State Bill’s Impact Concerns Historic Preservation Board

MOSCOW – Work on National Historic Register designations for the City Water Department building and the central University of Idaho campus are progressing well, the Moscow Historic Preservation Commission was told at its regular meeting Thursday.

However, the board also heard during public comments from Anne Marshall, UI professor emeritus of architecture, who registered her dismay at the quick progress through the Idaho Legislature of House Bill 898. Passage of the bill, and its potential defunding of historic preservation efforts, could render moot some items on the commission’s March 26 agenda – such as project planning and grants toward the water building designation – said Sandra Kelly, Moscow City Council member and its liaison to the commission. 

HB 898 would move the Idaho State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) out of the State Historical Society (primarily concerned with regulatory oversight) and into the newly created Office of Species, Minerals and Energy Coordination (primarily concerned with development). 

Sponsors and advocates say the move would streamline federal-compliance requirements – such as historic preservation consideration, environmental review, etc. – under one efficient administration.

Opponents worry the move would fast-track development profit to the detriment of community character and preservation. They cite as an example the Lava Ridge 400-turbine wind farm project, which recently was stalled due to SHPO action. The project would have provided power to California homes at the expense of Idaho rural ag and historic landscapes, opponents say.

Progress of HB 898 may be tracked at https://legiscan.com/ID/bill/H0898/2026

The commission also heard Thursday:

* The University of Idaho historic district designation has no major holdups, is receiving good feedback, and should move to the federal level in the next few weeks, according to Commission Chair Shelley Walker-Harmon. She said the district might receive designation by late summer.

She has been working to put together a public tour of the UI district, as well as the town of Bovill, with Hailey Noble, executive director of the Latah County Historical Society. 

* City Council has approved pursuit of grants for the water building historic designation, said Mike Ray, city planning manager and staff liaison to the commission. Walker-Harmon said efforts are under way to gather letters of support.

* A historical interpretive sign for Friendship Square is on hold awaiting scans of high-resolution images, Walker-Harmon reported. The sign would be similar to those placed by the commission in front of the 1912 Center, City Hall and the Moscow Carnegie Library.

* The UI has bought the historic grain elevator complex at Sixth and Jackson streets to further develop a “Legacy Crossing” connection between the university and downtown Moscow. The corner property owned by the Moscow Urban Renewal Agency is not part of the sale.

* Commissioners interested in conducting historic tours of Moscow buildings or districts were encouraged by the chair to do so. Tours of neighborhoods with midcentury homes; downtown and cemetery tours around different themes; the midcentury University Heights area; and the Ted Prichard-built Depression-era “art colony” homes on Apple Lane were some of the possibilities mentioned.