ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – The Abilene City Council could soon be reviewing the city’s historic properties list, which was last updated in 1994, with potential to add more.

During an Abilene Landmarks Commission vote Tuesday, it was recommended that the list be reviewed since it hadn’t been in nearly 30 years.

“1994. It’s been a while since it’s been updated. I definitely think it needs to be updated,” said Landmarks Commission chair, Pebbles Lee.

The process will need final approval by the Planning and Zoning Board as well as Abilene City Council. It would entail a widescale review of properties in the city that may be later added to the registry, which currently hosts 404 properties. Of those, only 137 have historic overlays.

“These properties do not immediately have historic overlay or anything like that, they are just our historic inventory in the city,” Lee explained.

One property currently seeking Historic Overlay is the D&W Underground Event Venue, a property that began life in 1927 as the Shelton Motors Buick dealership, later becoming D&W Tire, D&W Furniture, then Thomas Everett’s Furniture in succession.

Historic restorationist, Robert Hoemke bought the property in 2019. He spent the next three years restoring the interior and exterior of the building, and adorning it with signage that have local historical relevance.

“[It’s] Sort of my passion COVID project,” shared Homeke. “When COVID hit I couldn’t travel, so I decided to do this… I’ve always loved restoring something. Cars, motorcycles, signs.”

With little presentation to go on at Tuesday’s meeting, the Landmarks Commission opted to postpone voting on the property until more evidence of its historical relevance could be provided, and a detailed look into the restoration done can be seen.

The process to update the Historic properties register could take years to complete if approved. The Commission said funding through grants could be a possible in-road to putting the project in motion. However, at this early stage, all the board can offer is recommendation and speculation about the project’s future.