Historic. Hip. Cool!
Some members of the Red Bank Historic Preservation Commission chanted these words at the April 6 meeting of the borough Planning Board to make the point that both historical and contemporary designs can contribute to a welcoming streetscape.
“We’re cool. We’re hip. They’re not mutually exclusive concepts,” said Mary Gilligan, a former member of the Historic Preservation Commission.
“We can be hip and historic. We can be cool and historic.”
Gilligan was among those in attendance as Councilman Edward Zipprich, Planning Board member and liaison to the Historic Preservation Commission, shared his concerns about the Planning Board’s approval of applications that he believes diminish the town’s historical identity.
Specifically, Zipprich and other commission members are concerned that some new businesses have altered the design of storefronts, removing the vestibule windows that are a major characteristic of Red Bank’s downtown aesthetic.
“We need to pay attention to what’s happening to our downtown,” Zipprich said. “It’s a very difficult balance to remember that we need to attract businesses in town, but people come to Red Bank because we are a destination town.
“We, as [Planning] Board members, in approving and considering the approval of future projects, need to remember that we don’t want to give up all of the historic fabric in Red Bank.”
Zipprich and commission members have recently expressed concern with architectural changes in the borough’s historic neighborhoods — the Central Business Zone Historic District, encompassing the area of Broad and Monmouth streets, and the largely residential Washington Street Historic District.
An ordinance adopted in the early 1990s and amended in 2009 encourages preservation of the borough’s cultural and historical identity. Michaela Ferrigine, chair of the Historic Preservation Commission, encouraged the Planning Board to consider historical preservation as they make decisions on new applications.
“One of the things that we found, especially within Red Bank and in other parts of the country, is that historic properties draw people in,” Ferrigine told board members.
“We do have this uniqueness to Red Bank that we would like to hang on to.”
Ferrigine described the Urban Outfitters shop at 2 Broad St. as “a shining example” of adaptive reuse and how businesses can blend creative designs with historical architecture.
In response, Ned Gaunt, an architect and member of Red Bank RiverCenter’s Visual Improvement Committee — which reviews the design of new facades in the downtown — said not every building has architectural or historical significance.
“I think really what makes Red Bank unique is the fact that we do have new buildings, old buildings, historic buildings, all different styles of character that work well together. … We have to look at the overall picture and [decide] if something is historic,” Gaunt said. “Just because something is old and something is attractive, even, that doesn’t mean it’s historic.
“I think the most important thing is to look at the overall character of the town and how it’s being affected.”
James Scavone, executive director of RiverCenter, said architectural accommodations are often necessary to attract businesses to the downtown.
“Our hope would be that we can look at each project individually and balance the historic [element] with the needs of the business and the community,” Scavone said.
But Gilda Rogers, a member of the commission, said that if businesses do not comply with Red Bank’s historical façade protocols, they might need to be turned away.
“The Historic Preservation Commission is here for a reason, and that is to guide the town, or at least be like a watchdog, to ensure that preservation or the way we would like to preserve our downtown area is being fashioned in that way,” Rogers said.
“Maybe if we promote [Red Bank] in a way that it is ‘historic Red Bank,’ [the businesses] already know when they are coming here that there probably are certain guidelines that they are going to have to adhere to, because this is a special and unique little town.”
Linda Cohen, an alternate member of the Planning Board, said officials need to think about the borough’s future.
“Although we want to stay special and unique, we also want to move forward,” Cohen said. “If we move backward, we’re going to lose all the things that do attract people and businesses to this town.
“We have to keep in mind that we do have competition with bringing businesses to town, and we don’t want to discourage businesses, because business really is the health of this town for everybody.”
“I agree with all of the historic aspects, but I think that we have to keep in mind we’re living in a different era, and moving forward with business at the forefront is going to be the future of this hip, little, cool historic town.
“We can’t be stuck in a place that doesn’t move forward.”