[MassHistPres] Demolition Permits vs. Building Permits

[Sullivan, Charles M.]

Marilyn,

Cambridge ISD will not issue a building permit before a demolition permit has been approved.

This has given rise to a chicken-and-egg situation; our ordinance says we can’t sign off on a demolition permit at the expiration of a delay until “aall approvals necessary for the issuance” of a building permit have been issued, but ISD won’t approve a building permit until we sign off on demolition.

“No permit for demolition of a building determined to be a preferably preserved significant building under subsection D of this section shall be granted until plans for use or development of the site after demolition have been filed with the Building Department and found to comply with all laws pertaining to the issuance of a building permit, or if for a parking lot, a certificate of occupancy, for that site. All approvals necessary for the issuance of such a building permit or certificate of occupancy including without limitation any necessary zoning variances or special permits, must be granted and all appeals from the granting of such approvals must be concluded, prior to the issuance of a demolition permit under this section [2.78.090.H].”

This requires some bureaucratic legerdemain to resolve; luckily it doesn’t happen very often.

Charlie

_________________________________
Charles Sullivan, Executive Director
Cambridge Historical Commission
831 Massachusetts Ave., 2nd Fl.
Cambridge, Mass.  02139
ph 617-349-4684; fax 617-349-6165; TTY 617-349-6112
http://www.cambridgema.gov/Historic
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From: masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu [mailto:masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu] On Behalf Of M Fenollosa
Sent: Friday, July 14, 2017 1:41 PM
To: masshistpres at cs.umb.edu
Subject: [MassHistPres] Demolition Permits vs. Building Permits


Hello, everyone --

We are interested in knowing the procedures followed by building departments in those towns that have a separate demolition delay bylaw.  Does your building department wait until the demolition permit can be issued (because the criteria for preferably preserved are not met or the delay period has elapsed) before issuing a building permit for the proposed replacement building? We have just learned that our building department issues building permits routinely, notwithstanding historical commission review under our demolition delay bylaw, because developers want to know that they will be able to build according to their plans before going to all the other departments for permits and variances. If other roadblocks (such as demo delay) are imposed, the building department routinely extends the building permits to accommodate the delay.

This has become an issue because our zoning rules were just amended, changing certain dimensional provisions for projects.  A developer came into a HC meeting requesting a demolition permit; we denied it, imposing our 12 month delay.  But because the building department (unbeknownst to us) issued an earlier building permit, he will be grandfathered under the older, less restrictive provisions of the zoning code after the demo delay period has elapsed.

Our demo delay bylaw is very specific -- it says no demolition  permit can be issued until the HC notifies the building department that the demolition delay bylaw criteria have been met.  It never occurred to us that this language would not restrict the issuance of a building permit as well.

We would be grateful for any information you could share -

Thank you!

Marilyn Fenollosa

Lexington Historical Commission
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