HomeMy WebLinkAboutApplication - Central High LOD Final Report 2022-08-050 | P a g e
Cover photo: 1501 and 1509 S. Summit, 2019.
Central High School Neighborhood Historic District
Local Ordinance District Report
Little Rock Historic District Commission
LOD Report
Central High School
Neighborhood Historic District
August, 2022
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Executive Summary
The Central High & Wright Avenue neighborhoods are the surrounding residential and
commercial landscape of the Little Rock Central High School. As the focus of national attention during
the 1957 desegregation crisis, both the school and the neighborhood gained local and national
significance. Pre-dating this event, the neighborhood’s history and prominence began as Little Rock’s
first suburb. With multiple eras of historical value overlaying the area, the architectural character and
value of the neighborhood is significant to the story of Little Rock’s built environment and a present
touchstone to the past that can be experienced today.
In recognition of this history, as well as the historical and aesthetic value of the individual
structures within this area, the Central High School Neighborhood Historic District was nominated to the
National Register of Historic Place in 1996. The district compromises sections of the Central High & Wright
Avenue neighborhoods. Thirteen (13) years later, despite welcoming thousands of visitors annually from
around the world to visit the National Historic Landmark and Museum, the district was in jeopardy of
losing its national designation. In 2012, the historic district was expanded to increase the number of
historically significant resources and fill the deficit of lost structures.
Today, the Central High School Neighborhood Historic District is identified as an endangered
historical resource. The district suffers extensively from demolitions, property neglect, and incompatible
alterations. The City of Little Rock has enacted multiple indirect tools to address this endangerment over
the years, but these have fallen short of impacting the issue in a meaningful way. To remain a National
Register historic district, the district must retain a ratio of 51% or more of its historic fabric. The results of
a recent staff analysis of the past decade shows that the district’s current eligibility ratio is estimated to
be 59% and dropping. This pattern of regressive development suggests a continued and persistent
trajectory resulting in the irreplaceable loss of the district’s National Register designation, property owner
access to state and federal economic funds, and the special character of locally and nationally significant
neighborhoods.
To retain and steward the surviving historical character and value of the neighborhoods;
safeguard property owner access to economic development tools; and strengthen and stabilize the
economy of the neighborhoods as the surrounding landscape of the Central High School National Historic
Landmark, staff recommends the creation of a local ordinance historic district.
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Contents
Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 0
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................ 2
1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 3
1.1 Terms ............................................................................................................................................ 3
2. History & Significance ........................................................................................................................... 4
2.1 1870-1915: Early Development .......................................................................................................... 4
2.2. 1915-1940 .......................................................................................................................................... 8
2.3 1941-1961 ......................................................................................................................................... 11
3. Past Preservation Initiatives................................................................................................................ 13
4. The Projected Loss of the Central High School Neighborhood Historic District ................................. 14
4.1 Demolitions ....................................................................................................................................... 14
4.2 National Register of Historic Places Designation .............................................................................. 15
2.3 Stabilizing Property Owner Investment ............................................................................................ 15
5. Solution: Local Ordinance Historic District ......................................................................................... 17
5.1 What is a local ordinance district? .................................................................................................... 17
5.2 Path to Approval ............................................................................................................................... 18
5.3.3 Staff Capacity ............................................................................................................................. 19
5.3 Path Following Approval ................................................................................................................... 19
5.3.1 Increase Representation on Historic District Commission......................................................... 19
5.3.2 Design Guidelines ....................................................................................................................... 19
Appendices .................................................................................................................................................. 20
Appendix A .............................................................................................................................................. 20
Appendix B .............................................................................................................................................. 21
Appendix C .............................................................................................................................................. 22
Appendix D .............................................................................................................................................. 23
Appendix E .............................................................................................................................................. 24
Appendix F .............................................................................................................................................. 25
Appendix G .............................................................................................................................................. 26
Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 27
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List of Figures
Figure 1. Vacant and deteriorating houses in the Central High School Neighborhood Historic District,
photos by Preserve Arkansas. ....................................................................................................................... 3
