[MassHistPres] New Demolition Proposal for Ames Shovel Shops

Sun Jun 7 08:59:09 EDT 2009

Note: The Ames Shovel Shops are surrounded by several buildings designed by 
 H.H. Richardson for the Ames family. Here is the link to the National 
Trust  website, after their listing as one of 2009's Eleven Most Endangered  
Places:
_http://www.preservationnation.org/travel-and-sites/sites/northeast-region/a
mes-shovel-shops.html_ 
(http://www.preservationnation.org/travel-and-sites/sites/northeast-region/ames-shovel-shops.html) 

Concern raised over fate of historic complex space
Ames Shovel Shops could face demolition

By _Mark Arsenault_ 
(http://search.boston.com/local/Search.do?s.sm.query=Mark+Arsenault&camp=localsearch:on:byline:art)   

Boston Globe Correspondent / June 4, 2009  

Frustrated in their attempt to build housing at the Ames Shovel Shops, the  
owners of the historic complex are pursuing a new path: Rent out what space 
they  can and tear down the rest.

Developers George and Robert Turner last week applied for permits to raze 
all  of the stone and wood structures on the eight-acre site in the center of 
town.  Their application came two days after the town Zoning Board of 
Appeals agreed to  allow development of affordable housing at the complex, but 
with construction  restrictions to protect historic character. The Turners say 
the restrictions go  too far and make their project impossible.

The Turners could appeal the local decision to the state Housing Appeals  
Committee, but the brothers say they don't want to fight over the housing 
plan,  and are leaning toward giving up their proposal and leveling the 
landmark  complex.

The Easton Historical Commission can delay the demolition for one year; the 
 Turners applied for demolition permits to start that clock ticking.

Town officials have pledged a fight to save the historic  structures.

The 15 granite and wood buildings on the site were built between 1852 and  
1928, according to the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Iron blade  
shovels manufactured at the Ames complex were used during the Civil War, 
the  California gold rush, and the construction of the transcontinental 
railroad.  "It's an extraordinarily important place in the history of our nation," 
said  Wendy Nicholas, director of the Northeast Regional Office of the 
National  Trust.

The Turners view the Ames Shovel Shops a little less romantically - as a  
gutted and at one time contaminated industrial site no other developers 
wanted.  "We tried for two and a half years to save those buildings," said Robert 
Turner.  "I'm at peace."

After they knock down the structures, "we'll bank the land and wait for new 
 opportunities," said George Turner, 51.

"We're young," added Robert, 50. "We can wait."

Which buildings will they raze? Whichever ones they don't have rented next  
year, they say.

For historic preservationists, losing the Shovel Shops would be a  
catastrophe.

The Turners say it's just business. They're not running a charity. And if  
they aren't going forward with their affordable-housing plan, they want to 
tear  down the buildings they don't need, to get them off the tax rolls and 
to cut  their liabilities.

"No hard feelings," said Robert Turner.

That is hardly the case.

"I think they'll be building a sorry legacy for themselves if they go 
forward  with this," said Historical Commission member Greg Galer.

The Turners, who display several antique Ames shovels in their Raynham  
office, explained their plans in an interview last Friday. They insist they're  
not bluffing, not acting out of spite, and not just upping the stakes to 
make  their affordable-housing proposal more appealing.

"I'm going to move on and do what I have to do to run our business, and we  
don't need all of those buildings," said Robert Turner.

The brothers proposed redeveloping the Shovel Shops into commercial space 
and  housing, including some affordable units, a year ago. They filed for a 
permit  under the state's 40-year-old affordable housing law, known as 
Chapter 40B,  which calls for an initial review by the local Zoning Board of  
Appeals.

After some tweaking, the Turners' final proposal was for 160 rental units, 
17  condominiums, 15,000 square feet of commercial space, and 373 parking 
spaces, on  land bounded by Oliver and Main streets.

Preservationists objected to the plan, which proposed expanding several  
historic buildings with additional floors, and razing other buildings. 
Throwing  a spotlight on the face-off, the National Trust for Historic Preservation 
in  April named the Ames Shovel Shops one of the 11 "most endangered 
historic  places" in America.

When the zoning board ruled on the affordable-housing plan May 26, the  
preservationists liked the decision a lot better than the Turners did. The 
board  concluded that the housing proposal would "adversely and irreversibly 
affect the  historical significance of the Shovel Shops complex and the North 
Easton  Historical District," and that the Turners' plans "do not adequately 
preserve,  restore, or renovate the historic structures."

The zoning board issued the Turners a permit for affordable housing, but 
with  limits on the height of the buildings and restrictions on other physical 
 changes.

Nicholas, from the National Trust, said the zoning board's decision was 
"not  perfect but pretty darn good." The board was "clearly concerned for the  
preservation of this really important landmark," she said.

Galer, a member of the Historical Commission for more than 10 years, said 
he  was "happy the zoning board recognized the site is uniquely historically  
significant, and that was preeminent in how this project was  reviewed."

The Turners say the restrictions would make their plan financially  
impossible, and that alternatives suggested by preservationists won't work,  
either. The opposition to their plans "isn't about saving buildings," Robert  
Turner charged, "it's about stopping affordable housing."

Not true, says Galer. "They could do something great there, including  
affordable housing," he said. "I just think their proposal doesn't treat the  
historic assets as assets."

Easton Building Inspector Mark Trivett confirmed that the Turners have  
applied for multiple demolition permits to flatten the site. Under the town's  
demolition review bylaw, which applies to buildings 75 or more years old,  
Trivett must forward the demolition applications to the Easton Historical  
Commission. The commission is expected to hold a public hearing on the  
applications within a month.

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