Historic Preservation Commission Agenda and Packet 2019 09 16

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Section 15.36.120 of the LMC gives the criteria for evaluating alteration certificates: A. The commission shall issue an alteration certificate for any proposed work on a designated historical site or district only if the proposed work would not detrimentally alter, destroy or adversely affect any architectural or landscape feature which contributes to its original historical designation. B. The commission must find the proposed alteration to be visually compatible with designated historic structures located on the property in terms of design, finish, material, scale, mass and height. When the subject site is in an historic district, the commission must also find that the proposed alteration is visually compatible with characteristics that define the district. For the purposes of this chapter, the term "compatible" shall mean consistent with, harmonious with, or enhancing to the mixture of complementary architectural styles, either of the architecture of an individual structure or the character of the surrounding structures. C. The commission will use the following criteria to determine compatibility: 1. The effect upon the general historical and architectural character of the structure and property. 2. The architectural style, arrangement, texture, and material used on the existing and proposed structures and their relation and compatibility with other structures. 3. The size of the structure, its setbacks, its site, location, and the appropriateness thereof, when compared to existing structures and the site. 4. The compatibility of accessory structures and fences with the main structure on the site, and with other structures. 5. The effects of the proposed work in creating, changing, destroying, or otherwise impacting the exterior architectural features of the structure upon which such work is done. 6. The condition of existing improvements and whether they are a hazard to public health and safety. 7. The effects of the proposed work upon the protection, enhancement, perpetuation and use of the property. 8. The proposal's compliance with the following standards: a. A property shall be used for its historic purpose or be placed in a new use that requires minimal change to the defining characteristics of the building and its site and environment. b. The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of historic materials or alteration of features and spaces that characterize a property shall be avoided. c. Each property shall 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 architectural elements from other buildings, shall not be undertaken. d. Most properties change over time; those changes that have acquired historic significance in their own right shall be retained and preserved. e. Distinctive features, finishes and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property shall be preserved. f. Deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. When the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature shall match the old in design, color, texture and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials. In the replacement of missing features, every effort shall be made to substantiate the structure's historical features by documentary, physical, or pictorial evidence. g. Chemical or physical treatments, such as sandblasting, that cause damage to historic materials shall not be used. The surface cleaning of structures, if appropriate, shall be undertaken using the gentlest means possible. h. Significant archaeological resources affected by a project shall be protected and preserved. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures shall be undertaken. i. New additions, exterior alterations or related new construction shall not destroy historic materials that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the property and its environment. j. New additions and adjacent or related new construction shall 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. 11