September 1, 2024 Maintaining Historic Properties

Around Our Town with Gene Merritt
September 1, 2024
Blog #34

The Waffle House on Front Street in downtown Wilmington has been permanently closed due to major structural problems. The owner of the property has failed to maintain the building in a safe and functional manner, forcing the action of the City of Wilmington to close the building.

Gene Merritt/September 1, 2024

The Wilmington area is a vibrant, growing location. Southern Living Magazine recently rated Wilmington as the number one up and coming city in the United States. Other publications have touted Wilmington as a great place to live and visit.

People want to live here and visit here. What is the attraction? I suggest it is our moderate climate, our beautiful beaches, our vibrant neighborhoods, and, importantly, our historic downtown area. We have embraced and interpreted history and it shows in our community. That is an attraction.

Downtown Wilmington has one of the largest National Register Historic Districts in the United States. The downtown Central Business District area is an important part of that National Register District.

I think it is important to note that this historic area is a major attraction for tourists, providing social and economic benefits for the entire greater Wilmington area community, not just the downtown area.

What makes our downtown area attractive is the large inventory of architecturally and historically significant structures. These beautiful buildings provide mixed-use locations for commercial, residential, and institutional purposes. They also provide strong tax base revenues for the County and City, and jobs for many people.

Therefore, it would seem obvious that we need to preserve this pristine environment. We need to maintain and continually improve our built environment downtown. The density must be upheld and expanded.

Surface parking lots do not enhance the viability of our downtown visual appearance. Structured parking is, in most cases, the answer to the problem.

It is important to maintain all buildings, not just the historic ones. The owners of non-historic buildings profit form the existence of the historic district structures and should support future measures (public policy) to assure that the buildings will survive.

Property owners who do not maintain their property decrease the value of their holding, both from an income producing point of view and an overall market approach (comparable sales) value point of view. These owners should be encouraged to maintain their property or sell it to someone who will do so.

We have a minimum housing code. We need a minimum commercial code that comes with period inspections to assure compliance.

The cooperation of the City of Wilmington will be very helpful in taking measures to assure our historic fabric in the downtown area. It is smart business for them to take such actions.