Rockville Mayor & Council hear arguments for, against historic designation of 406 Great Falls Road

The fate of a nearly 80-year-old Tudor Revival home at 406 Great Falls Road will be decided by Rockville's Mayor and Council at their May 16, 2022 meeting. Last night, they heard arguments for and against historic designation of the home in a public hearing. The property was nominated for historic designation by local preservation organization Peerless Rockville on June 8, 2021. After an evaluation by city staff found the home met two of the criteria for designation, the Rockville Historic District Commission and Planning Commission both agreed, and the question now goes before the Mayor and Council for a final decision.

406 Great Falls Road was constructed from a Sears Roebuck kit home model called The Belmont. The house has already been listed in the Rockville Historic Buildings Catalogue. Its new owners are seeking to demolish the home and build a larger one on the property. Co-owner Joel Martinez and his architect (and former HDC commissioner) Craig Maloney have argued that the home is in disrepair, and does not qualify for historic preservation. The owners' attorney, Erin Girard, noted last night that the home was rejected for historic designation when it was first nominated in 2007. Given that the house has only further deteriorated since then, and no significant new evidence has been brought forward to argue otherwise, Girard suggested it would be inappropriate for the Mayor and Council to now place it under historic designation.

One point of controversy is whether or not the owners plan to live in the home, or are developers who are merely going to build a new home and then flip the property. West End resident and former mayor Larry Giammo testified that he considers the owners to be developers, as they recently tore down another home at 515 Beall Avenue. After building a new home on the site, they then sold it for $1.15 million, he reported.

Martinez was asked by the Mayor and Council if he would like to respond to the assertion that the owners plan to do another teardown flip project. He testified that he had built a dream house to live in permanently at 515 Beall, and that it had won an architectural award. But, he said, a neighbor would park his pickup truck in front of the home, so that he had no place for his own vehicles or those of his guests to park, and could not put his trash cans out for curbside pickup.

When he asked the neighbor about moving the truck, the neighbor allegedly responded that he knew Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton, and "threatened me with your name, Madam Mayor," Martinez testified. Thus, he and his co-owner decided to sell the home, purchase 406 Great Falls, and build a similar house in its place. Martinez said the new home site has plenty of parking for the use of owners and guests.

Doug Lunenfeld, a neighbor of the owners in the West End, a real estate professional, and an active landlord in the city, backed Martinez' assertion that he is not simply a house flipper and developer. "That is not the case," Lunenfeld testified. "I am 100% certain that these owners want to build their dream home." He called 406 Great Falls a "dilapidated home," and urged the Mayor and Council to take a walk-through of the house before they vote next month. "The integrity was bad in 2007," Lunenfeld said, and it's even worse now. He argued that the gateway to Rockville would be improved by the prospective new home. "Let's make it the great gateway again," he concluded.

But Giammo posited that the owners would know that city staff had just recommended historic designation for the home, when the previous owners had sought to tear it down in 2020, if they had done "due diligence" in making the purchase. Giammo, himself a licensed real estate agent and broker, noted that their real estate agent would have been required to notify them of that fact, even if the owners hadn't researched the matter themselves. They were also familiar with the process from having gone through the historic designation evaluation of 515 Beall, he added. Peerless Rockville has made an "objective, compelling and unassailable case" for preservation of the home, Giammo said.

Peerless Rockville's Director, Nancy Pickard, underscored the fact that her organization has been extremely sparing in its nomination of homes for historic designation. Their nomination of 406 Great Falls has been supported by both of the city commissions whose approval is necessary, she testified, and that it is a rare example of a Tudor Revival home in the city. "We felt very strongly that this property merits this protection," she said.

West End resident Noreen Bryan testified that, like Lunenfeld, she lives on a nearby street. She, too, referred to Great Falls as the gateway to the city, but viewed that as a reason to preserve the home, not tear it down. The architecture and its placement on the large lot with generous setback makes it a key landmark that is visually memorable, "and has been so for nearly 80 years," she noted. Bryan said that 406 Great Falls is "unusual and therefore precious," and is key to the defintion of the West End's neigbhorhood character. "This property is of great importance to the city," she said.

Another nearby West End resident, Margaret Magner, also testified in favor of historic designation. She asked the Mayor and Council to consider that, in the time since the designation of the home was not approved in 2007, many more original Rockville homes have been lost. That makes the home "of greater value to the community today than it was 15 years ago," she suggested. Magner also expressed concern that a window of the house has been left open during bad weather recently.

