The purpose of this article is to establish a Historic Preservation
Commission pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-107 et. seq., to provide guidance
in achieving preservation of historic resources in designated historic
districts and sites and to advance the following public purposes:
A. To promote the use of historic districts for the education, pleasure
and welfare of the citizens of the Town and its visitors and to promote
civic pride in the Town's historic resources.
B. To foster private reinvestment in the historic district and sites
and balance the purposes of historic preservation with current needs.
C. To encourage preservation of sites of historic, archaeological, cultural,
social and architectural significance.
D. To encourage the continued use of historic sites and to facilitate
their appropriate reuse.
E. To maintain and promote an appropriate and harmonious setting for
existing historic resources within the Town.
F. To recognize and preserve historic resources in the Town as an essential
element of municipal character and identity which contributes to the
reputation of Dover as a place of beauty and architectural value.
G. To encourage appropriate alterations to historic sites and new construction
which is in keeping with the character of historic districts and sites.
H. To assist implementation of the historic preservation element of
the Master Plan.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
ADDITION
An extension or increase in building size, floor area or
height.
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER
For purposes of this article, the Town Engineer shall be the administrative officer. This definition is separate and apart from the definition set forth in §
236-5. The same person may or may not be designated herein as in §
236-5.
ALTERATION
As applied to a building or structure, a change or rearrangement
in the structural parts or in the means of egress or an enlargement,
whether by extending on a side or by increasing in height or the moving
from one location or position to another, or the change in appearance
of the exterior surface of any improvement.
CERTIFICATE OF HISTORIC REVIEW
A document issued by the Historic Preservation Commission
confirming its review of any alteration or addition to a site or a
property within the Historic District. Such review is based upon plans
presented for the preservation, restoration, rehabilitation or alteration
of an existing property, or the demolition, addition, removal, repair
or remodeling of any feature on an existing building, within the Historic
District or for any new construction within the Historic District.
DEMOLITION
The partial or total razing, dismantling or destruction of
any historic site or any improvement within the Historic District.
GUIDELINES
The guidelines for both the Historic Preservation Commission and applicants for a certificate of historic review shall be "The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties," addressing preservation, rehabilitation, restoration, and reconstruction (codified as 36 CFR Part 68 in the July 12, 1995, Federal Register, Vol. 60, No. 133, and as may be subsequently amended), are adopted by reference, and design guidelines developed specifically for the Dover Historic Preservation Commission are set forth herein in §
236-96.7 and may take precedence over the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties where more specifically applicable to the buildings and sites within Dover.
HISTORIC DISTRICT
One or more historic sites and certain intervening or surrounding
property significantly affecting or affected by the quality and character
of historic site or sites, as specifically designated herein.
HISTORIC SITE
Any real property, man-made structure, natural object or
configuration or any portion or group of the foregoing which has been
designated in the Master Plan as being of historic, archaeological,
cultural, scenic or architectural significance at the national, state
or local level, as specifically designated herein. The designation
of an historic site or landmark shall be deemed to include the Tax
Map lot on which it is located as well as the right-of-way contiguous
thereto. When used in this article, the word "landmark" may be substituted
for historic site.
IMPROVEMENT
Any structure or any part thereof installed upon public or
private property and intended to be kept at the location of such construction
or installation.
INTEGRITY
The authenticity of a property's historic identity, evidenced
by the survival of physical characteristics that existed during the
property's historic or prehistoric period.
INVENTORY
A list of historic sites or districts determined to meet
criteria of designation specified herein.
NATIONAL REGISTER CRITERIA
The established criteria for evaluating the eligibility of
properties for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places.
ORDINARY MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR
Repair of any deterioration, wear or damage to a structure
in order to return the same as nearly as practicable to its condition
prior to the occurrence of such deterioration, wear or damage with
material and workmanship of the same quality.
PRESERVATION
The act or process of applying measures to sustain the existing
form, integrity and material of a building or structure and the existing
form and vegetative cover of a site. It may include initial stabilization
work, where necessary, as well as ongoing maintenance of the historic
building's materials.
PROTECTION
The act or process of applying measures designed to affect
the physical condition of a property by defending or guarding it from
deterioration, loss or attack or to cover or shield the property from
danger or injury.
RECONSTRUCTION
The act or process of reproducing by new construction the
exact form and detail of a vanished building, structure or object,
or any part thereof, as it appeared at a specific period of time.
REHABILITATION
The act or process of returning a property to a state of
utility through repair or alteration which makes possible an efficient
contemporary use while preserving those portions or features of the
property which are significant to its historical, architectural and
cultural values.
REPAIR
Any work done on an improvement that is not an addition and
does not change the exterior appearance of any improvement; provided,
however, that any such repairs must be done with materials and workmanship
of the same quality.
RESTORATION
The act or process of accurately recovering the form and
details of a property and its setting as it appeared at a particular
period of time by means of the removal of later work or by the replacement
of missing earlier work.
STREETSCAPE
The visual character of the street, including but not limited
to the architecture, building setbacks and height, fences, storefronts,
signs, lighting, parking areas, materials, color, sidewalks, curbing
and landscaping.
STRUCTURE
A combination of materials to form a construction for occupancy,
use or ornamentation, whether installed on, above or below the surface
of a parcel of land.
