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No building permit or sign permit required by the City of London shall be issued in the Historic District for any construction, rehabilitation, alteration, demolition, or relocation of any structure unless a certificate of appropriateness has been issued. When the owner of a property within the Historic District desires to make changes other than ordinary maintenance, such owner, or his or her agent, shall first secure a certificate of appropriateness.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97.)
(a) The application for a certificate of appropriateness shall be made on forms prescribed by the Building Inspector, along with such plans, drawings, specifications, and other materials as may be needed by the Review Board to make a determination. At a minimum, such information shall include the following:
(1) A site plan showing building outlines, dimensions and landscaping.
(2) A complete description of the proposed change.
(b) Applications for a certificate of appropriateness shall be filed with the Building Inspector at least ten days prior to the meeting of the Review Board.
(d) If the proposed change is in accordance with the guidelines and criteria for the Review Board, then the Review Board shall issue a certificate of appropriateness signed by no less than three Review Board members.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97.)
In considering the appropriateness of any proposed change, including changes to facades, landscaping, exterior signing, awnings, or appurtenances, the Review Board shall consider the following:
(a) All buildings, structures, and sites shall be recognized as products of their own time. Alterations that have no historical basis and which seek to create an earlier appearance inconsistent with or inappropriate to the original integrity of the building shall be discouraged.
(b) The distinguishing original qualities or character of a historic building, structure, site and/or its environment shall not be destroyed. The removal or alteration of any historic material or distinctive architectural or environmental feature should be avoided when possible.
(c) Wherever possible, new additions or alterations to structures shall be done in such a manner that if such additions or alterations were to be removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the original structure would be unimpaired.
(d) Whereas changes which may have taken place in the course of time are evidence of the history and development of a building, structure, or site and its environment, if these changes are deemed to have acquired significance, then this significance shall be recognized and respected.
(e) Significant architectural features which have deteriorated shall be repaired rather than replaced, wherever possible. In the event replacement is necessary, the new material should match the material being replaced (if historically correct) in composition, design, color, texture, and other visual qualities. Repair or placement of architectural features should be based on accurate duplication of the feature, and if possible, substantiated by historic, physical, or pictorial evidence rather than on conjectural designs or the availability of different architectural elements from other buildings or structures.
(f) The visual and functional components of the building and appurtenances, and their site, including, but not limited to, building height, massing and proportion, roof shape and slope, landscape design and plant materials, lighting, vehicular and pedestrian circulation, and signing, shall be taken into consideration.
(g) Distinctive stylistic features of examples of skilled craftsmanship which characterize a building, structure or site shall be treated sensitively.
(h) Contemporary design for alterations and additions to existing properties shall not be discouraged when such alterations and additions do not destroy significant historical, architectural or cultural material, and such design is compatible with the size, scale, color, material, and character of the property, neighborhood, or environment.
(i) The surface cleaning of masonry structures shall be undertaken with methods designed to minimize damage to historic building materials. Sandblasting and other cleaning methods that will damage the historic building materials should be avoided.
(j) Attention shall be taken to avoid the environmentally harmful effect often created by the clash of undisguised contemporary materials with those of older origin, such as aluminum or other metals, plastic, glass, and fiberglass used improperly with brick, stone, wood, and masonry.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97.)
In considering an area, building, structure or work of art in the Historic District, the following criteria shall apply:
(a) Existing Structures, Buildings and Open Areas. Reconstruction and/or rehabilitation of structures within the Historic District shall conform to the distinguishing, original exterior qualities or character of the structure, its site, and its environment. The following elements shall also be considered:
(1) The character or value of a property or area as part of the heritage or cultural characteristic of the City of London;
(2) Whether the structure, building or open area is identified as the work of an architect or notable builder whose work has influenced the development of the City of London;
(3) Whether the structure, building or open area occupies a unique location or possesses a physical characteristic that represents an established feature of the Historic District;
(4) Whether the building, structure or open area occupies the site of a significant historic event.
(b) New Construction. The design of new structures and additions to existing structures, including new site improvements, shall take into account the architectural style, general design, arrangement, texture, material, and color of other structures and premises within the same location.
