Abilene Landmarks Commission may take step into history
Lincoln could eventually get historical status
By Carl Kieke
Monday, February 21, 2011
A meeting of the Abilene Landmarks Commission at 4 p.m. today could start the property containing the former Lincoln Middle School and Abilene High School building on its way to historic overlay zoning.
The item is one of several similar items on the commission's agenda. The meeting will be held in the City Council chambers at Abilene City Hall, 555 Walnut St.
Mo Parker, historic preservation officer for the city, said today's meeting is a first step and that members would be voting whether to pursue the zoning application. If they do, members will look closely at a future meeting, probably on March 29, into whether the building meets the various criteria laid out by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
The structure opened in 1924 as a high school. The building's rich history also includes use as a junior high and then middle school from 1955 through the 2006-2007 school year.
A 2008 bond election would have provided $22 million to transform Lincoln into a career tech high school, but voters rejected that idea and other spending packaged with it.
If historic overlay zoning is recommended, the issue would next go to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Approval of the recommendation there would move it to City Council for a final ruling.
Historic overlay zoning would not prevent someone buying the property and doing extensive remodeling inside. It would, however, prevent significant changes to the exterior.
Lydia Long is one of the citizens leading the drive to seek the historic designation.
"I thought it was important that the community have a say about what they think should be done with this building," Long said. "It could still be torn down, but this (historic overlay) prevents it from happening quickly.
"Maybe the community will say we don't care about this building. If so, that's OK, because the community has made that decision."
Among possibilities Long sees for the building would be turning it into a multipurpose building or community center, which could be used by nonprofit groups, artists or neighborhood associations, for example.
In some other cities, businesses, local foundations and other community organizations have worked together to make similar projects happen, she said.
The property is still owned by the Abilene Independent School District, which is looking for a use for the property, which could include its sale.
A statement received from the AISD superintendent's office reads:
"The administrative recommendation approved by the board of trustees is to pursue buyers for all AISD properties that are for sale. We're happy and excited to work with the members of the historical commission, so long as it is consistent with our efforts to sell the property at fair market value and protect the interests of the school district and our taxpayers."
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