In Tenafly, historical preservation versus property rights…Which Will Prevail?

Historical Designation vs Property Owner Rights

Later this month the Tenafly Planing Board will be faced with the hard task of balancing private property owner rights with historical values as deemed by the overall community.  The property in question is the Mackay-Lowe Estate located at 53 Knickerbocker Road most recently listed for sale for $6,998,000.

The property is described  as “….. This peaceful park-like estate property includes a magnificent stone and slate Dutch colonial manor house built in 1919 situated on approximately 6.4 flat, well landscaped acres that includes large mature trees, specimen plantings, a rose garden, koi pond, an orchard and vast lawns……”

The Historic Preservation Commission wants  to declare the Mackay-Lowe Estate property a historical landmark. In  similar case that came before the Closter board the owners of the Harold Hess Lustron House fought landmark status and, in the end, the council declined to grant the designation to the home.

Dave Wall, chairman of the Tenafly Historic Preservation Commission, said of the Mackay-Lowe Estate, “The house deserves designation because it has been a widely published, magnificent example of the Dutch Colonial Revival style, designed around 1920 by a nationally recognized architect, Frank J. Forster, in a region of the country known for its original, sandstone and gambrel-roofed Dutch colonials.

David Watkis the attorney representing the property owner said  “We have expert testimony that indicates it’s not historic,” he said. “The house was built in the 1940s. There’s no reality in their arguments.”

If the home is designated a landmark, it will hamper the homeowner’s ability to sell the land, he said. “There’s 7 acres of land there. It will have a huge impact on the ability to develop the property. It will cost Tenafly hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage,” he said.

While communities set their own master plans and zoning laws, the planning board now has the tough decision in weighing property rights against what some deem as a greater good. All this under the cloud of threat for damages lawsuit by the property owner, should his rights not be respected.

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