to tear down structure
and build new offices
Builder marks historic
home for demolition
Applicant seeks OK
to tear down structure
and build new offices
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD — The landscape of South Street in the area of the St. Rose of Lima School is in jeopardy. A proposal to demolish a historic structure is scheduled for a hearing at tonight’s meeting of the Planning Board.
The fate of the building at 83 South St., referred to as the John Wesley Bartleson mansion, rests with the board. The home was built in 1836.
A structure that Borough Councilman Kevin Coyne calls a "highway style" office building is planned to replace the old home. Coyne is also a member of the borough’s Historic Preservation Advisory Committee.
According to Coyne, one of the duties of the advisory committee is to provide input and guidance to governing bodies such as the Planning Board. A report dated Sept. 12 which reviews the application has already been submitted by the committee to the board.
The five-page report contains a summary of the application and its intent to demolish the home. The report states that the demolition of the historic house is "in direct opposition to a goal of the borough’s master plan, which is to preserve significant elements of Freehold’s past."
The report also states that the site of the proposed office building lies outside the town’s Special Improvement District (SID), where this type of large-scale commercial development is meant to be channeled.
The scale and design of the proposed building are not in keeping with the intent of the B-1 zone, which has traditionally provided for the conversion of existing homes on main thoroughfares to professional use, according to the report.
"It is the belief of the committee that this proposed building is in direct opposition to the town’s master plan. It is not an appropriate structure under the plan that is meant to guide the town’s development," Coyne said. "The emotional response is, of course, ‘Don’t tear down old buildings.’ The rational response is that this proposal is in direct opposition to the master plan."
The councilman said the proposed plan is not appropriate on many levels, one being that the applicant, Steve Kontos of Parkside Manor Inc., Parlin, intends to tear down one of the 17 historic structures built before 1840 that still remain standing in the town.
He said the architecture of the 19th century Federal-style building is rare.
Coyne said he and several other members of the advisory committee, along with Borough Administrator Joseph Bellina, met with the applicant and the architect to provide some input on the proposal.
He said the borough representatives presented the applicant with photos of other historic properties in the borough such as the Woodhull House at 63 West Main Street, which has expanded its structure for office use by adding on a long wing off the back of the building.
The TriDent Abstract building at 8 Broad Street and the Dittmar Agency at 78 Court Street were other examples of historic structures that have made conversions in keeping with the master plan.
Coyne said the Bartleson home, which was used as law offices for years and most recently for a business known as the Leadership Spa, would qualify for a tax break if it is left standing.
"We would like the applicant to look at this building as an asset rather than a liability, which is what he is doing by tearing it down," the councilman said. "To convert this building rather than to demolish it is more a practical business decision than an emotional one."
Coyne acknowledged that the advisory committee has no power to affect a decision either way. The members can only advise governing boards on what, as a group, they believe is appropriate for the town and what is not.
Advisory committee member Wayne Mason said the report that was submitted to the Planning Board was "logical and pragmatic."
"It covers the criteria that defines historical significance," he said. "It includes the background of the house as well as its past occupants. Our message is not to [stop the project]; our message is ‘Yes, build, but please do it this way.’ No one is saying no to this project. What we are trying to do is to steer things in the appropriate direction, a direction that will enhance Freehold."
Mason said the historic homes in the borough are a selling point. He said the presence of the old homes was one of the reasons he chose to make his home here.
"The whole idea of the Historic Preservation Advisory Committee is to be proactive, not reactionary," he said. "We don’t want to be fighting a demolition application. We’d rather help to move things in the appropriate direction now."