4/12/18 UPDATE: ARTICLE 45 TO BE RETURNED TO COMMITTEE
Apr. 12, 2018
Dear Reader,
Town Meeting voted last night to refer 2018 ATM Article 45 back to the Board of Selectmen (BOS) and the Historic Districts Commission 40C Study Committee (Ad Hoc). The Study Committee had made a motion to that effect and Town Meeting affirmed it overwhelmingly.
The Committee and BOS hope to bring a new Article before Town Meeting in the fall, including considering citizens' input. This is a positive step toward rational and reasoned policy-making on the issues of Article 45.
Article 45 had proposed to change the rules governing land use in Lexington's historic districts. The Article would have expanded the Historic Districts Commission's (HDC) authority while at the same time diminishing public input into HDC's actions. Moreover, the Article was fast-tracked without justification and new rules were drafted largely outside of the public's view.
Hopefully, the Committee and BOS will do a better job next time in having a transparent, public process. The bodies' past failures to properly notify residents of what was going on with Article 45 raised serious concerns about lack of transparency and accountability.
In this regard, Keep Our Lexington's founder testified about the lack of transparency at the Selectmen's meeting on Mar. 26, 2018 and filed two Open Meeting Law Complaints in late March. For the Selectmen's meetings on Apr. 4 and Apr. 9, 2018, Keep Our Lexington's founder submitted comparative analyses of rules for Historic Districts in Massachusetts and offered alternative amendments more in line with those of most other cities and towns. The recommended amendments call for maintaining the HDC's current authority, providing for broader representation of the community on the HDC and ensuring better balance in the HDC's activities.
To learn more and get informed about Article 45, see below.
Dear Reader,
Town Meeting voted last night to refer 2018 ATM Article 45 back to the Board of Selectmen (BOS) and the Historic Districts Commission 40C Study Committee (Ad Hoc). The Study Committee had made a motion to that effect and Town Meeting affirmed it overwhelmingly.
The Committee and BOS hope to bring a new Article before Town Meeting in the fall, including considering citizens' input. This is a positive step toward rational and reasoned policy-making on the issues of Article 45.
Article 45 had proposed to change the rules governing land use in Lexington's historic districts. The Article would have expanded the Historic Districts Commission's (HDC) authority while at the same time diminishing public input into HDC's actions. Moreover, the Article was fast-tracked without justification and new rules were drafted largely outside of the public's view.
Hopefully, the Committee and BOS will do a better job next time in having a transparent, public process. The bodies' past failures to properly notify residents of what was going on with Article 45 raised serious concerns about lack of transparency and accountability.
In this regard, Keep Our Lexington's founder testified about the lack of transparency at the Selectmen's meeting on Mar. 26, 2018 and filed two Open Meeting Law Complaints in late March. For the Selectmen's meetings on Apr. 4 and Apr. 9, 2018, Keep Our Lexington's founder submitted comparative analyses of rules for Historic Districts in Massachusetts and offered alternative amendments more in line with those of most other cities and towns. The recommended amendments call for maintaining the HDC's current authority, providing for broader representation of the community on the HDC and ensuring better balance in the HDC's activities.
To learn more and get informed about Article 45, see below.
Table of Contents
- Keep Our Lexington Concerns about 2018 ATM Article 45
- Historic Districts Commission Resources
- Historic Districts Commission 40C Study Committee (Ad Hoc)
- Resident's Quick Guide to Historic Districts Precincts
- Menu of Action Step Options
- Satellite View of Historic Districts
Keep Our Lexington Concerns about Article 45
- UNNECESSARILY LIMITs FLEXIBILITY IN NOTIFICATIONS AND NOMINATIONS
The HDC proposed amendments to its enabling legislation that would have, among other changes:
- Expanded its authority to include jurisdiction over sidewalks, which are public rights-of-way
- Limited Public Hearing notification of abutters to those property owners no further than 100 feet from an applicant's property lines
- Reduced the breadth of community representation on the HDC by halving the number of private organizations that may nominate HDC members
- Failed to meet the state standard of at least one Commission member being a resident or property owner in a historic district
- HAS EFFECTIVELY SHUT OUT RESIDENTS FROM PARTICIPATION
- The HDC appears to have exceeded its authority by submitting 2018 ATM Article 45 to the Town Warrant without a public review and vote and prior to reporting to and approval by the Board of Selectmen. The Selectmen's charge of October 30, 2017 to the HDC was to deliver to the Selectmen "Proposed language for Lexington bylaw".
