738 Leland Avenue_AA 2021-0321 - Laserfiche WebLink

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In the mid-2000s a fire on the back porch (which was being used as a kitchen extension) resulted in serious damage to this part of the structure and repairs were never made. The house came into the possession of the city of South Bend and has been empty ever since. I bought it in early January 2021 and intend to undertake a general restoration . 1) In February 2021 the HPC approved the demolishing of the second story of the back porch addition and fire escape and in March 2021 staff administratively approved the new roof structure. The attached plans show the proposed reconstruction as a whole. The major changed element other is the bigger windows. The roof will be shingled with the same shingles already approved for the house roof. The wood-framed windows will be obtained from the currently enclosed front porch (see #2). Exterior finish material awaits removal of aluminum siding but will either be wood clapboard or shingles or cement board to match whatever ends up on the main house. Upstairs door will be reframed to accomodate window to match its neighbor (sash will be salvaged from HPC). 2) Re-open front porch. The currently enclosed front porch has taken substantial damage due to a longstanding hole in the roof. I’ve removed quite a bit of moldy drywall, insulation, etc from the interior and got a tarp and plywood on the roof to stop more water coming in until the roof can be rebuilt this June, but there’s a lot of work to do in this area. Current status, interior (showing deteriorated studs from water damage, drywall removed, current door into living room which I am proposing to turn into a window) As the Sanborn maps above show, the porch was originally open and l-shaped. I am proposing demolishing the exterior walls to reopen the side porch that still exists, bringing it a step closer to the original configuration and also matching several other houses in the neighborhood that have a side porch without a front porch. Main points: