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The Historic Savannah Foundation is appealing a recent decision by the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals to allow demolition of a building at 240 W. Broughton St.
The complaint was filed last Friday in Chatham County Superior Court, a rare legal action by the local preservation organization.
The building in question, constructed in 1924, was originally identical to the yellow-brick McDonald’s attached to it, but underwent significant alterations during later decades.
Broughton Street developer Ben Carter owns the gray building, as well as the empty lot adjacent to it, and plans to build a larger contiguous building to house international retailer H&M.
In May, the Historic District Board of Review had denied Carter’s petition to raze the building, citing historic fabric found underneath and potential harm to the adjoining McDonald’s.
The developer, represented by attorney Harold Yellin, appealed the decision to the Zoning Board of Appeals, arguing that the historic board had abused its discretion by designating the structure historic.
The city’s building map designates 240 W. Broughton as “non-contributing,” i.e. not historic, though the McDonald’s half is listed as contributing. The historic board must still review all demolition petitions for buildings within the Landmark District, according to city ordinance.
The zoning board overturned the historic board in a 4-1 vote June 26.
In an email to its members Wednesday, Historic Savannah Foundation president Daniel Carey said the decision to appeal was not made lightly.
“It is not our intention to thwart Ben Carter’s revitalization of Broughton Street but to bring attention to and correct the (zoning board’s) decision to allow demolition,” he wrote.
“The action marks an important moment in Historic Savannah Foundation’s history of advocacy,” wrote Carey. “We do not resort to the courts unless the issue is of great significance and is warranted.”
Historic Savannah argues the building is historic and worthy of preservation and the appeal board’s decision was wrong. This is the first legal action by the nonprofit in more than five years, according to Carey.
City Attorney Brooks Stillwell said the zoning board followed proper procedures.
“We’ll be defending the suit on the zoning board’s behalf,” he said.
In a statement, Ben Carter said he hopes the issue is settled soon.
“While I do not agree with the Historic Savannah Foundation’s assessment and recently filed compliant, I understand their right to take this course of action and appreciate the courtesy they afforded me by giving me a heads up,” he said. “The suit is between the city and the (Historic Savannah Foundation), and for the sake of this city; I hope this issue is resolved.”
Carter said the structure he is proposing will be a tribute to the old Chatham Furniture building that burned down more than two decades ago.
“I encourage the HSF and others to look at the actions we are taking to restore more than 30 buildings that have been neglected over the years and also our replacing the historic facades on the defaced structures,” Carter said.
Preservation vs. development
This is the second legal action taken against the city of Savannah concerning preservation ordinances. In June, the city was sued by building owners challenging the City Council’s decision to grant hotelier Richard Kessler a text amendment to the height map to accommodate his hotel plans at the old power plant on west River Street.
Kessler’s team, also represented by Yellin, returned before the Metropolitan Planning Commission July 15 to ask for a map amendment as a result of the legal filing.
The issue of demolition and height map changes underlies tensions between Savannah’s various planning boards. It also highlights the ongoing debate between those who wish Savannah to adhere to its long-standing preservation ordinances and those who believe the ordinances are applied onerously and arbitrarily.
At the center of the debate is the Historic District Board of Review, which regulates alterations or additions made to building exteriors within the Landmark District as well as new construction.
Some developers quietly bemoan what they see as the board’s overreach and say the board ignores the economic impact their projects may have.
Board members, sensitive to these criticisms, say they cannot take financial considerations into account and strictly follow their charter to protect Savannah from unfettered development.
“It’s a lack of respect for the different boards,” said Linda Ramsay, an architect who’s served two terms on the historic board.
Far from arbitrary, Ramsay said, the board carefully examines each and every petition before them, adhering to the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for Treatment of Historic Properties.
Board member Reed Engle, who voted against demolition, said they did not exceed or abuse their authority in the case of 240 W. Broughton.
“We are required for any building over 50 years old to assess whether it has historic character or not,” said Engle. “Certainly, we applied the Secretary of Interior’s standards to determine that the building was in fact worth listing on the national register.”
“The zoning board has no prerogative to determine historic character or not, so in fact they had exceeded their authority,” he said.
Ramsay said the historic board should have a legal representative and said former city attorney James Blackburn frequently sat in on meetings or reviewed minutes during his tenure.
“We’re not lawyers, and the people who are appealing these decisions generally have legal representation, which the other boards give more credence to,” Ramsay said.
Engle said he also supports having a third party present to help define jurisdiction of each of the boards.
“When we’re being accused of exceeding our authority, we should have the city attorney defending our actions,” he said.
Engle said the result of this influx in appeals and variance requests to higher boards, or, more rarely, to City Council, is a weakened historic board. This has frustrated many of its members, Engle said, who volunteer their time and expertise to serve on the City Council-appointed board.
Daniel Carey said more often than not, his organization is on the same side as the city but believes legal action is warranted.
“The bottom line is we’re honoring our mission to protect and preserve Savannah’s heritage,” he said.