This ordinance from which this chapter is derived, is adopted pursuant to the general laws of the state, and all provisions and sections contained within this chapter shall be construed as having been adopted in the interest of public health, safety, and general welfare of the present and future residents of the town.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 2, 6-18-1990)

The town council finds:

(1)

There are located within the town, districts, sites, building, structures, and objects, both public and private, which are reminders of past eras, events and persons important in local, state, or national history, or which provide significant examples of architectural styles of the past, or which are unique and irreplaceable assets to the town and its neighborhoods, or which provide for this and future generations examples of the physical surroundings in which past generations lived.

(2)

In recognition of these assets, the town has adopted a historic preservation element as part of its comprehensive plan.

(3)

The historic preservation element of the comprehensive plan includes a survey of cultural resources which has been adopted as the official inventory of historic resources of the town.

(4)

The recognition, protection, enhancement and use of these resources are public purposes promoting the economic, educational, cultural and general welfare of the public by increasing property values; stabilizing neighborhoods and older areas of the town; increasing economic benefits to the town and its inhabitants; promoting local interests; enriching human life in its educational and cultural dimensions; and fostering civic pride in the beauty and noble accomplishments of the past.

(5)

The town has exerted efforts in an attempt to encourage redevelopment of the older parts of the town and will continue to do so.

(6)

The town council desires to take advantage of all available state and federal laws and programs that may assist in the development of the town.

(7)

The policy of the town is to conserve the existing housing stock and extend the economic life of each housing unit through their rehabilitation under housing and neighborhood development programs.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 3, 6-18-1990)

In recognition of these findings, the purpose of this chapter is to promote the health, morals, economic, educational, aesthetic, cultural, and general welfare of the public through:

(1)

The identification, protection, enhancement, perpetuation and use of districts, sites, buildings, structures, objects, and areas that are reminders of past eras, events, and persons important in local, state or national history, or which provide significant examples of architectural styles of the past, or which are unique as irreplaceable assets to the town and its neighborhoods, or which provide this and future generations examples of the physical surroundings in which past generations lived.

(2)

The enhancement of property values, the stabilization of neighborhoods and business centers of the town, the increase of economic and financial benefits to the town and its inhabitants, and the promotion of local interests.

(3)

The preservation and enhancement of varied architectural styles, reflecting the town's cultural, social, economic, political and architectural history.

(4)

The enrichment of human life in its educational and cultural dimensions in order to serve spiritual as well as material needs by fostering knowledge of the living heritage of the past.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 4, 6-18-1990)

The following words, terms, and phrases, when used in this chapter shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

Board means the historic preservation board.

Building means a structure created to shelter any form of human activity. This may refer to a house, barn, garage, church, hotel, or similar structure. Buildings may refer to a historically or architecturally related complex, such as a courthouse and jail, or a house and barn. Parking lots and garages are hereby deemed to be buildings.

Cultural resource means a site, object, structure, building or district listed on the town's survey of cultural resources or in the historic preservation element or on the local register or on the National Register of Historic Places.

Demolition means the tearing down or razing of 25 percent or more of a structure's existing external walls.

Department means the department of planning and development or its equivalent for the town.

Director means the director of the department of planning and development or designee.

District means a geographically definable area, urban or rural, possessing a significant concentration, linkage, or continuity of sites, buildings, structures, objects, or areas, which are united historically or aesthetically by plan or physical development. A district may be comprised of individual resources which are separated geographically but are linked by association or history.

Documentation means photographs, slides, drawings, plans or written descriptions.

Local register means the local register of historic places created by this chapter.

Object means a material thing of functional, aesthetic, cultural, historical, or scientific value that may be by nature of design, movable, yet related to a specific setting or environment.

Ordinary maintenance means work which does not require a building permit and that is done to repair damage or to prevent deterioration or decay of a building or structure or part thereof as nearly as practicable to its condition prior to the damage, deterioration, or decay.

