Historic commission put on hold for now
BY LINDA DeNICOLA
Staff Writer

SHREWSBURY - As promised, Mayor Emilia Siciliano recommended to the Borough Council that an ordinance to establish an Historic Preservation Commission be withdrawn.

The council voted unanimously to pull the ordinance at the Monday night meeting, which was attended by a group of residents who opposed the ordinance and who wanted to make sure that it really was repealed.

After listening to residents present their reservations at a Planning Board meeting Jan. 16, Siciliano had said that she was going to recommend that the ordinance be withdrawn because it needs significant revisions.

The ordinance called for the creation of a seven-member commission that would review any application before the Zoning Board of Adjustment or the Planning Board that affects an historic site.

The purpose of the ordinance is to implement the historic preservation element of the master plan and to advance certain public purposes. Besides preservation, it encourages the continued use of historic sites and facilitates their appropriate reuse.

Establishment of a commission has been high on Siciliano's agenda for about three years, ever since she became aware of the deteriorating condition of the Quaker Meeting House, she said.

She believes that having this kind of ordinance in place makes it easier to get grant money from the state for some historic buildings and it is recommended by the municipal land use law, she said.

Assemblyman Michael Panter (D-12) thanked the council for withdrawing the ordinance.

Panter, who lives in an historic house, circa 1835, on Sycamore Avenue, said last month in a prepared statement, "We welcome the council's support of historical preservation, but authorizing the borough to dictate improvement projects on private homes infringed on individual property rights." He added that Shrewsbury already has existing laws in place requiring approval for any exterior work done to historical homes, which has had great success.

Siciliano said plans are to come back with another ordinance to establish an historical commission. "We're only withdrawing the current ordinance to give the Planning Board time to consider what the public said [at the Jan. 16 meeting]," she said.