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Dear Members of the Metro Council—

Thank you so very much for your service to East Baton Rouge Parish. We are grateful for your time and commitment to our community.

This morning our civic association’s efforts to get the Historic Planning Commission to address the “Demolition by Neglect” citation it filed against Mr. Richard Preis regarding certain properties he owns in our neighborhood were derailed when some members of the commission refused to allow discussion of it to be added to the HPC’s agenda. As this was the HPC’s last meeting before the Metro Council Zoning Commission is expected to address Mr. Preis’s appeal of this citation on November 18th, we think that is very unfortunate as well as inconsiderate of your time as we believe the HPC is the proper forum for this appeal to be considered first before the Metro Council has final say over it.

In particular, our civic association wanted the HPC to hear from the Director of the City Planning Commission, Mr. Troy Bunch, regarding whether he continues to believe that the Preis properties present “Severe Health and Safety Issues.” As you all are probably aware, the HPC’s decision to file its citation of “Demolition by Neglect” against Mr. Preis was based on the Planning Commission staff’s recommendation that the properties presented “Severe Health and Safety Issues”.

We think it is important to share the attached email, which one of our members received in response to a Public records request, from the Department of Public Works Building Inspector who performed the site visit that the Planning Commission staff relied upon in making their recommendation. The limited findings on the part of the Building Inspection Employee, plus the assertions made last month by representatives of Mr. Preis to the Metro Council Zoning Commission that his properties are structurally sound and not deficient, call into question the earlier recommendations made by Planning Commission staff to the HPC that these properties present “Severe Health and Safety Issues.”

While we strongly believe that historic properties in historic neighborhoods that are being “demolished by neglect” deserve citations from the HPC so that they get repaired, we believe even more strongly that city parish employees should be thorough and accurate when making official recommendations to the HPC about the soundness and states of repair of specific properties. After reviewing the documents and the list of items contained in the Planning Commission Staff’s document of July 29, we do not believe the items listed constitute the grave conditions which the Planning Staff concluded.

Before the Metro Council considers Mr. Preis’s appeal, we think you all deserve a straight and clear answer from Mr. Bunch to the question of whether these properties do, in fact, present “Severe Health and Safety Issues.” Yes or no? Do they or don’t they? I think all of us deserve this answer in writing not later than 24 hours before your November 18th meeting.

If Mr. Bunch reverses his conclusion that Mr. Preis’s properties do not pose “Severe Health and Safety Issues” and they are safe for the tenants, then we would request that the Council send Mr. Preis’s appeal back to the HPC asking them to rescind it, and we will support that recommendation. If Mr. Bunch still thinks the properties present “Severe Health and Safety Issues,” then we believe it is incumbent upon all of us to ensure that these properties get repaired for the safety of the people living in them and our neighborhood by upholding the HPC’s citation.

Lastly, to ensure more thorough reviews in the future, we would ask that the Metro Council to direct the Planning Commission Staff to invite a designee of our neighborhood’s civic association to join any future “site visit teams” assembled to review projects or properties in the Spanish Town Historic District.

Sincerely

Historic Spanish Town Civic Association