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Council waives $299 zoning permit fee for Harpers Ferry cemetery trustees' window project
Summary
The Harpers Ferry Town Council voted unanimously to waive a $299 zoning compliance permit application fee for the trustees renovating the caretaker house at 395 York Street. Trustees said the work is to repair rotted exterior windows on a historic caretaker house; council members discussed property ownership and precedent for nonprofits before the
The Harpers Ferry Town Council voted unanimously Tuesday to waive the $299 zoning compliance permit application fee for a window-replacement project at 395 York Street, the caretaker house associated with the town’s historic cemetery.
The trustees of the Upper Cemetery sought the waiver for exterior repairs to windows they said had rotted after decades of deferred maintenance. Patrick Tierney, a trustee, told the council the caretaker house was devised to the trustees and that rental income from the house supports perpetual care for the cemetery.
Council members debated whether the property is town-owned or held by the trustees, whether waiving fees for one nonprofit sets a precedent, and whether the cemetery’s public benefit made the request unique. Several members noted prior town actions that benefited the cemetery, including paying water-connection fees in a past year. Ultimately, the council approved the waiver by voice vote, recorded as unanimous.
The trustees presented a project estimate of $24,944 for replacement windows and said they have insurance and will continue to use rental income to support the cemetery’s perpetual care. Council members urged historic-appropriate materials for street-facing windows; a council member recommended avoiding vinyl on an 1870s-era house and suggested wood or historically compatible materials for windows that face the street.
The council recorded no additional conditions on the waiver; minutes indicate the motion carried 7-0.
The vote closes the specific fee issue but leaves intact other approvals and building-permit requirements: council members discussed, and the town attorney noted, that questions of whether the structure itself is town-owned and whether the trustees must still file permits would be resolved by town staff and the town attorney. The trustees said they hold insurance and would collect any claim proceeds for that property, not the town.
The council’s action means the fee will not be charged for this application; the $24,944 window contract and any required building permits were not waived and remain subject to usual reviews and approvals.
