[MassHistPres] Great Estates Protection

[Suzanne W Pelton]

In Lenox we are looking for new wording in a Great Estates Bylaw to  
protect some 35 "cottages" built here during the Gilded Age.  
Currently Zoning only allows single family use by right and abutters  
have veto power over any other use which would require a variance.  
This has effectively stopped two new owners who would like to  
preserve the historic houses and operate them as inns. A few great  
houses here have been converted into schools, one into a spa and most  
architectural detail lost. Two, The Mount and Ventfort Hall, are  
being operated as House Museums, a precarious option in tough times.

The Lenox Historical Commission would like to suggest wording of new  
bylaw to encourage preservation, even offer an incentive to preserve  
these important buildings in our historic town. We would prefer to  
see creative use that preserves the houses as they were built rather  
than for them to be chopped up into condominiums, or gutted to make  
more modern use possible, or have condominiums built up close on the  
property.

Has anyone else grappled with this issue--have any wording to offer us?

Suzanne Pelton
Lenox Historical Commission