Figure 2 Section of "Bird's eye view of the city of Little Rock, the capitol of Arkansas 1871", Library of
Congress. ....................................................................................................................................................... 4
Figure 3 , Milton L. Rice’s House on Oak Grove shortly after being building, c. 1871, courtesy of the
Central Arkansas Library System................................................................................................................... 4
Figure 4. Section of “Printed map of the original platting of the city of Little Rock”, undated, Arkansas
Digital Archives. ............................................................................................................................................ 5
Figure 5 Rice-Bowman House in its current state, photo courtesy of Quapaw Quarter Association, 2019. 5
Figure 6. Section of “Perspective map of the city of Little Rock, Ark., State capital of Arkansas, county
seat of Pulaski County. 1887”, Library of Congress. ..................................................................................... 6
Figure 7. South Battery median, snapshot of aerial from Google Maps. ..................................................... 6
Figure 8. Centennial Public School, postcard, c. 1905-1915, courtesy of the Butler Center for Arkansas
Studies. .......................................................................................................................................................... 7
Figure 9. Arkansas Baptist College, c. 1930, courtesy of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies. ............... 7
Figure 10. The Martin A. Sharp House at 1422 Summit, built in c. 1900 in the two-story Queen Anne
style. .............................................................................................................................................................. 8
Figure 11. Home at 1400 S. Summit, built in 1905 in the Queen Anne style. .............................................. 8
Figure 12. W.R. Stewart House at 1406 S. Summit, built in 1905 in the Colonial Revival style by architect
Charles L. Thompson. .................................................................................................................................... 8
Figure 13. Three examples of the American Foursquare style in a row at 2305-2315 S. Summit, ............... 9
Figure 14. West Side Junior High School, c. 1915-1925, courtesy of the Butler Center for Arkansas
Studies. .......................................................................................................................................................... 9
Figure 15. Central High during construction, c. 1927, courtesy of the Central Arkansas Library System. . 10
Figure 16. Warren Lenon House at 2005 W. 16th. ..................................................................................... 10
Figure 17. Clayborn House, 2022, substantially altered. ............................................................................ 10
Figure 18. Clayborn House, 2019, Google Maps. ........................................................................................ 10
Figure 19. Vacant lot at 1424 Schiller Street where the home of Dee Brown once stood. ........................ 11
Figure 20. 2108 Marshall built c. 1935 in the Minimal Traditional style. ................................................... 11
Figure 21. 1801, 1803, and 1805 W 18th Street all built in 1948 in the American Small House style. ...... 12
Figure 22. Cover of the ReLocal report, "A Way Forward-Strategies and Tolls for addressing Vacancy in
Little Rock", PlaceEconomics, 2016. ........................................................................................................... 13
Figure 23. Chart showing permitted demolitions in the Central High & Wright Avenue neighborhoods
from 2010-2021. ......................................................................................................................................... 14
Figure 24. 2301-2309 Summit, before rehabilitation and infill construction, 2013. .................................. 16
Figure 25. 2301-2309 Summit, after rehabilitation and compatible infill construction, 2019. .................. 16
Figure 26. Private Investment by Residential Property Owners from 2010 to 2021. ................................. 17
Figure 27. Chart showing MacArthur Park cases compared to applicable Central High permits and the
projected combined total. .......................................................................................................................... 19
Figure 28. Home Owner's Loan Corporation, Little Rock Map, c. 1940. ..................................................... 21
Figure 29. Parcel Map of West with Vacant Building Recommendations. ................................................. 22
Figure 30. Parcel Map of West with Vacant Lot Recommendations. ......................................................... 23
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1. Introduction
The Central High School Neighborhood
Historic District (“Central High District”) is an
endangered historical resource. The district
suffers extensively from demolitions, property
neglect, and incompatible alterations. Over the
past decade, this pattern of regressive
development suggests a continued and
persistent trajectory resulting in the
irreplaceable loss of the district’s National
Register designation, property owner access to
state and federal economic funds, and the
special character of locally and nationally
significant neighborhoods.
The City of Little Rock has enacted
multiple indirect tools to address this
endangerment over the years, but these have
fallen short of impacting the issue in a
meaningful way. To remain a National Register
historic district, the district must retain a ratio of
51% or more of its historic fabric. The results of
a recent staff analysis shows that the district’s
current eligibility ratio is estimated to be 59%
and dropping.
To retain and steward the surviving
historical character and value of the
neighborhoods; safeguard property owner
access to economic development tools; and
strengthen and stabilize the economy of the
neighborhoods as the surrounding landscape of
the Central High School National Historic
Landmark, staff recommends the creation of a
local ordinance historic district (Appendix A, pg.
20).
1.1 Terms
Below are terms that will be used throughout
this document:
Local Ordinance Historic District means a
geographically definable area in which historic
structures and their setting are protected by
public review, typically by a Historic District
Commission.
Historic District means a geographically
definable area with a significant concentration of
buildings, structures, sites, spaces, or objects
unified by past events, physical development,
design, setting, materials, workmanship, sense
of cohesiveness or related historical and
aesthetic associations. This is an honorary
designation.
Contributing means a structure which is
a good example of a recognized architectural
style, and which retains unaltered the major
architectural details of that style. When a district
is nominated to the National Register of Historic
Places, every structure is designated
“contributing” or “non-contributing.” An area
must have more than 50% “contributing
structures” to be listed on the National Register.
