The Board of Trustees of the Village of Roslyn hereby finds that:

Now, therefore, the Board of Trustees hereby declares that the purpose of this article is to accomplish the conservation, protection, promotion and preservation of such places, sites, structures, buildings, and scenic corridors and to conserve property values in the Village.

Appointments of members and terms of office. The Historic District Board shall consist of six members, five of whom shall be appointed by the Mayor, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, and the sixth shall be the Village Building Inspector, who shall act in an advisory capacity without voting power. From and after the effective date of this article, the respective terms of the appointed members of the Historic District Board, in the order of their appointment, shall be one, two, three, four, and five years. Thereafter, appointments shall be for a term of five years. The Mayor, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, shall also designate from the appointed members a person to act as Chairperson. However, appointment of the Chairperson shall, as in the case of chairperson of other boards, expire at the annual meeting each year or until a successor shall have been appointed, whichever shall later occur. Members may serve for more than one term each; each member shall serve until the appointment of a successor. Alternate members of the Historic District Board shall be appointed by the Mayor subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees for a term of one year. A maximum of three alternate members may be appointed. Each alternate member shall be designated separately as "first alternate," "second alternate," and "third alternate" and shall be called to serve in that order. These individuals would serve when members are absent or unable to participate on an application or matter before the Board but shall be given notice of and shall be encouraged to attend all meetings of such Board.

Vacancies. In the event of a vacancy occurring during the term of a member of the Historic District Board, the Mayor, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, shall make an appointment of a successor to complete the unexpired term of such member.

Vote necessary for a decision; quorum. A minimum of three members of the Historic District Board in attendance at a meeting, with voting power, shall constitute a quorum. Once a quorum is established, a concurring vote of at least three members is required for any approval or affirmative act. The failure of a motion to receive three affirmative votes shall result in a disapproval of such motion.

Meetings. The Historic District Board shall meet regularly once each month, except that meetings may be held more or less frequently at the discretion of the Historic District Board.

Powers and duties of the Historic District Board.

Expenses. No approval permit shall be issued pursuant to the provisions of this article until all expenses incurred by the Historic District Board and Board of Trustees for consultation fees (including, without limitation, engineering, architectural, historical and legal) or other extraordinary expenses in connection with the review of an application are reimbursed to the Village by the applicant. At the time of application and from time to time thereafter, the applicant shall deposit with the Village Clerk/Treasurer such amount to cover consultation fees and extraordinary expenses as shall be established, from time to time, by resolution of the Board of Trustees.

Compensation. Members of the Historic District Board shall be compensated at a rate to be determined by resolution from time to time by the Board of Trustees.

The Roslyn Historic/Scenic Overlay District has been defined and delineated in § 470-72.

"Historic site" has been defined in § 470-72.

Any owner of property not within the boundaries of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District may request designation of his or her property as an historic site by written application to the Historic District Board.

The Historic District Board may, on its own motion, initiate proceedings for the designation of an historic site, in which case the owner of the property concerned will be notified by certified mail, return receipt requested, of the proposed designation.

The Historic District Board may, upon its own motion, propose for designation certain additional sites in the Village for inclusion in the Historic/Scenic Overlay District. Prior to recommending any such proposal to the Board of Trustees, the Historic District Board shall conduct a public hearing on the matter. Notice of such proposal and public hearing shall be given to the property owners of such additional proposed sites by certified mail, return receipt requested, at least 20 days prior to the hearing date.

Within 60 days of the closing of the public hearing by resolution, the Historic District Board shall recommend to the Board of Trustees approval, approval with modifications, or disapproval of a proposal for the designation of an historic site or of the proposal to include additional sites or properties in the Historic/Scenic Overlay District. The Board of Trustees shall thereafter take action with respect to such recommendation.

The failure of the Historic District Board to take action upon a proposal within the sixty-day time period referenced above shall be deemed a disapproval or a recommendation of disapproval of the proposal or application.

A recommendation for historic site designation or for a modification of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District from the Historic District Board or an appeal by an affected property owner shall be acted upon by the Board of Trustees within 60 days of such receipt.

When the Board of Trustees approves or denies an application, the Building Inspector, the Historic District Board, and the owner or owners of the subject property shall be notified in writing by the Village Clerk/Treasurer.

Upon receipt of notice that the Historic District Board is considering a place, site, structure or building for designation as an historic site or as part of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District, the Building Inspector shall not issue any permit for the construction, demolition, alteration or improvement of said place, site, structure or building for a period of 180 days unless prior to the expiration of said period there is a final determination by the Board of Trustees that said place, site, structure or building has not qualified as an historic site. If within said period the Board of Trustees designates the property in question as an historic site or as part of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District, no building permit shall be issued except pursuant to § 470-76 of this article.

Upon notification that the Board of Trustees has designated a site as an historic site, the Building Inspector shall immediately cause such property to be so designated on the Village Zoning Map.

