BERLIN, Md. -- Plans for a modern and contemporary building at 19 Gay Street received some pushback from the Historic District Commission. Some members felt the design wouldn't fit in with Berlins old school architecture.
From the light posts in town to almost castle like exteriors, Berlin certainly has a distinct look.
It's why Sandy Glassman, who works in Berlin, feels a modern building could take away from some of the small towns charm.
"If it could be a little more Eastern Shore flavor, it would keep the towns flavor and make it not a generic town," said Glassman.
When the building plans were presented by Jonathan Selway, the buildings architect, at a Historic District Commission meeting on February 1st, some members questioned if it would be a good fit.
"I'm not opposed to modern, but it needs to fit in Berlin, and to me this building doesn't fit in Berlin," said Laura Stearns, Vice President of the HDC.
Many people we spoke with agreed it's important to keep the historic look of Berlin alive, but in the particular section where this building would go, which is mainly houses and businesses, historical architecture is lacking.
"In our minds, this is the perfect spot for the town to actually create a kind of new district," said Selway.
Andy Blizzard, who lives in Berlin, would like to see the town go in that direction.
"There's old school architecture, which is nice, but we need to get into the new age," said Blizzard.
Selway said his firm will work with the HDC to make changes while trying to stay true to his original design. He hopes the demolition of the current building and construction of the new building will start this summer.