[MassHistPres] CPA policy

[Anne Forbes]

Have any communities required preservation restrictions on historic 
properties that receive CPA money for other purposes under the CPA?  An 
example would be a historic building rehabbed for housing using CPA funds 
under the community housing provision.

And using the same example, what about requiring that such a rehab meet the 
Secretary of the Interior's Standards?

Anne Forbes,
Acton

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Judy Markland" <jmarkland at lmstrategies.com>
To: "Tucker, Jonathan" <TuckerJ at amherstma.gov>; "MHC MHC listserve" 
<MassHistPres at cs.umb.edu>
Sent: Saturday, October 15, 2011 2:20 PM
Subject: Re: [MassHistPres] CPA policy


>I have been involved with the CPA in two communities, Weston and Whately, 
>and both required restrictions on private property that received CPA 
>funding for historic preservation.  (In Weston, certain municipally owned 
>property was also required to have a restriction, because it was felt that 
>it might not remain municipally owned and, even if it did, that the town 
>needed some guidance in properly preserving it.)
>
> There are two principles at work here:  1) ensuring that preservation 
> monies really do help ensure long term preservation and 2) ensuring that 
> public funds really do go to a public good, not just to the benefit of an 
> individual property owner.
>
> I can't speak for the rest of our community preservation committee, but I 
> personally would not approve the barn restoration funding without a 
> permanent restriction and probably would have voted against the 
> feasibility study as well.
>
> Judy Markland
> Whately
>
> At 12:43 PM 10/14/2011, Tucker, Jonathan wrote:
>>All:
>>
>>We have a community group which successfully sought CPA funds for a 
>>feasibility study and rehabilitation of an historic barn.  The group is 
>>now requesting that our Historical Commission recommend to our Select 
>>Board and Community Preservation Act Committee that the Town waive its 
>>normal requirement that any granting of CPA funds for an historic 
>>preservation project on a private property be accompanied by a granting to 
>>the Town of an historic preservation deed restriction on that property.
>>
>>The applicants want to not only use the CPA funds they received for a 
>>feasibility study, but also want--before the feasibility study has been 
>>completed--to use some of the other approved CPA funds to stabilize the 
>>building.  They make it clear that there is no guarantee that they will in 
>>the end preserve the building.  If the feasibility study proves that the 
>>building's restoration will be too costly for their organization, they may 
>>seek to demolish it, in which case whatever Town CPA funds were invested 
>>in stabilization would be lost.
>>
>>Funding for study is understood to be a provisional matter.  The answer to 
>>the question of whether or not a building can be restored may well be 
>>No--the purpose of the CPA funds is to find out.  But the use of Town CPA 
>>funds to provisionally stabilize a building that might subsequently be 
>>torn down wanders into more questionable territory.  It still allows (and 
>>may be necessary) for the possibility or preservation to endure, but it's 
>>a deliberate risk of public funds.
>>
>>How do other communities handle this?  Do you automatically require deed 
>>restrictions in exchange for CPA funding of projects on private property? 
>>Do you require deed restrictions for some kinds of projects but not for 
>>others (which kinds?  why?)?  Do you allow for waivers?  Would you grant 
>>this one?
>>
>>A toothy matter worthy of a rainy Friday afternoon.
>>
>>Have at it,
>>
>>Jonathan Tucker
>>Planning Director
>>Amherst Planning Department
>>4 Boltwood Avenue, Town Hall
>>Amherst, MA  01002
>>(413) 259-3040
>>tuckerj at amherstma.gov
>>
>>
>>
>>
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