Archive of Prominent Section 106 Cases:
July 1999
New Jersey: Rehabilitation of Congress Hall Hotel (Cape May)
(Latest update)
Agency: City of Cape May (recipent of Department of Housing and Urban Development funds)
Criteria for Council Involvement:
- Rehabilitation of the Congress Hall Hotel and construction of a new addition may result in adverse effects to the Cape May National Historic Landmark District (Criterion 1).
- There is widespread public interest within the community, centering on disputes among the developer, adjacent property owners, and local preservationists (Criterion 3).
Recent Developments
The City of Cape May has submitted a draft Programmatic Agreement for Council review and consideration during upcoming meetings with consulting parties.
Background
In the fall of 1998, the city received grant and loan funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to assist with the rehabilitation of Congress Hall Hotel and its annex, contributing buildings within the Cape May National Historic Landmark (NHL) District. The proposed rehabilitation will occur in two phases: rehabilitation of the hotel and grounds, followed by construction of an addition to the existing annex for use as a conference hall. The estimated cost of the undertaking, which includes the use of Federal historic preservation tax credits, is $20 million.
The City of Cape May in its entirety was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. The Secretary of the Interior designated it an NHL in 1976. Congress Hall, originally constructed in the mid-19th century, was reconstructed at the turn of the century following a fire. The hotel is a key contributing building within the NHL district because of its historic associations, siting, imposing scale, and relationship to the shoreline.
In order to qualify for the Federal tax credits, the rehabilitation must be carried out in conformance with the approaches recommended in The Secretary or Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation. Under the Council's regulations, consistency with the Standards means that the rehabilitation will not have an adverse effect, and the city determined that this would be the case for the first phase of this project. However, the adjacent property owners and the Friends of Congress Hall, an organization created to oppose this project, are vehemently against the developer's plans for accommodating hotel and retail parking and for treatment of the lawn. There are also local concerns that the proposed conference center addition will alter the character not only of the hotel but of the landmark district as a whole.
Under Section 106, the Council cannot segment its review and must consider the project in its entirety. Since aspects of the rehabilitation project and the proposed addition could diminish the integrity of the hotel and surrounding area, the Council determined that the project has the potential to adversely affect the landmark district.
Policy Highlights
The integrity of the Cape May Historic District, like many other historic districts, is in fragile balance. Rehabilitation and economic stability struggle against deterioration and disinvestment. This has prompted the district to be included in past lists of endangered National Historic Landmarks published by the Department of Interior. While this project has the potential to be a very positive influence on the health of the district, Section 106 consultation will have to carefully consider the project's immediate and long-term effects to make sure that it will not compromise the district's integrity.
Staff contact: Charlene Dwin Vaughn
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