(c) Standards for Rehabilitation. The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation shall apply and are as follows:
(1) A property will be used as it was historically or be given a new use that requires minimal change to its distinctive materials, features, spaces, and spatial relationships.
(2) The historic character of a property will be retained and preserved. The removal of distinctive materials or alteration of features, spaces, and spatial relationships that characterize a property will be avoided.
(3) Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or elements from other historic properties, will not be undertaken.
(4) Changes to a property that have acquired historic significance in their own right will be retained and preserved.
(5) Distinctive materials, features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property will be preserved.
(6) Deteriorated historic features will be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature will match the old in design, color, texture, and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features will be substantiated by documentary and physical evidence.
(7) Chemical or physical treatments, if appropriate, will be undertaken using the gentlest means possible. Treatments that cause damage to historic materials will not be used.
(8) Archeological resources will be protected and preserved in place. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures will be undertaken.
(9) New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction will not destroy historic materials, features, and spatial relationships that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and will be compatible with the historic materials, features, size, scale and proportion, and massing to protect the integrity of the property and its environment.
(10) New additions and adjacent or related new construction will be undertaken in such a manner that, if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired.
(d) Materials. All new structures and all reconstruction or remodeling of existing structures within the Historic District shall utilize natural traditional exterior materials such as brick, stone, masonry and wood. The use of contemporary materials, such as aluminum, other metals, fiberglass, and plastics for exterior surfaces on architecturally significant structures shall be prohibited unless the use of such materials would contribute to the preservation or enhancement of existing traditional materials and the overall integrity and longevity of a structure.
(e) Color.
(1) Traditional colors that are identified with the origin or the era in which the structure or property was originally built shall be used for exteriors for all new structures to be built, and the reconstruction, remodeling and exterior maintenance of existing structures within the Historic District.
(2) The Historic Review Board has the authority to adopt color pallets issued by manufacturers known as "historic colors". Once a color sheet has been adopted by the Board, the building inspector, upon application and submission of a color diagram or rendition and payment of all fees, may issue a certificate of appropriateness for the use of any approved colors as submitted in the application. The purpose of this is to avoid the necessity of an individual owner or occupant coming before the Board for the purpose of a change of color, as long as the change is a true historical color as approved by the Board. If the inspector feels the colors are not appropriate, he or she may submit the request to the Board for further action.
(f) Signs. All signs within the Historic District shall conform to the color and material standards of this section, be of a style, size, and/or design that reflects what is typically associated with the era during which the structure was built. Such signs shall also conform to the requirements in other sections of this chapter. The size and shape of signs shall also correspond to the existing proportions of period structures, and signs shall not be permitted to cover or close existing window and doorway openings or otherwise hide important architectural features.
(g) Awnings. All awnings within the Historic District shall conform to the color standards of this section.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97; Ord. 118-06. Passed 4-20-06; Ord. 119-10. Passed 5-20-10.)
A certificate of appropriateness is required to erect or place any sign, awning, or appurtenance in the Historic District. This would also include the changing or replacement of existing signs, awnings, or appurtenances.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97.)
No demolition of any property shall be undertaken prior to obtaining a certificate of appropriateness. In cases where an applicant applies for a certificate of appropriateness to demolish a structure within the Historic District, the Review Board shall grant the demolition and issue a certificate of appropriateness when at least one of the following conditions prevails:
(a) The structure contains no features of architectural and historic significance to the character of the Historic District.
(b) There exists no reasonable economic use for the structure as it exists or as it might be restored, and there exists no feasible and prudent alternative to demolition.
(c) Deterioration has progressed to the point where it is not economically feasible to restore the structure.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97.)
If a certificate of appropriateness is denied, the Review Board shall attempt to work with the owner/owners of property in the District to work out an alternative plan that is acceptable to all parties.
If the owner of property in the District and the Review Board are unable to work out an alternative plan, then the owner may appeal to the Board of Zoning Appeals within ten days of the decision of the Review Board. The Board of Zoning Appeals may modify, remand or reverse the decision. Said appeal shall be filed with the Building Inspector.
(Ord. 192-97. Passed 9-4-97.)
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