A.1 - Mary Freeman Baylor House, 1607 W. 10th Street - Citizen Comments — original pdf

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OWANA Steering Committee Ted Barnhill CHAIR Renae Alsobrook TREASURER Shawn Shillington SECRETARY MEMBERS Amy Bodle Cristine Buendel Sandy Cartwright Kate Ertle Adrienne Goldsberry Lindsey Heron Ellen Justice Marissa Latta Andrea March Maureen Metteauer August 20, 2020 Historic Landmark Commission City of Austin VIA EMAIL: BC-Mathew.Jacob@austintexas.gov bc-Terri.Myers@austintexas.gov bc-Alexander.Papavasiliou@austintexas.gov bc-Sarah.Valenzuela@austintexas.gov BC-Trey.McWhorter@austintexas.gov BC-Kevin.Koch@austintexas.gov BC-Witt.Featherston@austintexas.gov BC-Ben.Heimsath@austintexas.gov bc-Blake.Tollett@austintexas.gov bc-Emily.Reed@austintexas.gov BC-Kelly.Little@austintexas.gov CC: Cara.Bertron@austintexas.gov, steve.sadowsky@austintexas.gov
 RE: Application for Historic Zoning for 1607 W. 10th Street Dear Commissioners: The Old West Austin Neighborhood Association is pleased to communicate our strong sup- port of the application for Historic Landmark Zoning for the Mary Baylor House at 1607 W. 10th Street. This home is a significant structure in the Clarksville neighborhood. It was the home of Mary Frances Freeman Baylor, an important African-American activist and founder of the Clarksville Community Development Corporation (CCDC). Mary Baylor dedicated much of her life to serving the residents of Clarksville. She served as director of the Clarksville Neighborhood Center (then known as the Human Opportunities Corporation). Later, she led the effort to protest the creation of Loop 1 (better known as Mopac) and limit its impact on the Clarksville community. Without her efforts, much more of the neighborhood would have been wiped out and many lifelong residents displaced. Her legacy lives on in the CCDC, which seeks to preserve the Clarksville heritage by renovating historic properties and employing them as affordable hous- ing options to qualifying Austin residents. Moreover, this home remains true to the original character of Clarksville. It has retained its historic features and was renovated lovingly over the last several years by the current own- ers. As we lose the historic fabric of Clarksville bit-by-bit each year, it only fitting to confer land- mark status to the home of such an important member of the Clarksville community who fought to save one of the earliest freedmen communities west of the Mississippi. On behalf of the membership of OWANA, I urge you all to vote in favor of this historic land- mark application. Sincerely,   Ted C. Barnhill Chair, Steering Committee Old West Austin Neighborhood Association (OWANA)