Downtown Cumberland, Md. (City of Cumberland)

Are two historic buildings in Cumberland, Md., endangered or not? In an unusual move, the city's historic preservation commission has reversed its decision to nominate the two structures to Preservation Maryland's annual list of threatened properties.

The commission voted last month to nominate the 1931 Saints Peter and Paul School and the 1906 Footer Dye Works building to the Endangered Maryland list, but has backed away from the nominations after the city administrator and the city solicitor informed the commission of possible legal complications.

Kathy McKenney, city historic planner, says that the city was concerned because the commission has the ability to make legally binding decisions about the buildings. For instance, owners must seek the commission's approval is needed in order for owners to obtain certificates of appropriateness for work on the buildings, which are both in historic districts. "As a result of being on the Endangered Maryland list, that could be seen as us not being impartial," McKenney says.

The controversy began after officials at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church, who want to raze the school, learned that it was being nominated.

"We weren't told. It was just done," says Father Jim Kurtz. "The whole point is that they nominated the building without asking us. They're the board that we go before to get the [demolition] permit."

Last year, the church applied to the commission for a for a certificate of appropriateness to demolish the two-story brick building that has been mostly unused since 2002, when the school merged with another parish. The commission postponed a decision, asking for more information on the church's plans, and the application has since expired. Kurtz says that the church is finishing their master plan for the site, which includes demolition of the school to make way for parking and an addition to the parish house, and will reapply in the near future.

The commission voted to nominate Footer Dye works due to concerns that the building was being allowed to deteriorate by its owner, Canal Place Preservation and Development Authority. Because the authority is owned by the state, it does not come under the commission's jurisdiction.

However, the authority is in final stages of working out a lease agreement with a private developer, which would need city approval for any work done on the property. Michele Crabtree, acting administrative officer, says that the group did not know about either the nomination or the retraction, but says that the building has been stabilized, and that plans for the building will be up to the developer.

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