Huntington, NY Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)

Article VI of the zoning code, enacted because Huntington "was founded in 1653 and is rich in historical, architectural and cultural resources" (§ 198-40), lets the Town Board designate a parcel, structure, open space or district as a historic landmark if the Board finds any one of six factors under § 198-40.1(A): special cultural, political, economic or social history; association with a historic person or event; distinguishing architectural or engineering characteristics; the work of an important builder or designer; a unique visual or landscape feature; or significant design, detail or craftsmanship. Historic districts require the same factors plus a showing the area "constitutes a distinct section of the Town" under § 198-40.1(B).

Designation runs through the seven-member Huntington Historic Preservation Commission (§ 198-40.2), which must include an architectural historian, a historian, a New York State Bar member and a real estate expert, and meets monthly. Either the property owner or the Commission may petition the Town Board (§ 198-40.3); a historic-district petition needs signatures from thirty percent of the owners in the proposed district. The Commission has ninety days to report, the Town Board must schedule a hearing within forty-five days of that report, and the Board must decide within ninety days of the hearing or the designation is deemed denied.

Once a landmark or district is designated, § 198-41(A)(1) bars any Town department from issuing a building permit for exterior alteration, reconstruction, or demolition of the structure, or of open space within it, without a certificate of approval from the Town Board or the Commission, and the same bar extends to moving or razing the property in whole or in part.