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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAppeal explantion November 15 2023-final 1 Nov. 15, 2023 Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Appeals Committee Barnstable Town Hall 367 Main Street Hyannis MA 02601 Dear Appeals Committee Members: This is a Petition for Appeal of the Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Commission’s (“the Commission”) approval on October 18, 2023 of Applications for Demolition, Approval, and Certificate of Appropriateness at 307 Main Street in Hyannis, Massachusetts (“the Project”) by WinnDevelopment Company, LP (“the Project Proponent”). We are aggrieved by the Commission approval of the Project without conformance to all applicable laws, rules, regulations and guidelines adopted to protect and preserve the character of our village, Hyannis, and we, its residents. This requests that the Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Appeals Committee (“the Committee”) annul, or in the alternative, remand the matter for further action by the Commission. Specifically, the Commission failed to assess whether and articulate how the Project conforms to the Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Commission Guidelines (“the Commission Guidelines”), and it must do so. The requirements and expectations are clear: the Project Proponent is to conform the Project to the Commission Guidelines, and the Commission is to assess the Project according to them. That did not happen. Our review of the Project against the Commission Guidelines indicates it fails to satisfy them. At a minimum, the Committee must remand the matter to the Commission for the required assessment that the Commission said it would conduct before making a finding; its assessment must demonstrate conformance in order to approve the Project. The Commission states in plain terms to project proponents and to the public that it will consider whether projects meet the Commission Guidelines: “When you begin planning your project, use the same source that the Commission will use to review it: these Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Guidelines. As it reviews your application package, the Commission will consider whether your project meets the guidelines.”1 (Emphasis added.) The Commission Guidelines provide specific requirements. The Project fails to satisfy many of its requirements, including but not limited to, the following and other design elements in the Commission Guidelines: • “Your new building should be shorter than the tallest building in the area, and taller than the shortest.” Commission Guidelines at page 35. • “Your new building should maintain the proportions and overall scale of adjacent and nearby buildings”. Commission Guidelines at page 35. 1 Commission Guidelines at page 11. https://www.townofbarnstable.us/BoardsCommittees/HyannisMainStreet/Resources/Hyannis-Main-Street- Waterfront-Historic-District-Guidelines-.pdf?tm=10/21/2023%203:01:44%20PM 2 The Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Guidelines for New Construction 2012 Supplement, approved by the Commission in February 2012 2, also speak to scale and proportion. The Project likewise fails to satisfy important elements of those, including but not limited to, the following and other design elements in the Commission Guidelines: • “Scale and Proportion – New construction should be scaled to compliment adjacent and surrounding buildings. The height and width of nearby buildings should be considered. New construction should not overwhelm adjacent buildings or be too small or modest.”3 • “New Construction should not overwhelm adjacent buildings...” District Guideline Supplement, p. 20 • “Continuous flat roofs are not appropriate for new commercial buildings” District Guideline Supplement, p. 20 (the back wing has a flat roof, visible from Old Colony and points south) • “Where commercial buildings are located adjacent to an intersection, an entrance oriented to the corner is recommended.” District Guideline Supplement, p. 21 • “Façade treatments should be consistent on all sides visible from the street.” District Guideline Supplement, p. 21 (the façade with southern exposure, facing the harbor is not consistent with the rest of the visible building.) The Commission’s own application appropriately directed the Project Proponent to “[r]eview the Historic District guidelines for information on recommended designs, materials, colors, etc.” The Commission’s intentions for its review conveyed to the Project and the public must be respected and executed. That has not happened. We , and many local residents, relied on the Commission Guidelines throughout this process. We also relied on the Commission’s clear representation that it will consider the Commission Guidelines in evaluating the evidence put forward by the Project Proponent. We appreciated when the Commission Chair assured local residents about the Commission Guidelines at the September 30, 2023 hearing on the Project.4 Yet, the Commission failed to assess the Project in relation to the Commission