(a) In order to effectuate the intent of this subchapter, the Commissioner of Planning and Natural Resources, before issuing a building permit for work on or demolition of any building or structure in any Historic and Architectural Control District or listed in the Registry, shall refer the application and plans to the Virgin Islands Historic Preservation Commission for its consideration and action. The Historic Preservation Commission shall take into consideration the design and general arrangement, the material, color, and architectural style of the building or structure in question, and the use or project to be developed, and the proper relationship thereof with the feature and characteristics of the nearby buildings and the immediate neighborhood in general. All public projects, regardless of sponsorship, shall be reviewed in the same manner where project plans relate to buildings or structures in any Control District or which are listed in the Registry.
(b) The Virgin Islands Historic Preservation Commission shall notify each applicant of the time, date, and place at which the application and plans will be considered, and each applicant may appear before the Historic Preservation Commission, in person and by representatives, to discuss the application and plans. If the Historic Preservation Commission disapproves the plans it shall place upon its records the reasons and shall include recommendations regarding the proposed construction, reconstruction, alteration, moving, change, or demolition, in terms of landscape, architectural and artistic design, scale arrangements, textures, material, color, and the like, of the property involved. The Historic Preservation Commission shall notify the applicant and the Commissioner of Planning and Natural Resources of its determination in writing, and shall, within fifteen days after a disapproval, furnish the applicant and the Commissioner with an attested copy of its reasons therefor and of recommended amendments or modifications to the plans. After receipt of the building permit from the Commissioner of Planning and Natural Resources, the applicant may proceed with the construction, reconstruction, alteration, moving, change, or demolition according to the plans as amended or modified in strict accordance with the Historic Preservation Commission's recommendations.
(c) If the Historic Preservation Commission either does not notify the applicant of its determination within sixty days after submission of the application and plans to the Commissioner of Planning and Natural Resources, or does not furnish the applicant with a copy of its reasons for disapproval and of its recommendations within fifteen days after disapproval, then the application and plans shall be deemed approved in full and acted upon.