Rockville Historic District Commission Meeting – August 20, 2026: Reconsideration of 200 Monroe Street Designation
Rockville Historic District Commission Meeting – August 20, 2026
The Rockville Historic District Commission (HDC) held a virtual meeting on the evening of Thursday, August 20, 2026, to consider a single agenda item: a request for reconsideration of the Commission's July 16, 2026 decision to designate a portion of the property at 200 Monroe Street (200B Monroe) in the Historic District Overlay Zone. The meeting was attended by Chair Peter Fosselman, Commissioners Seth Dembo, Anidini O'Powell, Mercy Shenge, and Michael Goldfinger (who joined late), along with staff members Megan Flick (Principal Planner), Katie Gerbis (Comprehensive Planning Manager), and Acting Deputy City Attorney Nick DeMay.
Discussion Items
Request for Reconsideration (Case 2026-330 EOS, 200 Monroe Street)
- Background: The applicant, Mr. Bachet (owner of 200 Murray Street), had previously submitted an evaluation of significance in anticipation of a demolition permit for structures at 200 A and B Monroe Street. After postponements, the HDC reviewed the case on July 16, 2026, and voted 3-0 to designate only the original 1906 building at 200B Monroe, finding that 200A did not meet criteria.
- Applicant's Grounds for Reconsideration: The applicant requested reconsideration citing: (1) desire to provide additional details about original exterior materials from the 1906 structure; (2) wish to present to the full Commission (two commissioners were absent on July 16); and (3) need for clarity on which portions of the building at 200B are considered historic.
- Staff Recommendation: Megan Flick recommended reconsideration, stating that designating only a portion of the property was not a good policy outcome and that inadvertence justified reconsideration.
- Legal Perspective: Acting Deputy City Attorney Nick DeMay explained that the Commission has broad discretion to reconsider under its rules, which allow for grounds such as mistake of fact, inadvertence, surprise, fraud, or other good cause. He clarified that tonight's meeting was solely to decide whether to grant reconsideration; if approved, the original July 16 decision would be voided and a new hearing would be held at the next meeting (September 17, 2026).
- Commissioner Comments:
- Commissioner Dembo supported reconsideration, noting the complexity of designating only a portion and that previous staff support was limited due to turnover and leave.
- Commissioner Shenga asked about additional information from the applicant; staff confirmed no new information had been provided beyond the request letter. She was comfortable waiting until September.
- Commissioner O'Powell agreed to reconsider based on staff and attorney input.
- Commissioner Goldfinger stated the July motion was incomplete because it addressed only the building footprint without clarifying surrounding land area, and he supported reconsideration to add necessary detail.
- Chair Fosselman initially opposed reconsideration but changed his mind after discussing with staff, supporting a second hearing for the applicant.
- Motion: Commissioner Dembo moved to reconsider the July 16, 2026 decision for inadvertence and good cause, specifically due to lack of clarity on how much of the property to designate and concerns about the effect of listing only a portion. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously (5-0).
Key Outcomes
- Vote: The HDC unanimously voted (5-0) to grant the request for reconsideration of its July 16, 2026 decision regarding 200 Monroe Street.
- Next Steps: The reconsideration hearing will be held at the regularly scheduled HDC meeting on September 17, 2026. Staff will prepare a report with options for the Commission, including designating the whole property, none, or a clearly defined portion with specific boundaries.
- Original Decision Voided: As a result of the reconsideration vote, the prior motion to file a sectional map amendment for a portion of 200B Monroe is voided. The Commission will hear the application anew in September.
Meeting Transcript
Um, good evening, everyone. I'm Peter Fosselman, the chair of the Historic District Commission for the City of Rockville. Thank you for joining us this evening. This is meeting number eight, 2026. It's Thursday, August 20th, 2026. I'm joined by fellow commissioner Seth Dembo, Anidini O'Powell, and Mercy Shenge. Commissioner Goldfinger should be joining us shortly. We're also joined this evening by our deputy or acting deputy city attorney, Nick DeMay. Thank you for joining us this evening, Nick. Um is Ms. Walters tired of us. What's going on? Not at all. Yeah, she had a rare another another engagement. That's okay. You don't have to explain, but thank you. Thank you for being here and taking the time. And we're also joined by um Megan Flick, our uh principal planner and Katie Gerbis, our comprehensive planning manager. Uh the agenda times in the estimate only, and it may take a little longer than usual, but we only have one animal this evening, so there should be a quick meeting. Um tonight is virtual only. There is no in-person option. And also you may view the uh meeting on Rockville Channel 11, which is Rockville MD.gov forward Rockville 11. And you may also also watch the recordings on the same uh language as Rockville MD.gov for video on demand. Our first item on the agenda uh is a request for reconsideration. This is 2026 330 EOS. The requesters, Mr. Bachet, here's the owner, and the address is 200 Murray Street. Staff of a report. Yes, we just have a verbal report uh for you guys this evening. Um so just to remind everyone, I guess on uh the context, the background of this case, they initially submitted an evaluation of significance in April of this year in anticipation of filing a demolition permit for the structures on the property. Um again at 200 A and B Monroe Street. Uh so the case was on the May agenda. The applicant requested to postpone the case at that meeting. Um we presumed it would be on the June agenda, but they request an additional postponement to the July meeting. So the HDC officially reviewed this case in July and found that 200A did not meet designation criteria, but that the original 1906 building at 200B did meet designation criteria. So uh the HCC approved a motion 30 to designate just a portion of 200B Monroe. Um so since then the applicant has submitted a request for reconsideration on the grounds that one, the applicant wishes to better detail and explain the original exterior material that remains from the original 1906 structure. Uh, two, the applicant wishes to present their position to the full historic district commission as two commissioners were absent on July 16th. And three, the applicant would like clarity on what portions of the building at 200 B Monroe are considered historic. Um so upon staff's review of the reconsideration. Um our recommendation is that we do believe it should be reconsidered. Um, just based on inadvertence, um, it's really not a great policy outcome to designate a portion. We don't believe it achieves the intent of the designation policy. Um, so this meeting will be solely to decide if you all wish to reconsider this case at the September meeting. So it's a yes, we will reconsider or a no, we will not. There won't be testimony at this meeting. Um, and then the I guess the grounds are that the HGC could consider the reconsideration if it finds a mistake of fact or law, inadvertent, surprise, fraud, or other good cause. Um, so if the HCC wishes to reconsider the motion, must state the reasons for doing so. Um, and we will have some example motions later on. Um we also have acting deputy city attorney, Nick DeMay here, um, if he wants to offer any additional legal perspective.
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