Non-Contributing means either an
historic structure which has been altered so
much that the character-defining elements of its
Figure 1. Vacant and deteriorating houses in the Central High
School Neighborhood Historic District, photos by Preserve
Arkansas.
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architectural style have been eliminated, or a
structure less than 50 years old, the basic age for
National Register consideration.
Overlay District means a regulatory tool
that creates a special zoning district, placed over
the existing base zone(s), which identifies special
provisions in addition to those in the underlying
base zone.
Historic Resource Survey means a
systematic method of documenting historic
resources through fieldwork and research, often
including documentation of photographs, maps,
and a written description on a form.
2. History & Significance
The Central High School Neighborhood
Historic District’s lifespan covers over 150 years
of built history, 70 years of which pre-date the
1957 desegregation crisis. The district holds
many identities within its long narrative: a
pastoral scene of farms and manors in the late
19th century, Little Rock’s first suburb in the early
20th century, the site of a major moment for civil
rights in the mid-20th century, and, for most of its
history, an interracial, mixed-use neighborhood1
of the middle and working class.
With multiple eras of historical value
overlaying the area, the architectural character
and value of the existing neighborhoods are
significant to the story of Little Rock. The
district’s history is representative of residential
development and social change during the city’s
formative years. For residents and visitors today,
the neighborhoods present themselves as a
valuable touchstone to the past.
2.1 1870-1915: Early Development
The Central High District was once an
acreage of rolling hills directly west of the
“Original City of Little Rock”. In the late 19th
1 The historic neighborhood is referred to in the
singular, while the existing district is comprised of
century, the land was peppered with farms,
parks, forests, and manors (Figure 2).
The oldest surviving home from this period is
the Rice-Bowman House. In 1870, carpetbagger
Milton L. Rice built an estate on twelve acres
known as Oak Grove (Figure 3). The expressive
and imposing home was constructed in the
Gothic Revival style and its tower is still visible
from a distance. The Rice-Bowman House has
been significantly altered over time and, today,
two neighborhoods: Wright Avenue and Central
High.
Figure 3 , Milton L. Rice’s House on Oak Grove shortly after
being building, c. 1871, courtesy of the Central Arkansas
Library System.
Figure 2 Section of "Bird's eye view of the city of Little Rock, the
capitol of Arkansas 1871", Library of Congress.
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resides in a severely deteriorated state at 2015
S. Battery (Figure 4).
The twelve acres of Oak Grove were sold to
H.A. Bowman, a real estate developer. Bowman
subdivided and platted the land in 1897 as the
Oak Terrace Addition (Roy, Witsell, & Nichols,
1984). Bowman lived in the grand home until his
death in 1935, after which his son occupied the
structure. The home was extensively remodeled
during the Bowman family residence.
H.A. Bowman was not the only real
estate developer platting and subdividing in this
western section just outside the city. Major
parcel additions were platted between 1877-
1892; however, little development occurred
until 1890 (Figure 5). The Centennial Addition
(1877), bound by Pulaski Street and Park Ave
(1889) and 12th Street and Wright Ave, was the
largest parcel addition, encompassing 160 acres.
Directly to the west of the Centennial Addition
was the Park Addition which held the West End
Park, shown in Figure 6, the foregrounds of
Central High School.
Figure 5 Rice-Bowman House in its current state, photo courtesy of
Quapaw Quarter Association, 2019.
Figure 4. Section of “Printed map of the
original platting of the city of Little Rock”,
undated, Arkansas Digital Archives.
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The Central High District is laid out in the
typical grid street pattern with standard size lots.
The only deviation from this is found in the 2000
block of South Battery Street in front of the Rice-
Bowman House (Figure 7). When Bowman
platted Oak Terrace Addition, a flow garden was
placed as a median through the center of Battery
Street. During the neighborhood’s early
development, a brochure published in 1890
advertised the growing suburb as “a capital place
for a picnic and big enough for half the families
of town to go at once without disturbing each
other”.2
By 1887, the northeast area had been
developed modestly (Figure 6), primarily the
Centennial and Park additions. A rapid growth in
construction took place in the early part of the
20th century, commonly related to the Gilded
Age of the United States, causing many additions
to be platted within just a few years of each
other and, consequently, blocks to be developed
sporadically.
2 “Guide to Little Rock”, 1890, pg. 57.
Improvements in infrastructure were a
significant selling-point for developers for the
neighborhood. This portion of Little Rock was
developed alongside new turn-of-the-century
amenities such as streetcar lines, water and
sewage services, paved streets, and sidewalks,
electricity, and fire protection.3 The expansion of
the streetcar lines came to the district in 1887,
linking with downtown lines and terminating at
West End Park. A second line came in 1893
3 “Central High History”, pg. 25-26.
1400 S. Summit, b. ????, in the Queen Anne
style with Colonial Revival Tuscan porch
supports displaying a transitional style.