Original appearance means that appearance except for color which, to the satisfaction of the director, closely resembles the appearance of either:

(1)

The feature on the building as it was originally built or was likely to have been built; or

(2)

The feature on the building as it presently exists so long as the present appearance is appropriate, in the opinion of the director, to the style and materials of the building.

Parking lot means a piece, parcel, tract, or plot of land used for the temporary storage of private passenger motor vehicles used for personal transportation while the operators of such vehicles are engaged in other activities.

Site means the location of a significant event, activity, building, structure, or archaeological resource where the significance of the location and any archaeological remains outweighs the significance of any existing structures.

Structure means a work made up of interdependent and interrelated parts in a definite pattern of organization. Constructed by man, it may be an engineering project large in scale.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 5, 6-18-1990)

Cross reference— Definitions generally, § 1-2.

(a)

Establishment. The historic preservation board is hereby established as a citizen board.

(b)

Membership. One member of the board shall be a registered architect. The remaining six appointments shall be made on the basis of civic pride, integrity, experience, and interest in the field of historic preservation. The residents of the Alger-Sullivan Historic District and the Alger-Sullivan Historic Society should nominate, whenever possible, a representative from each of the following areas of expertise:

(1)

History.

(2)

Real estate/real property appraisal.

(3)

Planning.

(4)

Law.

(5)

Engineering/building construction.

(c)

General functions. It shall be the responsibility of the board to:

(1)

Update the official inventory of cultural resources and submit to the town council recommendations and documentation concerning the updating.

(2)

Develop programs to stimulate public interest in neighborhood conservation, to participate in the adaptation of codes, ordinances, procedures, and programs to reflect neighborhood conservation policies and goals.

(3)

Explore funding and grant sources and advise property owners concerning which might be available for identification, protection, enhancement, perpetuation, and use of historic, architectural, archaeological, and cultural resources.

(4)

Cooperate with agencies of town, county, regional, state and federal governments in planning proposed and future projects to reflect historic preservation concerns and policies, and assist in the development of proposed and future land use plans.

(5)

Advise property owners and local governmental agencies concerning the proper protection, maintenance, enhancement, and preservation of cultural resources.

(6)

Advise the town council concerning the effects of local governmental actions on cultural resources.

(7)

Review and recommend sites, buildings, structures, objects, and districts, both public and private, for listing on the local register of historic places and the National Register of Historic Places.

(8)

Approve or deny petitions for certificates of appropriateness required under the historic preservation regulations in this chapter.

(9)

Notify the director who shall take appropriate action when it appears that there has not been compliance with the historic preservation regulations of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 6, 6-18-1990)

Cross reference— Boards, agencies, committees, commissions, § 2-31 et seq.

(a)

Created. A local register of historic places is hereby created as a means of identifying and classifying various sites, buildings, structures, objects, and districts as historic and/or architecturally significant. The local register will be kept by the director.

(b)

Initiation of placement on the local register. Placement of sites, buildings, structures, objects or districts on the local register may be initiated by the town council or the historic preservation board. In addition, placement may be initiated by the owner of the site, building, structure, object, or area; or, in the case of a district, by the owner of a site, building, structure, object, or area within the proposed district.

(c)

Placement on the local register. The following procedure shall be followed for placement of sites, buildings, structures, objects, areas, and districts on the local register:

(1)

A nomination form, available from the department, shall be completed by the applicant and returned to the department.

(2)

Upon receipt of a completed nomination form, including necessary documentation, the director shall place the nomination on the agenda of the next regularly scheduled meeting of the historic preservation board. If the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board is too close at hand to allow for the required notice to be given, the nomination shall be placed on the agenda of the succeeding regularly scheduled meeting.

(3)

Adequate notice of the historic preservation board's consideration of the nomination shall be provided to the public at large, and to the owner of the nominated property, at least seven days in advance of the meeting at which the nomination will be considered by the board.

