Montclair Historic Preservation Commission Votes to Designate a Label Street Historic District

The Montclair Historic Preservation Committee (HPC) unanimously voted for the designation of Label Street Historic District based on the findings of the revised Label Street Nomination Report in a meeting on Dec. 14 that lasted until midnight. Kathleen Bennett, HPC chair, who had authored and previously presented her nomination report on the area’s historic merits, recused herself from the discussion.

Over 25 people attended the meeting, and during public comment many voiced support for the nomination. One Forest Street resident highlighted the building’s historical significance, emphasizing its role in attracting residents and contributing to Montclair’s unique charm and advocated for a vote to designate the historic district as a landmark.

“I moved here because of the character and the sense of place in Montclair. There are very few places with as much documented history as Label Street. Please preserve this rare example of manufacturing in our town,” said Joanna Coxeter, a resident, during public comment.  

34 Label Street Associates, owners of property at 6-10 Erie Street identified as Parcel 3, objected to the historic designation, in a letter to the township and in a landmark nomination report review,

The three tax parcels along Label Street, comprising 16 Label Street, 18 Label Street, and 6-10 Erie Street sit within the Walnut Street Business District, an area that was identified as a potential Historic District according to the Historic Preservation Element of the Master Plan back in 2016.

In April 2022, the Montclair Planning Board unanimously rejected a proposal to designate Label Street as an area in need of redevelopment, and that the properties owned by 34 Label Street Associates did not meet the criteria defining an area in need of redevelopment.

Thomas Trautner, the attorney for 34 Label Street Associates, asked for Bennett to return to the hearing to answer questions regarding the December 2022 nomination report and the revised June 2023 nomination report she prepared and the origins of it.

“I was prompted to write this report from looking and reading the redevelopment report that was authored by the Planning Department. Having been a resident of Montclair for 42 years, I was really surprised by the history of this area and that this type of manufacturing had occurred there and the idea that the Crump Label company had national and international significance intrigued me,” Bennett said. 

Following the cross-examination of Bennett, Trautner presented witness Scott Wieczorek, a historic preservation consultant from E2 Project Management, who gave testimony and also prepared a report stating that the nomination report by Bennett failed to make its case for the area to be qualified to meet the standards of a historic district.

One of the buildings, 2 Erie Street, was cited by Wieczorek as having “lost a lot of its historic fabric” due to being greatly revised and modified to become a nightclub in 1990s.

In his closing statement, Trautner stated that “nowhere in the masterplan is there a discussion of the characteristics that the nomination report claims to qualify Label Street as a historic resource, specifically the manufacturing use that’s been discussed as the basis of the proposed designation.”

“What appears to be the obvious motivation in studying the Label Street manufacturing district is to attempt to thwart or constrain the redevelopment of this site and that’s not the appropriate objective of the powers conferred to the HPC,” Trautner said. “The three parcels that are subject of the nomination report are not a district because they are not united in any aesthetic continuity, nor historic theme or commonality. These parcels are united by only two themes, they’re over 50 years old and there’s a fear they might be redeveloped.”

Different HPC members spoke to the sense of place and “aesthetic cohesiveness” of the parcels and how the historic fabric and features still remain, marking the significance of the site.

HPC member Michael Graham, in his comments before voting, said, “I did not appreciate the insinuations and accusations impugning the chair Bennett’s integrity. In my time working on this board she’s always conducted herself with the utmost integrity and with a commitment to follow the law, and so does this board.” People in attendance applauded the statement. 

The HPC voted 5-1 to pass the resolution which will be forwarded to Montclair Council to approve.