A request by the Rochester Hills Historic District Study Committee to create a new historic district for a house at the southwest corner of Livernois and Hamlin has been turned down.
City council took no action on the request due to the objection of the owner. The house, built around 1835 and 
known as the William S. Adams House, is vacant and has been on the market for three years, according to the owner, Patrice Sinclair.
“It is a spectacular house; it probably at some point should be designated historic,” Sinclair said. But the house needs a lot of work and she asked council to allow the next owner to weigh in on historic designation.
“No more money is going into this house right now,” she said. “I can’t.” She urged council not to make it tougher to sell. “It’s just a very difficult market.”
Resident Paul Miller said waiting puts a piece of city history in danger. “If this house isn’t designated, it has no protection,” he said.
Councilman Martin Brennan said he wouldn’t go against the owner’s wishes.
“I think this is almost blatantly unconstitutional, it’s so oppressive,” he said. “It’s offensive; we believe in personal freedom here.”
