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Commission overturns historic board denial, approves modular single‑family home for workforce housing lot
Summary
The City Commission overturned a historic‑board denial and approved a certificate of appropriateness May 27 for a modular single‑family house at 816 Third Street, a CRA‑owned lot set aside for workforce housing.
The City Commission on May 27 granted a certificate of appropriateness for a modular single‑family residence at 816 Third Street, reversing the Historic Preservation Board’s denial and allowing the Community Redevelopment Agency’s workforce housing project to proceed.
Lamont Humber of the Cygnet Foundation, the applicant’s representative, said the parcel had been vacant and neglected for more than 20 years and that the CRA selected Cygnet through an RFP to develop a workforce home. Humber said the site contained no historic fabric and argued Standards 9 and 10 of the Secretary of the Interior standards — which require new work to be differentiated but compatible and removable without harming historic material — were not applicable because no historic structure remained on the lot.
Jade Green, deputy director of the Community Redevelopment Agency, told the commission the CRA acquired the property in 2010 and selected the applicant in 2023; the CRA supports the project because it advances affordable and workforce housing and revitalizes a long‑vacant, debris‑filled lot. Staff from Historic Preservation and Planning supported approval; the Historic Preservation Board had voted to deny the certificate of appropriateness.
Anna Maria Pontes, assistant development services director, and other planning staff told commissioners that staff had recommended approval, finding the proposal met the Secretary of the Interior standards and the additional local criteria for new construction in the historic area. Staff said the neighborhood contains a mix of contributing and non‑contributing properties, and several properties near the site already reflect modern or non‑contributing character.
Commissioners discussed the broader tension between preservation standards and revitalization in neighborhoods with vacant lots and non‑contributing structures. President Lambert said the site context and the project’s workforce housing purpose supported approval. Commissioner Fox led the motion to approve; the commission voted unanimously to grant the certificate of appropriateness.
The approval allows the applicant to proceed toward building permits for the modular single‑family home; CRA and applicant representatives said the project was intended to provide affordable homeownership and remove a safety and blight issue from the street.
