More News

Master architect Pelli leads charrette to save Comsat

County Council may refuse to hear arguments on historic designation, squelching last hope for preservation

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Master architect Cesar Pelli is coming to Montgomery County early next month to help plan ways to reuse the Comsat building in Clarksburg, even as questions arise about whether the County Council will listen to arguments to preserve the building.

Despite a strong recommendation from the county’s Historic Preservation Commission to add Comsat to the county’s historic registry, the Planning Board voted against historic designation last July, saying it would be a hardship for the property’s owner, Berwyn, Pa.-based LCOR.

The board does not decide the issue, but once it has voted on a historic designation amendment it makes a recommendation to the County Council. The council makes the final decision, with recommendations from the Planning Board and county executive.

Only under the threat of a lawsuit did the board forward its Comsat amendment to the council. County Executive Douglas M. Duncan (D) staunchly opposed the historic designation when the issue was before the Planning Board.

The council has yet to schedule a hearing on the Comsat question.

‘‘Chances are it won’t be scheduled,” said Jean Arthur, the council’s historic preservation staffer, meaning Comsat would not earn historic status.

Council and Planning Board staff held lengthy discussions about the matter and do not think it needs to be brought to the council if the Planning Board does not consider the building historic, she said.

The Historic Preservation Commission plans to brief Duncan on the building’s historic importance May 26. In his May 2005 letter to the board, Duncan said historic designation for the building would impede the growth of the Interstate 270 technology corridor. Last week his office sent the council a note stating the designation would have no fiscal impact on the county’s budget.

Michael Faden, a legislative aide for the council, said it is not certain that the council will not hear Comsat. Still, he said, ‘‘There are major issues about whether it’s properly before the council because there is no amendment.”

But Wayne Goldstein, president of Montgomery Preservation Inc., said the council has considered hundreds of recommendations for historic designation that were rejected by the Historic Preservation Commission and Planning Board.

‘‘They clearly don’t know their facts or history,” he said.

However, he said he is too busy planning the charrette to talk to the council staff right now. ‘‘After that we can get back to legal matters,” he said.

Pelli, the world-renowned architect who designed the Comsat building, has agreed to lead a three-day charrette under the sponsorship of Montgomery Preservation Inc. at the Montgomery College Rockville campus June 3-5 in an effort to save the building.

The goal is to develop three different concepts for Comsat, which will be presented June 6 at the Montgomery Preservation Inc. 20th anniversary awards ceremony.

Comsat is one of Pelli’s earliest works. The building, at the northern end of Montgomery County facing Interstate 270, was completed in 1969.

Pelli has written to the council and Planning Board offering at no charge to redesign the building and the 230-acre campus in a way compatible with the Clarksburg Master Plan, which calls for a mixed-use development on the site.

Property owner LCOR has fought against historic designation saying the building is too new and the designation would be an economic hardship. It wants to demolish the building and build a mix of townhouses, apartments, retail buildings and offices on the campus.

‘‘What we’re doing is a very exciting way to show this can be achieved,” Goldstein said of the charrette.

Local residents, architects, planners, environmentalists, preservationists, technology historians, government officials, developers, builders and other stakeholders are all invited to participate, Goldstein said. Sessions will be held 9:30 a.m. to noon and 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. each day.

He encourages people to attend all or some of the sessions.

‘‘I just want to give people the opportunity to participate on any level,” Goldstein said.

He hopes LCOR will also send representatives to the charrette.