When she passed two years later she bequeathed Montfort Hall to her children. She stated in her will that it

2028-627: The impact on property values concerns many homeowners. The effects have been extensively studied using multiple methodologies, including before-and-after analysis and evaluating comparable neighborhoods with and without local designation status. Independent researchers have conducted factual analysis in several states, including New Jersey, Texas, Indiana, Georgia, Colorado, Maryland, North and South Carolina, Kentucky, Virginia, and elsewhere. As stated by economist Donovan Rypkema, "the results of these studies are remarkably consistent: property values in local historic districts appreciate significantly faster than

2080-406: The last 50 years. However, if a property falls into one of those categories and are " integral parts of districts that do meet the criteria", then an exception allowing their listing will be made. Historic district listings, like all National Register nominations, can be rejected based on owner disapproval. In the case of historic districts, a majority of owners must object to nullify a nomination to

2132-538: The market as a whole in the vast majority of cases and appreciate at rates equivalent to the market in the worst case. Simply put – historic districts enhance property values." In a 2011 study Connecticut Local Historic Districts and Property Values , it was found that "property values in every local historic district saw average increases in value ranging from 4% to over 19% per year." Similarly, in New York City between 1980 and 2000, local historic district properties on

Boylan Heights - Misplaced Pages Continue

2184-488: The neighborhood allowing their homes to become apartments or leaving them vacant. According to residents at the time who were interviewed for the 1980 application for historical designation, by the 1940s absent landlords and vacant homes became common within Boylan Heights. Once the grandest home in Boylan Height, Montfort Hall itself was turned into apartments from 1948 to 1953 until eventually being left vacant. Entering

2236-462: The properties included in the district. Many local commissions adopt specific guidelines for each neighborhood's " tout ensemble " although some smaller commissions rely on the Secretary of Interior Standards. For most minor changes, homeowners can consult with local preservation staff at the municipal office and receive guidance and permission. Significant changes, however, require homeowners to apply for

2288-435: The property owner's consent or compensation for the historic overlay. Historic districts are generally two types of properties, contributing and non-contributing. Broadly defined, a contributing property is any property, structure, or object which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make a historic district, listed locally or federally, significant. Different entities, usually governmental, at both

2340-516: The protection of historic resources as "an entirely permissible governmental goal." In 1966, the federal government created the National Register of Historic Places, soon after a report from the U.S. Conference of Mayors had stated Americans suffered from "rootlessness." By the 1980s, there were thousands of federally designated historic districts. Some states, such as Arizona, have passed referendums defending property rights that have stopped private property from being designated as historic without

2392-702: The public could view from the street. Local historic districts, as in New Orleans and Savannah, Georgia , predate the Register by ten years or more as well. Local historic districts are most likely to generate resistance because of the restrictions they tend to place on property owners. Local laws can cause residents "to comply with (local historic district) ordinances." For example, homeowners may be prevented from upgrading poorly insulated windows unless they spend tens of thousands of dollars on identical styles. Criticism of historic districts in Chicago and elsewhere in

2444-525: The state and national level in the United States, have differing definitions of contributing property, but they all retain the same basic characteristics. In general, contributing properties are integral parts of a historic district's historical context and character. In addition to the two types of classification within historic districts, properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places are classified into five broad categories. They are: building, structure, site, district, and object; each one has

2496-442: The state. Historic districts created by local municipalities, however, almost always protect historic properties by regulating alterations, demolition, or new construction within the district. Much criticism has arisen of historic districts and the effect protective zoning and historic designation status laws have on the housing supply. When an area of a city is designated as part of a 'historic district', new housing development

2548-465: Was "to buy land in large quantity and subdivide the land into lots and sell them." Many members of the group had either familiar or political connections to civic leaders. In practice, the company worked as a subsidiary of the Raleigh Real Estate & Trust Co. Frank K. Ellington who served as the president of both companies and his partner J. Stanhope Wynne carefully planned Boylan Heights with

2600-475: Was given the lots to hold in trust for the use and benefit of all property owners within Boylan Heights. For the first decade of development, the original vision of an economically diverse community looked to be a reality. Property records show Frank M. Jolly, owner and operator of Jolly Jeweler which closed after 130 years in 2011 lived across the street from Montfort Hall. Descending down Boylan Avenue where many other self-employed white-collar workers living in

2652-673: Was her wish that her own son William would purchase the home from his siblings and take care of it for the rest of his life. William Boylan Jr's heirs sold the house and its surrounding land totaling 180 acres to the Greater Raleigh Land Company for $ 48,000 on June 15, 1907. Fourteen heirs had claim to a share of the property, including four minors who were represented by their guardian. The early 20th Century saw rapid expansion for Raleigh . Struggling farmers abandoned their land, moving to urban areas including Ashville , Durham , Charlotte , Burlington , High Point , and Raleigh. Industries in these cities provided them with new opportunities and

SECTION 50

#1732869436183

2704-402: Was sold to J.A. Scott in the same year for $ 450. Mr. Scott was obligated to spend at least $ 2,000 constructing his home. Both houses need to sit at least twenty feet back from the front of their lots. Further away from the top of the neighborhood lot 215 was sold to Albert Finnell in 1913 for "$ 100 and other valuable consideration." He agreed to spend at least $ 1,000 in constructing his house. As

#182817