Charleston, WV Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)
Key Facts
- Reviewing body
- 5-member Historic Landmarks Commission
- Required before work
- Certificate of appropriateness
- Review deadline
- 45 days after filing
- Fine
- 10% of cost or $500, greater
- Appeal venue
- Kanawha County Circuit Court
Summary
The Charleston Historic Landmarks Commission designates buildings, sites, and districts as historic landmarks and requires a certificate of appropriateness before any exterior alteration, demolition, or new construction on a designated property.
No private building, site or structure shall be erected, altered, restored, moved or demolished until after an application for a certificate of appropriateness as to exterior architectural features has been submitted to and approved by the commission, except as otherwise provided by city council or as provided by rules, regulations, policies, procedures and standards adopted and published by the commission.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 56).
Full Breakdown
Under Sec. 2-696, once city council designates a building, site, or district as a historic landmark, no exterior feature visible from a public street can be built, altered, restored, moved, or demolished without a certificate of appropriateness from the five-member Historic Landmarks Commission. The commission also controls the style, material, size, and placement of outdoor signs within a historic district and must rule on applications within 45 days. The East End Historic District is named in the code as an existing designated district subject to this review.
Violations & Fines
Violating an ordinance adopted under this division carries a fine of 10 percent of the project's total cost or $500, whichever is greater, up to six months in county jail, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need approval to alter a historic building's exterior in Charleston?
What happens if I skip the certificate of appropriateness?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Charleston
Compare Charleston to another location·View the West Virginia historic preservation overview
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