Grover Thompson’s Sunnyslope Rock Garden is now in the process of obtaining its place on the Phoenix Historic Property Registry (photo by Kathryn M. Miller).
With an 8-0 vote at its June 17 meeting, the Phoenix Historic Preservation Commission approved recommending the initiation of Historic Preservation Overlay Zoning for the Thompson Rock Garden, located at 10023 N. 13th Place in Sunnyslope. This is the first step in listing the property on the Phoenix Historic Property Registry.
The property will now go through the rezoning process, with a three- to four-month series of public hearings. Once rezoning is complete, the property will be formally protected through a special permit review process administered by the city of Phoenix Historic Preservation Office. These types of properties are also eligible for financial incentives offered by the city of Phoenix. Properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places are not rezoned and have no formal protection, but they are eligible for incentives administered by the Arizona State Historic Preservation Office and National Park Service. The same eligibility criteria are used for both historic registers.
At the June 17 meeting, Sunnyslope resident Julia Taggart, who was in attendance representing the case along with the property owner, Marion Blake, indicated that Blake would also be pursuing National Register status. Learn more about the historic preservation process at www.phoenix.gov/pdd/historic-preservation.
