Ryan comment - 61 warner12/1/2020 City of Northampton Mail - 61 Warner St Demo - General Public Comment
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Sarah LaValley <slavalley@northamptonma.gov>
61 Warner St Demo - General Public Comment
1 message
Bill Ryan <billryanenergyarts@me.com>Mon, Nov 30, 2020 at 2:21 PM
To: slavalley@northamptonma.gov
Hi Sarah,
It was nice to talk briefly with you today.
Will you please as soon as you can this afternoon forward this email with our comments below to all the Historical
Commission members?
Thank you. We’ll join the call at 5:30 and keep our comments brief.
Bill Ryan and Kathryn Komidar
Northampton Historical Commission
November 30, 2020 Meeting
General Public Comment
regarding
Determination of Significance Pursuant to Demolition Ordinance, 61 Warner St, 23D-083
by
Bill Ryan and Kathryn Komidar
Residents, 129 Warner St
Chairwoman Lyon and Commission Members,
Thank you for service on the Commission and for taking the time to hear our comments regarding the proposed 61
Warner Street demolition.
We urge you to determine that the house at 61 Warner Street is a Significant Building.
We believe it meets two of the criteria you must consider.
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1. The 61 Warner house meets Criterion C as it is “importantly associated with … the broad architectural,
cultural, political, economic or social history of the City…”
To quote the Form B of the Massachusetts Historical Commission for 121 Warner Street - just up the road from 61:
“Warner Street was laid out in the mid 1860’s on the southeastern slopes of Baker’s Hill. It was meant to be a
residential street for the employees at the cutlery mills in Bay State. In 1867, John Longden paid $662.40 for half
an acre “with buildings”…. Mr Longden was employed by the Northampton Cutlery Co., and was listed as a
foreman in the 1884-85 directory. … This is a very simple two-story house with gable end to the street…."
The historical theme checked on this Form B is “community development”.
There are two other Form B's for Warner Street houses that lie between addresses 61 and 121: one for 117 Warner
where Charles H Miller, a cutler at Northampton Cutlery lived during the 1880’s; and one for 77 Warner which in 1887 was
sold to Henry Eyre, who was employed by the Clement Cutlery Co.
The historical theme checked on both of these Form B’s is "community development.”
12/1/2020 City of Northampton Mail - 61 Warner St Demo - General Public Comment
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So how involved was the house at 61 Warner Street with the “community development” happening at the time it was
built?
Historic Northampton has an “1873 Map of Florence Massachusetts - South Part” which shows a building located toward
the east of what is now the 61 Warner parcel, owned by "E. Chase”. It also shows the nearby Northampton Cutlery
Company.
They also have an "1884 Atlas of Northampton, MA: Plate 04 - Bay State Village” which shows a similar building shape
toward the east of what is now the 61 Warner parcel, owned by “J. Day”. It shows as well the Northampton Cutlery
Company and Clement Manufacturing Company.
Also in their collection is an "1895 Atlas of Northampton, MA: Plate 10 - Bay State Village” which shows a house still
owned by "J. Day” at what is now 61 Warner.
From just our quick initial research, it appears that the house at 61 Warner very likely was an early building in the
growing community of cutlery workers living on Warner Street when the 1873 map shows just 9 houses north of
Warner and 8 south.
We think the likely 150-year-old house at 61 Warner Street and this growing developing community of cutlery
workers was “importantly associated with … the broad architectural, cultural, political, economic AND social
history of the City…”
The city Assessor ’s database indicates the house was built in “1900”. But the date seems likely to have been 30 years
prior.
Why have three nearby houses been deemed worthy of being listed on the Historic House Inventory as having
“historical significance", and not 61 Warner Street?
Based on Criterion C, it seems that you should designate the 61 Warner Street house as a “significant building.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2. The 61 Warner St. house meets Criterion D as it is "historically or architecturally important, in terms of period,
style, method of building construction or association with a recognized architect or builder ... in the context of a
group of buildings."
To some people the house might seem unremarkable.
However, it and most of the houses along Warner Street are a “group of buildings” that are “historically … important,
in terms of period, style [and] method of building construction”.
If you walk from our house at 129 Warner Street east to its end, and you look carefully, you’ll see that almost all of these
houses like ours on the north side of the street - and many on the south side - have at their core a similar original house,
what we’ve been told by neighbors were called “mill workers houses” - simple rectangular, two-story, frame houses. They
all were built in the same period, style, and method of construction.
Over the years different owners have added to and around these original houses, but all of these houses' core remains
the same.
Those simple frame houses still provide the historical character of our neighborhood.
Every time one of these houses is “demolished”, our neighborhood will lose a core puzzle piece of its history.
And every time two or three or four or more new “modern" houses are built on the property where that single house stood,
those modern houses will dominate the streetscape, further contributing to the loss of history and dis-integration of the
neighborhood.
Based on Criterion D we think that you should designate the 61 Warner Street house as a “significant building.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you remain not quite sure about our point of view, please remember that your deciding to designate the house
as “significant” tonight does not stop the project.
12/1/2020 City of Northampton Mail - 61 Warner St Demo - General Public Comment
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It merely triggers a public hearing process, which will provide time for all of us to learn more about the house’s
historical signficance. You will provide a chance for our neighbors to come and tell you what they know about the history
of the house and the neighborhood.
We also all could learn more through a hearing process about the plans for the property after any demolition might occur.
So please vote in the public interest - rather than a private interest - and designate this house as significant and
go forward with a public hearing on the subject.
Thank you again for taking time to hear our thoughts.
We look forward to verbally presenting these thoughts in briefer form during the public comment period at the beginning of
your meeting.
Bill Ryan and Kathryn Komidar
129 Warner Street