Historic District Survey Reports
Ann Street
The final report for the Ann Street Historic Block was completed in 1979 by the Division Street Historic District Study Committee. The report provides a brief history of the area, preservation standards, restoration recommendations, photographs and history of each house, and a draft ordinance.
Broadway/Northern Brewery
The Northern Brewery Historic District was adopted in 1978. It incorporates the Northern Brewery, one of the oldest industrial buildings in Ann Arbor. Built in 1872, it is listed in the State Register of Historic Places and National Register of Historic Places.
In 2006, a committee was established to examine the area on both sides of Broadway, in the vicinity of the Northern Brewery. The Broadway Historic District was adopted on January 30, 2008.
Cobblestone Farm
The Cobblestone Farm Historic District Study Committee published their report in 1982. The report contains a history of the farm and the families who lived there, the farm's historic significance, preservation guidelines for the site, and preservation standards.
Division Street
The Division Street Historic District was adopted in 1973. Its ordinance was further amended in 1976.
Downtown
Downtown Ann Arbor contains several historic districts. These include the Main Street, East Liberty, East William, Fourth/Ann, and State Street Historic Districts. The Liberty Street Historic District was adopted in 1975. Main Street, Fourth and Ann, and East William Historic Districts were adopted in 1989. The State Street Historic District was adopted in 1992.
Hayden House
The Robert and Erma Hayden House Historic District Study Committee was established by the Ann Arbor City Council on August 2, 2021. The ordinance was adopted, creating the district, in February 2023.
Old Fourth Ward
The Old Fourth Ward Historic District was adopted in 1983. The ordinance was further amended in 1984 and 1989.
Old West Side
The Old West Side Historic District was listed in the National Register in 1972, and was the first neighborhood listed solely for its environmental character. A study committee was appointed in 1974 to determine specific regulations for maintaining its character. The first ordinance was adopted in 1978.
In 1989, a new study committee was appointed to examine ways to improve the ordinance. Revisions to the ordinance were adopted in October, 1990.
Current regulations in the Old West Side Historic District follow those described in Chapter 103 of Title VIII of the Code of the City of Ann Arbor.
In 2011, a re-survey of the Old West Side was conducted. When the City of Ann Arbor designated the Old West Side Historic District in 1978, survey and designation techniques were not as developed as they are today. Therefore, a list of contributing and non-contributing properties in the district was never developed. The purpose of this reconnaissance-level survey was to determine which resources contribute to the character of the historic district.
Washtenaw/Hill
The Washtenaw/Hill Historic District was completed in two separate phases. Phase 1 was adopted in 1980, and consisted of five properties at the intersection of Washtenaw and Hill.
Phase 2 was adopted in 1986. It expanded the historic district to encompass buildings in the 1300, 1400, and 1500 blocks of Hill and a single building on the corner of Washtenaw. This added 16 properties to the Washtenaw/Hill Historic District, for a total of 21 properties.
During the mid-1990s, the possibility of adding more properties through Phase 3 was researched. More than one thousand properties were considered for addition to the existing Washtenaw/Hill Historic District.
In the early-2000s, the Phase 3 addition was proposed and a study committee was appointed. It would have incorporated over 150 additional properties into the Historic District. However, this proposal was not adopted.
Other Historic Districts
Central Campus Historic District
The Central Campus Historic District does not fall within the purview of the City of Ann Arbor.
Landmarks Historic District
The Landmarks Historic District Study Committee was appointed in 1986 to identify individual historic structures for protection under a local ordinance. The study included only properties that were not part of an existing historic district. Some of these properties were listed in the National or State Register of Historic Places. The Landmarks Historic District Study Committee Report was adopted by City Council on March 28, 1988 as the Individual Historic Properties Historic District.
Individual Historic Properties Historic District
The Individual Historic Properties Historic District ordinance was amended by City Council on November 7, 1994 to expand the district.
The ordinance was invalidated by the State of Michigan Court of Appeals in September, 2001, which ruled that the historic district did not comply with the Michigan Historic District Act (Act 169 of 1970).
Study Committee Reports and Information
Inglis House Study Committee
Inglis House Study Committee was established by the Ann Arbor City Council on May 1, 2017, and members were appointed on June 5, 2017. The Committee was charged with studying the potential of an Inglis House Historic District. After reporting back to City Council and presenting a study committee report, City Council denied the establishment of the district.
The Inglis House Study Committee Report below, as adopted by the Study Committee, includes information on James and Elizabeth Inglis, the house and grounds, and the property's history and historic resources.
South Fourth and South Fifth Avenue Study Committee
Pursuant to Chapter 103, Section 8:408 of Ann Arbor City Code, the Fourth and Fifth Avenue Historic District Study Committee (“Study Committee”) was established by the Ann Arbor City Council to evaluate a residential area just south of downtown Ann Arbor to determine if it meets criteria for historic district designation. The Study Committee was established by Council vote on August 17, 2009 and members were appointed on September 8, 2009.
The Study Committee was given until September 2010 to complete its work and make its recommendation to City Council in the form of a report. The City Council also passed a resolution establishing a six-month moratorium on building permits in the proposed historic district that expired on February 6, 2010. A six-month extension of the moratorium was passed by City Council on February 1, 2010, extending it until August 6, 2010.
Report for City Council
The final report of the Proposed Fourth and Fifth Avenues Historic District, as well as survey sheets for each property in the study area, are provided below for public review. The Study Committee adopted the final report on May 17, 2010. Before adopting the report, the Study Committee held a public hearing on Wednesday, May 5.
The report was transmitted to City Council for consideration and first reading (because the proposed district was an ordinance change) on June 21. City Council held a public hearing on the proposed district at second reading, which was July 6. At that meeting City Council voted on the proposed district and the motion did not pass, so the district was not created.
