COASTAL OBSERVER

A house from the 1940s that the owners say is beyond repair will be replaced in exchange for an agreement to preserve one of the oldest houses on Pawleys Island.

The town Board of Zoning Appeals last week gave Brian and Staci Inskeep a variance to the unified development code that limits each lot to one principal use. They own an oceanfront lot that contains Liberty Lodge, a 19th century house, and Port Arthur, built a century later. They planned to restore both, but found that doing more than about $50,000 worth of work to Port Arthur would trigger a provision in the flood ordinance that would require raising the structure more than 3 feet to comply with current regulations.

“It’s structurally unsound,” Steve Banta, a contractor on the project, told the appeals board. “It would be an overwhelming challenge to repair what’s there now.”

Three members of the Planning Commission wrote the appeals board to urge them to find a way to preserve Port Arthur.

“It appears to me that the new owners of the Liberty Lodge property have plans which are exactly the opposite of the ‘Pawleys Island look,’” said John Hildreth, who chairs the commission.

The members voted last month to poll the owners of nine island houses that are on the National Register of Historic Places about their support of a historic preservation ordinance. Liberty Lodge is among them. The commission plans to submit a proposed ordinance to Town Council.

Hildreth said if Port Arthur were on the National Register the renovation in excess of 50 percent of its value would not trigger compliance with the flood ordinance. “It is certainly old enough to qualify,” he added.

“Approving the demolition of Port Arthur sets a dangerous precedent for the future of historic preservation in Pawleys Island,” Buddy and Linda Keller wrote. He serves on the Planning Commission. She serves on the Architectural Review Board that would have to approve the new house.

John LaMaster, a commission member, noted that the historic houses also contribute to the value of all the island’s properties and its attraction for visitors.

Owners of the adjacent property, who are cousins of the former Liberty Lodge owners, also urged the board to deny the variance.

“This is the historic area of Pawleys that makes it so unique,” said Betsy Rabolli. “It’s vital that we stick to the rules and regulations.”

Dan Stacy, attorney for the Inskeeps, said compliance with flood regulations is going to be an ongoing issue for the town as people buy older houses.

“The Inskeep family is very willing to take on the historic renovation of a very old home,” he said. But Port Arthur is different. “It’s 65 to 70 years old. It’s not 200 years old.”

Lina Marcantoni, the architect for the Inskeeps, said Port Arthur’s condition is too poor for National Register status. “It would not qualify,” she told the board.

Brian Inskeep said his family has a long history as renters at Liberty Lodge.

“We stayed there the very first time Staci was pregnant with our oldest daughter, who is graduating from Clemson next week,” he said. “It was always part of our life.”

The couple said the property will be used by their family, which includes four children, and not as a rental.

“I’m very surprised at the animosity,” Staci Inskeep said. The restoration and the new house “is in agreement with everything the town has put in place.”

Board members asked about the size and location of the new house. Stacy said it will be taller due to the design and new flood elevation, but it would not be farther seaward of Port Arthur.

The board members met in closed session with Greg Weathers, who serves as their attorney. They emerged to hear Town Administrator Dan Newquist’s staff report, which noted that the need to elevate Port Arthur could be considered a hardship.

The board approved the variance with four conditions:

• preservation of Liberty Lodge with its current façade in its current location in perpetuity;

• the new structure cannot occupy a footprint more than 50 percent larger than Port Arthur’s;

• the new structure would be subject to ARB approval with no further variances;

• the construction would be done in a way that preserves all the existing trees.

The preservation agreement would be “in hopes that that may become one of many historically preserved houses on the island,” Weathers said.

The vote was 4-1. Byron York was opposed.