Title:  From the Ground Up: A Preservation Plan for Georgia, 2001-2006

Georgia Preservation Plan

Number of Pages:  78
Approval Date:  June 11, 2001
Planning Cycle:  5 years

Contact Information:
     Dr. Karen F. Anderson-Cordova
     Manager, Planning & Local
       Assistance Unit
     Historic Preservation Division
     Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources
     47 Trinity Avenue, Suite 414-H
     Atlanta, Georgia 30304
     (404) 651-6461; fax (404) 657-1040
     E-mail: Karen_Anderson-Cordova@dnr.state.ga.us
     Website: http://www.dnr.state.ga.us/dnr/histpres/pdf/The_Plan.pdf

Mission/Vision Statement:
Vision: Georgia will be a better place tomorrow than it is today, providing quality communities in which to live, work, learn and recreate. Historic places will be widely valued as irreplaceable resources that contribute to our heritage, our economy, our neighborhoods, and our sense of who we are as Georgians. Communities and the State will plan for growth and change that respects and includes our historic places. Communities will possess the knowledge, the legal and financial tools, and the authority to decide how preservation and new development will relate to one another. There will still be distinctions between city and suburbs, developing areas and countryside. All Georgians will possess a greater understanding and appreciation of our shared heritage in all its variations. People and organizations throughout Georgia will work in partnership to preserve and use historic places. Georgia's communities, economy, environment and people will be better because of the preservation of historic resources.

Mission: To promote the preservation and use of historic places for a better Georgia.

Table of Contents:
     Preface
     1. The Planning Process
     2. Vision, Mission & Goals
     3. Georgia's Historic Properties
     4. Archaeology and Historic Preservation
     5. Georgia Now and in the Future
     6. Historic Preservation and How It Works
     7. A Call for Action
     Appendix A: Guidance for Local Preservation Planning
     Appendix B: Archaeological and Historic Contexts
     Bibliography

PLAN DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES
Public Participation Strategies:

• Distribution of questionnaires through mailings, site visits, meetings, public forums;
• Five heavily advertised Planning Forums;
• Presentations to the Georgia National Register Review Board for feedback;
• Two Preservation Roundtable sessions held at the Statewide Historic Preservation Conference;
• Draft Plan read by panel of readers representing a cross-section of the public.

Other Plan Development Strategies:

• Two staff planning retreats;
• Monthly meetings of HPD staff;
• Review and updating of information in 1995 State Plan.

ISSUES, THREATS, & OPPORTUNITIES

• Continued destruction of archaeological sites;
• Majority of historic buildings and structures have already been lost;
• Vernacular buildings at greatest risk;
• Rapid suburban growth, especially around Atlanta;
• Increase in population;
• Population shifts away from both rural and urban areas;
• Less than half of counties have zoning;
• Often developers and not residents decide a community's future;
• Local governments required to produce comprehensive plans;
• Growing interest in sustainable communities;
• Deferred maintenance, abandonment, disinvestment in inner-cities;
• Growing African American and American Indian interest in preservation;
• Homelessness and housing for special needs;
• Significant economic growth;
• Diverse economy;
• Decline in number of farms;
• Increasing interest in historic resources that previously received little attention, such as resources of the recent past, American Indian traditional cultural properties, and African American properties;
• Support of preservation by the General Assembly;
• Heightened awareness of historic resources;
• Benefits of TEA-21;
• Increased road construction could create more sprawl;
• Risk of alteration to old bridges;
• Public need for better railway service;
• Need to protect railway corridors, especially in urban areas;
• Tourism is the second largest industry;
• Interest in Civil War sites;
• Four advanced degree programs in preservation in the state;
• Need for preservation education in public schools;
• Potential for private-public-nonprofit partnerships;
• Creation of HPD's web site will help increase public awareness of preservation;
• Creation of the Archaeological Services Unit has expanded activities in the management of archaeological resources;
• Profiting From the Past: The Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Georgia, published in 1999, documents benefits of investment in historic preservation;
• New Georgia Green Space Program makes funds available to purchase and preserve green space.

1. Achieve widespread public awareness and involvement in historic preservation in Georgia.
2. Identify and evaluate historic resources in Georgia, and make information about them accessible for preservation, planning, advocacy and educational purposes.
3. Gather, produce, and distribute information about historic preservation techniques.
4. Secure technological, financial, and legal tools sufficient to preserve Georgia's historic resources.
5. Strengthen and expand the coordinated network of historic preservation organizations throughout Georgia.
6. Effectively use historic preservation programs, strategies, techniques, laws, and information to preserve historic resources.

1. Widespread Public Awareness.
   • Inform preservation community, general public, and decision makers about preservation issues;
   • Increase public knowledge about preservation programs and practices;
   • Promote public participation in the environmental review process;
   • Increase knowledge about the importance of archaeological resources;
   • Expand public involvement in National Register program.
2. Identify and Evaluate Historic Resources.
   • Increase efficiency of and access to programs that collect and compile information;
   • Expand archaeological resource identification and evaluation activities;
   • Conduct surveys and/or compile inventories of historic resources;
   • Prepare historic contexts;
   • Establish statewide archaeological survey program.
3. Distribute Preservation Information.
   • Provide training opportunities;
   • Prepare guidelines and publications on preservation techniques.
4. Secure Preservation Tools.
   • Acquire computer technology and programming;
   • Acquire funds to meet expanding needs;
   • Obtain financial incentives for rehabilitation of owner-occupied historic properties;
   • Fund and implement a historic courthouse and city hall program;
   • Develop ways to protect terrestrial and submerged archaeological sites;
   • Curate archaeological and historical artifacts and records.
5. Strengthen Preservation Network.
   • Cultivate relationships among preservation partners;
   • Expand preservation partnership network and broaden scope of concerns;
   • Increase participation of the Georgia African American community.
6. Preserve Historic Resources.
   • Help train DNR Divisions in preservation;
   • Work with Civil War Commission on land protection issues;
   • Assess effectiveness of archaeology-related state laws;
   • Increase effectiveness of federal and state tax incentives programs;
   • Encourage stewardship of state-owned historic resources;
   • Encourage preservation planning at local, regional and state levels;
   • Make National Register nomination process more responsive to preservation needs and more inclusive of archaeological resources;
   • Expand the Centennial Farm program;
   • Enhance the effectiveness of Environmental Review activities;
   • Expand assistance to owners of historic homes;
   • Enhance the CLG program.

Cooperating/Partnering Organizations:
16 Regional Development Centers; University of Georgia; Georgia State University; Georgia Municipal Association; Georgia Department of Transportation; Georgia National Register Review Board; Association County Commissioners of Georgia; Society for Georgia Archaeology; Office of the State Archaeologist; Georgia Department of Industry, Trade & Tourism; Georgia Main Street Association; Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation; Georgia Alliance of Preservation Commissions; Georgia Department of Community Affairs; Georgia Department of Natural Resources; Georgians for Preservation Action; Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network; Georgia Historical Society; National Park Service; Georgia Civil War Commission; Georgia Commission for the Preservation of the State Capitol; Armstrong Atlantic State University; Savannah College of Art and Design; Legislative Black Caucus; Atlanta Forum; Georgia Planning Association.

FEATURES OF NOTE
"Call for Action" chapter contains suggestions for federal, state, and local action to help achieve goals; and Appendix A contains "Guidance for Local Preservation Planning."