Middletown board allows dismantling and cataloging of 1739 South Maid House after preservation debate

Krishna Winston, chair of the Middletown Sustainability Commission, told the board the commission "should be preserving our historic structures" and stressed environmental reasons, saying "there's a lot of carbon that is sequestered in their boards and beams." Public speakers including municipal historian Debbie Shapiro and preservation contractors said the Partridge/South Maid saltbox (foundation marker dated 1739) is architecturally and historically significant and urged the commission to require preservation on site or a like-for-like reconstruction in Middletown.

Attorney Rich Corella, representing the property owners, said the developer cannot incorporate the existing post-and-beam house into the proposed commercial pad and described a preservation path that requires dismantling. Corella said they have a written contract with preservationist William G. Butterly III to "dismantle, catalog and then ultimately store, move to Guilford, and rebuild." Corella told the board the owner will comply with the city's demolition permit process, including utility disconnections, asbestos checks and submission of documentation.

Board members pressed for enforceable oversight. One member asked for inspection reports and documentation during dismantling; Corella said Butterly will map and number parts and his team could provide a report on storage location and process. The commission approved a motion to permit the deconstruction/demolition permit on the condition that the work follow Butterly's dismantling and cataloging plan and that the site plan and final building elevations, materials and colors be returned to staff for further review. The motion passed by voice vote; a roll-call tally was not recorded on the transcript.

The approval allows the developer to proceed with site preparations for two commercial pads at the Washington Street properties. Corella said the approval does not relinquish the owner's contractual discretion over timing, and he acknowledged he cannot bind Butterly to a reconstruction timeline; the preservationist's stated intention is to rebuild the house at a future date at a site in Guilford or Madison.