November 3, 2026
Dear Supporters,
Welcome to our newsletter, in which we will keep you up to date on our activities and other preservation news.
We Savannahians are witnessing a sustained degradation of the very qualities that make our Downtown Historic District unique and a national treasure. Ever more inappropriate development is proposed every few weeks. We at the Oglethorpe Plan Coalition, Inc. are dedicated to addressing these threats and protecting the Downtown Savannah National Historic District.
In This Issue:
OPC Opposes Proposed Subdivision at 429 Tattnall Street
MPC Staff Approves Hot Pink and White Striped Façade at 418 West Broughton
OPC Reminds Concerned Citizens to Oppose the Proposed Changes to Section 106
Venerable Large Oak in Historic Warren Square at Risk of Destruction
OPC Opposes Proposed Subdivision at 429 Tattnall Street
The OPC is concerned about proposed subdivisions where the proposal is not consistent with recent laws enacted to regulate subdivisions, especially where the proposed subdivision results in an undersized lot.
Following the controversy surrounding the inappropriate subdivision at 336 Barnard Street, the OPC was a stakeholder in the efforts that led to the passage of Ordinance amendments to regulate subdivisions in the downtown historic district. Other stakeholders included the Historic Savannah Foundation, the Beehive Foundation and the Downtown Neighborhood Association. The resulting Ordinance Section 7.8.13 states that the subdivision shall be consistent with the prevailing historic context and lot patterns within the visually related context including, but not limited to, lot size, lot shape, and lot configurations.
The owner of 429 Tattnall Street, between Taylor and Wayne Streets, the location of Windy’s Preschool, has applied for a COA to subdivide this one parcel into 3 parcels. The existing Windy’s Preschool building is to be divided into lots B-1 and B-2, and a third lot, B-3, would be created from the yard behind the preschool.
This proposed third lot is only 765 square feet or .0176 acres. The OPC has not seen any convincing survey evidence that this property, or any property in the surrounding area, has ever been divided to include a lot this small. We note that insurance maps are not evidence of lot boundaries, nor are street addresses determinative of lot separation.
The evidence we have reviewed indicates that the entire block (Lot 32, Berrien Ward) has never had more than three lots (lots A, B, and C on below historic plat), while the subdivision proposal would now result in five.
If you oppose this proposal, please attend the hearing and/or email the HDBR at historic@thempc.org with the subject line “Opposition to 429 Tattnall Street” and copy opc.preservation@gmail.com. Your email must be sent by noon Friday November 6, 2026.
The hearing is to be held at the Arthur A. Mendonsa Hearing Room, 112 East State Street, Savannah, GA on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. The proposal is Agenda item 7, “Petition of Hamilton Court Development LLC. | 26-004653-COA | 429 Tattnall Street | Subdivision.”
MPC Staff Approves Hot Pink and White Striped Façade at 418 West Broughton
Without any review by the HDBR, the MPC Staff approved a garish storefront on West Broughton Street as being “visually compatible.” Given how much attention the HDBR typically devotes to reviewing storefronts, we cannot fathom why such an inappropriate design would not be submitted to the HDBR.
OPC Reminds Concerned Citizens to Oppose the Proposed Changes to Section 106
The Federal government owns many properties in Savannah; these include the Federal Court Houses, including the old Post Office on Wright Square as well as several buildings bordering Telfair Square and the important 1850s Custom House on Bay and Bull Streets, designed by John Norris.
Please write to your elected officials, especially your US senators, to oppose the changes. Under the proposed changes, state and local governments would lose the right to even be notified when a federal action threatens to damage or destroy a historic place in their own jurisdiction.
Here’s a link to more information: https://support.savingplaces.org/page/101008/action/1?ea.tracking.id=Email&ea.url.id=5875482&forwarded=true
Venerable Large Oak in Historic Warren Square Likely to Be Removed
Among Savannah most iconic treasures are the live oaks that dwell in our squares. Unfortunately, the City has determined it needs to remove one of the four massive oak trees in Warren Square.
