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CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS STAFF REPORT PROPERTY -- 63049 Turkey Trail • South Bend, IN 46614 OWNERS -- Jill and Dan Purkey DESIGNATION -- Local Landmark (County) STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE/HISTORIC CONTEXT This farmhouse is one of St. Joseph County's finest examples of unaltered Italianate architecture. The house was constructed in 1861 for the Francis Donaghue family. The house was rated as Outstanding (0-13) on the Indiana Historic Sites and Structures Inventory in 1975; it was designated as a Local Historic Landmark by the County Council in 1976. The farmstead's major significance lies in its embodiment of the Italianate mode of architecture locally popular during and after the Civil War. The exterior of the house is essentially unaltered except for several insignificant details; previous owners have restored the structure in an effort to maintain the numerous ornamental details. The farm also contains a Bank Barn from the same period and a collection of outbuildings representing the evolution of farming practices from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries. PROPOSED CHANGE leThe owners wish to attach an addition to the rear of the main house (see plans); the addition would consist of a one-story gabled portion extending west, with a smaller gabled section running north, to be attached to a large, three -bay garage. A deck is proposed to be located on the south side of the addition. The proposal calls for the "removal" of a chicken coop and an outhouse that stand in the path of the proposed addition. STANDARDS Landmark standards (Group B; C) require that additions to landmarks "not detract from the original form and unity of the landmark and should not cover singular examples of architectural detail." Such additions "should be added in a manner that does not disrupt the visible unity or overall appearance of the site." RECOMMENDATIONS This proposal suggests the construction of a major addition that profoundly alters the farmstead's historical integrity, the overall appearance of the ,site, and the massing of the main structure. Staff conferred with the owners and made several suggestions: 1. construct an smaller addition that is located directly behind the house only (a proposal with historical precedent); 2. locate the garage elsewhere --near the site of the existing garage for example, and; 3. retain the outbuildings. The owners would not consider these suggestions. Staff then asked two commissioners --Mrs. isSporleder and Mr. Eide--to confer with the owners and provide design and construction suggestions. This proposal is in response to those suggestions. Attached are photocopies of elevations and a floorplan submitted by the