Council to hear Newcomb Oil appeal Tuesday regarding home demolition

Newcomb Oil Co., owner of this home at 118 East Stephen Foster Ave., is appealing a denial of its application to demolish the home to make way for a new Five Star store. The new store requires the space the home now occupies. The home is in the city’s historic district.

NC GAZETTE / WBRT RADIO
STAFF REPORT

Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016 — The Bardstown City Council will meet at 6 p.m. — immediately following its working session — to hear an appeal by Newcomb Oil Co. of a recent decision by the Historic Review Board (HRB).

Newcomb Oil had applied for a permit to demolish a home known locally as “the Dobbs house” at 118 East Stephen Foster Ave., adjacent to the company’s Five Star on the corner of Second and Stephen Foster.

After a lengthy hearing in September, the HRB voted to deny the company’s request to demolish the home. The denial was based partly on what the board saw as a lack of evidence of actual economic hardship the company has suffered or will suffer if it is not allowed to raze the home.

Newcomb wants the space the home occupies so it can demolish the home and its existing store and build a modern store similar to its newer ones. Those store designs make better use of space and are more energy efficient, the company told the HRB.

The home was built in the late 1930s, and while it wasn’t originally designated as a historic structure, its inclusion in the city’s National Register district and its period design make the home a contributing structure to the district’s character.

PROOF OF ECONOMIC HARDSHIP. Newcomb Oil has owned the home since 1998. The home was part of the historic district when the company purchased it.

The company told the HRB it has been unsuccessful in its repeated attempts to find a suitable tenant for the property, commercial or residential. The home has remained vacant and has produced no revenue for the company. The company has been forced to spend thousands of dollars over the years on taxes and upkeep.

In the past, the company sought permission to move the home to a new location rather than demolish it. Because moving a home is such an invasive procedure, it often significantly decreases the historic value of a home.

NEXT UP. The hearing will take place at a special council meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016, in the council chambers next to the city recreation department on Xavier Drive. The hearing will follow a 5 p.m. council working session.

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