Tabling of discussion on architectural style in our historic district brought agreement to hold that discussion during a future commission meeting, to include public comment, and to pre-arm commissioners with guidelines from the U.S. Secretary of the Interior and National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Vice Mayor Errol Jones noted that afternoon workshops are not convenient for most residents, and Commissioner Nancy Sikes-Kline asked that copies of the publications on modifying and new construction be provided to each commissioner to prepare for that discussion.

Of the three Historic Preservation (HP) Districts in our core area, HP 1 at the north end of St. George Street – our restoration area – is generally accepted as colonial style. Commissioners in recent years have endorsed the area south of the Plaza, HP 1, for mixed styles. While it’s our earliest town, development over the years has turned more toward Victorian.

It is HP 2, the area from the Plaza north to Hypolita Street, that will challenge commissioners. A majority appears to favor restricting it to colonial, while Crichlow maintains that much of its development was after 1821, and new construction should be “fact-based” on documented previous use rather than “conjectural.”

He poses the question, “If a Territorial Period structure, like 76 Spanish Street, has to be torn down, does it make sense to replace it with a colonial structure that never existed there?”