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Home My WebLink About1. 517 River Avenue_COA 2022-0721STAFF REPORT CONCERNING APPLICATION FOR A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS Date: August 9, 2022 Application Number: 2022-0721A Property Location: 517 River Avenue Architectural Style/Date/Architect or Builder: Dormer Front Bungalow/ 1921/Schiffbauer House Property Owner: Leah Zimmer Landmark or District Designation: Edgwewater Local Historic District, #6846-80 Rating: Contributing DESCRIPTION OF STRUCTURE/ SITE: A two story dormer front bungalow set upon a brick foundation. Walls are wood clapboard on first story and wood shingles on second. Roof has asphalt shingles. There is a full width open front porch with brick piers and walls. Window openings are original wood 4/1 vertical division double hung and an arched attic window in front. ALTERATIONS: Aluminum storm windows and an aluminum storm door have been installed. COA 1990-0618 approved replacement of front porch floorboards. COA 1997-1016 approved in -kind repair of fire damage. COA 2001-0910 approved tuck pointing foundation and repair of masonry around foundation of house. RME 2013-0402 approved tree removal. RME 2014-1022A approved roof replacement with architectural shingles, repair of mud room, and in -kind repair of front steps, sidewalk, and trim on rear and west side of house. COA 2015-0518 approved existing chimney to be lowered below the roofline, and addition of a 4" vent pipe to extend through the roof deck. RME 2016-0428 allowed replacement of previously removed tree, and replacement of rotted/damaged siding and shingles on house. RME 2016-1011A approved installation of new roofing on flat roof, and repairs and siding installation on rear porch; in the process of this project the porch was found to be unsalvageable. COA 2016- 1109A allowed for the removal of the mudroom at the rear of the house. COA 2017-1003 renewed a previous tree replacement and the addition of vents under the eaves for the upstairs bathroom. AA 2020-0605 allowed the construction of a 10’x12’ shed at rear of property. APPLICATION ITEMS: “1. Restore window on west side of house (in-kind) (SASHES ONLY), 2.restore masonry on front of house (in-kind), is crumbling will rebuild interior front wall (not visible from the street) and ballasts on each side of front stairs. The stairs may also need to be replaced, and brick on side of porch remortarted (depends on cost). All bricks will be retained if possible, any new brick will be matching. Wood porch will need to be pulled up to assess damage but in kind install. 3. In back of house, switch placement of first floor window and door, retain original window, add back deck 15 x 17 with accessibility ramp, add Juliet balcony (5x7) on second floor).” DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED PROJECT: The applicant has requested approval to: 1. To rearrange (exchange) the placement of the existing first floor window and door. 2. Install a metal 5’ x 7’ Juliet balcony on the second story man door. The rear of this property had a larger mudroom that was approved for removal by the Commission with COA 2016- 1109A. The second story door (where the Juliet balcony is proposed) formerly opened onto that mudroom. STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES: EDGEWATER PLACE I. EXISTING STRUCTURES A. BUILDING MATERIALS Original exterior wall materials in the District range from brick, clapboard, shingles, and masonry block to aluminum siding. In the majority of the cases the aluminum siding has been applied over the original clapboard. There are some masonry commercial buildings on Lincolnway. Required Existing exterior building materials shall be retained. Deterioration of wood materials shall be prevented through repair., cleaning, and painting. The existing architectural detail around windows, porches, doors, and eaves should be retained or replaced by replicas of the same design and materials when deteriorated beyond repair. Masonry structures shall be maintained, tuckpointed and properly cleaned when necessary. Masonry shall be cleaned only when necessary to halt deterioration or to remove stains, and shall be done with the gentlest method possible, such as low pressure water and soft natural bristle bushes. Stucco surfaces shall be maintained by cleaning and repainted when necessary. When repairing stucco a stucco mixture shall be used. Recommended Whenever possible, the original building materials should be restored. Aluminum or vinyl siding may be used when it is the only feasible alternative to maintaining the original surface material. When used over wood surfaces, this siding should be the same size and style as the original wood. However it must be noted that such material can contribute to the deterioration of the structure from moisture and insects. Mortar joints should be repointed only when there is evidence of moisture problems or when sufficient mortar is missing to allow water to stand in the mortar joint. Existing mortar shall be duplicated in composition, color, texture, joint size, method of application, and joint profile. Prohibited Wood siding shall not be resurfaced with new material, such as artificial stone, brick veneer, asbestos or asphalt shingles, which is inappropriate or was unavailable when the building was constructed. Sandblasting or the use of harsh detergents shall not be used on masonry or stucco. This method of cleaning erodes the surface material and accelerates deterioration. Not Recommended Waterproof or water repellant coatings or surface consolidation treatments should not be used unless required to solve a specific problem that has been studied and identified. Coatings are frequently unnecessary, expensive, and can accelerate deterioration of the masonry. Mortar joints which do not need repointing should not be. Repointing should not be done with mortar of high Portland cement content, which can often create a bond that is stronger than the building materials. This can cause deterioration as a result of differing coefficient of expansion and the differing porosity of the material and the mortar, which can result in serious damage to adjacent brick. Paint should not be removed from masonry surfaces indiscriminately. B. ROOFS AND ROOFING […] C. WINDOWS AND DOORS Windows and door frames are in nearly all cases wood. Brick structures have stone sills and brick lintels; masonry block structures have masonry sills and lintels. In some cases where aluminum siding has been applied window trim has been covered. About half of the structures in the district have aluminum storm windows, the other half wood storm windows. Required Original windows and doors including sash, lintels, sills, shutters, decorative glass, pediments, hoods, and hardware shall be retained or when deteriorated beyond repair, replaced with duplicates of the existing or original. Recommended Wood frame storm windows and doors, painted to match the existing or original, should be used but should not damage existing frames and should be removable in the future. If new sash and doors are used, the existing or original materials, design, and hardware should be used. When metal storm doors are used, they should be painted anodized or coated to match the existing. When awnings are used they should be of canvas material. Prohibited Existing or original doors, windows, and hardware shall not be discarded when they can be restored and re-used in place. New window and door openings which would alter the scale and proportion of the building should not be introduced. Inappropriate new window and door features such as aluminum insulating glass combinations that require the removal of the original windows and doors shall not be installed. Not Recommended Metal, vinyl, or fiberglass awnings, hoods, and fake shutters that would detract from the existing character or appearance of the building should not be used. SITE VISIT REPORT: N/A STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval. Prepared by Adam Toering, Historic Preservation Administrator HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION OF SOUTH BEND AND ST. JOSEPH COUNTY Map of the project area. SANBORN FIRE INSURANCE MAPS: 1945, 1960, satellite imagery from 2016. 5 Shed 5’ Variance from Alley 11’18’10’19’12’10’ House 10’10’10’10’ Shed View from Back House View from Top fence 517 River Ave - Current Shed Raised Porch Car 2’ Variance 11’18’10’19’16’12’9’10’ House 10’10’10’10’ Raised 3’ - Lattice or Fence Shed View from Back 517 River Ave - Proposed 6’ Fence Ramp