The Artist Association presented a $750,000 CPC request on Sept. 30 to renovate a downtown gallery at 8 Federal Street into an expanded, accessible exhibition space and community arts center. The association’s executive director, Tracy Sears, said the project would raise the roof for proper gallery ceiling height, lower the foundation to street level for accessibility, install an elevator, add accessible restrooms and improve energy efficiency while retaining the existing façade style.

Sears said the association had purchased the building and that the request represents roughly 10 percent of overall project funds or about 20 percent of the funds the group still needs; presenters also said they had already secured approximately 50 percent of campaign goals in gifts and pledges, including a recently secured $500,000 lead gift, and that the group plans to use other matching grants and naming opportunities.

Several CPC members raised substantial concerns about whether the proposed work meets the CPA’s preservation standard. A number of members argued the proposal would substantially change or replace interior fabric and raise the roof, leaving little of the historic structure intact; one member who identified experience in preservation work said, “There is no historic integrity left” and that the design as submitted would not meet Secretary of the Interior standards for preservation. Committee members recommended the association consult further with preservation experts (Nantucket Preservation Trust, HDC/HCC staff and local preservation architects) and explore whether the project could be re-scoped to preserve and document more historic fabric, or to find other funding avenues for accessibility improvements.

The committee discussed alternatives such as: (1) changing the design to retain more historic material and secure a preservation easement the town would accept, (2) pursuing other public or private cultural funding streams (Massachusetts Cultural Council facilities grant, philanthropic naming opportunities) or (3) submitting an addendum documenting what fabric would remain and whether the Nantucket Preservation Trust would accept an easement. The chair advised the applicant that an addendum with documentation and clearer demonstration of what the preservation easement holder would accept should be submitted before the committee’s deliberations.

The association’s presenters responded that they had received HCC approval for their plan and that they would provide a more itemized budget and further documentation upon request. The committee did not make a funding decision that day and directed the applicant to submit additional documentation if they wish CPC consideration.