Historic Zoning Commission

Individual Landmark: Level II

12-A-05-HZ

Applicant Request

Level II. Replacement/repair

Rework storefronts to replace original Gay Street lst story façade; remove deteriorated signage; relocate brass entry doors; point and clean brick as necessary; install balconies and access stair in rear ell of building, not visible from Gay Street, with balconies and stair of steel; repair terra cotta as necessary; repair metal top cornice.

Site Info

The Burwell Building and the Tennessee Theater form a building complex, with the construction date of the Burwell (1907-08) preceding the Tennessee Theater (1928) by approximately 20 years. The burwell Building is a Renaissance Revival style ten story plus mezzanine and basement office building. The Burwell Building is organized into three main divisions exhibited on the north and west (front) facades. The ground floor, mezzanine and second floor form a base with pilasters running from the ground floor to the mexxanine and a strong course that separates the mezzanine from the second floor and serves as an entablature. A cornice divides the second floor from the third floor. The third through the nine floors form the middle portion and a terra cotta belt course separate the ninth from the tenth floor, with the tenth floor capping the building with a heavy cornice with massive dentils underlain with a second row of smaller dentils and supported by massive bracketed consoles, both singular and paired. Rustication formed by alternating protruding and receding brick courses typifies the base portion of the building. Terra cotta moldings form cornices, capitals, surrounds and decorative panels. The middle portion of the building is smooth brick, with flat brick lintels formed by projecting brick courses over rectangular windows.

The Gay Street façade (west elevation) is organized into seven bays defined by single window openings of one light metal sash, of recent vintage. The northern three bays were built in 1907-08 while the additional four bays were added in conjunction with the construction of the Tennessee Theater. The addition matches the original in design, with the exception of a slightly wider brick panel at the point where the buildings join. Three divisions and seven bays mark the Clinch Street (north) elevation. Single windows mark the first and seventh bays, which have slightly projecting pavilions. The second through the sixth bays have paired windows with single light sash. At the ground floor and mezzanine of both elevations are oversize windows with intricate wood frames with an elliptical arch at the top and a circular light and frame. AT the tenth floor, the cornice of the west elevation extends only one bay to the north, although it may have intended the width of the façade originally. There has been an alteration of the brick at that level.

The rear elevation facing State Street has nine bays. The rear of the complex at the lowest levels was altered by the recent reconstruction of the Tennessee Theater. Common bond brickwork and an absence of decorative trim mark the State Street elevation. Smooth brick also forms the south façade with wood double hung three over three sash and only a few feet of extension of the decorative cornice.

The stuccoed planters that block the façade openings on the west and north elevations are recent additions, and obscure the original storefront design found in the Burwell Building. PLEASE NOTE: The attached tax map shows only the allocation of space for the first floors of the Burwell Building. As noted in the Detailed Description on this staff report, the upper floors of the Burwell Building extend across the Tennessee Theater to the south. Certificate No. 111705GEN applies to the southern, upper story, bays of the Burwell Building.