Letter to the Editor: Regarding a demolition request before the Local Historic District Commission

To the Editor,

In his March 16th letter to the Russells Mills Historic District Commission, Mr. Mark Rasmussen outlines the Buzzards Bay Coalition’s (BBC) case for the demolition of the non-historic building at 4 Tannery Lane and the site’s proposed redevelopment.

I’ve reviewed the 14-page BBC package and found it wanting. Nowhere in the PDF doc package are there detailed landscape plans or drawings for the site’s redevelopment. What will this proposed park, or field, or sculpture garden look like?

Shaped by our ancestors, 4 Tannery Lane is a significant cultural landscape. Just downstream from the historic Cummings Mill Pond, the site is defined by its granite riverside seawall, extant barn foundations, a massive, adjacent stone wall–all hemmed in by historic buildings. Great care must be taken to preserve the integrity of this fragile built environment.

What remains unclear: What is the size and style of the proposed artwork? How many pieces of artwork populate the site? Will they be contextual in this New England village setting? Landscape treatment? Mown greensward or wildflower meadow? What is the size and scale of the parking area to accommodate visitors? How is it paved? What does the circulation system (pathways) look like? What is the surface-paving material? What is the style and design of benches, lighting, and other landscape furnishings, etc., etc.?

While serving on the Dartmouth Historical Commission (DHC) from 2019 to 2024, I reviewed countless demolition applications and site redevelopment plans were routinely submitted. Site redevelopment plans were essential for our review. This requirement was per the town’s Demolition Delay by-law and the Building Department’s permit-approval process.

The LHDC cannot in good faith consider an application for a Certificate of Appropriateness lacking this essential information and without having more detailed plans in-hand.

The preservation of 4 Tannery Lane is not as onerous as laid out in BBC’s letter. Just look at the work being done next-door at the old Charlie Trainer house. To make this 19th century dwelling habitable, the current owners are improving its structural quality and mitigating environmental threats; the building’s finished floor elevation (FFE) has been raised, and the Subsurface Sewage Disposal System (SSDS) will need to be Board of Health (BOH) compliant. Improvements like these are within the realm of the possible for 4 Tannery Lane if needed.

I urge our LHDC to review this application carefully at their April 21st public meeting at Dartmouth Town Hall and consider the facts; 4 Tannery Lane is too valuable an asset to let the details glide by.

Sincerely,

James O’Day, ASLA

Historical Landscape Architect

South Dartmouth, MA