Removal of this tree would leave a gaping hole. Our understanding is that the neighbors are asking the City to see if it can be saved or if not, to replace it with one large tree or multiple trees.
Warren Square Oak
Monthly Oglethorpe Plan Coalition (OPC) Volunteers Meeting
The OPC is a volunteer group, and we want you! Please contact us at opc.preservation@gmail.com if you would like to get involved. Our next meeting is planned for December 6, 2026, 3PM. Please send us an email with your contact information if you are interested in attending in person or by Zoom. Capacity is limited.
August 14, 2026
Dear Supporters,
Welcome to our newsletter, in which we will keep you up to date on our activities and other preservation news.
We Savannahians are witnessing a sustained degradation of the very qualities that make our Downtown Historic District unique and a national treasure. Ever more inappropriate development is proposed every few weeks. We at the Oglethorpe Plan Coalition, Inc. are dedicated to addressing these threats and protecting the Downtown Savannah National Historic District.
In This Issue:
Queensborough Bank Proposal Subject to Further Changes
Historic Protection of Federally Owned Property in Danger
Potentially Massive New Building Coming to Johnson Square
Tourism Industry Ruins Yet Another Historic Vista
Queensborough Bank Proposal Approved Subject to Further Changes
Thank you very much to all of you who sent letters requesting improvements to the design of 402 E. Broughton Street in Savannah, the site of the proposed new building for Queensborough Bank. Letters requesting improvements to the design numbered around 40; letters supporting the design without changes were around 15. Here’s the Habersham Street façade as submitted.
Habersham Street Elevation
The applicant tried to justify constructing this inappropriate building in part because the eastern end of Broughton Street was “blighted,” ironically showing the images of their own existing building. The site is a half block from the Davenport House and across the street from the restored 1822 Gwathney House and the 1791 Berrien House (below).
We do not consider Warren Ward and Columbia Wards to be blighted. On the contrary, they are the location of many of the oldest historic homes in Savannah.
We did have a partial win. Although the Historic District Board approved the proposal, it did so subject to changes being made to the fenestration of the Habersham Street façade in order to make it more visually compatible with its historic setting. The Habersham Street facade was our greatest concern. Had you not sent your letters, it would have been unlikely that this condition would have been granted. We will work with the Historic Savannah Foundation and the Downtown Neighborhood Association to make sure changes are implemented by the bank.
Your letters made a big difference, and we are very grateful for your effort to protect the Savannah Downtown Historic District.
Historic Protection of Federally Owned Properties in Danger
The Federal government owns many properties in Savannah; these include the Federal court houses, including the old Post Office on Wright Square as well as several buildings bordering Telfair Square, and the important 1850s Custom House on Bay and Bull Streets, designed by John Norris.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation has raised the following alarm about the protection of these historic Resources:
“The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP)’s proposed rule change for Section 106 regulations would eliminate public participation in federal preservation decisions. . . . Under the proposed changes, state and local governments would lose the right to even be notified when a federal action threatens to damage or destroy a historic place in their own jurisdiction. . . . Let your governor know that these changes would directly impact your state.”
Here’s a link to more information: https://support.savingplaces.org/page/101008/action/1?ea.tracking.id=Email&ea.url.id=5875482&forwarded=true
Potentially Massive New Building Coming to Johnson Square
On August 12, 2026, Savannah’s Historic District Board of Review approved the demolition of the building on the northwest corner of Bull and Bryan Streets to make way for an expected new high-rise. The building is on the site of the former Pulaski Hotel, and it once was the location of Morrison’s cafeteria, a popular destination for locals. The current height map allows for 14 stories plus a bonus floor. As a result, the historic Savannah skyline will likely change dramatically.
While it is unlikely that the current owner would demolish the building before the new building is approved, one concern is that if for some reason the property is transferred to a new owner in the future, it could demolish the existing building before approval of the replacement building, giving rise to the risk of having an empty lot. The site of the proposal is the two-story building to the left in the image below.
The OPC will monitor this proposal and keep you informed.
