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Homeowners accuse Historic Preservation Commission of ethical lapses, seek ordinance changes
Summary
Property owners told the Bangor City Council during public comment that the Historic Preservation Commission required unanimous votes and ignored conflicts of interest in denying a certificate of appropriateness for a slate-roof replacement; they presented proposed ordinance amendments to ease economic burdens of preservation.
Several Bangor residents urged the City Council on Aug. 25 to review the operations of the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) and consider amendments to the preservation ordinance after repeated denials of a certificate of appropriateness.
Edith Dyer and her husband, Steve Farren, described a multi-month process in which the HPC denied their application to replace a deteriorating slate roof with a slate facsimile. Farren said they were denied at the HPC in November, appealed to the Board of Appeals and lost, and were later advised by the city to submit a new application to be considered de novo. He said an insurance company required roof replacement by June or insurance would not be renewed.
Farren and Dyer alleged procedural and ethical problems at the HPC. They said Councilor Wayne Mellor appeared at an HPC meeting and urged the commission not to hear their case, and they alleged that commissioner Matthew Weitkamp is a part owner of Blackstone Restoration, which had presented to the HPC and commented on the condition of Farren’s roof. Farren said the commissioner’s failure to recuse created a conflict of interest and that the commission’s requirement of four affirmative votes, combined with absences and recusals, effectively required unanimity in practice.
Contractor Rick Violet told the council that a subcommittee had surveyed owners of historic properties and proposed amendments to the preservation ordinance to balance historic concerns with economic reality. He cited an estimate for a slate replacement on 18 West Broadway at $1,225,000 and said that cost is “unsustainable” compared with assessed property values.
Speakers asked the council to consider mechanisms to replace HPC members who do not attend regularly when a greater-than-majority vote is required and to adopt the proposed ordinance changes included with written comments. No formal action or vote on HPC procedures or ordinance amendments was recorded at the meeting; the speakers’ materials were accepted as part of the public record and submitted to the council for future consideration.
