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Representation by Kate Marshall, owner STAFF REPORT CONCERNING APPLICATION FOR A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS Date: 10 December 2014 Application Number: 2014-1210 Property Location: 847 Forest Avenue Architectural Style/Date: Free Classic/ 1896 Property Owner: Kate Marshall and Ian Newman District Designation: Chapin Park Rating: Contributing DESCRIPTION OF STRUCTURE/ SITE The Gelz House is a rectangular plan Free Classic style home built in 1896 on Lot 35 of Chapin Place. The wide aluminum siding has recently been removed to expose the original clapboard siding, and the shadow of a belt course dividing the first and second floors on the exterior. Windows are 1 over 1 double hung. A projecting cornice line sits just below the asphalt shingled roof. A front and side porch are covered by hip roofs on gabled wood supports, also shingled with asphalt shingles. The home was modified in 1942 into four apartments, and the above mentioned front porch was added in 1951, replacing a much more elaborate original porch. ALTERATIONS: Circa 1951 the original front porch was replaced with the existing front porch. When aluminum sided, the belt course was removed to more uniformly apply the siding. The date of the siding application is unknown. An addition was made to the back of the house, date unknown, but possibly when modified into apartments in 1942. Our survey card, created in 2005, lists the home simply as "Altered". The original siding was repaired and replaced, the bell flare was restored, and the house painted in July -August 2009. The kitchen windows retained their modified size to accommodate modem kitchen counters. The chain link fence was moved to its current location with COA#2010-0205. APPLICATION ITEMS: Installation of short fence in back yard. Purpose of fence: short fence (max 4' high) to be installed to accommodate family dog without obstructing views of yard for neighbors according to historic district preferences. Plan: Four -foot fence to be installed to contain back yard of property, inside of property line. Gate at front of house to be installed near side -yard path. Additional gate to be installed between property and neighbor to the north at the request of neighbor to allow for continued free access between properties. Fence will be installed behind second tree on property (approx. 30' feet in from front boundary of front yard. Because of gas line, fence will be installed well inside of north property line connecting the garage to the northernmost edge of the house. The south fence will be installed inside of the property line to connect to previously installed chain link fence bordering alley. Materials: There is currently only one fence panel available for purchase from major area retailers because of the season. It is T H x 8' W Dog -Eared AC2 Treated Fence Panel WOOD Model Number: 1731077 1 Menards® SKU: 1731077 We will supplement these panels with fence posts and gate kits. We do not plan to paint the fence but rather to maintain the natural look. DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED PROJECT: The homeowners wish to install a four foot wood picket fence with a gate on the North side of the house at the rear set back of the house to connect with a chain link fence along the rear alleyway. They also wish to install a fence of the same style along the vacated alleyway on the south and install and connect with a fence and gate on the east side of the house behind the set back STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES: B. BUILDING SITE, LANDSCAPING & ACCESSORIES This section focuses on individual properties and amenities. Building sites tend to be irregularly shaped, of varying topography and with different setbacks with regard to plots. Alleys are generally behind houses. Landscape accessories like fences are unique to each structure. Chapin Place presents a unique situation within the district. Applications from properties that have property lines on Chapin Place will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Required Fencing, walkways, outbuildings, private yard lights, signs (i.e. house numbers) and benches (visible from the street) as well as trees located in a yard or tree lawn which reflect the property's history and development shall be retained. A tree located in such areas shall only be removed if the removal is required due to storm damage, disease, threatened damage to a structure or for such other reason acceptable to the Historic Preservation Commission. Storm damaged or diseased trees should then be replaced with an approved species at the same or approximate location wherever possible. Fencing visible from the street in front of the structure shall be open (meaning spaces between the pickets) and consistent with the historic character of a structure enclosed. Recommended New site work should be based upon actual knowledge of the past appearance of the property found in photographs, drawings and newspapers. New site work should also be appropriate to existing surrounding site elements in scale, type and appearance. Front yard areas should remain open. (See above for information regarding fences.) Trees in close proximity to a building may cause structural damage. Owners are encouraged to remove these trees and replace (or replant)them at a more appropriate location as soon as planting season permits and upon approval of a C of A. Prohibited 2