Court sides with New Albany historic group

NEW ALBANY The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a ruling that had backed Bradford Realtys claims that the New Albany Historic Preservation Commission didnt properly notify land owners of zoning restrictions.

Last year, Special Judge Daniel Moore ruled in favor of Bradford Realty owner Ron Craig, who was denied a Certificate of Appropriateness request by the HPC after he installed vinyl siding on the building without approval in 2008.

Bradford Realty sits in the Downtown Historic District at its 222 E. Fourth St. location. The business has occupied the spot since 1966. The HPC is charged with overseeing building upgrades and the materials used for repairs as a result of the declaration of the district in 2002.

Craig didnt notify the HPC of the repairs before work commenced, and his use of vinyl siding on the 1910 structure was later rejected by the board. He was ordered to remove the siding from the building, and a court case ensued.

Though a notice of the district was published in The Tribune in 2002, Moore ruled in July that the city and HPC failed to properly notify land owners in the boundary of the change in zoning.

Moore also ruled Craig was not required to seek approval from the HPC before installing the siding.

The HPC did not send information regarding the district and laws pertaining to property in the zone directly to land owners after the boundary was declared.

But in a 2-1 decision released Thursday, the court of appeals ruled Bradford Realty wasnt entitled to direct notice of the historic district, and that Craig was required to obtain a Certificate of Appropriateness before replacing original wood siding with vinyl siding.

In her supporting opinion, Judge Patricia Riley wrote the enacting of the historic district was prospective and general in nature and did not fall under due process requirements of the 14th Amendment.

The ordinance purports to regulate only future conduct to be consistent with the provisions of the historic preservation ordinance, Riley wrote in regards to the city legislation establishing the historic district.

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Court sides with New Albany historic group