Alfred J. Mercer House at 1500 S Battery built
in 1907 in the Colonial Revival Style with a
notable steeple on the two-story ancillary
structure.
Figure 6. Section of “Perspective map of the city of Little Rock, Ark., State
capital of Arkansas, county seat of Pulaski County. 1887”, Library of
Congress.
Figure 7. South Battery median, snapshot of aerial from
Google Maps.
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traversing 13th street and a separate branch
going south on Martin Luther King Drive (then
High St) from 15th to 21st. Parallel with progress
in infrastructure came regress in civil rights
policies. In 1903, the Arkansas legislature
adopted the Streetcar Segregation Act, assigning
Black and White passengers to “separate but
equal” sections of streetcars (Central Arkansas
Library System & Metrailer, 2012). Despite Black
boycotts and White criticism, the policy was
upheld alongside other Jim Crow era laws in
Arkansas and the city of Little Rock.
In 1905, a third streetcar line was
established linking the other two on S Park Ave
and winding its way south to Wright Avenue as
well as branching out at 16th street going east to
join an earlier track. The evolution of the
streetcar lines lends a view to the pattern of
growth during this time.4
In addition to infrastructure, the strong
presence of educational structures throughout
the district at this time is notable. The first of
these was the Centennial Elementary School.
Designed by architect Thomas Harding in 1893 in
the Romanesque Revival style, the school was
constructed in 1894 (Figure 8). In 1971 it was
demolished except for the bell tower and its
grounds were purchased by the city to create a
park called Centennial Park.
In 1885, Arkansas Baptist College was
established by the Colored Baptists of the State
of Arkansas for the education of black
theologians. The building reflects the Second
Empire style and exists today at 1600 Martin
Luther King Jr. Drive (Figure 9). Additionally, in
1908-10, the James Mitchell School at W 24th and
Battery Streets was designed in the Classical
Revival style by Charles Thompson with later
4 Maps of the historic streetcar lines and streets can
be viewed at maps.littlerock.gov in the “Historic
Sites” web application.
Figure 8. Centennial Public School, postcard, c. 1905-
1915, courtesy of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.
Figure 9. Arkansas Baptist College, c. 1930, courtesy of the
Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.
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additions by Thomas Harding and Thomas
Harding Jr.
Due to a sporadic development pattern,
popular residential architectural styles during
this early development were sprinkled
throughout the district, rather than confined to
single additions. This has resulted in the Central
High District possessing a wide variety of
architectural styles and building scales. Most
styles seen throughout the historic areas of Little
Rock can be found within this district.
The predominant styles of this period
(1879-1915) within the district were Queen Anne
(Figures 10 and 11) and Colonial Revival (Figure
12). Other architectural styles that are seen in
remnants from this era are Richardsonian
Romanesque, Classical Revival, Italianate, and
Second Empire5. Cottage homes and larger two-
story homes were often built side by side. Small
homes could typically be purchased for $2,000 or
less while larger homes were advertised for
$5,000-$7,000.6 A souvenir brochure of 1902
notes “a larger percentage of the laboring
classes own homes in Little Rock than in any
other city of corresponding size.”7 With this
variety of housing stock and a high percentage of
laboring class homeowners, the neighborhood
was stable and composed of a mixed class.
According to city directories, the Central High
District was home to White and Black families
alike and housed a range of professions:
clergymen, barbers, mail carriers and clerks,
cooks, maids, lawyers, doctors, teachers, and
businessmen.8
2.2. 1915-1940
In the early and mid-twentieth century,
the Central High District was a neighborhood
that “evolved to accommodate the housing
5 For more information on home addresses reflecting
these styles, see the 1996 National Register
Nomination form for Central High.
6 “Central High History”, pg.36.
7 “Central High History”, pg.36.
8 “Central High History”, pg.38.
Figure 11. Home at 1400 S. Summit, built in 1905 in the
Queen Anne style.
Figure 12. W.R. Stewart House at 1406 S. Summit, built in
1905 in the Colonial Revival style by architect Charles L.
Thompson.
Figure 10. The Martin A. Sharp House at 1422 Summit,
built in c. 1900 in the two-story Queen Anne style.
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booms of the interwar period and the post-
World War II era” (Higgins & Higgins, 2012).
During World War I, another educational
institution was constructed in the northern
section of the district, just one block away from
Centennial. The West Side Junior High opened in
1917 and served as a school as well as a
community center, complete with a pool (Figure
14). The structure was threatened by demolition
in the early 1990s. In 1999 it was listed on
Preserve Arkansas’ Most Endangered List. In
2003, the building became a multi-use space for
the UAMS and Arc Arkansas.