Councilmember David Myles sought to clarify the notation by the city's preservation expert, Sheila Bashiri, that historic designation would still allow the property to be added to or altered. This was confirmed by staff. But Maloney said that, in this particular case, the condition and size of the property is such that the modification route is not viable. 

Of the residents who submitted written testimony to the HDC, thirteen supported historic designation of 406 Great Falls, and one opposed it.

Photos via City of Rockville

Rockville HDC to determine historic significance of Great Falls Road home

The Rockville Historic District Commission will consider the historic significance of a property at 500 Great Falls Road at its next virtual meeting, scheduled for February 17, 2022 at 7:00 PM. 500 Great Falls Road is a single-family home in the Rockville Heights subdivision. It was nominated for historic status by historic preservation non-profit Peerless Rockville.

Peerless Rockville nominated the home last year after it noticed the owner beginning significant renovations to the structure. The City of Rockville has asked the owner to state his position on the nomination, but has not received an indication of his approval or opposition to the proposed inclusion of the property in an historic district. However, the owner did request a certificate of approval from the HDC last year for the renovations. He told the commission that moisture retention by the stucco applied to the home was damaging the interior, and rendering the foundation unstable.

The original home at 500 Great Falls Road
flanked by HDC-approved additions now
under construction

The HDC ultimately granted approval for the owner's proposed changes to the property. However, it did not render an official judgement as to the home's designation as historic. Dr. Clara Bliss Hinds Finley, a nationally-known female physician who founded multiple organizations and lectured on women's and children's health, resided in the home during summers between 1916 and and her death in 1940. She is buried in Rockville Cemetery.

City of Rockville Preservation Planner Sheila Bashiri has determined that the property meets the following criteria for historic designation:  It represents the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics of the city, as the home of a women who was a pioneer in her field, Dr. Clara Bliss Finley, and her daughter, a prominent suffragist. Second, it embodies distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, as it is already listed in the city's Historic Buildings Catalogue as a prime representative of the Colonial Revival style. Finally, it is an established visual feature in the Rockville Heights neighborhood. Its surrounding lot, house footprint and massing are intact, and its Colonial Revival architecture and placing on the large corner lot have made it an established visual feature in that community.

For these reasons, Bashiri is recommending the HDC find that the home does meet the criteria for historic designation, and that the commissioners forward a recommendation to the Mayor and Council to place the property in the historic district zone.

Photos courtesy City of Rockville

Historic Wire Building for sale again in Rockville

The Wire Hardware building, subject of one of Rockville's biggest historic preservation battles in the 1990s, is up for sale again. Saved and restored by local historic preservation organization Peerless Rockville, the building was originally constructed for resident William Wallace Welsh in 1895. The asking price is not being publicly listed online, but can be requested. 22 Baltimore Road has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978.

Rockville HDC finds revised Chestnut Lodge plan meets Secretary of the Interior standards

The Rockville Historic District Commission made a preliminary finding last night that the revised plan for the site of Chestnut Lodge meets Secretary of the Interior standards for Rehabilitation. A formal vote on a final draft is expected to be taken at the body's next meeting on November 17.

Applicant JNP Chestnut Lodge, LLC has proposed constructing 6 townhomes on the spot where the historic Chestnut Lodge psychiatric hospital stood until it was destroyed by fire in 2009. Nancy Pickard, Executive Director of historic preservation organization Peerless Rockville, testified that townhomes were not part of the heritage of Rockville at the time Chestnut Lodge was built.

Pickard told commissioners that, while wealthy estate dwellers did buy townhomes in urban areas in those days, they did not do so in Rockville. She said the first townhome developments in the City weren't constructed until the 1960s, nearly a century after the era of Chestnut Lodge's birth as a hotel. She also criticized the idea that the proposal should be considered only in the context of the SOI Rehabilitation standards. The other 3 sets of SOI standards - Restoration, Reconstruction, and Preservation - should be applied as well, she said. Rehabilitation standards ceased to be relevant after the main lodge burnt down, she added.

