The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON—On Monday night the Dayton City Council adopted a resolution to revise the 2016 Historic Preservation Policy Code, and Process Update Project schedule, for the purpose of dissolving the Dayton Register South Side Historic District and Dayton Register Washington Street Historic District, as “expeditiously” as possible.

A motion to strike the language concerning retaining the historic districts from the resolution was made by council member Delphine Bailey, and seconded by council member Dain Nysoe, and the motion was carried by the members present.

“We need to let people know where the Council stands,” Bailey said.

City of Dayton Planning Director Karen Scharer told those in attendance at the meeting that dissolving the districts will require a few additional steps, but the process could be finalized as early as September, 2016.

Scharer said she will write the draft documents this week to send to the Department of Commerce for expedited review, after which a State Environmental Policy Act notice will be published and a public hearing scheduled.

At the end of a 60-day comment period, the city council can then take formal action to dissolve the districts, she said.

The Dayton Historic Preservation Commission met on June 29, and in a 3 - 1 vote they approved a motion made by DHP Commissioner Ginny Butler to “give no opinion to the city council” regarding the recent advisory vote from property owners in the local register historic districts. There was no recommendation made because the Historic Preservation Commission members felt the vote spoke for itself, and because such recommendation would have needed justification under the Dayton Municipal Code.