Tourism Industry Ruins Yet Another Historic Vista
For generations, the Old Cotton Exchange on Bay Street has been one of Savannah’s most famous landmarks, carefully centered at the foot of Drayton Street. Now, the Drayton Street vista will be altered forever as a modern hotel rises across the river. For more information on the new hotel, click here.
Before
After
Monthly Oglethorpe Plan Coalition (OPC) Volunteers Meeting
The OPC is a volunteer group, and we want you! Please contact us at opc.preservation@gmail.com if you would like to get involved. Our next meeting is planned for September 13, 2026, 3PM. Please send us an email with your contact information if you are interested in attending in person or by Zoom. Capacity is limited.
May 29, 2026
Dear Supporters,
Welcome to our newsletter, in which we will keep you up to date on our activities and other preservation news.
We Savannahians are witnessing a sustained degradation of the very qualities that make our Downtown Historic District unique and a national treasure. Ever more inappropriate development is proposed every few weeks. We at the Oglethorpe Plan Coalition, Inc. are dedicated to addressing these threats and protecting the Downtown Savannah National Historic District.
In This Issue:
Queensborough Bank Proposal Needs Improvements
OPC Appreciates the Mayor’s Letter to the Tourist Advisory Council
The International Style Dilemma
Queensborough Bank Proposal Needs Improvement
The proposal for the new Queensborough Bank on the northeast corner of East Broughton Street and Habersham Street is back on the tentative June agenda for the Savannah Historic District Board of Review. The meeting is to be held at the Arthur A. Mendonsa Hearing Room, 112 East State Street, Savannah, GA on June 10, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. The full agenda can be viewed at
june-10-2026-historic-district-board-of-review-meeting.pdf
Queensborough Bank Proposal
402 E. Broughton Street
No. 1 on the Tentative Regular Agenda
“Petition of Rose Architects, Kevin Rose | 25-005674-COA | 402 East Broughton St. | New Construction, Part 2”
B
roughton Street Elevation
Habersham Street Elevation
The Oglethorpe Plan Coalition, Inc. (OPC) opposes the proposal for Queensborough’s new bank building in its current design. While the OPC does not oppose the construction of the bank on this site, the current proposal does not meet the Design Standards or the Visual Compatibility Criteria in the Savannah Ordinance. Here’s what nearby buildings look like:
Such shortcomings, however, can possibly be partially mitigated through design modifications, such as reducing the amount of glass, especially at the second floor, and adjusting the horizontal division of the facades. Our detailed analysis of this proposal can be found here.
If you want to encourage refinement of this proposal, please attend the hearing and/or email historic@thempc.org with the subject line “Opposition to 402 E. Broughton Street and Request for Improvements” and copy opc.preservation@gmail.com. Please send in your letter and/or email by June 8 in order for it to be counted. Feel free to borrow content form the OPC’s letter (link above). A sample letter is below:
Dear HDBR,
I respectfully urge the HDBR to continue this matter with instructions to the applicant to comply with Design Standards and make the proposal more visually compatible with the 18th and 19th century structures that surround it.
[Optional: explain where you live or work and why this matters to you personally]
[Signature]
[Address]
OPC Appreciates the Mayor’s Letter to the Tourist Advisory Council
The Oglethorpe Plan Coalition applauds the 22 April 2026 letter from Savannah’s Mayor to the Savannah Tourism Advisory Committee Council (TAC), and the intention of City Council to address the growing “structural imbalance” and “level of disruption that begins to diminish the very livability that makes Savannah special.” The Mayor himself said in his letter to the TAC, “I remain convinced that what makes Savannah a great place to visit is that it is first and foremost a great place to live.’’
The OPC enthusiastically wishes to join in the requested "shared dialogue." One of our concerns, however, is that the solutions proposed do not take into account the most precious and unique identifying characteristic of Savannah’s Historic District, its designation as a National Historic Landmark. This is the goose that lays the golden egg of the tourism industry. It is the glue that should hold our interests together.
TAC has lost its way by continuing to focus on maximizing visitor numbers, numbers of hotel rooms, and visitor “entertainment,” using criteria inherently destructive of the very attraction that forms the basis of its entire business.
