City of Georgetown Texas > Georgetown Historic Planning > Becoming a Local Landmark

Becoming a Local Landmark

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Landmarks are resources that have been officially recognized by the City of Georgetown for their outstanding historical, cultural, or architectural significance. Properties inside a City historic district are also referred to by priority designations.

Why apply for local landmark status?

Local landmark status protects resources in the following ways:

Any building design, alterations, additions, and maintenance to the building, structure, or site must follow the Downtown and Old Town Design Guidelines.
Landmarked resources cannot be demolished without approval from the Historic and
Architectural Review Committee, or HARC.
Landmark designation does not affect the use of a property. Land use is regulated by zoning.

What is eligible for landmark status?

A building, structure, or site may receive local landmark designation if it meets at least one of the following criteria:

Character, interest, or value because of its unique role in the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics of the City, county, state or nation;
Occurrence of a notable historical event;
Identification with a person or persons who contributed notably to the culture and development of the City, county, state, nation, or society;
Distinctive elements of architectural design, detail material, or craftsmanship that make it an established or familiar visual feature, or the related distinctiveness of a craftsman, master builder or architect, or a style or innovation;
Archaeological value in the sense that it can be expected to yield, based on physical evidence, information affecting knowledge of history or prehistory.

How does a historic resource receive a designation of historic landmark?

Designation as a historic landmark requires approval by HARC and City Council. The property owner must be in support of the designation and sign the application. To start the process request a meeting with the City’s historic planner. You can view or download the Historic Landmark Application Checklist.