The Temple Select Board approved an application for a preservation easement for a historic barn on Webster Highway, following a public hearing on Tuesday.
Kerry McDonald and Richard Redding applied for the easement on the barn on their property at 241 Webster Highway. The preservation easement allows the town to reduce the assessed value of the property for taxation on the grounds that it could assist in maintaining the structure and thus the area’s rural character and scenic environment.
To qualify, structures must meet one of three potential criteria: providing scenic enjoyment by the general public from a public road or waterway, being historically important or within a historic district or its physical or aesthetic features contributing to the historic or cultural integrity of a property on a historic register or within a historic district.
According to his application, Redding argued that his barn, which is visible from Webster Highway, meets the first criteria, which the Select Board agreed with.
“I see it every day when I drive by,” Selectman Ken Caisse said. “It sticks out like a sore thumb – in a good way.”
According to the application, the three-story barn was built in the late 1930s or early 1940s, with a cupola centered on the top roof, with five box stalls, two hay lofts and an upper third floor. In addition to the main barn, there is an attached three-stall shed or paddock for livestock, and a smaller, two-story storage shed behind the barn.
The board determined the shed would not be part of the easement, as it was not visible from the road, but did agree to provide a reduction in the tax assessment for the main barn. The board discussed an appropriate percentage, noting that there have been very few times the town has granted a similar easement.
Select Board Chair Bill Ezell noted there had only been two such easements that he knew of, one of which had burned and was no longer on the record, and a second that had either been given 50 percent or 75 percent off the assessed value, but records were unclear.
Ezell said he had reviewed what other towns had done, and said they were “all over the map.” He suggested a 50 percent reduction in the taxed value of the barn, or about $18,000, which the other board members agreed to. Caisse noted the board should draft a policy to address any future applications that come before the board, to set a uniform standard.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.