The purpose of this section is to provide uniform standards,
design guidelines and criteria for the regulations of the Historic
District for use by the Historic Preservation Commission. All projects
requiring a certificate of historic review and all applications for
development in the Historic District shall be guided by the principles
of the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation of
Historic Buildings.
A. Secretary of Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. In carrying
out all of its duties and responsibilities, the Commission shall be
guided by "The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment
of Historic Properties," addressing rehabilitation (codified as 36
CFR Part 68 in the July 12, 1995, Federal Register, Vol. 60, No. 133,
and as may be subsequently amended). Those standards are as follows:
(1)
A property will be used as it was historically or be given a
new use that requires minimal change to its distinctive materials,
features, spaces, and spatial relationships.
(2)
The historic character of a property will be retained and preserved.
The removal of distinctive materials or alteration of features, spaces,
and spatial relationships that characterize a property will be avoided.
(3)
Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its
time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical
development, such as adding conjectural features or elements from
other historic properties, will not be undertaken.
(4)
Changes to a property that have acquired historic significance
in their own right will be retained and preserved.
(5)
Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction
techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property
will be preserved.
(6)
Deteriorated historic features will be repaired rather than
replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement
of a distinctive feature, the new feature will match the old in design,
color, texture, and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing
features will be substantiated by documentary and physical evidence.
(7)
Chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken
using the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to
historic materials will not be used.
(8)
Archaeological resources will be protected and preserved in
place. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will
be undertaken.
(9)
New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction
will not destroy historic materials, features, and spatial relationships
that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated
from the old and will be compatible with the historic materials, features,
size, scale and proportion, and massing to protect the integrity of
the property and its environment.
(10)
New additions and adjacent or related new construction will
be undertaken in a such a manner that, if removed in the future, the
essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment
would be unimpaired.
B. Visual compatibility factors. In assessing the design of any proposed
additions or new construction, the following visual compatibility
factors shall be considered in conjunction with the Secretary of Interior's
Standards set forth above.
(1)
Height. The height of the proposed building shall be visually
compatible with adjacent buildings.
(2)
Proportion of building's front facade. The relationship of the
width of the building to the height of the front elevation shall be
visually compatible with buildings and places to which it is visually
related.
(3)
Proportion of openings within the facility. The relationship
of the width of windows to the height of windows in a building shall
be visually compatible with the buildings and places to which it is
visually related.
(4)
Rhythm of solids to voids in front facades. The relationship
of solids to voids in the front facade of a building shall be visually
compatible with the buildings and places to which it is visually related.
(5)
Rhythm of spacing of buildings on streets. The relationship
of the building to the open space between it and adjoining buildings
shall be visually compatible with the buildings and places to which
it is visually related.
(6)
Rhythm of entrance and/or porch projections. The relationship
of entrance and porch projections to the street shall be visually
compatible with the buildings and places to which it is visually related.
(7)
Relationship of materials, texture and color. The relationship
of materials, texture and color of the facade and roof of a building
shall be visually compatible with the predominant materials used in
the buildings to which it is visually related.
(8)
Roof shapes. The roof shape of a building shall be visually
compatible with buildings to which it is visually related.
(9)
Walls of continuity. Appurtenances of a building, such as walls,
open-type fencing and evergreen landscape masses, shall form cohesive
walls of enclosure along a street to the extent necessary to maintain
visual compatibility of the building with the buildings and places
to which it is visually related.
(10)
Scale of building. The size of a building, its mass in relation
to open spaces and its windows, door openings, porches and balconies
shall be visually compatible with the buildings and places to which
it is visually related.
(11)
Directional expression of front elevation. A building shall
be visually compatible with buildings and places to which it is visually
related in its directional character, whether this be vertical character,
horizontal character or nondirectional character.
(12)
Exterior features. A building's related exterior features, such
as lighting, fences, signs, sidewalks, driveways and parking areas,
shall be compatible with the features of those buildings and places
to which it is visually related and shall be appropriate for the historic
period for which the building is significant.
It shall be the duty of all municipal officials reviewing all
permit applications involving real property or improvements thereon
to determine whether such application involves any activity which
should also be the subject of an application for a certificate of
historic review. If it should, the municipal official shall inform
both the administrative officer and the applicant, as well as the
Historic Preservation Commission.
Appeals to the Zoning Board of Adjustment pursuant to N.J.S.A.
40:55D-70.2 and N.J.S.A. 40:55D-72 may be taken by any interested
party affected by any order, requirement, decision or refusal of the
administrative officer pursuant to a report submitted by the Historic
Preservation Commission, including a denial of a certificate of historic
review, in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:55D-111. Such appeal shall
be taken within 20 days by filing a notice of appeal with the officer
from whom the appeal is taken, upon completing the appeal application
form, paying required fees and escrow deposits, and specifying the
grounds of such appeal. The officer from whom the appeal is taken
shall immediately transmit to the Zoning Board of Adjustment all the
papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from
was taken. No public notice shall be required for the hearing of said
appeal.
The requirements of this article shall be considered to be in
addition to and in no case shall they be interpreted as a substitute
for any other approval, permit or other action as otherwise provided
for.