ALPINE — Alpine City Council members recently heard updates from Post Oak Preservation Solutions regarding the process of establishing a nationally-recognized historic district for downtown Alpine.
Council voted to use hotel occupancy tax (HOT) funds for a historic district survey in August 2024 following the Holland Avenue fire. If achieved, the national register status will help property owners within the district boundaries offset restoration costs with tax credits and grant funds.
Post Oak Founder Ellis Mumford-Russell explained that a national register nomination for Kokernot Field, which is being pursued separately from downtown, was submitted to the Texas Historic Commission (THC) on March 12. She said the firm is confident that it will be approved, ushering the project into subsequent phases ultimately culminating in a National Park Service (NPS) review in May 2026.
For the downtown Alpine historic district, Mumford-Russell said on-the-ground surveys of buildings were conducted in January, and a determination of eligibility — an initial hurdle Kokernot already cleared — was recently submitted to the THC. The established period of significance is 1884 to 1975, she said, with the oldest known building being the J.C. Carr-Bob Slight House at 406 N 5th Street.
In total, the historic district stretches across 53 blocks, she said, including 339 resources, 262 of which are “contributing” — buildings older than 50 years that have not been heavily altered. Mumford-Russell said they chose the boundary based on the concentration of buildings older than 50 years in the part of Alpine where “the core of the development was organized on both sides of the railroad tracks.”
The proposed historic district boundary is still subject to revision, she said, but has been expanded to include more cultural resources on the south side of the railroad tracks. “We learned a lot more about important stories and institutions there on the south side to include,” Mumford-Russell said.
Councilmember Reagan Stone asked whether recent federal government actions may impact the project, to which Mumford-Russell said possibly the historic tax credits and more likely the grant funds, which are often distributed by the federal government to the states, but the situation is still uncertain. She said NPS staffers that handle national register nominations have not yet experienced any cuts.
If you have information about a historic structure in downtown Alpine or photos or memories to share, email alpine@postoakpreservation.com.