- A draft report on 2018 ATM Article 45 was first made public on March 7, 2018 at a Board of Selectmen's meeting, just 19 days before Town Meeting began
- Neither the report nor the proposed amendments to Chap. 447 of the Acts of 1956 had been approved by the Historic Districts Commission (HDC) or Selectmen by the time Town Meeting had begun
- Neither the report nor the proposed amendments had been posted on the Town Meeting website as of the opening of Town Meeting on March 26 and they still weren't posted more than one week later as of April 4
- There appear to have been no properly noticed public hearings or public meetings concerning Article 45 prior to the March 7 Selectmen's Meeting
- The Article language itself shows that the proposed amendments to Chap. 447 had already been drafted, decided upon and submitted to the Town Warrant prior to the required report to the Board of Selectmen
- has no rationale for its rushed nature or exclusion of residents
- Chap. 447 hasn't been amended since 2001, without any identified problems, and yet this proposal was all-of-a-sudden inexplicably fast-tracked by the HDC and Board of Selectmen
- The HDC’s March 7 report says that the Study Committee reached out to 14 other communities outside Lexington but it doesn't explain why the Committee didn’t reach out to its own community here in Lexington
- The HDC report says that it wants to “update the Lexington code to be more easily understood by HDC members and the residents of Lexington”, an admirable goal, yet the Committee hasn't explained how it could do that without consulting the residents of Lexington
- This exclusion of residents is echoed by the HDC's failure to meet the state standard of having at least one Commission member be a resident or property owner in a historic district
Historic Districts Commission Resources
About the HDC
Commission Members
Full Commission Charge
Map of Historic Districts
- The LEXINGTON HISTORIC DISTRICTS COMMISSION was established by a special act of the State Legislature under Chapter 447 of the Acts of 1956, as amended. It has jurisdiction over the four registered Historic Districts in the town.
- The HDC's purpose is "to promote the educational, cultural, economic and general welfare of the public through the preservation and protection of historic buildings, places and districts through the development of appropriate settings for said buildings, places and districts and through the maintenance of said buildings, places and districts as landmarks of historic “interest."
- The HDC consists of five commissioners nominated by the Lexington Historical Society, the Cary Memorial Library, the Arts and Crafts Society and the Board of Selectmen; as well as four associate commissioners nominated by the Lexington Historical Society, the Cary Memorial Library and the Arts and Craft Society. The Board of Selectmen appoints all Commissioners.
Commission Members
Full Commission Charge
Map of Historic Districts
Street listing for Historic Districts
Meeting Notices and News
Massachusetts Chapter 447 of the Acts of 1956
Meeting Notices and News
- Public Meetings Calendar
- Meeting minutes posted online
- Sign up to receive email with HDC agendas and news
Massachusetts Chapter 447 of the Acts of 1956
Historic Districts Commission Ad Hoc Ch. 447 Revisions Study Committee
(formerly the Historic Districts Commission 40C Study Committee (Ad Hoc))
Historic Districts Commission Ad Hoc Ch. 447 Revisions Study Committee homepage
- Sign up to receive email with HDC agendas and news
- Public Meetings Calendar
- Committee Members
- Full Committee charge of October 30, 2017
- Meeting minutes posted online
- Committee Report of March 7, 2018 to Board of Selectmen
- Link to Board of Selectmen meeting packet (Hint: go to 3/7/18 and "Download Agenda")
- Direct link to unofficial extract from meeting packet
- Full text of 2018 ATM Article 45
- Massachusetts Chapter 447 of the Acts of 1956
- Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 40C: Historic Districts
Resident's Quick Guide to Historic Districts Precincts
Disclaimer: This is not an official Town map. Rather, it is an interpretation of Town maps provided for the convenience of residents. Please consult the official Town Meeting Precinct Map and Historic Districts Map for official information on Precincts covered by the Historic Districts.
Note: Even if you're not living within or near a Historic District, that doesn't mean you can't or don't have an interest in the proposal. Every Lexington resident has an equal right to have her or his voice heard in this matter. That includes renters, who are residents, too. And you don't have to be registered to vote in order to have your voice heard on this matter.
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