[MassHistPres] UPCOMING: EMHCC Listening Session March 24, 2026

[franksmalabar at gmail.com]

I don’t spend much time on the “list serve”…but this caught my EYE….from your response..

Historical Commissions simply do not hold any power.

 

 

The “power of the Historical Commission” ….just a few listed below…use them!!!!!

 

I assume you have a Demolition Dekay Bylaw…If not, why not….It works.!

 

Have you created National Register Districts, Historic Districts, determination of Eligibility of historically significant historic homes, etc., that could be listed on the national register.???

 

Do you provide Preservation Awards, to individuals, builders, architects when they do a great job saving a historic property…

 

There is a long list of activities and actions that the Historical Commission can and should do the improve the situation you described…

 

Frank Messina

 

Chatham Histroical Commission

Chairman 

 

 

 

From: MassHistPres <masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu> On Behalf Of Connie Hellwig via MassHistPres
Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2026 11:11 AM
To: Randall, Lindsay <LRandall at mapc.org>
Cc: Scott, Sarah <SScott at mapc.org>; MHC MHC listserve <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu>
Subject: Re: [MassHistPres] UPCOMING: EMHCC Listening Session March 24, 2026

 

Hello - I was very interested to hear about the subject regarding powers and duties of Historical Commissions be discussed.  We certainly have painful examples that would showcase the need for a review of the current MGL and  ask for legislative authority by the state and/or the addition of specific examples of our authority.

Historical Commissions simply do not hold any power. All we can really do is document and complain.  We have been denied access to town owned historic buildings, denied ability to access town property for historic inventory purposes, (things are given away or thrown out, like historic documents stored in the town hall basement).

The Master Plan suggests several requirements for the Historical Commission to be involved along side Conservation, Planning and Building Permit sign offs, but it is not a requirement, just a vision.  

This town has lost nearly all of its historic property. There are only 9 remaining one room school houses in MA, and Salisbury has 2 of them.  One is ready to collapse due to "demolition by neglect" even though the town voted to allocate funds to save it, the town manager has refused.

Parks and Recreation have relocated Historical monuments and changed its original base. They completely altered the town common without one word to the Historical Commission and were about to move another monument off its original site so that all monuments could be in one place. Defeats the purpose if "on this site..." is moved off the site to town common. We have a bunch of dummies running things and Preservation and Conservation efforts are crushed and Historical Commissions are ineffective without improved and more detailed powers and duties. I hope you are successful in your quest.  We also cannot fundraise using any online platform due to finance dept structure and municipal grants are rare.

 

Connie Hellwig
Chairman. 978-270-2421
Salisbury Historical Commission 

 

On Thu, Mar 19, 2026, 8:34 AM Randall, Lindsay via MassHistPres <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu <mailto:masshistpres at cs.umb.edu> > wrote:

EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL COMMISSION COALITION

Listening Session

Tuesday, March 24 at 10:30 AM

 

In January 2023, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), the Massachusetts Historical Commission, and Preservation Massachusetts convened the first meeting of the Eastern Massachusetts Historical Commission Coalition (EMHCC). This first meeting consisted of a listening session to better understand the challenges and opportunities that cities and towns in the MAPC region experience regarding historic preservation. Since then, the EMHCC has met an additional seven times to discuss topics as varied as cemetery preservation, historic district bylaws, and demolition delay.

 

Three years later, we thought it was a good time to hold another listening session, this one focused on the powers and duties of historical commissions. The feedback from participants will be used to plan upcoming EMHCC meetings and seed future partnerships.

 

To register: https://bit.ly/4uwRNWF

 

The meeting will be recorded and posted here <https://www.mapc.org/resource-library/eastern-massachusetts-historical-commission-coalition/> .

 



 

Please be advised that the Massachusetts Secretary of State considers e-mail to be a public record, and therefore subject to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L. c. 66 § 10. 

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