A.
No structure, site, place or building designated as
a landmark or landmark site appearing in the records of the Building
Department and/or Planning Department and the Official Zoning Map
of the Town of Poughkeepsie, nor any place, site, structure, building
or property located wholly or partly within the boundaries of the
historic district shall be constructed, altered, repaired, moved or
demolished except in compliance with the requirements set forth in
this Article.
B.
The Historic Preservation Commission shall review
all plans for the moving, exterior construction, alteration or repair,
landscaping or demolition of places, sites, structures or buildings
designated as landmarks or landmark sites and all places, sites, structures
or buildings wholly or partly within the boundaries of the historic
district.
(1)
It shall be the duty of the Historic Preservation
Commission to review such plans before a building permit for the proposed
activity is granted by the Building Inspector.
(2)
The Historic Preservation Commission shall review
only plans relating to the exterior features of a structure or building
as are visible from a public way and shall have no jurisdiction to
consider interior walls, arrangements or structures.
(3)
In reviewing the plans, the Historic Preservation
Commission shall give consideration to:
(a)
The historical and architectural value and significance
of the building or structure and its relationship to the historic
and architectural value of the surrounding area.
(b)
The general appropriateness of the proposed
exterior design, colors, arrangement, texture and materials.
(c)
Any other factors relating to aesthetic considerations
which the Historic Preservation Commission deems pertinent to the
benefit to the town and to the historic significance of the structure
or building and surrounding area.
C.
Alterations, repairs and additions to buildings or
structures located wholly or partly within the boundaries of the historic
district or which are designated as landmarks shall be made consistent
with the materials and styles of the particular architectural period
of which said building or structure is characteristic.
D.
New construction shall be consistent with the architectural
styles and historic value in the historic district. However, the Historic
Preservation Commission may approve the construction of buildings
or structures which have a dissimilar architectural style to that
of the historic distinct if said Commission deems it proper that the
new construction will be in the best interest of the historic district.
E.
Moving of buildings or structure designated as landmarks
or located wholly or partly within the boundaries of the historic
district may be allowed as an alternative to demolition.
F.
Procedure for review of plans:
(1)
Applications for a building permit to construct, alter, repair, move or demolish any place, site, structure or building designated as a landmark or any place, site, structure or building within or on the boundaries of the historic district shall be made to the Building Inspector pursuant to Chapter 68, Building Construction, of the Code of the Town of Poughkeepsie, except as provided hereafter. The application shall state the property is a landmark and/or is located within or on the boundaries of the historic district. The plans shall be submitted showing the structure or building in question and also giving its relation to adjacent structures or buildings and the construction, alteration, repair, moving or demolition sought to be accomplished.
(2)
The Building Inspector shall transmit the application
and the plans to the Historic Preservation Commission.
(3)
The Historic Preservation Commission then shall review
the plans according to the provisions of this chapter. In reviewing
the plans, the Historic Preservation Commission may confer with the
applicant or his or her authorized representative concerning the building
permit.
(4)
Notwithstanding any other provisions of the chapter,
if the applicant establishes to the satisfaction of the Commission
that there is unnecessary hardship in the strict application of the
provisions of this article:
(a)
A notice to proceed will be granted if the applicant
provides proof that the following facts and conditions exist:
[1]
The land or improvement in question cannot yield
a reasonable return if the proposed construction, removal, alteration
or demolition is not permitted; or
[2]
The hardship of the applicant is due to the
unique circumstances and the proposed alteration, construction, removal
or demolition will not alter the essential character of the area and
the hardship is a result of the application of the chapter and is
not the result of any act or omission by the applicant.
(b)
Any relief granted shall be in conformance with
the objectives of this chapter.
(5)
The Historic Preservation Commission shall approve,
modify and approve or disapprove such plans within 60 days after receiving
the application and said plans and shall transmit a record of its
proceedings and findings to the Building Inspector and the applicant.
If the Commission fails to act within 60 days of receipt of the application,
the application shall be deemed to have been approved.
(6)
The Building Inspector shall not grant a building
permit until such time as an application has been approved by the
Historic Preservation Commission or 60 days have elapsed from the
date the application was received by the Commission.
G.
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
a landmark or landmark site or any property located wholly or partly
within the boundaries of an historic district.
H.
This chapter shall not apply in any case where the
Building Inspector or any authorized town enforcement agency orders
or directs the construction, removal, alteration or demolition of
any improvement on a landmark site or in an historic district for
the purpose of remedying conditions determined to be unsafe or dangerous
to the life, health or property of any person.
The Town Planner of the Town of Poughkeepsie
shall be responsible for appropriate public identification of areas
designated as landmarks or landmark sites on the Landmark and Historic
District Map.[1] The Historic Preservation Commission may approve the size,
style, color, typography, material of construction and wording of
all privately owned signs identifying landmarks, landmark sites and
properties within historic districts prior to installation, consistent
with the provisions of this chapter.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Landmark and Historic District
Map is on file and available for examination in the office of the
Town Clerk.
