The Historic Preservation Commission has recommended expanding the central business historic district into an area that includes portions of East Council, East Innes, Lee and East Liberty streets between Main and Depot streets.

Significant properties in the expansion area date from 1890 to 1950. The expansion would take in the Flowers Bakery Redevelopment Area, including the Rowan County Chamber of Commerce’s Gateway project at the corner of East Innes and North Lee streets.

Well-known Salisbury businesses such as O.O. Rufty’s General Store and Hardiman Furniture fall within the expansion area, as do three business properties that have been or are being redeveloped at the corner of Depot and East Innes streets.

A main advantage of joining a National Register Historic District is the 40 percent tax credit available to income-producing properties that want to make renovations and improvements.

Salisbury City Council will be asked Tuesday to recommend the expansion at its 4 p.m. meeting at City Hall, 217 S. Main St. A time will be set aside for citizen comments.

Because the city has a “Certified Local Government” designation, the Historic Preservation Commission and council are required to conduct National Register nomination reviews and make recommendations.

Those recommendations will be forwarded to the National Register Advisory Committee at the State Historic Preservation Office.

The advisory committee will review the nomination Feb. 10.

The city, Downtown Salisbury Inc. and property owners within the proposed expansion area paid for putting the nomination together. L&L Associates, a historic preservation consulting firm, wrote the nomination.

Properties in the expansion area are not within a local historic district. Owners would not be required to appear before the Historic Preservation Commission before making changes to their properties.

On another matter Tuesday, council will hear reports about pending upgrades and expansions at the city’s water treatment plant.

Consulting engineer Mike Acquesta of Peirson and Whitman and Terry Gross of the the N.C. Division of Environmental Health will update council members on the status of projects designed to meet state mandates.

The state wants Salisbury to expand its water treatment capacity from 12 million to 18 million gallons a day. Acquesta will review the timing of the projects under way that will lead to the expansion and keep the city in compliance with existing and proposed state regulations.

Utilities Director John Vest says the expansion of the treatment plant’s capacity is necessary to avoid any future state moratorium that would prevent adding new water customers to the Salisbury utility.

Consultants also will give council cost estimates for correcting “inflow and infiltration” problems in the sewer system.

In other business, the council will:

• Get an update from Frank Goodnight on Downtown Salisbury’s plans for providing two rubber-wheeled trolleys for the downtown and as a link to the N.C. Transportation History Museum in Spencer.
• Hold a public hearing on the proposed closing of unimproved streets and an alley near 1300 N. Shaver St.
• Consider setting a fee for rental of the new gazebo at Cannon Park.
• Authorize the sale at public auction of several city-owned cars, trucks and tractors and hundreds of other surplus items from various city departments. The auction is scheduled for 10 a.m. Feb. 18 at the J.A. English Service Center on West Franklin Street.