The Village of Mineola mayor and board of trustees voted unanimously to amend the Architectural Review Law so that the law is less cumbersome for residents who wish to make exterior renovations to their homes.

The law was enacted to preserve the prevailing aesthetic character of a neighborhood. In essence, the law would prevent a certain type of house from being built in a neighborhood where it may not necessarily fit in. In addition, the law was also intended to prevent modifications to homes that would change the look of the home so that it no longer fits in with the neighborhood.

However, there were problems that arose that were not intended. Applications for minor improvements to homes had to be reviewed by the Architectural Review Board, which is also the Planning Board. Residents would have to put off making their improvements until the board gave the green light even though the modifications may not necessarily affect the aesthetic look of the home to the point that it would change the appearance of the neighborhood.

According to the amended architectural review law, passed by the board of trustees last Wednesday, the superintendent of buildings for the village will review all applications and when appropriate, refer certain applications to the Planning Board for examination, hearing, deliberation and action relative to the Architectural Review Law.

Applications that will be referred to the Planning Board for architectural review include those for the construction of any new building or structure; applications for alterations or additions to any building or structure that would alter the roof line of the building and any addition or alteration that would add more than 40 percent of the gross floor area of the structure.

By applying these conditions to architectural review, the village board believes that the residents wanting to make improvements to their homes such as putting on a new door or changing the windows would not be hindered by the law. The decision will also help to clear up much of the backlog of applications.

The village board believes that even with the amendment, the spirit of the law, which is to preserve the aesthetic look of neighborhoods, will remain intact.

There had been a moratorium on the Architectural Review Law, which is due to expire at the end of the month. However, the village board voted to extend that moratorium until the new Architectural Review Law goes into effect. As soon as the new law is filed with the secretary of state, it will go into effect.

The new law puts a lot of responsibility in the hands of superintendent of buildings Dan Whalen. Bill Plunkett of Crandle Drive in Mineola, who has been a proponent of the Architectural Review Law, asked if the building department has enough staff to handle the additional responsibility and was told by Mayor Jack M. Martins that it does.