(4)

The board shall, within 30 days from the date of the meeting at which the nomination is first on the board's agenda, review the nomination and write a recommendation thereon. The recommendation shall include specific findings and conclusions as to why the nomination does or does not meet the appropriate criteria for listing on the local register. The recommendation shall also include any owner's objection to the listing. If the nomination is of a district, the recommendation shall also clearly specify, through the use of maps, lists, or other means, those buildings, objects, or structures which are classified as contributing to the historical significance of the district. If the 30 day period runs and the board has not prepared and sent a recommendation, and the period has not been extended by mutual consent of the applicant and the board, the nomination may be submitted by the applicant directly to the town council acting as the planning board.

(5)

The nomination form and the board's recommendation shall be sent to the town council acting as the planning board. The nomination shall then be handled as any other amendment to the land use element.

(d)

Criteria for listing on the local register.

(1)

A site, building, or district must meet the following criteria before it may be listed on the local register:

a.

The site, building, or district possesses integrity of location, design setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association; and

b.

The site, building or district is associated with events that are significant to local, state, or national history; or the district site, building, structure, or object embodies the distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction.

(2)

A site or building located in a local register of historic places district shall be designated as contributing to that district if it meets the following criteria:

a.

The property is one which, by its location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association adds to the district's sense of time and place and historical development.

b.

A property should not be considered contributing if the property's integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association have been so altered that the overall integrity of the property has been irretrievably lost.

c.

Structures that have been built within the past 50 years shall not be considered to contribute to the significance of a district, unless a strong justification concerning their historical or architectural merit is given or the historical attributes of the district are considered to be less than 50 years old.

(e)

Effect of listing on local register.

(1)

The department may issue an official certificate of historic significance to the owner of properties listed individually on the local register or judged as contributing to the character of a district listed on the local register. The mayor is authorized to issue and place official signs denoting the geographic boundaries of each district listed on the local register.

(2)

Structures and buildings listed individually on the local register or judged as contributing to the character of a district listed on the local register shall be deemed historic and entitled to modified enforcement of the Standard Building Code as provided by chapter 1, section 101.5 of the Standard Building Code Congress International, Inc.

(3)

No demolition, alteration, relocation or construction activities may take place except as provided in section 62-7.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 7, 6-18-1990)

(a)

When required.

(1)

A certificate of appropriateness must be obtained before making certain alterations, described below as regulated work items, to contributing structures and structures listed individually on the Local Register.

(2)

For each of the regulated work items listed below, the following applies:

a.

Ordinary maintenance: If the work constitutes "ordinary maintenance" as defined in this chapter, the work may be done without a certificate of appropriateness.

b.

Staff approval: If the work is not "ordinary maintenance," but will result in the "original appearance" as defined in this chapter, the certificate of appropriateness may be issued by the preservation planner for the town.

c.

Board approval: If the work is not "ordinary maintenance" and will not result in the "original appearance," a certificate of appropriateness must be obtained from the historic preservation board before the work may be done.

(3)

The following are regulated work items:

a.

Installation of all decks above the first-floor level and/or on the front of the structure.

b.

Installation or removal of metal awnings or metal canopies.

c.

Installation of an exterior door or door frame, or the infill of an existing exterior door opening.

d.

Installation or removal of any exterior wall, including the enclosure of any porch or other outdoor area with any material other than insect screening.

e.

The installation or relocation of wood, chain-link, masonry (garden walls) or wrought iron fencing, or the removal of masonry (garden walls) or wrought iron fencing.

f.

The installation or removal of all fire escapes, exterior stairs or ramps for the handicapped.

g.

Painting unpainted masonry including stone, brick, terracotta and concrete.

h.

Installation or removal of railings or other wood, wrought iron or masonry detailing.

i.

Installation of new roofing materials, or removal of existing roofing materials.

j.

Installation or removal of security grilles, except that in no case shall permission to install such grilles be completely denied.

k.