9 His philanthropy included the Little Rock Junior
College (now the University of Arkansas at Little
Rock), and the Little Rock Boys’ Club. The Boys’ Club
named their new facility the James Penick Boys’
For residential development, the
neighborhood saw another building boom
surrounding the 1920s. The most prominent
residential architecture styles built in this time
were the American Foursquare (Figure 13),
Craftsman, English Revival, Spanish Revival, and
a specific type of Colonial Revival. The James H.
Penick House at 1623 Summit, was built in 1926
and is a strong example of this era of Colonial
Revival architecture. The home was designed by
the Little Rock architecture firm of Theo Sanders
and Frank Ginocchio and displayed Federal
Revival style features, such as the front portico.
Penick was a leader in banking in Little Rock and
active in several public service positions.9
The Clayborn House, built in 1932 at
1800 Marshall, is a strong example of the
Craftsman style (Figure 18, pg. 10). The house
was independently listed on the National
Register of Historic Places in 2006 as the home of
influential Black community leader and
reverend, John Henry Clayborn. The home has
been significantly altered since its listing and will
likely be delisted if resurveyed (Figure 17, pg.
10).
Club. There is a collection at the Butler Center for
Arkansas Studies containing Penick’s materials from
his life and work.
Figure 14. West Side Junior High School, c. 1915-1925,
courtesy of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.
Figure 13. Three
examples of the
American Foursquare
style in a row at 2305-
2315 S. Summit,
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Another notable residence of this period
was the Warren Lenon House at 2005 W. 16th
Street. Built in the mid-1890s, the home was
remodeled by Charles L. Thompson to its present
English Revival style in 1918 (Figure 16).
The most well-known structure in the
district was built in 1927. The Little Rock High
School (now Little Rock Central High School) was
constructed in the Collegiate Gothic Revival and
Art Deco styles and was designed by architects
George R. Mann, Eugene John Stern, John Parks
Almand, George H. Wittenberg, and Lawson L.
Delony. The grounds were designed by
landscape architect John Highberger. Before
construction was finished, the National
Association of Architects named the school
“America’s Most Beautiful High School” (Figure
15). The design of the school, which reached an
expense of $1.5 million in 1927, was to inspire
awe in learning for its students and community.
The famous author and librarian, Dee
Brown, grew up in the Central High District in the
mid-1920s, graduating from high school in 1927
(Brown, 1993). According to the 1926 Little Rock
City Directory, Brown and his family lived at 1424
Schiller Street. He returned to Little Rock in 1973
after retirement until his death in 2002. In 1993
he published “When the Century Was Young”, a
book of memories that focuses on Little Rock in
the 1920s and 30s. The Brown’s home during the
20s and 30s on Schiller was demolished
sometime between 1970 and 1998 (Figure 19,
pg.11).
Figure 17. Clayborn House, 2022, substantially altered.
Figure 18. Clayborn House, 2019, Google Maps.
Figure 16. Warren Lenon House at 2005 W. 16th.
Figure 15. Central High during construction, c. 1927,
courtesy of the Central Arkansas Library System.
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Life changed dramatically in 1929 and
the Great Depression era brought about a need
for affordable housing in Little Rock. The
neighborhood saw an influx of the economic
Minimal Traditional architectural style. This type
of home was prominent in the 1930s and 1940s
as an attempt to reflect revival styles without
elaborate decoration. The home at 2108
Marshall is a good example of this style (Figure
20). Today, many of these homes are wrapped in
vinyl or metal siding with the original wood
siding still beneath.
10 Blockbusting was a technique used by realtors to
persuade white homeowners to sell their property
2.3 1941-1961
Other small, economic home styles
thrived in the district during and following World
War II. Plain Traditional homes were constructed
during the New Deal era all the way to the late
20th century and American Small Houses were
constructed from c. 1930-1950. The residential
structure at 1500 W 21st, built in 1932, displays
an earlier form of the Plain Traditional style. The
homes at 1801-1805 W 18th Street, all
constructed in 1948, are a strong cluster
example of the American Small House (Figure 21,
pg. 12).
Another structure that gained popularity
in the district in the mid-twentieth century is the
Ranch style home. This house style, along with
the Plain and Minimal Traditional homes, was
utilized in the district as infill developments for
vacant lots and as replacements of older homes
that were demolished. Cluster examples of the
Ranch style home can be found at 1808, 1820,
and 1822 Bishop. These infill and replacement
houses in the district following the Second World
War valued affordable and efficient
construction.
Other social and economic impacts to
the district shaped its form during this era. White
flight, housing shortages in the city,
blockbusting10, and the idealism of suburban
growth to the west (past University Street) could
have meant the post-war death and
abandonment of the Central High District. Many
homes and commercial buildings pre-dating
World War I were lost during this era due to the
changing needs of the neighborhood and the
limitations of economic and social determinants.
