The Clarkdale Town Council and Historic Preservation Commission held a joint meeting on Feb. 6 to discuss the Voluntary Consultation Report from the State Historic Preservation Office regarding the town’s bandstand.
The town bandstand is listed as a “contributing structure” of the Clarkdale Historic District and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.
The town had Advanced Structural Engineering conduct a bandstand structural evaluation report in October. This report was forwarded to Architect Susan Lawson at the State Historic Preservation Office for a voluntary consultation review. Lawson reviewed the four scopes of work outlined in the report against the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
The ASE report recommendations were in four categories: minor corrections — a minimalist approach to preservation, extensive rehabilitation, stop the deterioration and rebuild the structure.
The minor corrections and extensive rehabilitation were outlined to be initiated as soon as possible to be able to continue to use the structure. The stop the deterioration option is a long term solution that involves water management while rebuilding the structure requires reconstruction.
The SHPO report stated that three of the four recommendations proposed by ASE — minor corrections, extensive rehabilitation and stop the deterioration — meet the Secretary’s Standards for Rehabilitation.
The SHPO report recommended using rehabilitation treatments to be able to meet the required standards, under the condition that these can meet safety codes. If the minor corrections aren’t sufficient to meet the town’s safety codes, SHPO stated that they can provide more guidance on appropriate methods for a more extensive rehabilitation.
The report reiterated the town’s goals in fixing the bandstand, including: Allowing open access to the public, bringing the bandstand to full code compliance, addressing all issues in one project and keeping the bandstand’s status on the National Register of Historic Places.
The report states “Our office recommends that to meet town goals, the more extensive rehabilitation scope is selected in lieu of minor corrections, as the former is better aligned to meet the Town Council’s goals listed above by providing comprehensive structural stabilization.”
Both the Clarkdale Town Council and Historic Preservation Commission approved the voluntary consultation report.
