Section 175-84 BOARD OF ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW.
A.
Establishment and terms of office:
1.
A
Board to be known as the "Board of
Architectural Review (BAR)" is hereby established and shall consist
of five (5) voting members who shall be appointed by the Town
Council. All
members shall have a demonstrated interest competence or knowledge in
historic
preservation. One (1) member shall be a property owner/resident of an
historic
district overlay area and one (1) shall have professional training or
equivalent experience in architecture, history, American studies,
architectural
history, archaeology or planning. All members shall
be residents of
Warren County, with knowledge of and demonstrated interest in the
historic
character of the Town. These members shall serve terms of four
(4) years each.
(Ord. No. Z-1-93
Amended 3-22-93-Effective Upon Passage)
(Ord.
No.
Z-3-97
Amended 10-27-97-Effective Upon Passage)
(Ord.
No.
Z-1-01
Amended 1-8-01-Effective Upon Passage)
(Ord.
No.
Z-1-04
Amended 1-12-04-Effective Upon Passage)
(Ord.
No.
Z-02-04
Amended 6-14-04-Effective Upon Passage)
2.
BAR members may be reappointed for consecutive terms.
3.
The
BAR shall elect from its own membership
a Chairman and Vice Chairman, who shall serve annual terms as
such and who
may succeed themselves. The Board shall appoint a Secretary
who
shall serve at its pleasure.
4.
When
a vacancy occurs, a new appointment
shall be made by the Town Council for the unexpired terms within sixty
(60)
days after the vacancy occurs. The Town Council shall publicly
announce
and solicit qualified candidates for Board of Architectural Review
vacancies.
(Ord.
No.
Z-1-93
Amended 3-22-93-Effective Upon Passage)
5.
Any
appointed member of the BAR may be
removed from office by the Town Council for inefficiency, neglect of
duties or
malfeasance. An appointment to fill a vacancy shall be only for
the
unexpired term on the vacancy.
6.
Members
shall make
every effort to attend at least one (1) training session annually
sponsored by
the Department of Historic Resources, the Preservation Alliance of
Virginia or
other organizations that are involved with historic preservation
issues, design
and review standards or other work of the BAR.
B.
Duties, powers and responsibilities: The Board of
Architectural Review shall have the power and authority for
issuing or
denying certificates of appropriateness for construction,
reconstruction,
substantial exterior alteration, razing or relocation within the
historic
district overlay area. In addition, the Board shall have the
following
duties:
1.
To
assist and advise the Town Council, the
Planning Commission and other town departments, agencies and
property owners in matters involving historically significant
sites and
buildings or other properties in historic districts, such as but not
limited to
appropriate land usage, parking facilities and signs.
2.
To
continuously evaluate conditions and to
advise owners of historic landmarks or contributing structures
or other
properties in historic districts on problems of preservation.
3.
To
conduct studies deemed necessary by the
Town Council or the Planning Commission concerning location
of historic
districts and means of preservation, utilization, improvement and
maintenance
of historic assets in the town.
4.
To propose additional historic districts or additions or deletions to
districts.
5.
To adopt standards for review to supplement the standards set
forth in
this Article.
6.
To
establish an appropriate system of
markers for selected historic sites and buildings, including
proposals for
the installation and care of such historic markers, and to invite each
owner of
a building of historical significance to display the marker thereon.
7.
To
cooperate
with and enlist assistance from the Virginia Department of
Historic Resources, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and
other
interested parties, both public and private, in its efforts to
preserve,
restore and conserve local historic landmarks, buildings, sites or
areas within
the town.
8.
To
prepare and adopt specific guidelines,
illustrated as necessary, for those historic districts which have
special
characteristics and architectural features that are peculiar to the
district
and which should be preserved and to make these guidelines available to
property owners within each historic district and to the general
public.
After these historic districts are approved, specific guidelines
shall be
adopted for such historic districts as may require specific guidelines.
9.
To
sponsor public information activities,
when deemed appropriate, publicizing historic preservation
efforts, which
activities may include, but not be limited to, speaking engagements,
handouts,
press releases and films.
10.
To
hold public meetings as often as
necessary to fulfill the responsibilities assigned by this Article.
C.
Organization and
meetings:
1.
The Chairman shall conduct the meetings of the BAR.
2.
The
Secretary shall keep the minutes of the
meetings and a permanent record of all resolutions,
motions, transactions
and determinations.
3.
All
members of the BAR, except for advisory
members, shall be entitled to vote; and the decisions of the BAR shall
be
determined by a majority vote.
4.
A
quorum of three (3) voting members
present is required before the BAR may take any official action.
(Ord.
No.
Z-02-04 Amended “4” 6-14-04-Effective Upon Passage)
5.
The
BAR shall meet within twenty (20) days
after notification by the Zoning Administrator of an application for a
certificate of appropriateness or a permit requiring action by the BAR.
6.
The
Board of
Architectural Review shall have regularly scheduled meetings at least
four (4)
times a year. The meetings of the BAR shall be open to the
public, and a
full and impartial hearing shall be granted. All regularly
scheduled
meetings shall be conducted in the evening hours for the convenience of
the
public.
7.
The
BAR shall vote and announce its
decision on any matter properly before it not later than
forty-five
(45) days after the
conclusion of the hearing on the matter, unless the time is extended
with the
written consent of the applicant.
8.
In
matters covering the procedures for
meetings not covered by this document, the BAR may establish its own
rules,
provided that they are not contrary to town policy or the intent
of this
Article.
D.
Authority to receive funding and advisory services:
1.
All
persons interested in the preservation
of historic buildings or historic sites in the town are invited to make
gifts,
devises and bequests to the town to be used for that purpose. All
such
donations, other than money, shall be subject to acceptance by the
Town
Council. All donations of money shall be made through the
Department of
Finance, and it is hereby authorized and directed to receive such
donations and to deposit them in a special fund to be known as the
"Historic Buildings and Sites Trust Fund, " and shall be used only
for the purpose of preserving and promoting the preservation of
historic buildings and sites in the town. Expenditures from
such fund
shall be made by the Town Manager as authorized, from time to time, by
the Town
Council.
2.
The
BAR may seek federal, state or private
grants or funding to assist in the performance of its duties
as herein
defined.
3.
Within
the limits of funds that may be made
available to the BAR for the performance of its work, the BAR may
obtain
services of qualified persons to advise and assist the BAR as
required.
4.
Upon
request of the BAR, with approval by
the Town Manager, the departments, boards, commissions, offices and
agencies of
the town government shall furnish to the Board such available
information and
render such service as may be required for the exercise of the
powers and
performance of the duties of the BAR.