City Commission Digs Historic Hole

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Subject: City Commission Digs Historic Hole

Fellow Winter Park Residents,

Please share with friends and neighbors.

We now live in the theater of the absurd. Rather than acknowledge that staff, the city attorney, and the Historic Preservation Board (HPB) coerced, and likely extorted $100,000 from a Winter Park contractor or that the property owner was verbally threatened by a sitting HPB board member, our city commission has now hired an attorney at $495 per hour to defend against a related complaint filed with the Florida Commission On Ethics. The irony is they will likely spend $50,000 or more defending the complaint and may well lose. Note that Kris Cruzada, on the ballot March 11, voted to continue this absurdity.

Why, exactly, is this absurd? Because the Winter Park Historic Preservation Ordinance applies only to building exteriors. In the case in question, framing for the second story was removed to be reconstructed due to condition and structural engineering, but without prior permission from HPB. The contractor rebuilt the removed portion consistent with the approvals initially granted by HPB (click image below). HPB got what they approved. In essence, HPB felt slighted and along with city staff, together with the agreement of the city attorney, squeezed the contractor for $100,000 under threat of rescinding the variances initially granted. See the full detail here.

What can you do?

Please email the city commission or attend the public meeting at 5PM Thursday, February 20 in the City Hall Commission Chambers, telling them to refund the contractor's money and providing your input on proposed revisions to the Historic Preservation law. Remarkably, after this ridiculous episode, HPB is proposing changes that would require extensive plan reviews, procedural delays, and grant the Historic Preservation Board authority to impose extreme penalties, including a financial penalty up to 30% of the assessed value of the building. You can't make this stuff up!

Our city commission is lost and our city needs a new historic preservation law based on common sense. The current law, at 24 pages of 10 point type, is ridiculously complex and already gives the Historic Preservation Board extraordinary and arbitrary powers. In contrast, the entire code pertaining to single family homes is 6 pages and primarily concerned with objective, measurable standards.

My two recommendations for a new Historic Preservation law are:

ONE: The law should clarify that any portion of a structure applying for historic designation may be removed during the restoration process as deemed necessary by the property owner, provided the exterior is reconstructed in the same size, form, architectural style and exterior detail of the demolished segment as initially approved by the Historic Preservation Board.

TWO: The law should severely limit the power of the Historic Preservation Board to grant variances. Currently, these variances include allowance for construction and rental of accessory buildings along with building height, side, rear and front setbacks, building coverage, floor area ratio, impervious coverage, stormwater retention, and walls and fences. These variances devalue neighboring properties and entire neighborhoods, and are granted in exchange for historic designation in most cases (i.e., they are bribes).

Let them know what you think. Email the city commission or attend the public meeting at 5PM Thursday, February 20 in the City Hall Commission Chambers.

Regards, Pete
(407) 267-5320

Pete Weldon served the City of Winter Park from 2007 to 2019 on the code enforcement board, the tree preservation board, the planning and zoning board, and on the Winter Park City Commission.

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