Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Historic Preservation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council denies request to forgive $236 in HARB advertising and mailing fees
Summary
Urbanna council voted to deny a property owner’s request to forgive $236.24 in historic‑board advertising and certified‑mail costs, with staff warning that granting the waiver could set an unequal precedent and noting the statutory requirement to notify adjacent properties.
The Urbanna Town Council voted to deny a request to forgive $236.24 charged to a property owner for advertising and certified‑mail notifications tied to a Historic Architectural Review Board application.
Staff provided the council with paperwork showing the application fee ($100) had been received and that the remaining $236.24 was the combined cost of newspaper advertising and certified notifications to 16 adjacent properties. The town administrator told the council the fee structure required notifying all adjacents and had been applied equally to similar cases.
"The application notes it's a $100 fee plus the advertising cost," the staff member said in presenting the request. "Further, the applicant agrees to pay all required advertising and postage cost." Staff recommended denial, saying the town had applied the same rule to other applicants and forgiving one bill could create a problematic precedent.
William Gravitt (applicant name referenced in the staff report) had offered the town use of his property for events in exchange for fee forgiveness, but council members stressed statutory notice requirements limit flexibility. The council discussed whether the ordinance could be revised in the future to move to a flat fee system, but members emphasized any change would be prospective.
Councilmember (S4) moved to deny the forgiveness request and Councilmember (S3) seconded the motion. After brief discussion the council approved the motion to deny; the transcript records the motion carried and the request was denied.
The council noted that the current statutory definition of adjacent properties — which can include properties across the street — contributed to the high mailing cost for a large parcel. Staff said the town could consider ordinance changes to adopt a flat fee in the future but said the statute would still require certain notifications unless changed at the state level.
The council moved on to other agenda items and no further action was taken on this request at the meeting.