Guidelines in its deliberations and ultimate approval. It must do so now. In addition, there were two misrepresentations about the Project’s conformance to the Commission Guidelines during the hearing. The misrepresentations were material and misleading. Each Commissioner deserved accurate information on which to base their vote, and they did not get that. The misrepresentations were as follows: 2 https://townofbarnstable.us/BoardsCommittees/HyannisMainStreet/Minutes/2012/HHDC_Minutes_02_15_2012.pdf 3 2012 Supplemental Guidelines at page 20. https://www.townofbarnstable.us/BoardsCommittees/HyannisMainStreet/Resources/Hyannis-Main-Street-Waterfront-Historic- District-Guidelines-Supplement-.pdf?tm=10/21/2023%203:42:07%20PM 4 Staff erred in responding that the Design Guidelines are on the Planning Department website. The Commission Guidelines are the Commission’s website. The guidelines on the Planning Department website are proposed draft Downtown Hyannis Unified Design Guidelines and Regulations, dated August 2023. Those proposed draft Guidelines have not been adopted and are not in effect; they require consideration following public comment and a vote of two bodies, the Commission and the Planning Board, according to the Town Planner representations to the Town Council in September 2023. 3 1) In response to a Commissioner ’s expression of concern about the Project’s conformance to design guidelines, the attorney for the Project Proponent stated (at approximately minute 26) that the Project was “designed exactly to the regulations as they stand now.” That is untrue. As discussed above, the Project does not conform to Commission Guidelines. 2) In response to another Commissioner ’s question (at approximately minute 35) about whether the Project meets the new zoning requirements and the regulation requirements, staff said yes. In a follow up, a Commissioner asked for clarity as to whether there were any requirements the Project has not met. Staff replied no. That is untrue. As discussed above, the Project does not conform to Commission Guidelines. Both the Project Proponent and staff qualified their answers to direct questions from Commissioners about the Project’s guideline conformance as “as they now stand” and “at this time.” Such qualifications are inapplicable to the Commission Guidelines controlling in this case: at this time, the Commission Guidelines stand firm. The Project Proponent and staff may have been suggesting to the Commission that the Project conforms to Proposed Draft Downtown Hyannis Unified Design Guidelines and Regulations (proposed draft Guidelines), dated August 2023. Whatever their intention, their opinions about such conformance to proposed draft Guidelines is irrelevant to the Commission’s findings. The proposed draft Guidelines are a work in progress and have no weight in this case. Neither the Planning Board nor the Commission has deliberated and adopted them. Neither the Project Proponent or staff – or the Commission, the Committee, the Council, or any other entity - knows how the Planning Board’s or the Commission’s assessment of the proposed draft Guidelines and public input will change their material provisions in the guideline adoption process that has not been completed as of the date of this appeal. We are pleased to provide additional background on the proposed draft Guidelines dated August 2023 for the Committee’s information in the Appendix. The Ill-timed and Inappropriate Gift Request Immediately before the Commission voted to authorize the demolition of the existing building, it was disturbing to hear a highly inappropriate and ill-timed request from the dais. A request was made to the Project Proponent about preserving an “expensive marble carved quote,” and for the Project Proponent to gift that item of value to the Town or library. The Project Proponent agreed to the request on the spot. An ask for a donation of an item of value by the Commission immediately before a Commission vote could have influenced votes and/or conveyed, subtly, that a donation was a price to pay for support. This inappropriate irregularity supports the value of remanding the matter to the Commission for a process without an ask of the Project Proponent for a donation that was ill-timed, bad optics, without apparent authority from the town, and horrible precedent. Conclusion We ask the Committee to annul the Commission approval for failure to conform the Commission Guidelines. In the alternative, we ask the Committee to remand the matter back to the Commission so that the Commission can do what it said it will do, and what it must do, and evaluate the Project pursuant to the Commission Guidelines and base its decision on the Project’s conformance to them. Thank you for your work to see that the review and approval process is conducted thoroughly, and properly. 