Demolition Request Denied By Herndon Historic District Review Board

HERNDON, VA — The Herndon Historic District Review Board denied an application Wednesday night to raze two structures that were built more than 135 years ago in the center of town.

The board voted 6-0 to deny a request by the Adams Herndon Holdings LLC for a certificate of appropriateness to demolish a two-story home and a carriage house located across the street from Town Hall Square at 725 Elden St. The buildings are being used as storage space for the nearby Adams-Green Funeral Home.

During Wednesday night's public hearing, Michael O'Reilly, an attorney representing Adams Herndon Holdings, repeated an assertion he made during the board's April 5 work session that the funeral home needed more space to remain competitive.

"They need commercial space," he said. "They need it for a variety of business reasons. ... They need the space, the house can't serve them."

As part of its application, Adams Herndon Holdings submitted an engineering report conducted by Goughnour Engineer that said the property could not be used for commercial purposes.

"In our opinion, this building is not a candidate for renovation and commercial reuse," Steven D. Goughnour wrote in his report. "The structure and foundation will not support the required loads for a commercial building. The work to strengthen the structure and foundation and to meet fire code and accessibility requirements will result in the demolition and reconstruction of significant portions of the building to the extent that very little of the existing building will remain to be incorporated in the new structure."

Although the house at 725 Elden St. is within an area zoned for commercial use and the owners intend to use the property that way, it is actually designated as a residential property. In its recommendations to the board, town staff said it would support a zoning change that would re-establish residential uses.

But, the focus of the application was to seek the town's approval to remove the buildings to give the owners space for commercial use.

"The Adams don't need a residential building on their property," O'Reilly said, on Wednesday.

Related: Plan To Demolish 135-Year-Old Buildings In Herndon Faces Board Review

In its report, county staff said there was flexibility in the Building Code allowing historic structures to be re-used for non-residential uses. More importantly, the engineering report by Goughnour did not provide sufficient evidence that the existing conditions of the buildings would not support residential or other uses.

The staff report also noted that the applicant failed to sufficiently address alternatives to demolishing the buildings, such as moving them.

O'Reilly told board members that moving the house to another location would be impractical and expensive.

"Single-family building lots in Herndon are going for $450,000 or $500,000," he said. "No one has come forward to say, 'Well, we have a lot. We have a place where you can put the house. We have the ability to help you raise funds in order to try to relocate the building, because it's so significant.' The relocation, it really doesn't work."

Related: Herndon Historic Board Chair Recuses Herself From Demolition Review

Despite what O'Reilly told board members on Wednesday night, Adams Herndon Holdings did not submit a cost analysis of alternatives to demolish in its application.

"When considering an application for demolition of a structure, the historic district overlay guidelines and the zoning ordinance specifically require the property owner to provide a cost analysis and economic feasibility study to the board to consider," the staff report said. "In the present case, the applicant has not provided an economic feasibility study or cost analysis for consideration. Since this information has not been submitted to the board, and the board has no such information to consider. This is, therefore, a basis for denial."

Board member Melody Fetske told O'Reilly she was disappointed that the Adams Herndon Holdings did not include alternatives to demolition in its application.

"Ultimately, it's incumbent upon you, the applicant, to convince us that sufficient effort was made to preserve the structure, and that there really are no other alternatives," she said. "I think there are other alternatives, because I've seen structures be renovated from residential to commercial very successfully."

Fetske also disagreed with the applicant's assessment that the two structures were not sufficiently prominent or historically significant enough to warrant saving.

"The fact is that the structure is contributing and important to the historic character of the district," she said. "I still continue to be disappointed that you didn't examine more alternatives, including maintaining the facade of the building and the character that it presents to Elden Street."

Once the board members finished their questions and the public hearing was over, the six members present voted unanimously to deny the application.

Despite this outcome, Adams Herndon Holdings can still appeal the board's decision to the Herndon Town Council.