Amherst Historic Preservation Commission·May 12, 2026
A gap in the code · Chasing a $30,000 grant · A vacancy resume · The quiet work of a small board
The Town of Amherst's Historic Preservation Commission used a brisk twenty-minute May session to circle the hole in its own authority: the Town's code only alerts the panel when a demolition permit is filed on a historic "blue-rated" property — not when one is quietly altered — and members watched exactly that happen to a blue-rated home no one flagged until a commissioner drove past. The Commission agreed to press the Town Attorney's Office for code changes and to chase a state grant, roughly $30,000 split with a local match, to fund the design guidelines it needs before it can weigh in on alterations at all. Along the way it approved the April 21 minutes 5–0, confirmed its $60 Buffalo History Museum membership, lined up an interview for a resume that came in for its open seat, set its preservation roundtable for May 28, ruled out a 2026 Preservation Day, and resolved to push blue-rated status into real-estate listings so buyers actually learn what they're buying.
The most consequential thing the Commission did on May 12 was name a problem it cannot yet solve. Under the Town's current preservation code, the panel is notified when someone applies to demolish a "blue-rated" historic structure — and only then. Alterations short of demolition never reach the board. "We are not notified of alterations through the building [department], because it's not a requirement of them," the chair explained, "but it does affect blue-rated properties."[1]
The abstraction had a specific face. Member Hallie Wright[*] had spotted a blue-rated property that had been altered without any demolition permit — and so without any notice to the Commission. "We've lost some historic elements of certain blue-rated properties that I think we would have a say on," the chair said.[2] Sometimes, a member noted dryly, the only way the board learns of a change is that someone happens to "do a drive-by and notice things."[3]
The fix is not simple, and the Commission was candid about the limits of its own charter. For demolitions the panel has three moves — "we either approve, approve with conditions, or we deny, and then we have to landmark," the chair said — but there is no comparable path for alterations, and members were wary of landmarking a house just to police a renovation. "We're not a design review board. That's not in our statute," the chair said.[4] The prerequisite, everyone agreed, is a written set of design guidelines the public could actually rely on — so decisions aren't a "free for all" — and that costs money.[5]
Which is where the grant comes in. The Commission expects a design-guidelines document to run about $30,000, and plans to apply for a Certified Local Government (CLG) grant through New York State's Consolidated Funding Application to cover roughly half, with the Town funding the other half rather than drawing it from the panel's own operating budget.[6] Members recalled a fully scoped application from about a year and a half earlier — "the costing was all figured out… the scope, the descriptions, the administration" — that could largely be resubmitted, with a fresh Town Board resolution required to accompany it.[7] The application window, members believed, closes in June or July, possibly extended this year. No vote was taken; staff and members will coordinate the code discussion with the Attorney's Office and the grant paperwork in the coming weeks.
Amherst maintains an inventory of historically significant buildings from its architectural surveys, and the most significant are coded "blue-rated." The rating flags a property as worth preserving, and it appears on the property's page on the Town's website. But the rating is largely informational: the Commission's formal power attaches only when someone seeks to demolish a blue-rated building — that's the moment the code requires the board be told and given a say (approve, approve with conditions, or deny and pursue landmark designation). An alteration — new siding, stripped trim, changed windows — triggers no such notice, which is the loophole the board spent this meeting trying to close. A separate concern raised May 12: the rating shows on the Town's site but not on real-estate listings, so a buyer may never learn a home is blue-rated until after they own it.
The evening's only formal vote came first and passed cleanly: with a motion by Vice Chair Catherine A. Waterman-Kulpa[*] and a second from Member Hallie Wright,[*] the Commission approved its April 21 minutes. The chair's on-the-record count wobbled for a beat — he first said "five to zero with one abstention" before correcting himself — but the official minutes record the tally cleanly: Ayes 5, Noes 0, Absent 1 (Kensy), no abstention.[8] Member Jennifer Kensy[*] was the lone member absent May 12.
Under Membership, the panel confirmed its $60 Buffalo History Museum membership had been renewed — paid, with the receipt still to arrive from the museum.[9] More consequentially for the board's future, it had received a resume from a member of the public interested in the Commission's vacant seat, and resolved to invite that candidate to its next meeting for an interview. "We would like to set that up for our next meeting… June 9th," the chair said, directing that the invitation come from the Town rather than an individual member.[10] The Commission did not name the applicant on the record.
