12/15/2023
Chestertown’s Historic District Commission (HDC) is mandated to preserve what Chestertown is today. Historic District Standards and Guidelines are used to protect the identity of Chestertown and its strong Sense of Place. Chestertown's Historic District Commission protects the very value why generations have called this home. They protect the reason why visitors visit, and new residents migrate here. It is where one would rather be. Why? Because we care about the integrity of our “community of buildings” leading to a strong and deep SENSE OF PLACE. This community of buildings IS Chestertown. It is our Historic District.
Resident and historic architect, Thom Kocubinski, submitted a detailed letter with exhibits to the HDC for this application and has permitted the information to be made available here.
Mr. Kocubinski's analysis:
"I present the forgoing in order to support what I am about to share regarding the application for 206 Cannon Street. I find the design to be completely out of proportion with the neighborhood and I believe the proposed development will degrade the Historic District at this end of town. It simply does not fit, nor compliments the historic character and let me qualify why.
1. Rhythm and Scale
The town is differentiated by groupings of residences which are readily identified by their bulk, height, windows and roof patterns. Exterior materials further define the groupings. For example, the houses on Water Street are primarily large, stately with complex roof patterns, large windows and many have brick veneer. While the houses on South Queen are small, modest with simple roofs, smaller windows and exteriors of clapboard siding. This I call rhythm and scale. The proposed house design violates the rhythm and scale of the immediate neighborhood which was established years ago. I note that even the newly built residences on South Queen Street respect the existing rhythm and scale. The distinguishing architectural vernacular of the neighborhood is seriously disrespected by the proposed house design. I further add that the proposed complex roof pattern and use of brick for veneering is not evident on houses in the immediate neighborhood. It is out of context.
2. Bulk Size – Square Footage
At the last meeting I asked for the square footage of the proposed house and after much goading got the response of approximately 6,200 square feet. I countered that Widehall is 6,500 square feet for comparison which is located on Water Street with its larger homes. However, a takeoff of the design plans on file result in an area of approximately 8,200 square feet! In comparison, the average dwelling size on South Queen and Cannon Streets is much less – probably 2,000 square feet. The bulk of the house is grossly oversized in the neighborhood by a factor of 4 to 1. There is no precedent to support the house design. If built, it would visually destabilize the established ambience of the Historic District at this end of town.
3. Length of Front Façade
Flattening the proposed front façade, the overall length is 100 feet. For comparison Widehall’s front facade is approximately 72 feet, the Hynson Ringgold house is 50 feet and the Wallis Wickes house is 78 feet. These buildings visually set the upward limit of the more stately houses of the Historic District. For further comparison, the width of houses on Cannon and Queen Streets range from 17 feet to 32 feet, with an average being about 24 feet. Based on this analysis, it is obvious that the proposed house length is grossly out of place and therefore egregiously overwhelms the houses in the historic neighborhood by a factor of 4 or 5 to 1.
4. Length of Side Façade
It is common for houses in town to have long side facades due to needed expansion onto the building rear due to long and narrow lots. However, they are rarely noticeable due to the close proximity of adjacent houses that effectively block the view. Not the case with the proposed house design. The impact of the 70 foot long side façade is not mitigated by adjacent houses but is wide open to prominent views. In combination with the long front façade width of 100 feet, the visual bulk of the house from street level is enormous compared to the much smaller adjacent houses.
5. Roof Height and Pattern
The proposed roof height per the drawings is 34 feet. For comparison, the roof height at 216 South Queen, a 2-story residence, is about 30’ feet, which is the highest on the block. However, the front façade is only 22 feet wide thus creating a pleasing Victorian proportion. I add most roofs in the neighborhood have the gables oriented front to back which lessens the visual roof impact from the street. Not the case with the proposed house with the roof design running parallel to Cross Street. Roof heights and orientation matter, particularly when combined with the impact of building bulk. Due to its design and square footage, the house has an immense 70 foot long main roof at a pitch of 12/14 which would be very visually impactful. The prominent shed dormer roofs donot exist in the neighborhood. The long front porch roof further serves to exacerbate the impact. Without doubt, the proposed roof pattern is very much out of character with the adjacent roof patterns and will overwhelm the neighborhood.
6. Circular Driveway
At the previous meeting when questioning the circular drive, I was told that the highway department approved the curb cuts for the drive as if this was the final say in the matter. I remind the Commission that the highway department was not responsible for the layout of Chestertown and that there is NO historic precedent for a circular driveway in the Historic District except perhaps at Widehall, and that drive is in the rear of the property, not in the front. I view this feature as an affectation which is more appropriately found in the county on large land parcels and that is where it belongs, not here in town. The final say belongs to you and not the highway department.
7. Site Layout
The site plan shows the circular drive, 2 outbuildings, a 40 foot by 68 foot parking court yard accessed by 2 drives and a swimming pool, which again, mimic what is typically found on a large land parcel in the county, not here in town. It is out of character with the scale and ambience of the neighborhood and the Historic District. The visual image is that of a plantation house overwhelming more modest buildings, which in this case are the houses on South Queen and Cannon Streets. The infill housing diagram presented at the last meeting only furthers to worsen this image with the increased imbalance it would create. I add that the property is divided into two zones, commercial and residential, and for some reason, the applicant has chosen to relate the house design to the commercial scale which I find totally inappropriate. The immediate residences and property owners should be respected, not the adjacent commercial structures. I add that the house could easily be taken for a commercial use building because it is that out of balance with the residential rhythm and scale.
In closing, I respectfully request consideration of my thoughts and observations as someone who deeply cares about the town and its future. I further ask that the design before the Commission be returned for redesign to be in lockstep with the designated historic context in which it will be located. There is ample property for reconfiguration and the town deserves the effort to make it a correct precedent to be followed by future applicants. Taking such action is in your purview and I add that the Historic District cannot fend for itself."
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Kocobinski
