Thursday, July 29th

Chapter 8 Index

Working with City Hall

Our city government is divided into several departments that provide many useful services to the community. To the readers of this book, the Department of Community Development is particularly useful. Among the bureaus in this department, you should be familiar with the Building and Zoning Bureau because this is where you'll acquire a building permit for proposed work, and also where you'll apply for a Certificate of Appropriateness for proposed work on a property in one of Rochester's Preservation Districts.

 

Building permits

The purpose of a building permit is the preservation of life and property. Through the building permit process, your municipal government (city, village, or town) assures that construction work meets the requirements of the New York State Building Code and the Fire Prevention Code. You obtain a permit for your own safety.

Large or small projects may require a permit. Call the Building or Permit Department of your city, village, town, or county because requirements vary. For the City of Rochester, building any kind of structure requires a building permit. In addition, an alteration to the interior floor plan, a structural change, plumbing, or electrical work also requires a building permit. The following examples require permits: (1) any kind of addition or independent structure, including a fence, a replacement fence, a deck, a porch, and an above or in-ground pool; (2) interior partitions, if you are changing doorways, windows, square footage, or hallways. Kitchen, bathroom and family room alterations frequently require a building permit as well as electrical and plumbing permits; (3) replacement windows which change the size of the window opening; (4) roof repair or construction which involves replacement or addition of rafters; (5) expansion of driveways that increases the total blacktop area to more than 2,500 sq. ft.

Who obtains a building permit, the property owner or the contractor? If a contractor is managing the construction project, he/she will file for the building permit. If you are acting as the general contractor managing subcontractors, or this is a do-it-yourself project, you will file for the permit. In either case, the property owner is ultimately responsible for obtaining the building permit.

What does the building department require? In general, a tape location map or survey of the property indicating the location of the proposed work is required. If there is any major structural alteration or addition, the City of Rochester requires drawings which are stamped by a New York State licensed architect or engineer. If the cost of a project is $10,000 or more, stamped drawings by a New York State licensed architect or engineer will be required. Once the required documents are submitted to the building department, the applicant will pay a fee based upon the cost of construction (including labor). The applicant will receive a green card, which is the permit, to be posted at the construction site. In addition, a yellow copy of the permit application contains instructions for inspection. It is the applicant's responsibility to schedule the inspections with the building department. Upon completion of construction work and an acceptable final inspection, the applicant will receive a Certificate of Occupancy. For plumbing and electrical work, it will be called a final inspection notice or a Certificate of Compliance.

Are there any other types of permits that you may be required to obtain for repairs, alterations, or new construction? The local building department will inform you if other permits are required. Examples of the permits specified by zoning ordinances are: Certificate of Appropriateness for exterior work in a local preservation district, Certificate of Zoning Compliance for change of use or compliance with setback and other requirements, and Department of Environmental Services permit for a curb cut to a new driveway.

A building permit helps ensure the protection of life and property. A project that does not meet the state and local building codes can be a hazard to the construction workers, to the building inhabitants, neighbors, or future owners. In addition, the cost of property insurance can be reduced if repairs or new construction improve life, safety, and property protection. Work done without a building permit may cause problems with, or the loss of property insurance. Since the building permit is ultimately the owner's responsibility, it is worthwhile for you to be informed. If you have any questions, call the building department for your city, village, town, or county.

 

National Register listing and your local preservation ordinance

Many people are confused about the difference between a National Register designated property or district and a locally designated City of Rochester Landmark or Preservation District property. Briefly, listing in the National Register of Historic Places is recognition that the property is important for its architectural, historical, archaeological, engineering, or cultural significance. Listing in the National Register begins with an application to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and is then forwarded to the National Park Service/Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C. There are no restrictions placed on the owner of a National Register designated property, and very little protection is offered unless the property is adversely affected by a state or federally funded project. You can contact the New York State Historic Preservation Office at (518) 237-8643.

Local landmarks and preservation districts are designated for the same reasons as National Register-listed properties. They are, however, governed by a local review board according to the statutes of the local ordinance. An effectively written local preservation ordinance offers the greatest amount of protection to landmarks and to preservation districts because decisions by the preservation board must be followed just as other zoning laws. If you have questions about the City Preservation Districts, City Landmark properties, or designation procedures, call the preservation board staff at 428-7063.

CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS IN PRESERVATION DISTRICTS:
If you live in a City of Rochester Preservation District or Landmark, you must apply to the Bureau of Zoning for a Certificate of Appropriateness before any construction, alteration, remodeling, removal, movement, demolition, or landscaping is done to the outside of your property, and in some cases, to the inside of specific Landmark properties. (This does not include paint colors, except for individual landmark properties.) Application must be completed and returned to the Bureau approximately three weeks before the next scheduled meeting to ensure that your application will be considered.

At the Bureau of Zoning you can get specific guidelines about many issues that sometimes confuse applicants. The staff will also help applicants determine what actions might or might not be appropriate for the site. There are individual guidelines for building decks, installing skylights, new construction in preservation districts, synthetic siding, sandblasting, fences, plus hardship provisions. As with other zoning issues, there is an appeals process.

ROCHESTER'S PRESERVATION ORGINANCE

Preservation districts are created in furtherance of the following public purposes, which are found to be in the interest of the health, prosperity, and welfare of the city and its residents.

(1) To effect and accomplish the protection, enhancement, perpetuation, and use of improvements and areas of special character or special historic or aesthetic interest or value which represent or reflect elements of the city's cultural, social, economic, political, and architectural history.

(2) To safeguard the city's historic, aesthetic, and cultural heritage as embodied and reflected in such improvements and areas.