Rather than focusing excessively on tourism maximization, TAC should become a partner in the preservation movement.
As the primary emphasis of the OPC is the physical well-being of the National Historic Landmark District, we would also like to challenge the City to forthrightly recognize the unique character of the district, and that once it is gone, it’s gone forever. We recommend the following:
1. The city must uphold our status as a National Historic Landmark District.
2. The city must enforce the historic district ordinance which sustains the traditional design principles underlying our National Historic Landmark District designation.
3. The city must be our champion against the overwhelming private and public commercial demands on land surrounding the historic district. For example, the conglomeration of giant new hotels on the northeast completely blocks the view east to the harbor from the historic Old Harbor Light in Emmet Park.
4. The city must not allow the initially attractive concept of separate entertainment districts and corridors to alter the unique unity of our 2.2 square mile historic district. It may well be simply a means to encourage ever increasing overtourism and make large swaths of the city unfit for any residents.
5. The city must respect and protect our remaining public green spaces, “the lungs of the city.” As the city’s density increases, and surrounding development walls us in, these unique squares and parks, with their magnificent trees and historic landscaping, become ever more essential to the preservation of the city's unique charm and quality of life.
The International Style Dilemma
While the 1966 designation of the Savannah Downtown Historic District focused on its wealth of historic classically inspired architecture, later amendments pushed the date of significance further out, until it encompassed the “modern” buildings that the designation was attempting to stop.
The much-abused term “modern” has been used in the past to describe a variety of styles, even Greek Revival, as in Minard Lafever’s 1835 Beauties of Modern Architecture. As it is used today, the term “modern” refers to the International Modern Style, which began in the 1910s in Europe and flourished in the US after World War II. It is not a new style.
The Ordinance encourages “contemporary” architecture but does not set a preference for one style over another. Contemporary architects practice in a variety of styles, from the semi-antique International Style to vernacular-inspired styles to the ever-eternal Classical style.
While it might not be objectionable to employ the International Style when constructing a new building between two other similar buildings; the Ordinance discourages doing so between historic contributing structures with a different visual expression. The Ordinance frames these rules as the Visual Compatibility criteria.
Unfortunately, the review process for new buildings is tipping the scales to force the developer friendly “big box” semi-antique International Style upon the district over other styles. In applying the visual compatibility criteria, priority should be given to compatibility with adjacent structures. Unfortunately, the review boards and the staff that support them sometimes ignore the adjacent historic structures and rely solely on an International Style building blocks away.
In the 1950s ambitious developers wrapped the historic buildings on Broughton Street in curtain walls. In the interest of “modernity,” their architects claimed the invention of air conditioning removed the need for windows. The result was that as businesses moved south, Broughton Street deteriorated into an ugly and empty liability.
From the late 20th century onwards, owners have removed these coverings to expose the vibrant historic buildings we residents and tourists all love.
Below are photos of Levy's Department store, built in the 1920's, before it was wrapped with a curtain wall and extended in the 1950's (the original building is still behind the modern façade).
Unfortunately, the review process now holds the altered version as the model for new development, even in parts of the Historic District that are predominantly late-18th and early 19th century in character.
The risk we now face is that Savannah will lose its local character. The International Style is exactly what it says it is – a style without regard to the local character of its location. Do we want Savannah to look like any other contemporary city?
Monthly Oglethorpe Plan Coalition (OPC) Volunteers Meeting
The OPC is a volunteer group, and we want you! Please contact us at opc.preservation@gmail.com if you would like to get involved. Our next meeting is planned for June 7, 2026. Please send us an email with your contact information if you are interested in attending in person or by Zoom. Capacity is limited.
March 6, 2026
Dear Supporters,
Welcome to our newsletter, in which we will keep you up to date on our activities and other preservation news.
We Savannahians are witnessing a sustained degradation of the very qualities that make our Downtown Historic District unique and a national treasure. Ever more inappropriate development is proposed every few weeks. We at the Oglethorpe Plan Coalition, Inc. are dedicated to addressing these threats and protecting the Downtown Savannah National Historic District.
