BY LAYLI WHYTE
Staff Writer
On Nov. 19, 2004, the Parents sought to amend the subdivision approval. “The amended application,” according to Lehrer’s decision, “requested bulk variances to create a three-lot subdivision which would permit the retention of the historic portions of the Tredwell House, and demolition of the 20th century additions to the Tredwell House.” The Tredwell House is listed on the Historic Preservation Element of the borough’s 1988 master plan as a landmark, and is listed on the Monmouth County Historic Sites Inventory. It is also eligible for inclusion on the National and State Registers of Historic Places. Arthur Parent was a member of the Rumson Planning Board when the Master Plan, which listed the Tredwell House on the Historic Preservation Element, was adopted. Donato claims that Parton refused to discuss the historical significance of the Tredwell House during the hearing. “Although the relief sought,” Donato’s brief states, “is directly related to the historic character of the Tredwell House and the ordinance protections of historic resources, the board chair announced that historic preservation issues should not be addressed.” According to the Historic Preservation Element, the Tredwell house has historic connections to former New Jersey Governor Lewis Morris, whose cousin originally owned the property in the 1700s, as well as to Richard Salter III, who was a direct blood relative of President Abraham Lincoln. Donato said that no date has been for a hearing on the motion to supplement the record by the Appellate Division RUMSON – A motion has been made to supplement the record in the appeal of the decision by a state Superior Court Judge that would allow partial demolition of the historic Tredwell House.
The decision to permit the demolition of the newest portions of the building was made by the Rumson Planning Board in 2005, and, after being appealed by the Tredwell Preservation Coalition, that decision was later upheld by Superior Court Judge Alexander Lehrer.
Michele Donato, attorney representing the Tredwell Preservation Coalition, filed a motion to supplement the record with the Superior Court Appellate Division May 4.
According to Donato, the supplemental information includes a statement attesting to the fact that the public was not permitted to speak at the final hearing on the development application for the historic property
Last June, Lehrer upheld the decision of the Rumson Planning Board to allow for the demolition of the newer additions to the 300-year-old Tredwell House.
Donato said last week that she filed a motion to supplement the record regarding the appeal of Lehrer’s decision, to include a statement by coalition trustee Mary Lou Strong.
Strong attended the meeting of the board on Feb. 7, 2005, at which she claims the public was not given the opportunity to comment on the application.
The Tredwell Preservation Coalition is a nonprofit corporation created in February 2005. The coalition filed a complaint in March 2005 challenging the approval of the application by the board.
Donato said that the only person from the public permitted to speak was Hollis Colquhoun, a spokesperson for the Rumson Historic Preservation Commission.
“When the chair asked if anyone had any questions,” said Donato, “she was speaking to the board members, not to the audience, which is something we can’t see on the minutes.”
According to a signed statement by Strong, who was present at the final hearing on the application, board President Gertrude B. Parton announced at the beginning of the meeting that the public comment portion was closed.
“We had hoped to participate in the proceedings,” Strong stated, “and there were a number of interested parties in the room.”
According to Strong’s statement, members of the public attempted to speak at the meeting, but were refused.
“We were waving our hands,” according to Strong, “and seeking to be heard, just as we had previously, but she [Parton] refused to acknowledge our presence.
“I was quite disappointed to read the board attorney’s brief,” her statement continued, “in which he states that the chair opened the meeting to the public. This was simply not the case and unfortunately, the bare transcript and words of the transcript do not make this clear.”
The attorney for the board, Michael Steib, could not be reached for comment. According to the brief filed by Donato, the board violated the state Municipal Land Use Law and the due process rights of the public.
“The board entered into a compromise reached in ex parte meetings with the applicants,” the brief states, “and did not allow the public to comment on that compromise. The board reached its decision based on meetings that are not part of the public record, directly contrary to established case law.”
The compromise was allegedly reached between the board and applicant sometime between the January 3, 2005, meeting of the board and Feb. 7, 2005, meeting, according to Donato. The compromise called for partial, not total, demolition of the Tredwell House.
Arthur and Leslie Parent, the owners of the Tredwell House and its surrounding property, filed an application with the board in September 2004 that called for demolition of the entire Tredwell House and its accessory structures, including the gardener’s cottage.
But the resolution of approval from the board only allowed demolition of the Colonial Revival additions from the late 19th century, as well as the gardener’s cottage and other accessory structures.
According to the resolution passed by the board at the Feb. 7, meeting, the “historic portions” of the Tredwell House that would not be demolished consist of the mid-eighteenth century, two -and-one-half story, timber-framed structure, and the two-and-one-half story frame wing to the east of the “primary block.”
The Parents are also required, according to the resolution, to rehabilitate the house and may, if they desire, restore it.
A previous application submitted by the Parents was approved by the board in April 2004 and called for subdividing the 6.1-acre property into tracts of 4.66 acres and 1.5 acres.