(A) (1) 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 such property or construct any improvement upon such designated property or properties or cause or permit any such work to be performed upon such property or demolish such property unless a certificate of appropriateness or statement of waiver has been granted by the Commission. Also, unless such certificate has been granted by the Commission, the Building Inspector shall not issue a permit for any such work.
(2) Any application for a permit for any proposed construction, alteration, or demolition of an improvement within a historic district shall be filed with the Building Inspector. The Building Inspector shall, within 3 working days of receipt of the application, forward a copy of the application and plans, if any, to the City Clerk. The City Clerk shall schedule a hearing, in accordance with the requirements of a Class 2 notice, before the Historic Preservation Commission and notify Commission members of the date and time for said hearing.
(B) Certificate of appropriateness.
(1) Upon filing of any application for a certificate of appropriateness with the Commission, the Commission shall grant or deny a certificate of appropriateness within 30 days of the filing of the application. The Commission shall notify the City Clerk within 3 business days of its decision. If the Commission grants the application, within 3 business days, the City Clerk shall issue a certificate of appropriateness which shall be sent, by regular mail, to the applicant. If the construction, alteration or demolition has not commenced within 1 year after the date of issuance of the certificate of appropriateness, the certificate of appropriateness will expire.
(2) If the Commission denies the application, then within 3 business days of such decision, written notice of the denial shall be sent by the City Clerk by regular mail to the applicant. The Commission may refuse to grant a certificate of appropriateness for a period not to exceed 6 months from the date of the original denial. Within 6 months, the Commission shall issue either a certificate of appropriateness or a statement of waiver which shall be sent by the City Clerk by regular mail to the applicant.
(C) In reviewing an application for a certificate of appropriateness, the Commission shall consider the following items:
(1) The appropriateness to the historic district of the proposed construction, alteration or demolition of an improvement;
(2) Whether such proposed construction, alteration, or demolition of an improvement will further the purposes of this chapter;
(3) The historical significance of the improvement;
(4) The architectural value of the improvement;
(5) The unique design, arrangement, texture, or color of the building, place or area in question;
(6) The relation of such improvement to other improvements in the immediate area;
(7) The position of such improvement in relation to the street or public way;
(8) The appearance of the proposed construction, alteration, or demolition from the public view;
(9) Such specific design standards as the Commission may recommend and the Common Council adopt as an historic district plan.
(D) 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 within 30 days of the filing of the application.
(E) The issuance of a certificate of appropriateness shall not relieve the applicant from obtaining other permits and approvals required by the City. 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.
(F) 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. 705/96, passed 3-28-96) Penalty, see § 1.1.99