Montgomery County, Maryland, is the site of a fierce debate over whether a local government has the right to designate private property as “historic” against the will of the owner. The property in question is owned by Sherwood Duvall, 90, who has owned the same farm since the 1930s, and wants to tear down several old buildings. But country commissioners believe the buildings should be preserved and are trying to declare Duvall’s farm a historic landmark, arguing the structures are architecturally significant. Duvall has countered that there is nothing historical about the buildings—they’re “just old”—and that keeping them requires repairs and maintenance costing thousands of dollars per year. He also wants to build a new home for his grandson in place of one of the two-story farmhouses currently on his property.