The evolution of the neighborhood
leading up to the 1957 desegregation crisis was
one of stability and diversity, despite the impacts
of global and national events. Little Rock’s 1940
for fear of another race or economic class moving
into the neighborhood.
Figure 19. Vacant lot at 1424 Schiller Street where the
home of Dee Brown once stood.
Figure 20. 2108 Marshall built c. 1935 in the Minimal
Traditional style.
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Home Owner’s Loan Corporation (“HOLC”)
map11 (Appendix B, pg. 21) displays ratings of
neighborhood sections evaluating mortgage risk.
The Central High District was broken up into four
sections with various ratings: A “Best”, B “Still
Desirable”, C “Definitely Declining”, and D
“Hazardous”. Ratings were primarily based on
racial makeup with influences of home
ownership, occupations, and the age of the
properties. HOLC maps commonly saw
interracial neighborhoods as unstable.
It should be noted that the period of
significance for the Central High District (1870-
1961) runs parallel to the period of Jim Crow
nationally and locally.
Contrasting to the condition of the
neighborhood provided by the HOLC, memories
of the neighborhood from residents of this time
were nostalgic and positive despite social
injustices within daily life.12 These reflections
were gathered sometime around 1996 and were
focused on residents who lived there sometime
within 1910-1960. Residents remembered the
neighborhood as clean, well-maintained,
familial, “middle class”, “not elite”, and “a family
neighborhood”.13 Additionally, the results of a
11 For more information on HOLC maps and Redlining
in Arkansas, visit:
https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/redlinin
g-11958/
local real estate property survey of the
neighborhood completed in 1940 confirmed
several characteristics: rent in the neighborhood
was in the top half of rent available citywide,
home ownership was prominent, residents lived
in their homes for 10 to 19 years, and, in the
blocks of Battery, Schiller, Summit and Wolfe,
homeowners lived at the same address for more
than two decades.14
The district today holds 950 historic
resources as touchstones to the past, including
four schools, two churches, and twenty-two
commercial buildings. The 150 years of physical
history that remains in the Central High District
is worthy of preservation.
Though buildings are constructed on a
specific date, the life they live and contain
beyond this date is capable of possessing
multiple and, sometimes, polar identities.
Buildings that are able to stand the test of time
become resources for these identities. The
ability to interact with these resources, to
recognize their histories as valuable, and to
continue to engage with them, will determine
12 “Central High History”, pg. 39-41.
13 Ibid, 39.
14 “Central High History”, pg. 40-41.
Figure 21. 1801, 1803, and 1805 W 18th Street all built in 1948 in the American Small House style.
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the formation of Little Rock’s identity and
meaning for the future.
3. Past Preservation Initiatives
The Central High & Wright Avenue
neighborhoods are the surrounding residential
and commercial landscape of the Little Rock
Central High School. As the focus of national
attention during the 1957 desegregation crisis,
both the school and the neighborhood gained
local and national significance. Equally, the
neighborhood’s history and prominence pre-
dates the desegregation crisis as Little Rock’s
first 20th century suburb. With multiple eras of
historical value overlaying the area, the
architectural character and value of the
neighborhood is significant to the story of Little
Rock’s built environment and a present
touchstone to the past that can be experienced
today. In recognition of this history, as well as
the historical and aesthetic value of the
individual structures within this area, the Central
High School Neighborhood Historic District was
nominated to the National Register of Historic
Place in 1996 (Smith, 1996).
With this first historic resource survey,
the National Register (NR) district was comprised
of 824 properties. Thirteen (13) years later,
despite welcoming thousands of visitors
annually from around the world to visit the
National Historic Landmark and Museum, the
neighborhood was in jeopardy of losing its
national designation.
In 2009, the Central High Neighborhood
Design Overlay District (“DOD”) was created to
protect the historic architectural integrity and
sense of place of the district (City of Little Rock,
Ord. No. 20,180, § 1, 10-20-09, 2019). The
overlay added an additional layer of review to
specific projects, mainly new construction, and
large-scale renovations. However, the DOD
boundaries stop at W. 17th Street, leaving more
than 50 blocks of the historic district without this
added protection.
In 2012, the historic district was
expanded to increase the number of historically
significant resources and fill the deficit of lost
structures (Higgins & Higgins, 2012). As a result,
the expanded NR district was comprised of 934
properties and the period of significance was
expanded from 1870-1946 to 1870-1961. So far,
these attempts have not been effective enough
to stabilize investment and prevent the loss of
historic fabric in the district.
In 2014, the Central High School
Neighborhood Historic District was listed on
Arkansas’s Most Endangered Places List by
Preserve Arkansas, with the identifiers:
abandoned, endangered, and demolished
(Preserve Arkansas, 2014).
