As Washington College’s application to tear down the historic Chestertown Armory wends its way through the Chestertown Historic District Commission, the duties and responsibilities of the Town to the HDC have come to light.
As a “Certified Local Government,” the Town of Chestertown has an affirmative duty to provide educational training to its Historic District Commission annually. The CLG program was federally mandated by an amendment to the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and is administered by the National Park Service. This training can be arranged through the Maryland Association of Historic District Commissions at a modest cost, which can be covered by grant funding. Training starts with a free online tutorial and manual which can be downloaded. Training continues with workshops guided by instructors who have been certified by MAHDC as experts in the various subject matters and who meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Professional Qualifications Standards.
So, it’s required by federal law, it’s online and downloadable, and it can be paid for with grants, but the Town of Chestertown has not provided any training to its HDCs since 2009!
All that is about to end thanks to new Town Manager Larry DiRe. When the lack of HDC training was brought to DiRe’s attention by a knowledgeable member of the public, he immediately put the wheels in motion to get the HDC the training it needs and deserved. A thumbs up to Mr. DiRe.
Now for the thumbs down.
The Town of Chestertown also has an affirmative obligation to protect the historic structures within its Historic District. This requirement is set out in the Town Ordinances at Chapter 93: Historic Area Zoning. The obligation is clear: “Neither the owner nor the person in charge of property which is within the Historic District…shall permit the structure to fall into a state of disrepair which may result in the deterioration of any exterior appurtenance or architectural feature so as to produce or tend to produce, in the judgment of the Town Building Official after consultation with the Historic Commission, a detrimental effect upon …the structure in question.” Among the detrimental effects cited in the Ordinance are deterioration of exterior walls, roofs, crumbling plaster or mortar; ineffective waterproofing of exterior walls, roofs, and foundations; and broken windows or doors.
These effects are known as demolition by neglect, which is prohibited under Town Ordinances and the Historic District Guidelines.
And the Historic District Commission “is authorized to prevent such situations and has done so in the past,” read the HDC Guidelines.
There’s even a specific penalty for the owner who permits such deterioration: “…shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be liable for fine of not more than $500. Each day that the violation shall be permitted to exist shall constitute a separate offense.” (Emphasis added.)
By its own admission Washington College has permitted the historic Armory to fall into a state of disrepair resulting in in the deterioration of its exterior. Just read the applications to demolish the historic Armory Washington College submitted last year and again this year. (The current application is on the Town website, as are public comments about it.)
More than a year ago, local preservation architect Tom Kocubinski toured the Armory and noted a hole in its roof, broken and open windows, flaking exterior plaster, lack of floodproofing at riverside doors—all of which permitted water intrusion to the interior and the growth of mold of which Washington College so bitterly complains now and cites as justification to tear down the historic building. (Kocubinski took the photos which accompany this letter. His findings were published in local media at the time.)
The question is how did the Town allow this to happen? Where was the “Town Building Official” responsible for bringing these problems to the attention of the HDC?
According to the Ordinance, “It shall be the duty of all officers and employees of the town to assist the enforcing officer by reporting to him or her any seeming violation….” (Emphasis added.) The Town sent members of its maintenance crew into the Armory within the last year. Why? To whom did they report what they saw? Was the HDC informed?
Where were they all—Town officials, Town employees, the HDC–as the Armory was allowed to be compromised?
The Town and the HDC need to take immediate action to cite Washington College for its deliberate failure to maintain the Armory, direct Washington College to fix the problems and stabilize the Armory, give Washington College a deadline for these fixes, and fine Washington College $500 per day until the problems are fixed. (In truth, Washington College should be fined retroactive to the date it filed its demolition application last year when it first admitted its neglect.)
With a new Town Manager, proper enforcement of the Town’s Ordinances and the Historic District Guidelines might now be possible. So, thumbs down for the Town for now, but fingers crossed for the future.
Barbara Jorgenson
Chestertown
Karen Smith says
Baloney. The Armory was falling into disrepair long before Washington College “owned” it, so the town (or the federal government) should be held accountable for its deterioration, if anyone is going to be fined for neglect. Furthermore, it is an ugly, useless structure that could be replaced by something that would enhance that property and of which the town can be proud. It was always an architecturally ugly structure, so why keep it standing just because it’s old?
Danielle Hanscom says
Agreed.
Valerie Overton says
Agree Karen. As always, a big thumbs down to Ms Jorgenson’s endless and myopic pot stirring.
If only she could dedicate her energies towards the greater good of the community vs a self-servingly narrow focus on an unusable, decayed and abandoned parcel.
David J Bowering says
Get your facts straight before you malign people, please. You clearly are ignorant of the pro bono (that means free of charge) legal services Ms. Jorgenson has provided to residents, both adults and children, in Kent County. She is a pro-bono child advocate for the District Court in Kent County. Ask the judge if Ms Jorgenson contributes anything to the county. You are clearly unaware of the free legal clinic she conducts at the courthouse every month. You are clearly unaware of her years of pro-bono representation of distressed children in messy custody battles in the county. You clearly are unaware of her role as President of the Kent County Historical Society, also voluntary, and the leadership she has provided to the revitalization of the organization and the expansion of the programs offered. I would say her energies are devoted to the greater good of the community, wouldn’t you? By the way, what do you do for the community? I can’t find anything.
Marguerite Long says
I agree 100% with Ms. Smith! The building is an eyesore no matter what the inside looks like or has turned into. Do something and move on please!
neal Carter says
Even more distressing is the deliberate decay of the 98 Cannon structure and its grounds, displayed for all the see as it`s physically the centerpiece of Down-Rigging. How Sad
David J Bowering says
Management of the town has been so unprofessional for so long on so many levels. Hopefully our new Town Manager will improve on the mismanagement of the last 40 years under Bill Ingersoll. This also underscores the need for the Town Manager to be under a time limit renewable contract with public input to performance reviews. There are so many retired senior professional in the town with skill sets that are not drawn upon.
Brian Schatzinger says
David,
Maybe it’s time for the “senior professionals” in Chestertown to find something else to write about.
Our riverfront is a ghetto with a burned out restaurant and a decaying “historic building” occupying prime real estate.
I’d suggest those residents who oppose a new hotel on the Armory site spend a few bucks and spend a weekend at the Inn at Perry Cabin in St. Michaels. I’ve owned one of the oldest houses in Chestertown for 20 years and I understand historical buildings. The Armory is not a significant historical structure. The State government seems to agree.
As one local resident (a professional engineer) stated at the last Council meeting keep this up and the current hotel investment group will pack their bags and go. I’m sure they are already packing.
Congratulations to you qualified “ professionals” who continue to spell doom for what is, unfortunately, a town in decline. Spend a weekend in St. Michaels and then please send us your professional opinion as to how our town competes. We don’t.