The exterior of any structure, site, place or building, including, without limitation, light fixtures, awnings, canopies, sidewalks, landscaping, fences, affixed benches, steps, landscape structures, such as retaining walls, paving and other exterior elements designated as an historic site or any place, site, structure, building or property, including, without limitation, lighting fixtures, located wholly or partly within the boundaries of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District shall not be constructed, altered, changed, moved to or from the Historic/Scenic Overlay District or demolished, in whole or in part, except in compliance with the requirements set forth in this article.

The Historic District Board shall review all plans for the moving, exterior construction, signage, alteration or change, or demolition of places, sites, structures or buildings designated as historic sites and all places, sites, structures or buildings wholly or partly within the boundaries of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District. The Historic District Board shall approve such plans before a building permit for the proposed activity is granted by the Building Inspector.

It shall be the duty of the Historic District Board to exercise sound historic and architectural judgment to maintain the desirable character of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District and prevent construction, reconstruction, alteration or demolition out of harmony with the existing buildings, insofar as style, materials, color, line and detail are concerned, and thus to prevent degeneration of property, safeguard public health, prevent fire, promote safety and preserve the beauty and character of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District and of historic sites.

In passing upon the appropriateness of proposed construction, alteration, removal or demolition, the Historic District Board shall consider, in addition to any other pertinent factors, the following principles:

In judging these factors, the Historic District Board shall be guided by the design guidelines established by the Historic District Board of the Village of Roslyn, subtitled "A Guide for Maintaining and Rehabilitating Historic Buildings and Landscapes," and the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation and the Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings (most recent edition).

Moving of buildings or structures designated as historic sites or located wholly or partly within the boundaries of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District may be allowed as an alternative to demolition.

Nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent ordinary maintenance or repair, with like materials of similar quality and color, of any place, site, structure or building designated as an historic site or any property located wholly or partly within the boundaries of an Historic/Scenic Overlay District.

No owner, tenant or other person with an interest in real property designated as an historic site or located wholly or partially within the Historic/Scenic Overlay District shall permit the property to fall into a serious state of disrepair so as to result in the deterioration of any exterior architectural feature which would, in the judgment of the Historic District Board, produce a detrimental effect upon the character of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District as a whole or upon an historic site or upon the life and character of the property itself. Examples of such deterioration include but are not limited to:

New construction shall be consistent with the architectural styles of historic value in the Historic/Scenic Overlay District. In passing upon the appropriateness of new construction in the Historic/Scenic Overlay District, the Historic District Board shall consider the enumerated items in Subsection D above.

The Historic District Board shall act upon all plans relating to the exterior features of a structure or building and shall have only advisory jurisdiction over interior walls, interior arrangements, or interior structures.

This article shall not apply in any case where the Building Inspector or any authorized Village enforcement agency orders or directs the construction, removal, alteration or demolition of any improvement in an Historic/Scenic Overlay District or historic site for the purpose of remedying conditions determined to be imminently unsafe or dangerous to the life, health, or property of any person.

Application for a building permit to construct, alter, change, move or demolish any place, site, structure or building located in the Historic/Scenic Overlay District or any place, site, structure or building designated as an historic site shall be made to the Building Inspector except as provided hereafter. The application shall state that the property is an historic site and/or is located within or on the boundaries of the Historic/Scenic Overlay District. Plans, including a site plan, shall be submitted showing the structure or building in question and also giving its relation to adjacent sites, structures or buildings and the construction, alteration, change, moving or demolition sought to be accomplished. Submissions shall be in such form and quantity as may be reasonably required by the Historic District Board.

The Building Inspector shall transmit the application and the plans to the Historic District Board.

The Historic District Board shall then review the plans according to the provisions of this article. In reviewing the plans, the Historic District Board may confer with the applicant or his authorized representative.

The Historic District Board shall approve, modify and approve, or disapprove such application and plans within 95 days after the first hearing held before the Historic District Board to consider the application. The Historic District Board shall transmit a copy of its findings and determination to the Building Inspector and the applicant. The failure of the Historic District Board to make a determination within any formal time period shall be deemed a disapproval of the application. The Board of Trustees shall have the power, upon application, to review on appeal all disapprovals and/or modified approvals of the Historic District Board and to determine such appeal.

The Building Inspector shall not grant a building permit until such time that an application has been approved by the Historic District Board or by the Board of Trustees.

After receiving written notification from the Historic District Board of the denial of an application, an applicant may commence the hardship process. No building permit shall be issued unless the Historic District Board makes a finding that a hardship exists.

The Historic District Board may hold a public hearing on the hardship application at which an opportunity will be provided for proponents of the application and the public to present their views.

The applicant shall consult in good faith with the Historic District Board, local preservation groups, and interested parties in a diligent effort to seek an alternative that will result in preservation of the property.

All decisions of the Historic District Board shall be in writing. A copy shall be sent to the applicant by certified mail, return receipt requested, and a copy filed with the Village Clerk/Treasurer's office for public inspection. The Historic District Board's decision shall state the reasons for granting or denying the hardship application. If the application is granted, the Historic District Board shall approve only such work as is necessary to alleviate the hardship.