Figure 22. Cover of the ReLocal report, "A Way Forward-
Strategies and Tolls for addressing Vacancy in Little Rock",
PlaceEconomics, 2016.
14 | P a g e
In 2016, PlaceEconomics conducted a
ReLocal report for the City of Little Rock, “A Way
Forward – Strategies and Tools for addressing
Vacancy in Little Rock” (PlaceEconomics, 2016).
This report divided the core of the city into four
areas of study. The Central High & Wright
Avenue neighborhoods compromised the
majority of one of these areas, identified as
“West” in the report. In the West, 297 vacant
buildings were identified (Appendix C, pg. 22),
the largest share of vacant buildings among the
other study areas. 21% of its parcels were
compromised of vacant lots, totaling 634 parcels
(Appendix D, pg. 23). This study did two things:
provide a resource for data and policy
recommendations for the City of Little Rock and
confirmed the predicted threats to the Central
High & Wright Avenue neighborhoods.
Apart from this vacancy study, a formal
analysis of the neighborhood’s economy and loss
of historic fabric has not taken place. Moreover,
a formal historical resource survey of the
properties within the Central High NHD has not
been conducted since 2012. This means the
exact impact of these losses on the district is
currently unmeasured and the true state of the
district for National Register designation is
unknown.
4. The Projected Loss of the
Central High School
Neighborhood Historic District
4.1 Demolitions
Anticipating the effects of demolition
and alterations, Planning & Development staff
conducted an in-house analysis of the district
based on permit data, the 2012 National Register
data, and consultation with the National Register
team at the Arkansas Historic Preservation
Program.
Staff identified forty-two (42)
demolitions within the district since 2010 (Figure
24) (Appendix F, pg.25). Of these demolitions,
twenty-three (23) were contributing structures.
Once these demolitions occur, the structures,
even if reconstructed, will never contribute to
Figure 23. Chart showing permitted demolitions in the Central High & Wright Avenue
neighborhoods from 2010-2021.
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Demos 4 2 6 7 5 8 1 2 1 4 2
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Demolitions in Central High NHD (2010-2021)
15 | P a g e
the district’s National Register totals.
Furthermore, the lots are then counted towards
the district’s non-contributing totals.
4.2 National Register of Historic Places
Designation
From this analysis, staff estimates that
there are currently 950 properties (historic
resources) in the district. Of these, 555 are
“contributing”, 385 are “non-contributing”, 9 are
“independently listed”, and 1 is a National
Historic Landmark (Appendix E, pg. 24). With
these best-case-scenario estimates, the NR
eligibility ratio is predicted to be 59% with a 2-
7% margin. To remain a National Register
historic district, the district must retain a ratio of
51% or more of its historic fabric. The 2-7%
margin anticipates the identification of further
loss if formally surveyed, due to incompatible
alterations and deterioration by neglect. Staff
concludes that the creation of a local ordinance
district is necessary to meaningfully support an
environment of stability and prevent the loss of
historic significance.
If the district continues to lose
contributing structures—by demolition,
neglect, and incompatible alterations—the
Central High Historic District will be
irreplaceably lost. The loss of the district’s
National Register designation is not the only
casualty in this circumstance. Property owners of
contributing structures are currently eligible for
rehabilitation tax credits and other state and
federal economic tools. Property owners of non-
contributing structures are currently eligible for
state grants to bring their property to
contributing status. The access to these
economic tools will be removed if the district is
delisted.
2.3 Stabilizing Property Owner
Investment
The majority of property owners in the
Central High NHD benefit from the district’s NR
designation. Since 2010, property owners in the
district have jointly invested at least
$45,991,641.00 in their properties. Of these
projects, fifty-eight (58) received state and/or
federal rehabilitation tax credits with
$2,116,010.63 awarded. Often, rehabilitation
tax credits make projects successful that would
otherwise not be financially feasible. For
example, the three residential properties at
2301-2309 Summit utilized tax credits for the
two remaining structures (Figure 24 and Figure
25, pg. 13).
950 properties
555 contributing
385 non-contributing
59%
(2-7% margin)
Historic District Totals
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Figure 24. 2301-2309 Summit, before rehabilitation and infill construction, 2013.
Figure 25. 2301-2309 Summit, after rehabilitation and compatible infill construction, 2019.
17 | P a g e
There is a positive trend towards
continued investment and improved
development by residential property owners
(Figure 26). The pattern of investment, however,
has been noticeably sporadic across the district
(Appendix G, pg. 26). This is likely due to the
issue of vacant, unused property owned by
either multiple heirs or out of town owners. In
many cases, these owners hold out on selling the
property in anticipation of property values
increasing but refuse to maintain their property
or put it to active use during that time.
