Historic Zoning Commission

Ft. Sanders NC: Level II

1-B-22-HZ

Applicant Request

Exterior rehabilitation of existing house and new rear addition. Demolition of two non-contributing metal secondary structures on the rear of the property.

Exterior rehabilitation scopes include removal of asbestos shingle siding and installation of fiber cement lap siding, with fiber cement diamond-pattern siding in front and side gable fields. The porch will be removed and reconstructed with a new shed-roof to match the existing in footprint and design. Replacement windows. Some windows on original section of house to be relocated.

New rear addition. One section of the house to be removed and reconstructed, with an additional new two-story section to project from the rear. The addition will measure approximately 38' wide and extend approximately 19' long. The addition will extend the main roof hip with cross gables projecting from the side elevations. The addition will feature asphalt shingle roof cladding; fiber cement lap siding; two stories of one-over-one, double-hung windows; and a new rear dormer centered on the roof slope with three one-over-one windows. A secondary entry is centered on the rear elevation. The rear elevation also features a full-length, flat roof porch supported by square 6 by 6 wood posts.

Conditions of approval per 1/20/22 HZC meeting:
1) Final site plan to reflect City Engineering requirements for parking;
2) Revision to right side elevation, retaining the leftmost projecting bay and cornerboard;
3) Installation of appropriate front porch supports above brick piers;
4) Retention or replication of appropriately-sized cornerboards and window trim
5) Retention of façade hipped-roof bay window and decorative trim, along with original attic vent on front-gable massing;
6) Front-gable roof dormer to be reconstructed in original design and placement.

Site Info

One-and-one-half-story, hipped roof residence with lower cross gables projecting to the front, sides, and rear. Roof is clad in asphalt shingles, exterior clad in asbestos shingle siding, brick foundation. Front-gable roof domer centered on façade. Craftsman porch.

1. 1533 Forest Avenue is a contributing resource to the Fort Sanders National Register Historic District and local overlay. The house is a small one-story Queen Anne cottage with a basement level recessed on the rear of the property.

2. The provided site plan meets the dimensional standards of the RN-5 zoning. Final modifications to the site plan will be necessary to meet City Engineering standards for parking. The house and parking area need to remain below 45% impervious surface for the RN-5 zoning. The final site plan could be approved by staff, provided there are no substantial modifications to the addition's design and placement.

3. Demolition of the two non-historic, non-contributing secondary structures at the rear of the property is appropriate.

4. Removal of the existing asbestos shingle siding meets the design guidelines. Guidelines recommend sing a lap siding comparable to original wood clapboard styles. Hardie lap siding should be 4"-5" in exposure and include appropriately-sized cornerboards and window and door trim. The existing cornerboards should be repaired or replicated.

5. Reconstruction of the front porch roof and foundation meets the design guidelines. The overall front porch foot print and details (square brick piers, shed roof, eave overhangs) should be maintained. The front porch, a Craftsman-era modification of the original Queen Anne cottage, should retain the brick pier supports. The applicant should install more substantial (8 by 8) or Craftsman-style tapered wood piers to replace the narrow wood post porch supports.

6. In general, the placement of a new addition on the rear elevation is appropriate within the design guidelines. Several adjacent houses feature two-story rear additions, along with many of the historic houses on the 1400/1300 block of Forest Avenue. The street's topography slopes significantly towards the north (rear).

7. The applicant is requesting to remove a limited section of the rear elevation, removing the rear front-gable massing, and extending the primary roof hip with two lower cross gables at each side. While the rear gable massing is most likely an original element to the house, it is not a character-defining feature and reconstruction of this section meets the design guidelines.

8. The proposed addition is large, adding approximately 19' in length to an approximately 46' wide existing house. Similar to the recent addition at 1319 Forest Avenue (7-F-21-HZ), the applicant has broken up the substantial two-story addition with additional roofline complexity, slightly projecting bays, and new siding patterns on gable fields. The rear elevation includes the primary hipped-roof massing with cross gables, a gable-roof dormer, and a flat-roof porch. The revisions to this design reflect recommendation of the neighborhood, which include to break up the massing and shape of the addition with projecting bays that are similar in scale to the original façade bay.

9. The proposed rear addition contains sufficient complexity to break up the large rectangular massing, but as much of the house's original roof form, window layout, and projecting bays should be retained as possible. On the right side elevation (side elevation 1 on drawings), the leftmost gable-roof projecting bay should be retained in place, along with the original window placement and cornerboard.

10. The application also includes the reconstruction of the façade dormer. The overall form, placement, and proportions of the front-gable roof dormer should be maintained.

11. The replacement door on the façade meets design guidelines as a half-light door appropriate for a Queen Anne cottage. The proposed replacement one-over-one, double-hung vinyl windows also meet Fort Sanders design guidelines. The projecting hipped-roof bay window on the façade should be retained, including the decorative trim surrounding the windows. The original attic vent on the façade should be maintained.