Establishing a historic district at 534 LaPorte Ave

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At the September 19, 1994 regular monthly meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission of South Bend and St. Joseph County (HPC), the HPC voted unanimously to send a favorable recommendation for the Local Historic Landmark designation of the building located at 534 LaPorte Avenue to the South Bend Common Council. RECOMMENDATION Based on the HPC Local Landmark Criteria [1], it is the Historic Preservation Commissions recommendation that the South Bend Common Council designate the Building located at 534 LaPorte by ordinance as a Local Historic Landmark. The building meets the criteria in at least four areas. 1) Its character, interest, or value as part of the development, heritage, or culture of the City of South Bend or St. Joseph County, the State of Indiana, or the United States; 2) Its embodiment of elements of architectural design, detail, materials, or craftsmanship which represents an architectural characteristic or innovation; 3) Its educational value; 4) Its suitability for preservation; The building fulfills criteria #1 as the only extant example of a 1920s era one room gasoline station which has been identified by the Indiana Historic Sites and Structures Survey [2] in the city of South bend. The building fulfills criteria #2 as an excellent example of a small one room gasoline station designed to conform to the scale and details of its surrounding residential neighborhood at the time of its construction. The building fulfills criteria #3 as an excellent example of a gasoline station from the first generation of structures developed for the principal purpose of supplying gasoline to the automobile driving public before the addition of mechanical service, tire sales and other associated service bay functions to the typical service station. The building fulfills criteria #4 by the integrity of its original construction with some alterations, and its continued use as a gas station into the present era. ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The building is located at the corner of Walnut Street directly across Laporte Avenue from the old city Cemetery. Architecturally, the building is a small rectangular plan sixteen feet wide and thirteen feet deep. It is approximately ten feet high to the eaves. the roof is hipped with moderately wide overhangs. The construction is of solid masonry with brick facing. The walls are articulated with a plinth type base course and another stringcourse at the level of the front window sill. The structure has recently received a new brick veneer which replicated the plinth and stringcourse features. The front and side walls are generously fenestrated with large windows illuminating the interior. The front wall has a doorway at the left with a transom above. The right hand section of the wall contains a very interesting and unique window motif featuring a large picture window with a full width transom above of the same height and elevation as the door transom. The picture window is flanked by two tall and narrow casement sashes with small square transom units of fixed glass. The left side features two large sets of operable wood casement sash. Each sash is divided into two panes of glass echoing the transom divisions at the front windows. The right side feature one similar window and a door to the right side. A small shed has been constructed at the rear.