HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
From the Re-Echo, December 2008

The Historical Society has been involved in two Historic Preservation projects in the past year: preserving the Historic Roadside Parks on Highway 100, evidenced by our Save the Beehive Campaign, and providing information about the Westling House property redevelopment project.

The City of St. Louis Park has also been involved in these projects. The City has provided half of the funds needed to move the Beehive and restore Roadside Park. The Planning Commission has spent many hours studying the proposal of a private developer of the historic Westling property.

In both cases the City has asked for Historical Society input. This has led us to consider the role we might play in creating a Historic Preservation Commission for the City of St. Louis Park.

At our October Meeting we invited Michael Koop from the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) to speak to us on issues of historic preservation and how to encourage the City to create a Historic Preservation Commission. A Historic Preservation Commission can only be created by city government. Once established, it would conduct historic resource surveys, recommend local designation of historic properties, develop and enforce design guidelines for locally designated historic properties, and undertake preservation education in the community.

At our November meeting, the Society created a Historic Preservation task force to work toward the establishment of a Historic Preservation Commission. Members Nancy Rose and Kathy Johnson will serve on the committee along with others interested in this issue.

If you have an interest in historic preservation and would like to join this task force, please contact Kathy Johnson at 952-926-5040 or djrksj@msn.com

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This information comes from a variety of sources: newspapers, books, yearbooks, phone directories, interviews, etc. Given the varied sources, we cannot guarantee that all of this information is correct, and welcome any additions and corrections. Please contact us with your contributions and comments.