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Q&A
West Park Presbyterian Church repair application discussion
1:41:23
ยท
3 min
Council Member Brewer raises concerns about the West Park Presbyterian Church repair application, which has been complicated by the property owner's refusal to sign the application. Chair Carroll explains the LPC's requirement for owner signatures on applications and the reasons behind this policy.
- LPC requires property owner signatures on all applications for regulatory reasons
- The commission cannot issue a permit without a complete application, including the owner's signature
- LPC is monitoring the condition of the building but has not issued a failure to maintain violation as the building is still in use
- This situation remains an ongoing discussion between the council and LPC
Gale Brewer
1:41:23
Alright.
1:41:23
Now, of course, my challenging question.
1:41:26
I understand that you receive an application with respect to the West Park Presbyterian Church to repair the roof and the facade.
1:41:34
Once completed, if it was to happen, it would allow for the removal of the sidewalk bridge scaffolding that's been there over twenty years.
1:41:43
And that may also eliminate certain public safety issues that the, Department of Buildings has given the church, it's actually the building.
1:41:54
I understand that the commission will only grant a permit for the repair work if it's signed by the owner of the property.
1:42:02
And in this case, with the presbytery, will not sign the application to have the roof fixed even though Landmarks have signed off on all of the aspects to your credit of how the work will be done.
1:42:17
And even though the church is tenant, meaning, the cultural group called, that is in charge of has offered to perform all of the work itself and its own cost.
1:42:30
So why hasn't the commission issued a violation to the owner for not allowing the work to proceed, and wouldn't this repair be beneficial to the landmark and to the city to get rid of the shed and fix a roof?
Sarah Carroll
1:42:42
Yeah.
1:42:42
Yeah.
1:42:43
I mean, we welcome applications to restore and repair and maintain buildings, and particularly religious buildings, which can be very complex.
1:42:53
But as as we've talked about before, the commission's rules require an application to be signed by the property owner, and and you can imagine why we wouldn't want tenants doing work without a property owner's permission.
1:43:08
I mean, imagine if they wanted to replace a historic feature instead of repair one and the owner didn't sign off on it.
1:43:15
So the rules, all of our rules do require an owner's signature, and this is no different than any other regulatory body.
1:43:24
The Department of Buildings also requires an owner's signature.
1:43:28
And unless the lease explicitly states that the tenant has the authority to apply for permits.
1:43:34
And so without that explicit statement, it puts the agency in the position of interpreting language in a lease, which regulatory bodies just cannot do and don't do.
1:43:45
So, we, you know, the application was submitted.
1:43:49
We did receive many materials, and we noted that those materials were accepted.
1:43:55
But until all materials, including the application form, is signed, we can't do a final review and and issue a permit.
1:44:02
But, you know, I commend you for working with the center and, raising funds and working
Crystal Hudson
1:44:11
the This could
Gale Brewer
1:44:11
go on for years.
1:44:12
Yeah.
1:44:12
And your building will be deteriorating as a landmark.
Sarah Carroll
1:44:15
Yeah.
1:44:16
I think You have
Gale Brewer
1:44:16
to come to some I don't wanna put allude with this because I know that this is not what we're about today.
1:44:21
But this has I mean, every celebrity in The United States Of America literally was there the other day in support.
1:44:27
Yeah.
1:44:28
So I hope we can come to some resolution.
Sarah Carroll
1:44:30
Yeah.
1:44:31
And I think we are monitoring the condition.
1:44:33
It, you know, has not changed substantially over the last several years, even since designation we've been monitoring it.
1:44:41
And we really don't issue failure to maintain violations unless a building is vacant and structurally unsound and compromised, which is not the case here and we wouldn't want that to be the case.
1:44:52
It's it's being used by the center and and that's a good thing.
Gale Brewer
1:44:58
Alright.
1:44:58
Thank you, mister chair.
1:44:59
This is an ongoing discussion.