For more information on Downtown Development Authority and Historic Preservation Commission applications, visit Lexington City Hall or call 706-743-3322. Reach out to Linda Moore at linda@apostrophegraphics.com for more information on the DDA and lindaparish1012@gmail.com for the HPC.
Organizations in Lexington say they need more residents to serve.
Two spots need to be filled on Lexington’s Downtown Development Authority and one spot is open on the city’s Historic Preservation Commission.
“It’s a civic responsibility that I took on when we formed — I helped form the whole thing — and I just feel a responsibility to keep it going, because it’s part of being a certified local government,” said Linda Parish, HPC chairperson and member since the HPC’s formation in 1987.
No matter their time in Lexington, applicants can leave a positive impact on the city through involvement in the DDA or HPC. Linda Moore, Downtown Development Authority chairperson, has lived in Lexington for about two years and has served as the DDA chairperson since May.
“We are a very close-knit community,” she said. “There are deep-seated friendships between neighbors and camaraderie and just helpfulness, and it’s just a great small-town feel as far as the homes. And so to bring the businesses into that and just make it thrive is really what I think the DDA wants to do.”
Applicants for both the DDA and HPC will be reviewed and appointed by members of each committee. They’re sent to the Lexington City Council for approval.
The DDA can consist of up to seven members, but only four positions are filled. The members are Ronnie Boggs, Gina Holloway, Moore and Parish, who said this week there’s an applicant for one of open positions.
DDA members can appoint new members from applicants, who serve in terms or until there is a successor.
Basic qualifications include being a resident of Lexington or a taxpayer who owns or operates a business in the DDA area, which is anywhere in the city limits.
Some of the general responsibilities of the DDA include focusing on the revitalization and development of Lexington businesses, meeting once a month and sponsoring local events, such as Christmas in Oglethorpe and the Christmas concert.
The DDA can take on certain commercial, office, business, industrial, parking or public projects that benefit downtown Lexington.
“This town has gone through multiple phases of rejuvenation, and right now we're struggling to get some of the downtown buildings up and running again — the businesses downtown up and running — so that people are drawn to the town, and commerce starts to boom,” Moore said. “There are several new places that have just opened, like the Lexington marketplace.”
The DDA application asks for basic personal information and three questions about previous experience serving on the DDA and governmental committee experience, in addition to asking for the applicant’s related abilities and skills.
“These committees are enjoyable because it’s not overly stressed at all,” Moore said. “It’s just self-fulfilling, because you feel like you’re contributing to the town.”
Current HPC members are Cory Crayton, Chuck Bentley, Parish and Moore. One spot is open.
An interest in historic preservation is a basic qualification of the position, along with living within the city limits.
Responsibilities of the HPC include issuing certificates of appropriateness for building permits, designating historic properties or districts, providing appeals procedures, eliminating conflicting ordinances and other responsibilities.
The HPC member application asks for basic personal information, whether the applicant has any related professional or community experience, what the applicant’s intended contributions are and requires an oath of commitment to service.
“Our history is about all we've got here to promote,” Parish said. “So we try to keep everything historic as much as we can.”