Historic Zoning Commission

Old North Knoxville H-1: Level II

11-B-12-HZ

Applicant Request

Level II. Replacement/repair

Replace 3 support posts on the south wrap-around side of the front porch with co-polymer composite columns to accurately match details and dimensions of existing original/early columns, including tapered and fluted shafts and Ionic capitals.

Site Info

Two-story frame with wood siding . Hip roof with lower cross -gables, asphalt shingle covering, sawn wood attic vent and fishscale shingles in gable ends. Turret on corner of one -story front and side wrap -around porch with round wood fluted columns, tongue and groove porch floor. Double-hung one- over- one windows. Interior offset brick chimney. Brick foundation with formed concrete block foundation for front porch. Irregular plan. Sidelights at front entry.

STAFF COMMENTS
1) A former owner had received a COA in 2000 to repair the porch columns.

2) The current applicant received a COA in 2010 (expired) to repair the porch railings, floor, ceiling, and roof and has completed that work.

3) Five (5) original/early fluted wood columns with Ionic capitals existed on the front porch of the house upon acquisition by the applicant in 2004, and 3 unfinished support posts existed that had replaced 3 original/early columns on the wrap-around porch to the south.

4) The applicant repaired the 5 existing original/early columns on the front of the porch.

5) The applicant states that the remnants of the 3 columns removed from the south side by a former owner and stored in the basement had rotted beyond reassembling and repair. Staff has viewed the column remnants to confirm and provided photos to confirm the deteriorated state of original/early columns.

6) The applicant states that he was not able to identify a local craftsman with the skill to closely replicate the fluted detail of the existsing columns in wood. The applicant states that he chose the co-polymer composite material for duplicating the 3 missing side columns with the intent of more accurately replicating the length and depth of the fluting of the existing columns.

7) The available ready-made wood columns researched by the applicant did not exhibit a length and depth of fluting that match that of the existing columns on the house.

8) There was sufficient documentation in the earlier-removed deteriorated columns and the early-installed existing columns to inform the replication of new columns and capitals. The ONK guidelines state that "individual details should be repaired and preserved, or replicated if good documentation of the original porch exists."

9) The National Park Service Secretary of Interiors Standards state that " . . . Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature shall match the old design, color, texture, and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials." The applicant asserts that his research indicates that a quality replication of the fluted design detail of the exsiting columns would be difficult and labor-intensive to create by through custom hand-carved or machine-made methods. The fluted detail can be more accurately molded with a composite material. The applicant chose to prioritize replicating design and detail rather than the material since the visual differences in the composite and wood material in this case were nondescript.

10) It is widely agreed by professional preservationists, as well as the ONK neighborhood, that there is no substitute material (such as aluminum, vinyl, or fiber cement board) that adequately replicates the unique texture and characteristic wavering imperfections of wood weatherboard siding, even when viewed as far away as the public right-of-way. However, the painted surface of a composite column is more difficult to discern from the painted surface of a new wood column, even if observed up-close. A discernable differences in texture is observed between OLD and NEW wood columns, given that old wood columns may have several coats of paint which when not heavily sanded between layers, exhibits a certain textural quality. Absent being able to take advantage of original/early material that exhibits a patina of age, new WOOD or new COMPOSITE columns would be equally devoid of texture and "new" in appearance.

11) The existing 5 column capitals on the front of the porch do not appear to be original given that they are of a plaster-like material with only one coat of paint.

12) Scrolled Ionic capitals molded from polyurethane to replicate existing deteriorated capitals have been approved by the HZC in a previous application for another site.

Staff believes that 3 composite columns and capitals do not detract from the historic integrity of the house or the neighborhood. The proposed findings offered by staff to support approval of the proposal in this particular case by waiving the guideline to utilize wood materials on porch elements are the following:

1) the three original or early columns are not existing or are not in a reusable form;

2) the columns to be replicated are fluted, a detail that cannot be matched to the originals with a ready-made product and one that is very labor-intensive to replicate accurately in hard-carved wood; and

3) the utilized composite material provides a close rendition of new wood material in that when painted, the texture and appearance is barely discernable whether viewed up-close or from the public-right-of-way.

OLD NORTH KNOX (ONK) DESIGN GUIDELINES
PORCHES
These individual details [of neighborhood porches] should be repaired and preserved, or replicated if good documentation of the original porch exists.

1. Historic porches on houses in Old North Knoxville should be repaired, or may replicate the original porch if documentation of its size and design can be discovered.

2. Design elements to be incorporated in any NEW porch design must include tongue and groove wood floors, beadboard ceilings, wood posts and/or columns and sawn and turned wood trim when appropriate.

MAINTENANCE SUGGESTIONS
The maintenance of porches shall be an ongoing process of oversight and correction of small problems that can quickly become major ones. The most important part of the process is assuring that water-related damage does not occur.

Perform careful seasonal maintenance to preserve porches and entrances, including installing an adequate gutter and downspouts on porches.

SECRETARY OF INTERIORS STANDARDS:

6.Deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature shall match the old design, color, texture, and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials. Replacement or missing features shall be substantiated by documentary, physical or pictorial evidence.