Commission Seeks Better Protocol For Unexpected Rot In Historic Buildings

CHATHAM – It’s not unusual for crews working on historic buildings to find, after opening up walls or removing outside material, that the underlying structure is in worse condition than anticipated.

Sometimes, as in a recent situation in the Old Village, a builder goes ahead and removes sections of a building deemed to be decayed beyond recovery. If a historic building was under an historical commission order, this can result in a stop work order and even a fine.

With more and more applications coming before the historical commission, clearer protocols and better communication is necessary to avoid those situations, members said last week.

“We don’t have a clear methodology to deal with it,” said commission chair Frank Messina.

The commission has no enforcement authority, he noted. That lies with the town’s building commissioner, who can issue stop work orders and fines if work is not done according to conditions imposed by the commission.

In the case of 75 Main St., a circa 1796 Federal-style full Cape, the commission had previously approved some demolition, but when the builder found sections of a 250-square-foot porch were decayed and rotted, it was removed, despite not being among the sections of the home approved for demolition. When the unauthorized demolition was reported, Building Commissioner Jay Briggs imposed a stop work order on the project.

Michael Ford, attorney for owner Sandy Bliss LLC of New York City, apologized for the action.

“There was a communications gap,” he said at the commission’s Nov. 21 meeting. After the contractor, PSD Architects and Builders, submitted plans showing the areas where the unauthorized work took place, Briggs allowed work on other sections of the building to continue.

Ford filed two new applications with the commission: one regarding the porch and a second to replace a section of the northwest corner of the building which was out of alignment with the new foundation. Both were approved by the commission.

When a builder encounters a situation like this, the best approach is to stop work and contact the commission, said Messina. That way commissioners can determine how best to proceed.

That needs to be codified and included in the commission’s orders, members agreed.

“There has to be some reason…not to have this happen again,” said commission member Don Aikman. “We thought that was understood from previous issues, but apparently it still happens.”

While Aikman pushed for punitive damages, Ford said the stop work order halted all work on the site and resulted in “significant” financial loss. He pointed out that the King’s Highway Historic District in Orleans, which has jurisdiction over buildings along Route 6A, has a form that applicants must sign acknowledging that they will not make any changes to the approved plans without notifying the commission.

Chatham’s commission has a similar provision, Messina said, but added that it could be clearer. The commission will discuss the issue at its Dec. 5 meeting.

Meanwhile, material from a dormer on the home which the commission allowed to be removed will be used to rebuild the porch exactly as it was.