Satellite dishes located in backyards, OK. Satellite dishes hidden behind plants and shrubbery, OK.

But satellite dishes visible from the street on the front facades of homes in the South Street Area National Historic Register District and Grover Street Historic District are a problem, at least to the Auburn Historic Resources Review Board.

As satellite dishes have become more popular the past few years, Christina Selvek, an Auburn HRRB member, said they've noticed more installed on historic

district properties that violate a historic properties standard enforced by board members through a Certificate of Appropriateness.

“As long as it's not visible from the street it's OK,” Selvek said.

Committee members utilize the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation and Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings, which states that the introduction of visual elements that diminish the integrity of the property's significant historic features may alter the historic characteristics of the property.

Selvek said both satellite dishes and television antennas fall into this category.

People living in these districts are required to receive HRRB approval before dishes can be installed. Board members recommend they are installed in the least obtrusive fashion possible and advised to contact the City of Auburn's Planning Department to request guidance for future installation or if the dish is currently located in an area visible from the street.

HRRB members suggest requesting to the committee permission to mount the dish on a point of the roof far back from the roofline. If it's mounted on a pole in the yard, Selvek suggests screening the dish with fencing or vegetation.

Staff writer Kristina Martino can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 238 or kristina.martino@lee.net