Cape May Historic Preservation Commission, Controversy

CAPE MAY – At the June 5 City Council meeting, an hour-long public comment period was directed at the discussion of the May 2 council action with the preponderance of speakers arguing that the ordinance had been misrepresented.
On May 2, Cape May City Council took the unusual step of defeating an ordinance up for first reading. Normally such an ordinance would never be introduced if it did not have the support to pass that initial step.
The ordinance dealt with updating the city’s design standards on products that were not in existence the last time these standards were updated.
This includes solar panels, windmills, and satellite antennae. The other aspect of that ordinance dealt with language meant to clarify the role of the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) and the city’s Zoning Board which serves an appeal board for HPC decisions.
The ordinance was drafted over much of last year and welcomed by the former council in late fall 2016.
Given the November election, the ordinance was never acted on by that council, and it fell to the new governing body and mayor in 2017. 
On May 2, it failed at introduction with Mayor Clarence Lear and Patricia Hendricks gaining the support of Deputy Mayor Shaine Meier to defeat it 3-2.
The thrust of the comments June 5 were supportive of the HPC’s role as a deliberative, legal body established to prepare and enforce standards that maintain the city’s historic status.
It seemed clear that individuals who drafted that ordinance considered its introduction in May as pro forma. They were not prepared for its defeat.
In June they came with arguments that stressed the importance of the HPC, the need for a shared vision with the zoning board, and the need for the support of council for the necessary updates to design standards.
Individuals on both sides of the issue agreed that historic preservation is critical to the life of the community.
It has become part of the city’s DNA. No one wants to put at risk the 1976 designation of the city as a National Historic Landmark.
The role of the HPC, its authority, and power appeared to be at issue for some.  
Much of the discussion, directly or indirectly, was aimed at Hendricks since it was her prepared remarks May 2 that eventually led to the ordinance’s defeat.
Council heard from a number of speakers concerning the need to strengthen the role of the HPC, the need for better education of zoning board members as to what the HPC is attempting to accomplish, and calls for open deliberation that will eventually allow the HPC to get the changes it feels must be made to the design standards.
It will be up to the mayor to pull together the elements of this discussion and find a way to develop the consensus needed to move an agenda stalled for almost a year.
As one member of the public noted, “The last thing I want to see is a set of solar panels in clear view on a historic home.”
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.