Newcastle officials have tabled a contentious historic district special review ordinance indefinitely and expect to have it rewritten entirely when, or if, it comes to the public again.
An ad hoc committee, disbanded by the select board on Monday, Jan. 22 with its vote to table the draft, began work on the ordinance last February with a consultant hired by the town.
If approved, the ordinance would have required building owners in Newcastle’s three historic districts to apply for a certificate of appropriateness from an appointed review board before making exterior changes to their homes or lots. It also would have set a review process for demolition or new construction in the districts.
Town officials said the ordinance development started to fulfill a goal of the core zoning code approved by voters in 2020, which included a focus on historic preservation to be outlined by a future regulation. A character code for that purpose failed at the polls in 2018.
Newcastle’s historic districts of Damariscotta Mills, Glidden Street, and Sheepscot Village were designated by voters. The new ordinance would have allowed landowners outside of these districts to apply to add their properties as local landmarks.
As drafted, the ordinance split projects into three tiers requiring different levels of review.
First-tier projects were to be approved by the town planner, including removing or replacing nonhistoric features, installing historic features, building a deck or installing wiring not publicly visible, building low walls or fences except in the front of the lot, and replacing light fixtures.
Second tier projects would have been considered by the review board and at a public hearing. These projects included changing outside architectural details, installing fences or walls in the front of the lot, installing solar panels or wind turbines, and changing roof lines.
In the third tier, projects like new construction, additions, demolitions, moving a building, or constructing a new one would require review by a professional, plus the board and a public hearing. Homeowners would put money in escrow for the consultant.
Certificates would be valid for one year and could be extended for another before the homeowner would have to reapply unless “substantial” construction had begun. A landowner who violated the ordinance would be fined.
Resident outcry at public hearings and municipal meetings of both the planning and select boards last summer and fall led to a list of revisions that would require rewriting the ordinance entirely, select board members said Jan. 22. With work planned to have shoreland zoning, core zoning code, and comprehensive plan edits before voters at annual town meeting in June, along with other ordinance revisions, there would not be time to rework it.
“The general sentiment from the residents, at least in the affected districts, was only an expression of issue and problems with it, so I think it’s tough to see this thing go forward as it was created without a serious rewrite,” board member Tor Glendinning said.
Public comment in prior meetings had expressed concerns about transparency in the drafting and review process and the ordinance itself, including several allegations of “un-American” and “unconstitutional” ideas.
On Jan. 22, select board members noted the months spent on the original draft and the hefty task of writing it, which spanned about 10 meetings. A suggested revision would include removing the review committee entirely, for example, which requires changing the core of the permitting process.
A unanimous vote disbanded the committee and tabled consideration of the ordinance indefinitely “until someone else brings it up,” board Vice Chair Joel Lind said.
“Or until we figure another approach out,” Chair Karen Paz said.
The Newcastle Select Board next meets at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 12 in the Clayton V. Huntley Jr. Fire Station community room and online. For more information, go to newcastlemaine.us.