Installation of new exterior siding materials, or removal of existing exterior siding materials.

l.

Installation of exterior screen windows or exterior screen doors.

m.

Installation of an exterior window or window frame or the infill of an existing exterior window opening.

(4)

A certificate of appropriateness must be obtained from the historic preservation board to erect a new building or parking lot within a district listed on the local register.

(5)

A certificate of appropriateness must be obtained from the historic preservation board to demolish a building, structure, or object listed individually on the local register, or designated as contributing to a district listed on the local register.

(6)

A certificate of appropriateness must be obtained from the historic preservation board to relocate a building, structure, or object listed individually on the local register, or designated as contributing to a district listed on the local register.

(b)

Criteria for issuing.

(1)

The decision on all certificates of appropriateness, except those for demolition, shall be guided by the secretary of the interior's standards for rehabilitation and guidelines for rehabilitating historic buildings and the following visual compatibility standards:

a.

Height. Height shall be visually compatible with adjacent buildings.

b.

Proportion of building, structure or object's front facade. The width of building, structure or object to the height of the front elevation shall be visually compatible to buildings and places to which it is visually related.

c.

Proportion of openings within the facility. The relationship of the width of the windows in a building, structure, or object shall be visually compatible with buildings and places to which the building, structure or object is visually related.

d.

Rhythm of solids to voids in front facades. The relationship of solids to voids in the front facade of a building, structure or object shall be visually compatible with buildings and places to which it is visually related.

e.

Rhythm of buildings, structures, or objects on streets. The relationship of the buildings, structures, or objects to open space between it and adjoining buildings and places shall be visually compatible to the buildings and places to which it is visually related.

f.

Rhythm of entrance and/or porch projection. The relationship of entrances and projections to sidewalks of a building, structure, or object shall be visually compatible to the buildings and places to which it is visually related.

g.

Relationship of materials, texture, and color. The relationship of materials, texture and color of the facade of a building, structure or object shall be visually compatible with the predominant materials used in the buildings to which it is visually related.

h.

Roof shapes. The roof shape of the building, structure, or object shall be visually compatible with the buildings to which it is visually related.

i.

Walls of continuity. Appurtenances of a building, structure, or object such as walls, fences, landscape masses shall, if necessary, form cohesive walls of enclosure along a street, to ensure visual compatibility of the building, structure, or object to the building and places to which it is visually compatible with the buildings and places to which it is visually related.

j.

Scale of building. The size of the building, structure, or object, the building mass of the building, structure or object in relation to open space, the windows, door openings, porches, and balconies shall be visually compatible with the buildings and places to which it is visually related.

k.

Directional expression of front elevation. A building, structure, or object shall be visually compatible with the buildings and places to which it is visually related in its directional character.

(2)

In addition to the guidelines provided in subsection (1) of this section, issuance of certificates of appropriateness for relocations shall be guided by the following factors:

a.

The historic character and aesthetic interest the building, structure, or object contributes to its present setting;

b.

Whether there are definite plans for the area to be vacated and the effect of those plans on the character of the surrounding area;

c.

Whether the building, structure, or object can be moved without significant damage to its physical integrity; and

d.

Whether the proposed relocation area is compatible with the historical and architectural character of the building, structure, or object.

(3)

Issuance of certificates of appropriateness for demolitions shall be guided by the following factors:

a.

The historic or architectural significance of the building, structure, or object;

b.

The importance of the building, structure, or object to the ambience of a district;

c.

The difficulty or the impossibility of reproducing such a building, structure or object because of its design, texture, material, detail, or unique location;

d.

Whether the building, structure, or object is one of the last remaining examples of its kind in the neighborhood, the county, or the region;

e.

Whether there are definite plans for reuse of the property if the proposed demolition is carried out, and what effect of those plans on the character of the surrounding area would be;

f.

Whether reasonable measures can be taken to save the building, structure, or object from collapse; and

g.

