Alderman To Vote On Historic Designation (Updated from 1/27/2010)

Historical designation, like the Somerville Journal pointed out on their blog today, does have its pros and cons. In 2001, while interning for the late Senator Charlie Shannon, I did vast research on the subject for him after numerous complaints from constituents. What I found was a designation that required a lot of research and deep thinking from home owners as it could prevent/limit future renovations and could result in difficulty selling their property. This designation was usually left in the hands of the homeowner, however, now the Board of Alderman would like to be able to have a hand in designation, as well.

For those of you playing at home, the concept of historical designation with regards to eminent domain was brought up at greenline meetings surrounding the proposed Lowell Street stop. Residents of lower Hinckley street worried about losing fences and yard space only to be reassured by the MBTA representatives that they did not need more space and that existing tracks would be used. Not that I think the MBTA can afford to buy a house from underneath the owner anyway.

A final vote could be taken within the next couple of weeks at the regularly scheduled Board of Alderman meeting; details of which you can find through the Ward5Online Google calendar at the bottom of the site.

I also did further research on this issue and found some information, although it is difficult to digest.