The Commission locked in its regional preservation roundtable for Thursday, May 28 at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers, with invitations already out and a few RSVPs in hand; the chair confirmed the usual refreshments, scaled to attendance, at about $175, and gently reminded his own members to RSVP after a batch of email invitations bounced back as non-deliverable.[11] Under miscellaneous business, a member floated a Preservation Day event, but the board confirmed nothing is scheduled and, per the minutes, has decided against one for 2026 — choosing instead to "shift our focus to code and securing funds for guidelines," as the chair put it.[12]
The board also returned to the visibility problem behind the alterations gap: a blue-rated designation shows on the Town's own property lookup, but not where buyers actually look. Members discussed approaching the real-estate Multiple Listing Service (MLS) to fold the rating into listing data so prospective buyers are notified — while acknowledging the MLS is a private entity the Town cannot compel. "We could say, hey, this would be worthwhile to add… but we can't force them to do it," one member observed, agreeing to find a contact at the organization and pursue it jointly.[13] The board noted that owners of surveyed properties had received letters years ago — back around 2011 — but doubted a notice from fifteen years ago had followed the house to today's owners. No formal action was taken on any miscellaneous item; each was logged as discussion.
A six-member commission with five present and voting on May 12: Chair Brian Swartz, Vice Chair Catherine A. Waterman-Kulpa, and members Jeffery Amplement, Mary Lou Mancuso and Hallie Wright. Member Jennifer Kensy was absent. Deputy Supervisor Angela Marinucci (Town Board liaison) and Assistant Planner James Quinn did not attend this session; staff present were Sr. Clerk Typist Bryan Fadel, Clerk Greg Dionne, and Planning Director Dan Howard. This was a discussion-heavy session: only the minutes-approval item produced a recorded roll-call vote. Movers, seconders and vote tallies are drawn from the official May 12 minutes.
Vice Chair Waterman-Kulpa moved to approve the April 21, 2026 minutes; seconded by Member Wright; carried unanimously. The chair's live count momentarily mentioned an abstention, but the official minutes record a clean tally with no abstention. This was the meeting's only recorded roll-call vote.
The Commission confirmed its $60 Buffalo History Museum membership was renewed (paid; receipt pending). It also reported receiving one resume for the Commission's member vacancy and agreed to invite the candidate to interview at the June 9 meeting, with the invitation to come from the Town. No motion or vote; logged as No Action in the official minutes.
The Commission requested a meeting with the Town Attorney's Office to review proposed alterations to the HPC code — specifically to address that the board is notified only on demolition permits for blue-rated properties, not on alterations. Members discussed funding a ~$30,000 historic design-guidelines document, including a Certified Local Government (CLG) grant via the NYS Consolidated Funding Application to cover roughly half with a Town match; Planning Director Dan Howard recommended a follow-up meeting before month's end. No motion or vote.
The Commission confirmed the next preservation roundtable for Thursday, May 28 at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers, with refreshments (~$175) scaled to RSVPs. Invitations had gone out; some bounced as non-deliverable and were being resent. Members will report back at the next meeting. No motion or vote.
Raised under Miscellaneous. The Commission confirmed there are no plans for a Preservation Day in 2026, choosing instead to direct its resources toward the HPC code and securing funds for design guidelines. No motion or vote.
The Commission discussed improving transparency for blue-rated properties — noting the rating appears on the Town's website but not in real-estate listings — and possibly integrating the ratings into Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data so prospective buyers are notified. Members acknowledged the MLS is a private entity the Town cannot compel and agreed to pursue a contact jointly. No motion or vote.
A member moved to adjourn; the motion was seconded and carried on a voice vote ("Aye. Aye. Motion carries. Meeting adjourned."). The official minutes record adjournment at 7:20 p.m.
This brief is built from the Town of Amherst's livestreamed meeting audio (YouTube), reconciled against the Town's official May 12, 2026 agenda and minutes (IQM2 / Minutetraq portal). The agenda and minutes govern all proper nouns, motions and vote tallies; the transcript supplies the discussion and quoted phrasing. The Commission's roster was verified against the Town of Amherst's official Historic Preservation Commission page — Chair Brian Swartz; Vice Chair Catherine A. Waterman-Kulpa; members Jeffery Amplement, Jennifer Kensy, Mary Lou Mancuso and Hallie Wright — and re-confirmed against this meeting's official minutes.
Corrections applied. Whisper rendered several names phonetically; each was corrected against the official minutes and roster and marked [*] on first prominent use: audio "Sports" → Swartz; "Waterman Culpo" → Waterman-Kulpa; "Kenzie" → Kensy; "Hayley/Hayley Wright" → Hallie Wright. The staff member the audio calls "Mr. Fidel" is Sr. Clerk Typist Bryan Fadel (per the minutes' roll call); "Dionne" is Clerk Greg Dionne. The name "Kate," heard in the grant discussion as a grant writer, appears only in the audio and is unverified — it is not attributed in this brief. The street-name validator found no street references to check in this session.
Audio quality. The room audio was low-fidelity and the transcript is machine-generated, so several exchanges are fragmentary and quoted phrasing is approximate and reconstructed to the best available reading; the chair's live vote count on the minutes even briefly misstated the tally before the official record was set (Ayes 5, Absent 1). Verify any quote, name, date or dollar figure against the official Town Clerk's record before relying on it. The entire meeting was open session — there was no executive session — and adjourned at 7:20 p.m.