[MassHistPres] Fee for HD Applications?

[Erica Swallow]

Springfield, MA is trying to change its Historic District Ordinance to levy an undetermined fee against the applicant once a property is accepted for a study. The language in the draft ordinance changes is:

"Report. Once the Commission has determined such building, group of buildings, or site has
historic significance, then the Commission, or a consultant selected by the Commission, shall
draft and submit all required reports for designation in accordance with the Historic Districts
Act. The cost and expense to the Commission for the preparation and submission of all such
reports shall be levied against the applicant. The Commission shall discuss the cost estimate with
the applicant seeking the creation of the district prior to drafting the report to ensure that the
applicant wishes to cover the expenditure."


The Springfield Historical Commission has approved the changes (this among others which weaken historic protections in the city), but it hasn't been seen by City Council yet.

The fee in this case is undetermined and could be thousands of dollars, depending on the proposed district size. Imagine if our current largest districts (my own with 800+ houses in it) were paid for by the applicant (residents). That would have been cost prohibitive.

I'm disturbed by the failure of our historical commission to do its job: protecting historic resources. Instead, it's doing the bidding of the economic development office wherein the commission sits, and making it more difficult to protect historic structures.

Sincerely,
Erica


Erica Swallow

President

Springfield Preservation Trust

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president at springfieldpreservation.org

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(413) 314-3383

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________________________________
From: MassHistPres <masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu> on behalf of Nancy Robbins via MassHistPres <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu>
Sent: Monday, September 28, 2026 4:07 PM
To: masshistpres at cs.umb.edu <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu>
Cc: McGrath Ellen <ellen_mcgrath at yahoo.com>
Subject: [MassHistPres] Fee for HD Applications?

How many towns out there charge an Application fee to obtain a Certificate and what is the amount?  If a project requires more than one Application do you charge multiple fees?  Each one the same?  Where does the money from the fees go?

Do any towns request town funding or use Application fees to have continuing education or educational programs related to Historic Preservation?


Nancy Robbins FedericiCMP, CMM
Independent Meeting Planner
42 Mansfield Avenue
Norton, MA  02766
(c) 508-958-5165
nancyrobbins2 at yahoo.com<mailto:nancyrobbins2 at yahoo.com>

Take the road less traveled,
It's often less crowded!
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