In an area with 15% building vacancy and
21% lot vacancy (PlaceEconomics, 2016),
investments are unprotected from the impact of
surrounding dereliction and inactivity. These
circumstances have made it difficult for the
private sector to achieve a concentration of
activity, investment, vitality, and quality
conditions for residents.
5. Solution: Local Ordinance
Historic District
5.1 What is a local ordinance district?
A Local Ordinance District (“LOD”) is a
geographically definable area in which historic
structures and their setting are protected by
public review at the municipal level (rather than
state or federal), typically by a Historic District
Commission. Little Rock currently has one local
ordinance district, MacArthur Park Historic
District. The MacArthur Park Historic District is
reviewed by the Little Rock Historic District
Commission (“HDC”). An additional local
ordinance district, such as Central High School
Neighborhood Historic District, would be
included in Little Rock’s existing local
preservation ordinance (Code of Ordinances,
Sec. 23-76--23-160). This existing ordinance
helps to preserve the visual characteristics of
historic districts while providing a framework for
redevelopment by stabilizing investment and
increasing property values.
The proposed LOD for the Central High
District would be identical to, and encompass,
the area of the existing National Register district
(Appendix A, pg. 20). The neighborhood would
gain a public review process for the alteration,
restoration, construction, moving and
demolition of structures within the district
through the HDC, as well as representation on
the Commission. Applications would be
reviewed by the HDC and staff against specific
$-
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
$1,400,000
$1,600,000
$1,800,000
$2,000,000
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021Dollar AmountYear
Private Investment by
Residential Property Owners
Figure 26. Private Investment by Residential Property Owners from 2010 to 2021.
18 | P a g e
design guidelines tailored to the district. The
local ordinance would not review ordinary
maintenance, interior improvements, or
property use (such as zoning).
The anticipated impacts of the creation
of a local ordinance district for the Central High
School Neighborhood Historic District would be:
• the preservation of the existing historic
character of the neighborhood,
• compatibly designed infill development,
• fewer demolitions,
• fewer vacant lots and vacant buildings,
• the increased stabilization of the
neighborhood’s economy,
• and the protection of property owner
investment.
5.2 Path to Approval
To create a local ordinance district, the
City of Little Rock must follow the provisions
outlined by the Arkansas General Assembly
(A.C.A. § 14-172-203) and its Historic
Preservation ordinance (Sec.23. Article IV).
Below is a summary of the legal process:
1. Historic District Commission staff presents a
report to the Arkansas Historic Preservation
Program (“AHPP”) and the Little Rock
Planning Commission (“PC”) for
recommendations.
2. The AHPP and the PC have 60 days to
provide recommendations on the report to
the HDC.
3. The report and recommendations will be
read at a Historic District Commission public
hearing. The report and proposal of the LOD
shall follow public notice provisions.
4. The final report, including all
recommendations, shall be presented to
the Board of Directors with the
recommendations from the AHPP, PC, and
HDC.
5. The Board of Directors will vote to approve
or deny the proposal. If approved, there
must be the passing of an ordinance to
implement the creation of the local
ordinance district.
This effort could take 6 to 8 months depending
on public hearing schedules. During this time,
staff recommends the passing of a moratorium
on demolitions to prevent further loss of
historic fabric until an LOD can be established
and a review process can take place.
19 | P a g e
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021# of PermitsLOD Workload Comparison
Central Total MacArthur Total Both Districts
Figure 27. Chart showing MacArthur Park cases compared to applicable Central High permits and the projected combined total.
5.3 Path Following Approval
5.3.1 Increase Representation on
Historic District Commission
With the establishment of an
additional LOD, the Little Rock Historic
District Commission would expand its
membership from seven (7) members to
eight (8) or nine (9) members to include
representation from the Central High School
Neighborhood Historic District. Nine (9)
members would be ideal to avoid a tie vote
on items. Each member shall be appointed
by the Board of Directors.
5.3.2 Design Guidelines
Following the creation of a local
ordinance district, design guidelines must
be established to provide review standards
for development specific to the district.
Until these guidelines are in place, staff
recommends the use of the existing
MacArthur Park Design Guidelines.
5.3.3 Staff Capacity
If the Central High School Neighborhood
local ordinance district is established, staff
would see at least a 100% increase—twice
as much—in case load activity alone (Figure
9). This could necessitate the addition of
staff in the Planning & Development
Department.
20 | P a g e
Appendices
Appendix A
21 | P a g e
Appendix B
Figure 28. Home Owner's Loan Corporation, Little Rock Map, c. 1940.
22 | P a g e
Appendix C
Figure 29. Parcel Map of West with Vacant Building Recommendations.
23 | P a g e
Appendix D
Figure 30. Parcel Map of West with Vacant Lot Recommendations.
24 | P a g e
Appendix E
25 | P a g e
Appendix F
26 | P a g e
Appendix G
27 | P a g e
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