February 24, 2010 - 652 words
Council upholds HPC decision
MIKE NEUMANN - The Woodstock Independent
Owners of the recently renovated home at 223 S. Tryon St. are being asked to restore a window to its original form after the Woodstock City Council voted 3-2 Feb. 16 to uphold a Historic Preservation Commission decision.
The home, which is located on the corner of South and Tryon streets, had fallen into disrepair by the time Tom and Andy Harding purchased the property last year. Because the structure falls within Woodstock's historic district, renovations must be approved by the HPC. A certificate of appropriateness was issued by the HPC in June, outlining a number of conditions, including one requiring the original window remain.
Construction began on the home shortly thereafter, and along the way, the single-pane window was removed and replaced with a double-hung window. Allen Stebbins, chairman of the HPC, noticed the change and contacted Nancy Baker, city planner and city liaison to the HPC.
Tom Harding said the removal was an "innocent mistake" made through an "oversight on our part."
"It would have been cheaper to leave it there," Harding said.
In November, the Hardings applied for a revised certificate of appropriateness that would allow them to keep the new window in place, but a revision was not recommended by the HPC after a 3-2 vote.
"This became a big deal over nothing, but, oh well, that's the way it goes," Harding said when explaining the situation to the council. "Ninety nine percent of people in Woodstock are not going to know or care."
Stebbins, however, said the HPC was lenient during its process and allowed several variations to areas not facing the public way. He said in addition to double- hung windows, the window opening had been enlarged.
"You don't do that, especially on a primary faŤade," he said.
Stebbins said the window was a "defining characteristic" of the home, and that allowing a revised certificate of appropriateness would be like "rewarding somebody's mistake."
Councilman Dick Ahrens, who voted against the Hardings' appeal, asked Stebbins if he would have voted in favor of extending a certificate of demolition to the Hardings had they requested one after purchasing the property.
"I probably would have," Stebbins said.
Ahrens said he found it difficult to vote against the request because the house has been improved so drastically.
"I do wish it was 100 percent, but on a personal level, I'm pretty happy with 99.9 percent," he said. Still, "99.9 percent" was not enough to sway Ahren's decision.
Mayor Brian Sager said he was unwilling to impose additional costs on the owners, considering that the vast majority of the improvements made were "incredibly sound."
"With all due respect, to me it sounds like you're saying, 'It's good enough for government work,'" Stebbins said.
Stebbins suggested that owners look into the city's faŤade improvement program, which could pay for half the costs to replace the window.
Public comments on the matter were mixed.
Resident Sally Fyfe Stachniak said she was "embarrassed" so much time was being spent on the issue, noting that the Hardings have turned an eyesore into a point of pride for the community. She disapproved of faŤade improvement program dollars being spent to restore the window.
"They could be used for a very legitimate faŤade improvement," she said.
Resident Dan Lemanski said the council had set a precedent for overturning HPC decisions when appeals came before the council.
"That's been the pattern time after time, and here we go again," he said.
That wasn't the case this time, however, as the council sided with the HPC. Voting against the appeal were Ahrens, Maureen Larson and RB Thompson. Voting in favor were Julie Dillon and Sager. Councilmen Ralph Webster and Mike Turner were absent from the meeting.
Note: This decision was overturned by a 4 -- 3 vote at the City Council meeting March 2. Additional details will published in the March 10, 2010, edition of The Woodstock Independent.
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