(A) No owner or person in charge of a historic structure, historic site, or structure within a historic district shall reconstruct, alter, or demolish all or any part of the exterior of that property or construct any improvement upon that designated property or properties, or cause or permit any such work to be performed upon that property, or demolish that property, unless a Certificate of Appropriateness has been granted by the Historic Preservation Commission. Also, unless such a certificate has been granted by the Commission, the Building Inspector shall not issue a permit for any such work.
(B) Upon filing of any application for a Certificate of Appropriateness with the Commission, the Commission shall approve the application unless:
(1) In the case of a designated historic structure or historic site, the proposed work would detrimentally change, destroy, or adversely affect any exterior feature of the improvement or site upon which the work is to be done;
(2) In the case of the construction of a new improvement upon a historic site, or within a historic district, the exterior of that improvement would adversely affect or not harmonize with the external appearance of other neighboring improvements on the site or within the district;
(3) In the case of any property located in a historic district, the proposed construction, reconstruction, exterior alteration, or demolition does not conform to the purpose and intent of this chapter and to the objectives and design criteria of the historic preservation plan for that district;
(4) The building or structure is of such architectural or historical significance that its demolition would be detrimental to the public interest and contrary to the general welfare of the people of the village and state; or
(5) In the case of a request for the demolition of a deteriorated building or structure, any economic hardship or difficulty claimed by the owner is self-created or is the result of any failure to maintain the property in good repair.
(C) If the Commission determines that the application for a Certificate of Appropriateness and the proposed changes are consistent with the character and features of the property or district, it shall issue the Certificate of Appropriateness. The Commission shall make this decision with 45 days of the filing of the application.
(D) The issuance of a Certificate of Appropriateness shall not relieve the applicant from obtaining other permits and approvals required by the village. A building permit or other municipal permit shall be invalid if it is obtained without the presentation of the Certificate of Appropriateness required for the proposed work.
(E) Ordinary maintenance and repairs may be undertaken without a Certificate of Appropriateness provided that the work involves repairs to existing features of a historic structure or site or the replacement of elements of a structure with pieces identical in appearance and provided that the work does not change the exterior appearance of the structure or site and does not require the issuance of a building permit.
(Ord. 73, passed 12-5-96) Penalty, see § 152.99