New Historic Preservation Overlay Zone proposed for Purcellville

By Valerie Cury

On Nov. 18 the Purcellville Planning Commission held a public hearing on the creation of a new Historic Preservation Overlay Zone. 

This new proposed district is part of the Commission’s work on bringing the current zoning ordinance in line with Purcellville’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan, which recommends that the Town expand protection of historic resources beyond what the existing Historic Corridor Overlay District provides, because these historic resources contribute so much to the Town’s character.

Currently the Town protects approximately 28 percent of the recognized historic properties, but 72 percent of the properties recognized by state and nation remain unprotected by the Town.

This proposed district is also meant to protect the Town’s architectural and historical character, protect and preserve buildings, and ensure that new development is in keeping with Purcellville’s small-town character.  

The proposed district would focus only on the principal structure (not any accessory structures on the property such as garages, spring houses, and barns), creating a process for an owner who would want to demolish their historic contributing house. 

There is currently no protection against unfettered demolition, but in the proposed district, no one would be able to destroy a structure without the consent of the Board of Architectural Review. If they still want to demolish the structure the owner would have to wait for six months, during which time someone who wants to preserve the structure could purchase it at fair market value. If nobody wants to preserve the property, after six months, then the owner could tear it down.

This would bring public attention to a property owner who might want to build multiple houses on a lot, or tear down a property to put up a large building in a neighborhood of single-family homes, for example.

The same rules that currently apply would not change. There would be no restrictions on additions, painting, changing windows, or roof replacement, for example.

At the public hearing, developer Casey Chapman, who owns three houses on Hatcher Avenue 141, 151, and 161 and plans to tear them down, and build one large building with commercial and apartments (multi-family is a use that isn’t allowed in this district) on a neighborhood street lined with older homes said, “This is an infringement on personal property rights … People have the right to do what they want with their property.”

This was echoed by Scott Warner, and a few others, who said, “Stay out of our houses.”

Uta Brown said there’s “something precious about Purcellville … I do not want Hatcher Avenue to be turned into an apartment building with asphalt.” Brown continued, “Whatever way we can save the history in this Town would be probably in the long run favorable to most people … I would not like for Purcellville to be used again as a just simply a money-making Town. A money-making Town. A money-making Town. Let’s just make more money this way and that way. I do not want Hatcher to be irreparably changed – which it would be if it … had a three-story building.”

Planning Commissioner Nedim Ogelman explained that the process is such that the Planning Commission “goes through a Comprehensive Plan, there is citizen input into that Comprehensive Plan, then the people that were elected go and represent those citizens.”

Ogelman explained that the Comprehensive Plan, which was a five-year process, passed with a Town Council vote of 6-1 and he said that supporters of this Comprehensive Plan won the election following the passing of the plan, and they won on protecting Purcellville’s small-town character. 

He said that the Comprehensive Plan is an “aspirational document, and it becomes operationalized through zoning. We are proposing zoning.”

Planning Commissioner and Chair Nan Forbes said, “There are things in this Town that are valuable to us, and the question is what is the best approach to keep the things that we like – and to emphasize the things that we like?”

“The task that we have is to take the Comprehensive Plan and try to revise the zoning ordinance in order to comport with what the Comprehensive Plan says, and that’s what this effort is all about,” said Forbes. 

“The only focus to this is to have a review process before something is torn down. That’s it. It doesn’t even ultimately prevent demolition, but it does require a review process and options,” she said.

Commissioner Boo Bennett pointed out that the proposed changes and creation of a new Historic Preservation Overlay Zone were mailed out to hundreds of homes which would be in this proposed district. She said, “There’s a lot of people who are not here. I think they like Purcellville just the way it is.”