City of New Rochelle Historical Landmark Review Board Meeting – July 8, 2026
City of New Rochelle Historical Landmark Review Board Meeting – July 8, 2026
The Historical Landmark Review Board (HLRB) of New Rochelle met on July 8, 2026 at 12:00 PM to consider two applications: a certificate of appropriateness for solar panels at 250 Boulevard East and a similar certificate for window work at Trinity Episcopal Church. Several previously adjourned items were carried over to future meetings. The board approved both applications, the church project subject to specific conditions regarding timeline and communication.
Public Comments & Testimony
- A member of the audience commented on the Trinity Church project, stating "We just want our roof there. That's good enough."
- Reverend Eliza Davies, priest at Trinity Church, urged the board to approve the project quickly, noting that the church had a small fund that might be lost if action was delayed, and that the building would worsen if left untreated.
Discussion Items
- Solar Panels at 250 Boulevard East (HLRB 909-2026): Kate Weisberg of Momentum Solar presented a plan to install four arrays of solar panels on the front and back roof slopes of a single-family home. She explained that removing the front array would reduce power production by 56.76%. The house is approximately 50 feet from the street, and the roof has a low pitch. Board members noted similarity to past approvals for low-pitched roofs and the favorable setback. The panel color would be black to match the roof. No public comments from neighbors.
- Trinity Episcopal Church Window Project (HLRB 10-2026): Architect Thomas Monarski described replacing deteriorated clearstory window frames and glazing at 311 Huguenot Street. The plan is to install new clear glazing at the original plane and remount the existing cathedral glass 1–1.5 inches behind it for protection and energy efficiency. The church has funding from NYSERTA after switching to electric heating. Board members discussed the need to ensure the stained glass is eventually restored and reinstalled, and the importance of a timeline. They proposed conditions: a one-year review from building permit issuance, updates on any issues with removal or storage of stained glass, and a requirement to return if any panels cannot be reused.
Key Outcomes
- Application HLRB 909-2026 (Solar panels at 250 Boulevard East) was approved as presented by a unanimous vote. Motion cited similarity to past approvals and adequate distance from the street.
- Application HLRB 10-2026 (Trinity Episcopal Church) was approved subject to conditions: within one year from building permit issuance the applicant shall return to the board for a review of project timing; updates on any issues during removal/storage of the stained glass shall be provided to the board as necessary; failure to complete work may result in violation of the approval. The motion passed unanimously.
- Three other applications were adjourned: HLRB 4-2026 (Mario Canteros) and HLRB 7-2026 (Josh Lucina Picardo) were adjourned to the September meeting; HLRB 5-2026 (Nishelle Arjuni) was adjourned until further notice.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening everyone. Welcome to the July 8th meeting of the City of New Rochelle Department of Development Historical Landmark Review Board. We have a somewhat shortened agenda because we have some uh adjourned uh items. Uh but uh tonight uh we uh have a couple of items beforehand. Um I think is probably first. Sure. Um Rose Bofamante here. Lucia Elliott is out. Jim Fleming here. Leanne Merchant here. Belkis Rees CUNY here. Don Richards is out, and staff members with us today, Soraya Bahabib, deputy building official, Kevin Kane, Director of Planning Sustainability, and myself, Benito Sahas, senior project manager. Okay. Uh that means we do have a form a quorum tonight. Uh so we can uh vote if necessary. Uh we're gonna just gonna jump into the uh approval of minutes. We have none tonight, so we can go right over item one, one point one nine. Uh then we'll go into the public hearings. I'll read out the adjourned ones just so they're they're on the uh television record. Uh public hearing item number two, public hearing 2.1 application HLRB 4-2026 by Mario Canteros for a certificate of appropriateness to legalize existing improvements, including a porch enclosure pool, outdoor kitchen detached open porch, fire pit, pizza oven generator, HVAC unit for foot IPE driveway gates, and a four-foot cable rail fence along the side yard, as well as to construct a new garage, install pavers, and add new front steps and a walkway at nine the court block eight two eight, lot fourteen in an R1 Historic Zone District. We are adjourned to the September meeting. Uh we can jump to 2.2 HLRB 5-2026 by Nishelle Arjuni for a certificate of appropriateness to construct a raised patio and detached garage in the front yard for an existing one family dwelling at 14 the boulevard, block 827, lot 42, and in R1 Historic Zone District adjourned until further notice. Uh and uh 2.3 application HLRB 7-2026 by Josh Lucina Picardo for a certificate of appropriateness to legalize a wooden enclosed fence at the side and rear yard at 40 Earl Place, block 879, lot 35, and in R1 Historic Zone District adjourned to the September meeting. Uh those are all adjourned, so we can go right to 2.4. Uh anybody's here for it. Okay, let me just read it. Uh application HLRB 909-2026 by Cameron Christensen, Momentum Solar for a certificate of appropriateness to install solar panels at 250 the Boulevard East, block 878, lot 45, and in R1 Historic Zones District. Please come up. Thank you. Good evening, Lord. My name is Kate Weisberg. I'll be presenting the project for 250 Boulevard E. Um. Apologies. This is my first time attending one of your historic meetings, so I'll just navigate us through the plans. So we'll approximately have four rays. An array is a panel set. We have three arrays in the front, one large in the back. Sorry, didn't mean to go so fast. That's a front of the house. Apologies. Just click off. Up so I'm doing the house. This is what the view looks like. And um this will also show the distance where the houses approximately 50 feet away from the sidewalk. The back of the yard. This is what the street view looks like. And the surrounding properties. And then we also have what it would look like if we removed um the front. I apologize.
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