In This Issue:
Three Major City Initiatives – Public Input Needed
Protect Savannah’s Squares and Public Spaces From Inappropriate Uses
Three Major City Initiatives – Public Input Needed
MLK Theater Renovation: On Wednesday, February 25, 2026, the City of Savannah held an open house to reveal its plans for renovating the former Johnny Mercer Theatre. The plans include upgrades of the theater, additional public spaces, and new facades on Oglethorpe Avenue and Perry Street.
Here is the presentation from the City on the theatre: AMS-FINAL-PRESENTATION-for-MLK-Civic-Center-Renovation-Plan-02252026
In our June 7, 2024 newsletter, link, the OPC recommended building a new theater at a nearby City-owned location, given that the costs of a new theater and renovating the existing one were comparable. An alternate site would have allowed for the full restoration of the Oglethorpe Plan in time for Savannah’s 300th birthday in 2033. The City, however, claimed that no such locations were available, and the City Council voted to renovate rather than rebuild. As noted below, the very lot that the OPC recommended for a new theatre, but which the City said was not available, is now available as part of the proposed renovation of the Railroad District. The OPC views the 2024 decision as a regrettable lost opportunity for the historic district. Our petition to fully restore the Oglethorpe plan garnered over 650 signatures. You can sign here: https://c.org/rMRGM5hCkD
Partial Restoration of the Oglethorpe Plan at the Civic Center Site: On Wednesday, February 18, 2026, the City held an open house to offer an update of planned uses for the restored trust lots and tithing lots at the Civic Center site. Given the fear that the City would simply sell off the properties without restrictions, the City’s’ plan to carefully determine uses and establish restrictions is a welcome development. Unfortunately, the City is backing away from its earlier suggestion of possibly rebuilding the Bulloch-Habersham House, as reported in our November 14, 2025 newsletter. Link. If you’d like to voice support for rebuilding this lost historic masterpiece, please sign the change.org petition here: https://c.org/RkvQdy6F4P
Bulloch-Habersham House by William Jay
Another concern is that the City has suggested the possibility that some of the buildings on the southwest portion of the new area will rise to five and six stories.
Here is the presentation from the City: Civic-Center--Railroad-District-Feb-Community-Meeting-02182026
Input Sought on the Railroad District: On February 17, 2026, the City held an open house to seek public input of potential development of City-owned property in the Railroad District west of MLK. The above link also covers this district. Ironically, as noted above, the very lot that the OPC recommended for a new theater, but which the City said was not available, is now represented as fully available for development.
Please take this survey to share your feedback. Railroad District Revitalization - Community Survey
Protect Savannah’s Squares from Improper Uses
The tourism lobby is promoting an amendment to the City’s ordinance intended to “enhance the vibrancy, vitality and ambience” of our historic squares and parks. It proposes to issue 400 annual licenses to street performers who will be given a 13- to 14-hour time period 7 days a week in which to perform. These are “individuals who perform balloon twisting, card tricks, clowning, comedy, contortions, dance, singing, juggling, magic, mime, living statue performances, musical performances, puppeteering, street art, or other similar activity.” In addition to Forsyth Park and Rousakis Plaza, the goal is to allow up to 20 street performers in each of Franklin, Ellis, Johnson, and Reynolds Squares.
A complete copy of the proposed ordinance can be found here. If this amendment to the Ordinance is passed, we can expect these squares to be taken over by buskers of all types with a resulting decline in the quality of life for the surrounding areas.
The OPC believes that our historic squares should be places of quiet relaxation and contemplation rather than boisterous circus-like venues. The only exception could possibly be Ellis Square, which historically served for a long period as the site of the original City Market.
We are not yet aware of a date on which this will be presented to City Council. We will update you when we find out.
Monthly Oglethorpe Plan Coalition (OPC) Volunteers Meeting
The OPC is a volunteer group, and we want you! Please contact us at opc.preservation@gmail.com if you would like to get involved. Our next meeting is planned for April 12, 2026. Please send us an email with your contact information if you are interested in attending in person or by Zoom. Capacity is limited.