tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723709701684173708.post5620453701429877397..comments2024-03-18T07:16:20.270-04:00Comments on The Gossips of Rivertown: Last Friday at the HPCCarole Osterinkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16010623982526286408noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723709701684173708.post-80380875566325095882014-01-05T13:34:31.224-05:002014-01-05T13:34:31.224-05:00“Before the HPC voted to approve the language of t...“Before the HPC voted to approve the language of the certificate of appropriateness for 12 Willard Place, Ellen Thurston, who lives in the carriage house behind 335 Allen Street, two lots away from the site of 12 Willard Place, indicated that she had some questions about the process. HPC chair Rick Rector responded, ‘We've already made a decision. We've already approved it.’ Rector further advised Thurston, ‘This meeting is not the time for questions,’ suggesting that she should have been at the December 13 meeting if she had anything to say about the project. After the HPC had voted to approve the language of the certificate of appropriateness, however, Thurston was permitted to ask her questions.”<br /><br />Before the HPC’s first meeting of the month, when projects are presented, discussed and questions from neighbors allowed, does the City issue a public notice in the local paper or on the website announcing the agenda of the meeting inclusive of affected properties? The answer is no. Does the city send notice by certified mail to the neighbors, notifying them of the forthcoming proposal? The answer, again, is no. So the first time a neighbor, like Ellen Thurston, finds out about the proposed plans is after the window to question and discuss has closed. Might a public hearing have prevented this problem? Oh yeah, that was shot down at the first meeting, too. It was long ago established that the second meeting is the one where the projects are ‘formally’ voted on. <br /><br />So why couldn’t she speak about a sitting HPC commissioner’s project until after the vote? The current system is inherently flawed in that potential stake holders, like Ellen Thurston, are disenfranchised by the process. Guess what? Other municipalities post notices and the meeting agenda on their websites, in the local paper AND send certified mail to the neighbors. The integrity of the HPC is not beyond reproach and this latest debacle smacks of impropriety, especially given Mr. Thompson’s track record of maintaining a recalcitrant position against new construction in the City’s local historic districts. A public hearing would’ve done much to stifle such concerns, especially given the auspices under which the original project was authorized in 2011. I’m curious to know just what that C of A application contained back then; was all of the required documentation submitted and the criteria of compatibility met?<br /><br />________________________<br /><br /><br />From the Merriam Webster dictionary: <br /><br />end run, noun 2: an evasive trick or maneuver "made an end run around the regulations"<br />Ward Hamiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14077951464866486246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723709701684173708.post-43063300233390478952014-01-01T18:18:31.961-05:002014-01-01T18:18:31.961-05:00@tmdonofrio, @White Whale Limited, et al: If a fu...@tmdonofrio, @White Whale Limited, et al: If a future applicant (read: developer) copies the rationale utilized by Tony Thompson in his 2011 application for a certificate of appropriateness for 12 Willard Place how can the HPC say no? As long as the same argument of compatibility is used, and the "'changes [are] obvious so there is no confusion' between what's original and what's new" surely the project must be approved. The application is accessible to the public (read: developer) via FOIA request. Certainly Mr. Whitbeck will be concerned about the risk of exposing the City to suit for allowing an HPC commissioner to build a new, modern building and denying a private citizen (read: developer) the same right. <br /><br />__________________________________<br /><br /><br />“Hashing out some historical projects,” by John Mason, The Register-Star, Saturday, June 11, 2011:<br /><br />The commission also approved the plans of Tony Thompson and Margaret Saliske to build a contemporary-design art and furniture restoration studio at 12 Willard Place, which is located on their property, 325 Allen St.<br /><br />Thompson, a commission member who recused himself, told the commission at its June 2 special meeting that the contemporary design allows the building to be more energy-efficient, using rigid foam insulation, concrete ties, triple-glazed windows and radiant floor heat.<br /><br />At that meeting, Don Christensen challenged the use of the address 12 Willard Place, saying “there is no 12 Willard Place.” In response to a question from Osterink Friday, Swope said they would “end-run” it by using the tax map number rather than the address.<br /><br />________________________<br /><br /><br />From the Merriam Webster dictionary: <br /><br />end run, noun 2: an evasive trick or maneuver "made an end run around the regulations"<br />Ward Hamiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14077951464866486246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723709701684173708.post-42360480766775854572013-12-30T20:07:34.164-05:002013-12-30T20:07:34.164-05:00That's a very good question. And I think the a...That's a very good question. And I think the answer would be, a precedent for such has been established on Willard Place. Begging the question, might this have been the intent all along?White Whale Limitedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07600048500466092214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723709701684173708.post-39842902107283761902013-12-30T18:22:39.926-05:002013-12-30T18:22:39.926-05:00Will a modern structure similar to the one approve...Will a modern structure similar to the one approved for 12 Willard be acceptable for 5th & Warren or other open lots in historic districts within Hudson?tmdonofriohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11370760970951114120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723709701684173708.post-54391903532308201812013-12-30T18:21:50.823-05:002013-12-30T18:21:50.823-05:00Carole, as we near the end to 2013, and ring in th...Carole, as we near the end to 2013, and ring in the new year of 2014, I'd like to say Brava!Chad Wecklerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15721057452000779552noreply@blogger.com