Area cities use laws, panels, to save buildings

Many cities in the region, including most of Bellevue's neighbors, have chosen to make landmark preservation a focus.

In Seattle, a preservation ordinance has helped designate and protect more than 230 historic structures, sites, objects and vessels, as well as seven historic districts.

Redmond has a Landmarks and Heritage Commission, a volunteer body that nominates sites and reviews designs for any development project proposed for a landmark site. The City Council established a list of 16 historically significant properties and passed an ordinance to guide protection.

"It doesn't necessarily prevent development, but there are restrictions," explained Dianna Broadie, senior planner in Redmond.

Bothell has a Landmark Preservation Board, a support ordinance and a list of 16 properties deemed historical by a national, state or local designation.

Lisa Melton, senior planner who works with the board, said property owners often ask to have a property designated to help guarantee preservation and in some cases to become eligible for a state tax break.

"It's tough to get a preservation ordinance through without community support," she said.

In Kirkland, some 30 buildings have been recognized as historical in the city's comprehensive plan, said Bob Burke of the Kirkland Heritage Society.

Redmond, Kirkland and 15 other area cities don't have their own landmark-preservation laws but instead agreed to operate under King County's 1980 ordinance.

That protection process starts with a nomination. When a building is nominated, it may or may not be directly threatened by development, said Charlie Sundberg, a planner for King County's Historic Preservation Program.

"There's usually a bit of dust in the air that gets things moving in people's minds," he said.

The property owner is typically involved in the process, but that's not mandatory, Sundberg said. Anybody can nominate a site.