HDC chair Rob Achtmeyer asked Pickard if the individual access doors of townhomes vs. the shared entry of a condo building was her central concern. "It is a large factor," Pickard replied. "That housing form (townhouse) was not introduced in this city until the 1960s. That is not the heritage of Rockville," she said.
"Massing, the stronger verticality of the original hotel. There was the relationship of the dominant hotel to the outbuildings. The whole site was larger."

Kate Kuranda of Goodwin and Associates, speaking for the applicant, said what is left of the Chestnut Lodge site would not qualify for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Once a building has burned, she said, it is removed from the Register. Kuranda said she concurs with City staff that the plan does meet the Secretary's rehabilitation standards, and that it retains the park-like setting of Chestnut Lodge.

Kuranda said the developer, Jim Proakis, has offered to establish a website to archive all of the photographs, oral and written history, and other records available on the historic hotel and hospital. Proakis has already discussed the idea with a firm that has experience in creating this type of website, she said. Achtmeyer said he found the website offer "very intriguing." He also exhorted attendees and the televison audience to bring forward to staff any materials they may have on the lost building. Achtmeyer called sitting on such materials as this plan rapidly moves forward "counterproductive. Please, do us all a favor - share."

In a presentation earlier, staff liaison Sheila Bashiri said that the suggestion by many in the community to rebuild Chestnut Lodge as it was would only make sense if it was then opened as a hotel or psychiatric hospital. The primary goal of a reconstruction, Bashiri said, is education. A building would usually be reconstructed, and then opened to the public, who could learn from visiting or touring it about its history.

Bashiri recommended the commission find the plan does meet the SOI Rehabilitation standards.

During a period of public testimony, Paul Newman, the president of the 30 Oaks Civic Association, asked why the input of the West End Citizens Association was not included in the staff report. "Where is it," he asked.

Newman said it was inaccurate to claim that the new building resembles the footprint of the lost building. He said he walked the grounds of the site, and noticed that some of the markers indicating the footprint of the proposed building are actually on pavement, not the grass, indicating it is larger. Newman called Chestnut Lodge "one of the anchors of the historic district. It's a little disingenuous to say [we can't reconstruct it]."

"Changing an access road to the outbuildings into a back alley with garages and trash cans," Newman said, "that is a major change in character." The applicant previously has promised to hide trash receptacles through both the design of the homes, and via condo association rules about when they can be placed outdoors.

There was very little mention of the Planned Residential Unit agreement that high-profile opponents like current Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton, and past mayor Larry Giammo, have argued remains in effect. That PRU demanded that the main building be restored as a prerequisite for its adapted re-use as a condominium development. The PRU agreement was reached between the City and a previous developer who sought to redevelop the site.

After a short break, commissioners returned at 10:45 PM to discuss the matter.

"I find the massing and the roofline very problematic," Commissioner Stefanie Tincher said. "It changes its relationship to the surrounding buildings. I'm having a real problem with it."

No other commissioner commented on the plan. Achtmeyer suggested going forward then with the body's recommendation to the Mayor and Council.

First, a majority of the commission agreed that they should employ the Rehabilitation standards. Then they took straw votes on each of the applicable standards.

For Standard #1 (A property will be used as it was historically or be given a new use that requires minimal
change to its distinctive materials, features, spaces, and spatial relationships), commissioners voted "Yes" by 3-2. Tincher and Commissioner Emily Correll were the dissenters. Tincher argued that #1 didn't apply, because the new structure will change the spatial relationships.

For Standard #2 (The historic character of a property will be retained and preserved. The removal of distinctive materials or alteration of features, spaces, and spatial relationships that characterize a property
will be avoided), commissioners unanimously voted that the project does meet the standard.

For Standard #3 (Each property will be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or elements
from other historic properties, will not be undertaken), commissioners voted 4-1, with Tincher dissenting. "I'd like to revise the staff report" on scale, mass and design, Tincher said. Achtmeyer suggested it might be faster to just cast her lone dissenting vote, and move on.

Achtmeyer joined Tincher in dissenting on Standard #9 (New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction will not destroy historic materials, features, and spatial relationships that characterize the property. The new work will be differentiated from the old and will be compatible with the historic materials, features, size, scale and proportion, and massing to protect the integrity of the property and its environment).

The Planning Commission will be the next body to review the plan. Achtmeyer said he would like to hold off the vote until next month, so that the Planning Commission can reach their own conclusions apart from the HDC's influence.