Whether the building, structure, or object is capable of earning reasonable economic return on its value.

(c)

Procedure.

(1)

A person wishing to undertake any of the actions specified in subsection 62-7(a)(1)(2) shall file an application for a certificate of appropriateness, and supporting documents, with the director.

(2)

The prospective applicant shall confer with the director concerning the nature of the proposed action and requirements related to it. The director shall advise the applicant of the nature and detail of the plans, designs, photographs, reports or other exhibits required to be submitted with the application. Such advice shall not preclude the historic preservation board from requiring additional material prior to making its determination in the case. Following the conference with the director, a preapplication conference shall be held with the historic preservation board if requested by the applicant.

(3)

Upon receipt of a completed application and all required submittals and fees, the director shall place the application on the next regularly scheduled meeting of the historic preservation board allowing for notice as required herein. Applications for certificates of appropriateness may be heard at specially called meetings of the historic preservation board provided all notice requirements are met. Upon mutual agreement between the applicant and the director, the application may be set for hearing at a meeting later than the next regularly scheduled meeting.

(4)

At least 15 days, but not more than 30 days, prior to the meeting at which the application is to be heard, the director shall give the following notice:

a.

Written notice of the time and place of the meeting shall be sent to the applicant and all persons or organizations filing written requests with the department.

b.

One advertised notice in a newspaper of general circulation.

(5)

The hearing shall be held at the time and place indicated in the notice. The decision of the historic preservation board shall be made at the hearing.

(6)

The historic preservation board shall use the criteria set forth in subsection 62-7(b)(1)(2) of this chapter to review the completed application and accompanying submittals. After completing the review of the application and fulfilling the public notice and hearing requirements set forth in subsection (5) of this section, the board shall take one of the following actions:

a.

Grant the certificate of appropriateness with an immediate effective date;

b.

Grant the certificate of appropriateness with special modifications and conditions;

c.

Deny the certificate of appropriateness.

(7)

The historic preservation board shall make written findings and conclusions that specifically relate to the criteria for granting certificates of appropriateness. All parties shall be given the opportunity to present evidence through documents, exhibits, testimony, or other means. All parties shall be given the opportunity to rebut evidence through cross examination or other means.

(8)

The department shall record and keep records of all meetings. The records shall include the vote, absence, or abstention of each member upon each question, all official actions of the historic preservation board, and the findings and conclusions of the board. All records shall be filed in the department.

(9)

Any person aggrieved by a decision reached by the historic preservation board may appeal the decision within 30 days to the town council. Any party appealing an administrative decision, shall state in writing the basis for such appeal and the nature of the relief desired. In such review, the town council shall have all administrative powers of the administrative officials. The appeal to the town council shall be the final administrative review.

(10)

No work for which a certificate of appropriateness is required may be undertaken unless a certificate of appropriateness authorizing the work is conspicuously posted on the property where the work is to be performed.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 8, 6-18-1990)

Any person failing to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter shall be subject upon conviction, to a fine not to exceed the sum of $500.00 or imprisonment not to exceed 60 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. In addition, a stop work order shall be issued by the code enforcement official in any case where work has commenced or preparation for work has commenced which requires a certificate of appropriateness under this chapter and where no such certificate is posted on the property as required. The stop work order shall be issued to the property owner, the occupant, or any person, company or corporation commencing work or preparation for work in violation of this chapter. The stop work order shall remain in full force and effect until a certificate of appropriateness has been obtained and/or posted on the property, or it has been determined by the board that no certificate of appropriateness is required.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 9, 6-18-1990)

This chapter may be enforced by the injunctive powers of any court of competent jurisdiction and such injunction may be prohibitory or mandatory as the circumstances warrant. Injunctive relief may be sought by the town council, adjacent land owners, neighborhood organizations, individuals, or any legal entity whether the entity is created for profit or not for profit.

(Ord. No. 5-90, § 10, 6-18-1990)