New Haven Independent

After a year and a half of wrangling, the parties came together at a meeting this month of the Historic District Commission (HDC). It might not have been a grand compromise, but it was a compromise nevertheless.

Bob Grzywacz, the chair of the HDC, said the modifications agreed upon reflected in general a greater respect for the historic and aesthetic preservation of the building. On the first floor, storefront retail space on Grand Avenue, wrapping around to Front, will have a distinct band that reflects storefront architecture of the period. On the second floor, the window size will be reduced to three by eight feet, which would be more in line historically. And on the third floor, larger windows will be allowed in exchange for the maintenance of the cornice, entablature, and the eaves. The 30-inch rise in the roof also allowed was conditioned on its being clad in natural metal.

“All of this,” Gryzwacz said Wednesday, “needs to be documented in more thorough drawings by the applicant. So in effect the HDC approved the design, yes, but as modified per our discussion because this is in keeping with the Standards of the Secretary of the Interior.”

The zoning variance, he explained, which the Board of Zoning Appeals had granted Vieau, was conditioned on the developer conforming specifically to these standards.

Vieau said that he was pleased with the meeting and that he and his architects are moving ahead to meet the final conditions of the HDC, which involved providing clearer documentation for plans agreed upon. The end result will be conversion of One Grand into five residential condos, he said, along with three commercial condo spaces. One will be on Front Street, two on Grand Avenue.

Vieau said he had been in conversation recently with Alderwoman Erin Sturgis-Pascale and other community people about interest in a coffee shop in the retail space. “We’re going to build the condos well, ” he said, “and we hope to sell them, and then everyone will be happy.”

Initially Vieau had aroused some community concern with his original plans to convert One Grand into condos for use for recovering substance abusers. But the battle was engaged primarily on architectural and preservationist grounds over plans submitted over a year ago that showed a raising of the roof including a whole façade of historically inappropriate windows in order to utilize the third floor of the building. The Board of Zoning Appeals referred the project to the HDC for its letter of approval. In a series of meetings the commissioners and Vieau and his architects have helped to refine the submission so that it has come closer to meeting both his economic requirements as well as those of preservationists.

At the recent meeting, for example, Vieau said his engineers made clear that for structural reasons the roof had to be raised, but it is being done so with the entablature preserved, so that the two-and-a-half foot rise will be barely noticed.

The underlying preservation issue from the HDC’s perspective was that the developer conform to what are called Secretary of the Interior Standards. This means, according to David Barone of City Plan (under which the Historic District Commission functions), various tiers of conforming. The first tier: “restore and repair as much as exists as it was.” The second is to replace in kind, and so forth. The idea is that when changes deemed necessary are made they not mask the original so that at some future date, the difference can be be distinguished.”

“In general,” Vieau said, “I’m pleased with the refinements. The HDC did its homework, and it really helped. My only complaint is that it took a year and a half.”

Community preservation activist Chris Ozyck, however, remained skeptical. He has testified regularly at public meetings regarding One Grand, always raising questions about Vieau’s plans and intentions over the last year. Although he was not able to attend the September HDC meeting, what he heard hadn’t changed his mind.

“My impression is that his drawings were better, yes,” Ozyck said this week, “but let’s note that he’s not taking historic tax credits for what he’s proposing. That’s a red flag for me. If there’s the ability to make sure he follows through on his proposals, fine. If not, there should be enforcement. I’ll hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.”

Gryzwacz was at pains to point out that the HDC’s vote had implications beyond One Grand. “This is different from the HDC’s usual granting of a certificate of approval. It is a brand new use of the regulatory powers of the city,” he said. “The decision in effect states that zoning variances are to be granted in return for a public good. In this instance the public good is historic preservation, and specifically the design conforming to the Secretary of the Interior Standards as determined by the HDC.”

Vieau said that the BZA in its referral had cited nine conditions, one of which was the approval of the HDC. He said he’d met the other conditions as well, such as structural requirements, and he was looking forward to the next step, an appearance before the City Plan Commission.