Rockville Cemetery walk scheduled for September 10

"Find a grave" of notable figures in Rockville and American history on Saturday, September 10, from 9:30-11:30 AM, as Peerless Rockville hosts a guided walk through Rockville Cemetery. Dating back to the 1750s, the historic resting place has many familiar names on its grave markers.

Co-sponsored by the Rockville Cemetery Association, the walk will be led by historian Eileen McGuckian. The cost is $15 for the general public, and $10 for members of Peerless Rockville, a historic preservation organization. There are only 40 spots on the tour, so sign up early if you are interested.

To reserve your spot, call 301-762-0096, email info@peerlessrockville.org, or sign up online. The cemetery is located at 1350 Baltimore Road.

No action on Confederate statue reconsideration request by Rockville HDC

Rockville's Confederate statue remains on track for removal, as the Historic District Commission declined to revisit its September decision to permit Montgomery County to move it at its October 15 meeting. Opponents of the move had hoped the HDC would put a reconsideration of the decision on its November agenda.

The hot topic was not even the subject of much discussion at the meeting, where Peerless Rockville Executive Director Nancy Pickard briefly addressed the HDC during the Public Comment period. She asked the commissioners to "take a fresh look at the decision," based on information that those who oppose the relocation have uncovered since the September meeting.

Earlier in the evening, the commission went into a closed Executive Session, to receive legal advice on "correspondence received October 2." HDC Chair Rob Achtmeyer later noted the commission had received correspondence from Peerless Rockville and others, but the topic was not addressed further at that point.

Close to the end of the meeting, Commissioner Craig Maloney did briefly comment on the statue request during Old Business. "I don’t think this is an appropriate course," Maloney said. "We made the correct decision on this."

In other business, the commission declined to find 9 triplex units at 9701 Veirs Drive to be of historic significance. The homes will be replaced with a new residential building. Jim Wasilak, Chief of Planning for the City of Rockville, said the developer has not yet submitted that project for review by the Planning Commission.

Peerless Rockville contesting Historic District Commission decision on Confederate statue

Eileen McGuckian, Executive Director emerita of historic preservation organization Peerless Rockville, criticized the September 17 vote by the Historic District Commission to allow Montgomery County to relocate the city's Confederate statue at last night's Mayor and Council meeting. McGuckian said the HDC made at least two errors in its decisionmaking process.

On the question of whether or not the statue had itself been declared historic, McGuckian said HDC commissioners were misled by city staff, who had said no such evidence could be found. She said that was incorrect, and that the statue had indeed been declared historic in the past. McGuckian also argued that the HDC used the wrong set of the U.S. Secretary of the Interior's Standards in reaching its conclusion.

The deadline to file a request to reconsider the HDC decision is October 4, McGuckian said. But the next Mayor and Council meeting is not until October 5. The Mayor and Council couldn't do anything about the matter anyway, Councilmember Tom Moore told McGuckian, as they have no authority to intervene.

Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton and Councilmember Beryl Feinberg said they would make themselves available to meet with McGuckian this week to discuss the matter.

McGuckian also called for more training for HDC commissioners, whom she said "were clearly uncomfortable with their roles" on September 17.

Newton said the Mayor and Council must have a public discussion on a separate issue regarding the statue October 5 - whether or not it will be accepted by the Beall-Dawson House, which is the preferred location by Montgomery County so far.

PEERLESS ROCKVILLE SERIES TO HIGHLIGHT ROCKCREST, HUNGERFORD AND COLLEGE GARDENS

The post-World War II and modern architecture of three Rockville neighborhoods will be the focus of Peerless Rockville's spring "Modern Living for a Modern City" series. Rockcrest, Hungerford and College Gardens will each take a turn in the spotlight as warmer weather finally begins to reach Rockville.

On March 29, Rockville Historic District Commissioner Jessica Reynolds will discuss the Rockcrest neighborhood at the Twinbrook Recreation Center, beginning at 10:00 AM.

Hungerford will be the subject on April 12, as historian Teresa Lachin makes a presentation at the Elwood Smith Community Center, also at 10:00 AM.

Finally, Nancy Pickard of Peerless Rockville will host an examination of architecture in College Gardens on April 26 at the Rockville Senior Center, again at 10:00 AM.

Peerless Rockville is a non-profit concerned with historic preservation and preserving Rockville's heritage.