4 Respectfully, NAME – John Julius ADDRESS – 140 Chase St, Hyannis, MA 02601 NAME - Christopher Kuhn ADDRESS – 49 Weaver Road, Centerville, MA 02632 NAME – Eric Schwaab ADDRESS – 157 Melbourne Road, Hyannis, MA 02601 cc: Barnstable Town Clerk Ann Quirk Hyannis Main Street Waterfront Historic District Commission WinnDevelopment Company, LP Elizabeth Jenkins, Town Planning Department Mark Ells, Town Manager Enclosed: 1. Appeal form 2. Certified copy of the Commission Decision 3. Filing Fee 4. Background Statement in Support of Call for Zoning Revisit 5 APPENDIX Proposed Draft Downtown Hyannis Unified Design Guidelines and Regulations The Proposed Draft Downtown Hyannis Unified Design Guidelines and Regulations (proposed draft Guidelines), dated August 2023, have not been adopted, have no legal weight, and are irrelevant to the Commission and Committee’s decision about the Proposed Project. We provide this additional information about the status of the proposed draft Guidelines available on the town website to help the Committee, and to avoid any misrepresentations or confusion that appeared to influence the Commission’s findings. Please refer to the Commission’s and Planning Board’s meetings on the town’s public access television channel for a full view of the summary set out below. August 2023 Commission Meeting. At its August 2, 2023 meeting, the Commission voted to allow the proposed draft Guidelines dated August 2023 to be issued for public comment. Staff asked for Commission approval to issue the proposed draft Guidelines for public review and comment so that staff could represent that both the Planning Board and the Commission reviewed the version of the proposed draft Guidelines that would be the subject of comment and further revision. Staff said such public comment period would be for a “solid month.” At that meeting, staff assured the Commission the revised proposed draft Guidelines would come back to the Commission after public comment for its review, consideration, and action. That has not happened yet. There is no indication on the Planning Department website, the Commission website, or the Planning Board website – or on any agendas or minutes of the latter two public bodies - that public comment period has even commenced. In addition, the Planning Department website has no information on it about the public comment period on the proposed draft Guidelines: no notice of issuance, no contact person, no due date, no information at all. The proposed draft Guidelines have not appeared on any Commission agenda since its August 2, 2023 discussion explained above. Thus, the Commission has not, as of the date of this appeal deliberated or approved proposed draft Guidelines. September 11, 2023 Planning Board Meeting. On September 11, 2023, staff told the Planning Board it was “close” to “potentially some proposed guidelines adopted.” As of the date of this appeal, the Planning Board’s subsequent agendas confirm that it has not yet deliberated or voted on the proposed draft Guidelines. Without final action by the Commission and the Planning Board, the proposed draft Guidelines are just that – a draft proposal – and have no legal weight. September 21, 2023 Town Council Meeting. At the September 21, 2023 Town Council meeting, the Planning Director explained a staff-level review of the Project’s conformance to proposed draft Guidelines, which have not been adopted. The Planning Director acknowledged the proposed draft Guidelines are not final – they remain draft form, subject to change in the review and approval process, and they require consideration and a vote by both the Commission and the Planning Board. 6 A staff opinion of the Project’s conformance to proposed draft Guidelines that have not been adopted - and that could very well change when public officials deliberate them after considering public input - is completely irrelevant. Recall the Commission asked staff pointedly in August 2023 whether the proposed draft Guidelines would be back to the Commission for its consideration. The staff answer was yes, and that has not happened. Importantly, after the proposed draft Guidelines are adopted, it will be the Commission’s job to assess the Project for conformance them and to do so in public in connection with Project approval; a staff review of a proposed project against proposed draft Guidelines out of public view is no substitute. The Planning Director also told the Council that the public comment had closed. The Planning Department website has no mention of it ever opening, of the contact person, or a close date. We look regularly for such information on the Downtown Hyannis page, and on the link marked proposed Draft Guideline, as would any reasonable person. The proposed draft Guidelines have not been on the Commission or the Planning Board’s agenda and so those are not venues through which the public was told about a comment period opening or close date. By copy to the Planning Department and Town Manager Mark Ells, we ask for such public notice on the Town’s website in a place reasonable people look – the page labeled Downtown Hyannis and/or the link marked proposed Draft Guidelines – and/or on an agenda item on the public bodies that would review and approve them. We ask for a reasonable opportunity to comment once that notice is posted. We ask that all comments be made publicly available.