By ANDY GARDNER

MASSENA -- The village board on Tuesday ratified renovation standards for an area that officials call the “downtown core.”

The guide includes both legal requirements and recommendations that are not mandated.

The final version does not ban street-facing air conditioners in upper level windows that had at one time been proposed, but recommends property owners keep them from building fronts.

The new law creates an overlay district where the standards apply, which Mayor Tim Currier said is the “cleanest” way to handle it.

“It sits over the top of a couple of districts” and “only [applies] to that area,” the mayor said at the meeting.

He said property owners could petition the village if they want to make renovations that are restricted under the new code.

"The one thing that's important to point out is ... in the event someone wants to make renovations that are not consistent with the requirements, they can obtain a variance,” Currier said.

Projects covered under the new law include new construction, exterior modification of an existing structure and modification to site layout. It governs signage, relocation of an existing structure, fencing or walls, canopies, awnings, changes to exterior lighting or utilities and parking facilities. It also includes a restriction on colors that can be used, but Currier has previously said they have a wide range of color swatches from which people can choose.

A complete copy of the new law is available from the village.