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Cities are required by the Code of Iowa to have at least three people on their historic preservation commissions; counties must have at least five people. The appointment process should involve the public through public notices and meetings announcing commission formation so interested citizens can apply. Applicants should complete forms describing their involvement in history and historic preservation and certify their commitment to historic preservation.
Ideally, the historic preservation commission should be a mix of lay people and historic preservation professionals. All commission members must have demonstrated a positive interest in historic preservation. Federal CLG requirements call for a minimum of two preservation professionals and suggest these should be an architect and an architectural historian. Historic preservation professionals are people who meet the Secretary of the Interior's Professional Qualification Standards. The Standards outline education requirements and professional work experience in the following fields: history, architectural history, prehistoric or historic archaeology, or licensed/certified architects with training/experience in historical architecture rehabilitation. In addition, individuals with degrees and work experience in urban or rural planning, American Studies, American Civilization, Cultural Geography, or Cultural Anthropology, Folklore, Curation, (building) Conservation, and landscape architecture are also recognized as preservation professionals, although Professional Qualification Standards have yet to be promulgated. Finally, for municipal historic preservation commissions, the Code of Iowa (Section 303.34 et seq.) states commission members shall be appointed with due regard to proper representation of residents and property owners of the city and their relevant fields of knowledge including but not limited to history, urban planning, architecture, archaeology, law, and sociology.
To determine if an individual qualifies as a Preservation Professional, consult the Secretary of the Interior's Professional Qualification Standards. The State Preservation Office must certify that a commissioner meets the Professional Qualification Standards if that commissioner wishes to operate as a professional while serving on the commission.
In Iowa, historic preservation professionals are rare outside of the larger metropolitan areas and university communities. We suggest looking for individuals in the community who are interested in historic preservation and are willing to put in the time required for training, commission meetings, and project work. Potential candidates for slots on the historic preservation commission are owners of National Register-listed properties; or people involved in community development through the chamber of commerce, economic development, or Main Street programs. If they have time, teachers, attorneys, bankers, and real estate professionals can also be useful commission members.
Be sure that commission members are in the community for most of the year and can attend evening events and/or out-of-town training sessions. An active commission member of an advisory commission spends an average of eight hours a month on historic preservation work (meetings, work on projects, etc.).
Each applicant for a commission position must provide the local government with a signed biographical sketch or a resume. The biographical sketches must contain information about education, training, employment (particularly if the applicant worked in historic preservation), and a summary of the applicant’s involvement in historic preservation. The local government needs to maintain a file of commissioner information.
In addition to the biographical sketches, please provide a list of all commission members and their contact information. This will be provided as part of the application and must be updated and provided annually in the Annual Report. The list must identify the roles of commissioners (e.g., Commission Chairperson, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer), and the local government staff person. All commission members will receive a monthly update email to ensure active communication between the commission and the state.
Once the local government has appointed commission members, the members are an official historic preservation commission. At their first meeting, the commission should elect officers (chairperson or president and secretary/treasurer). If the local government wishes to apply for CLG status, then typically the commission is charged with creating a historic property inventory and a preservation plan. I
A local government may be certified without the minimum number or types of disciplines if it can demonstrate, in writing, that it has made a reasonable effort to fill those positions. If needed, an example disclaimer letter can be provided if the local government is unable to secure preservation professionals for commission membership.
When a discipline is not represented in the commission's membership, the commission shall be required to seek expertise in this area when considering National Register nominations and other actions that will affect properties which are normally evaluated by a professional in the discipline. This expertise may be gained through the hiring of a consultant or by other means that the SHPO determines appropriate. Additional expertise may be obtained by consulting the SHPO, through use of the Field Services Program, a professional affiliated with another CLG historic preservation commission, or a historic preservation consultant on an as-needed basis for conducting specific activities (this is a CLG grant-eligible activity). The credentials of preservation professionals serving on the commission must be reviewed and approved by the SHPO.
This requirement may seem stringent since few Iowa cities and counties have the full complement of active preservation professionals living within their boundaries. However, there are reasons for this stipulation. Experienced historic preservation professionals can help a newly formed commission understand the range of activities it is to perform and provide training. In addition, professionals on a commission enhance their ability to review and comment on projects. Finally, if the commission performs quasi-judicial review, preservation professionals provide the commission with expertise needed to prepare local nominations and undertake design review.
The SHPO shall make historic preservation orientation materials and training available to all local commissions. The orientation and training shall be designed to provide a working knowledge of the roles and operations of federal, state, and local preservation programs. This orientation can be accomplished by commission members' attendance in SHPO-approved historic preservation-related conferences and workshops, by SHPO staff training sessions, or by the SHPO's distribution of training materials to commissions.