Two 1940s farmhouses on Rowe Road and a 1945 log cabin on Henderson Road are up for demolition at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Staff back all 3; no new plans are filed.

Three old homes in rural Milton could come down soon. Two are wood-frame farmhouses from about 1940. The third is a log cabin built in 1945.

Milton’s Design Review Board votes on the requests at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 2006 Heritage Walk. The city announced the meeting on Monday. People can attend or watch the meeting online.

City planning staff recommend approving all three requests. None of the buildings has a historic designation under city, state or federal rules, the staff reports say. For every site, the reports list the proposed redevelopment as “unknown at this time.”

What is on the agenda

The three requests cover about 179 acres, all zoned agricultural (AG-1). The details come from the staff reports in the agenda packet for the Nov. 3 meeting.

Address Acres Structures to be removed
15500, 15580 and 15655 Rowe Road 135.5 2 farmhouses (about 1940), a 1975 brick house, a barn and 2 outbuildings
16335 Henderson Road 2.96 1945 log cabin, 1995 carport, shop building
2395 Birmingham Road 40.5 19,800-square-foot covered riding arena and a shed, both from 2004

Rowe Road: three houses on 135 acres

The largest request is in northwest Milton, off Rowe Road. Six structures on three parcels would be removed:

  • 15500 Rowe Road: a one-story wood-frame house from about 1940, plus an outbuilding and a barn from about the 1960s
  • 15580 Rowe Road: a one-story wood-frame house from about 1940 and a 1980 outbuilding
  • 15655 Rowe Road: a 1.5-story brick house with a basement, from about 1975

The request also covers concrete driveways and stone sidewalks.

Henderson Road and Birmingham Road

The Henderson Road property is near Freemanville Road. Its log cabin covers about 1,945 square feet, the staff report says. The shop building’s construction date is unknown. The same applicant filed both the Henderson Road and Rowe Road requests.

The Birmingham Road lot is near the Hopewell Road roundabout. The staff report describes it as mostly undeveloped. Its covered riding arena would be removed, along with a shed and a gravel driveway. No house on that lot is part of the request.

What staff want as conditions

If the board approves, each owner would have to:

  • complete a demolition permit application
  • level and grass the disturbed ground
  • get a permit before removing any trees

Part of a pattern this fall

The board approved three other demolitions at its Oct. 6 meeting, each by a 4-0 vote, according to the action minutes in the same packet. They were a house and barn on Freemanville Road, a house and pole barn on Arnold Mill Road and a house on New Providence Road.

A demolition approval is not a building approval. Any new homes or lots would need their own permits. A subdivision would go through the Planning Commission, as the 42-lot Brookecrest plan did on Oct. 28.

What it means for you

  • If you live near Rowe, Henderson or Birmingham roads, you can speak at Tuesday’s meeting or watch it online.
  • The board has seven members appointed by the mayor and City Council. It advises the community development director on new building and votes on demolition requests.
  • Tuesday is also Election Day. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; see our voting guide.
  • The board’s next meeting is Tuesday, Dec. 1.

For other work on the Hopewell Road corridor near the Birmingham Road lot, see our story on Hopewell Road traffic calming.