Letter: The HDC does retaliate against people — we lived it

Posted 1/27/22

To the editor:Following the lead story in the Jan. 20 edition of the Bristol Phoenix titled “An historic hassle?”, I wanted to provide some additional context regarding our complaint …

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Letter: The HDC does retaliate against people — we lived it

Posted

To the editor:

Following the lead story in the Jan. 20 edition of the Bristol Phoenix titled “An historic hassle?”, I wanted to provide some additional context regarding our complaint against the Bristol Historic District Commission (HDC).

The work done on our window sash was entirely within the stated and published instructions of the HDC. The rules are clear that sash when not restorable must be replicated by hand. That was done. The issues were the result of John Allen’s not monitoring the project as he should, nor sharing his purported knowledge that the sash and lens were not historic, as well as Scott Mathison not communicating his plans.

There is absolutely retaliatory behavior that has been spelled out at great length to Attorney Andy Teitz, the Town Council and the Town Administrator. We have written letters, we have had meetings with them and we have had phone conversations with them to describe it. They know that. But as you can see, they ignore these legitimate complaints and often don’t bother to even answer.

By their now-established habit of making regular “visits” and phone calls to our surrounding neighbors, John Allen and his wife have persisted in telling our neighbors and their children that we are bad people who mean to ruin our beautiful house, create noise (my husband is an internationally know jazz bassist), and — get this — even plan to change the water table in our neighborhood. The latter supposedly would be caused by our having replaced, with the Building Inspector’s and the HDC’s permissions, a buckled and cracked and toxic asphalt driveway with ecologically correct pavers, which drain water into the earth instead of into the street. Allen was present at the meeting and knows it was approved.

Until Allen (and I guess his wife) and Lima are removed from the HDC, there can be no peace for those of us they have decided they just don’t like.

Cathy and Paul Del Nero
64 Church St.
Bristol

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Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.