(3) To stabilize and improve property values in such areas.

(4) To foster civic pride in the beauty and noble accomplishments of the past.

(5) To protect and enhance the city's attractions to tourists and visitors and the support and stimulus to business and industry thereby provided.

(6) To strengthen the economy of the city.

(7) To promote the use of historic districts and landmarks for the education, pleasure, and wlfare of the people of the city.

 

Rochester's preservation districts

The City of Rochester has eight designated preservation districts, plus 72 individually listed landmarks. While many important neighborhoods do not yet enjoy this status, the city's preservation districts include much of Rochester's distinctive architecture and embody a significant portion of our history.

THE SUSAN B. ANTHONY PRESERVATION DISTRICT is located west of the central business district and includes the home of Susan B. Anthony, who lived here for 40 years. A secluded enclave off of West Main Street, the district represents the residential, commercial, and industrial growth of a city neighborhood from the l830s to the l930s. Its boundaries are West Main Street on the south, Rossenbach Place on the west, Silver and Wiley Streets on the north and Canal Street on the east.

THE BEACH AVENUE PRESERVATION DISTRICT is located in the Charlotte area and adjacent to Lake Ontario. Stretching along Beach Avenue, its homes reflect the development of Charlotte as a lakefront resort area during the last half of the 19th century. The district extends along Beach Avenue from Clio Street west to Tamarack Street and includes the beach-side walkway known as the "secret sidewalk."

THE BROWN'S RACE PRESERVATION DISTRICT, also known as High Falls, includes the city's earliest industrial area, started during the "Flour City" era of the 19th century. Located just north of the central business district and across from Kodak Tower, it is bounded by State and Mill Streets on the west, Platt Street and Volt Place on the north, the Genesee River Gorge on the east and the railroad on the south.

THE EAST AVENUE PRESERVATION DISTRICT is cited as one of the greatest collections of 19th-and early 20th-century residential architecture in New York state. As the city's largest district, with over 700 buildings, it extends 1-1/2 miles along East Avenue, the city's "grand boulevard." The district is bounded by University Avenue on the north, Park Avenue and Probert Street on the east, Alexander Street on the west and Park Avenue on the south.

THE GROVE PLACE PRESERVATION DISTRICT is the only surviving 19th- century residential neighborhood within the city's central business district. Located one block north of the Eastman Theatre, it is bounded by Grove Street on the west, Carpenter Alley on the east, University Avenue on the north and Grove Place on the south.

THE MT. HOPE/HIGHLAND PRESERVATION DISTRICT reflects the "Flower City" era of Rochester's history, when the area along Mt. Hope and South Avenues was the exclusive domain of the Ellwanger and Barry Botanic Gardens and Mt. Hope Cemetery. With its park-like setting and elegant architecture, this district extends along Mt. Hope Avenue from the Ford Street Bridge south to Elmwood Avenue and includes portions of Mt. Hope Cemetery and Highland Park.

THE SOUTH AVENUE/GREGORY STREET PRESERVATION DISTRICT features a distinctive example of a 19th-century, commercial area in the city's South Wedge neighborhood. The district includes the commercial buildings in the block adjacent to the intersection of South Avenue and Gregory Street.

THE THIRD WARD PRESERVATION DISTRICT is the city's oldest residential area and was for over half a century Rochester's choice residential district. Developed primarily during Rochester's village and "Flour City" periods, the district is bounded by Troup Street on the north, Plymouth Avenue South on the east, Eagle Street on the west and Adams Street on the south.

These boundaries do not always run in straight lines. Call the Bureau of Zoning at 428-7063 to determine if you live in a City Preservation District.

In addition, within Monroe County there are 13 villages and towns that have preservation ordinances that designate individual landmarks and preservation districts. These include the towns of Brighton, Chili, Clarkson, Henrietta, Mendon, Penfield, Perinton, Pittsford, and Sweden, plus the villages of Brockport, Hilton, Pittsford, and Scottsville.

Call your village or town clerk or your town historian for more information about your community's historic resources.


THE OLIVER CULVER HOUSE IN THE EAST AVENUE PRESERVATION DISTRICT

 

City-sponsored rehabilitation programs

The City of Rochester offers various incentives in loans, grants, and other assistance to help residents of certain income levels, to improve our neighborhoods, and to put vacant properties back on the tax rolls. If you fall within the correct income level, or if you are interested in investing in vacant city property, there may be substantial assistance for your benefit.

Currently, there is a Residential Assistance Program administered through the local neighborhood associations that offers material grants, home security grants, and emergency repair grants. To apply, contact the community-based organization in your neighborhood that handles this program for the city.

There is also an Owner Occupant Rehab Program that offers low-interest loans to qualified buyers. To find out more about this program call 428-6827.

The Vacant Home Grant and Loan Programs are administered through the City's Home Store. Call 325-HOME for more information on these programs.

 

Your local neighborhood association

It's a good idea to be familiar with your local neighborhood association. These organizations work hard to protect your neighborhood from improper development, crime, and any issues that might be detrimental to the area as a whole. They are also an information network that strengthens the voice of the individual property owner or tenant.

Services vary from one association to another. For example, The Corn Hill Neighborhood Association provides a confidential revolving loan fund for exterior capital improvements for Corn Hill residents and investors. The Southeast Area Coalition (SEAC) operates a tool-lending library of power tools, gardening tools, and hand tools. It's a good idea to become familiar with your neighborhood association and learn what services are available to you and your neighbors.

To learn more about your local association, you can get the Rochester Neighborhood Associations list at the Reynolds Information Center of the Rochester Public Library, 115 South Avenue, or phone 428-7300.

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