9 Comments

1. 

   DAN FAHEY on June 6, 2015 at 12:46 pm

   But be careful what you wish for. Historic district status brings with it restrictions you might not like.

2. 

   Blueprintbill on June 7, 2015 at 8:18 am

   @Dan Fahey,
   As a recently retired ( fired ?), 24 year member of the Chestnut Hill Historic Commission, and a part of the group working at the assembly of this new possible District, I’mbeing so careful that I and my partner are moving to new ( historic ) digs within the proposed new boundry lines. After what’s happened to our current historic house and the neighborhood it sits in, unprotected by any regulation, it’s time to get out of Dodge. It seems the only reasonable thing to do, but not before trying to secure the legacy of my tenure here by building yet another unit / addition to our house. Iits currently a prime target for development as well, being too small a home, on too large a piece of land, zomed multi residence. This will be the 9th unit of housing within 60 feet of our property lines, built or currently under construction in the past 6 years. There has been every thing from a 7 bedroom $2-1/2 million Mc Mansion to $1 million flat roofed apartment units, all ‘by right’, and all without any design review or regulation.
   We sadly cant afford the Chestnut Hill district. Real estate values there have skyrocketed in good measure because of protections afforded by that District Commission. In the past 24 years there have been less than a handful of demolitions allowed, and there has been a whole hellof a lot of careful and Commission shepherded, remodelings , additions, and changes to properties that might otherwise have compromised various houses there, not to mention neighboring properties. What demolitions that have been allowed were truly unexceptional properties that were well worthy of removal, and what replaced them have been architecturally exceptional homes. And not because the Commission did not have jurisdiction and did not exercise guidance , oversite, and design review.
   So this is what I “carefully wish for ” ,.. A New Major Historic District in Newton Highlands !!!

3. 

   Jerry Reilly on June 7, 2015 at 9:54 am

   As both Dan Fahey and blueprintbill point out Historic Commissions are a double edges sword.

   I live within the Upper Falls Historic District. If the Upper Falls Historic District had not been created when it was, most of what truly makes this neighborhood unique would have been erased years ago. My 1200 square foot house would almost certainly have been razed and replaced and we almost certainly would be living in another town. For all of that and more, I am definitely a proponent of the value of a Historic District to preserve the unique neighborhoods and pockets of historic architecture that truly define certain neighborhoods of the city.

   As a homeowner, I’d also agree with Dan Fahey. Those protections do come with a price of increased regulation of what you can/cannot do to your property and can require that relatively simple changes have to go through the historic commission review process. At times that can be onerous or annoying or irritating.

   Overall though, it’s a price we’ve been happy to pay to keep as much of Upper Falls’ weirdly wonderful village feel as possible.

4. 

   Dan Fahey on June 7, 2015 at 11:11 am

   My comment wasn’t against historic districts per se. Just a caution there are downsides.

   But is the argument for them that they protect against McMansioning”? I’d hope that the granting of historic status required more germane traits to qualify.

5. 

   Blueprintbill on June 7, 2015 at 12:04 pm

   Nobody likes being told what you can or cannot be doing with your own property. Everyone wishes they had a say about the goofy ( rapatious or greedy ) addition or the Mc Mansion that gets built next door or down the street. The establishment of a Historic District gives teeth to a community to put some controls over same, and in the process it is generally a win win for both sides. Owners get the benefit of free professional guidance and advice about what they are seeking to do with their property and their neighbors get to have some influence over what they will have to live with next door. Owners who feel disabused in the process can always appeal a Historic District Commissions decision and issues of hardship, fairness, aesthetic rectitude etc are always taken into consideration.
   In the end the community is given some assurance that the investment in the their choice of a living arrangement will be granted a certain level of protection? At least until a 40b or 40r developement rears its ugly head ! Then the real estate industry takes over and all bets are off the table ! This is a whole other issue to be taken up with City Hall ( and the State House ) !!!

6. 

   Blueprintbill on June 7, 2015 at 12:09 pm

   PS,.. Jerry Reilly,.. What a pleasure it is to be on the same side of an issue for a change.

7. 

   Groot Gregory on June 7, 2015 at 12:46 pm

   @Blueprintbill, perhaps someone can correct me but my understanding is the local historic commission is appointed with no requirement for professional qualifications. How does the “free professional guidance” come into play? I pushed to keep my house out of the proposed district not wanting to go through another group of folks for simple improvements to my house especially needing to deal with less than knowledgable appointees. Is their some set of protections for homeowners?

8. 

   Dan Fahey on June 7, 2015 at 12:54 pm

   As a follow on to Groot, I’ve seen areas of Newton designated as “historic” but it is hard to fathom why. Perhaps there being no professional background required explains that? What criteria is applied to making that judgment?

9. 

   Blueprintbill on June 7, 2015 at 4:21 pm

   Groot and Dan,
   7 Member Historic District Commissions are supposed to be formed of at least one Attorney, 2 Architects, 2 Real Estate people and 2 citizen Commissioner /members of the local District. The same loose assort ment of membership make up 3-7 Alternates. A minimum quorum at any single meeting is 4, and given same all 4 votes must be unanimous for any motion to carry,.. Thus the importance for alternate members. There are individual homes and groups of homes throughout the city that are recognized as National Historic Properties that are not necessarily within Historic Districts. They enjoy an extra 6 months of protection from the normal 12 demolition delay period that the Newton Historical Commission can exercise but that is all. Sadly they are lost with some regularity to developers willing to wait out the demo delay period because they are generally within some very attractive neighborhoods.