Historic Zoning Commission

Old North Knoxville H-1: Level II

7-H-18-HZ

Applicant Request

Level II. Major repair or replacement of materials or architectural elements

Construct one-story, 400-sq ft. rear addition with fixed-glass windows and that will serve as a sunroom/porch. The project will include the demolition of a ~100 square -foot modern-era sunroom which has vinyl-clad patio doors and a metal exterior door. Addtionally, existing shed and hipped roofs on an earlier addition on the SW corner of the house will also be removed and an extension the new shed roof will instead cover this area. The new 12/1 pitched shed- roof structure will be sheathed with ribbed metal panels in a dark color. The 9-foot wall opening will be filled with windows with smooth-finish fiber cement board (FCB) panels above and below, and on the NE elevation, three FCB panels that will match the size of the windows.The windows are proposed to be aluminum-clad. The addition also includes a ~10x14 deck, partially covered by an extension of the shed roof supported by a 6x6 painted wood column. A 3/4-light-glass door will open onto the deck. The surface of the overall support beam of the shed-roof and the foundation apron around the deck will be smooth FCB. The exposed foundation is proposed to be painted CMU.

Site Info

One-story frame with wood lap siding. Hip roof with lower cross gables and asphalt shingle roof covering. One story three-quarter front porch with fluted round columns with Ionic capitals. Two interior offset brick chimneys. Brick foundation. Irregular plan. Recessed transom and sidelights at front entry. Projecting bay on south elevation.

1) The house is a contributing property within the Old North Knoxville (ONK) H-1 overlay and the National Register District.

2) The addition will not be seen from the public right-of-way.

3) The footprint of the addition is less than 30% of that of the house.

4) The addition will not destroy significant historic features.

5) The sunroom to be demolished is not historically significant.

6) The addition will be offset ~18 inches from the northeast corner of the main house, and the distinction of the new from the old will be obvious, without detracting from any historic features of the house. The sunroom addition stops approximately 10 feet short of the southwest corner of the original house, and ties into the corner of a non-original bath/laundry room addition. No new walls align flush with any original walls

7) The new structure of the addition will resolve the current problem of a "trough" in the existing roof which has allowed water damage in the past.

8) The proposed metal-clad windows are appropriate in a modern sunroom structure with signficant glass. The proposed windows do not attempt to mimic traditional double-hung windows set into a wood-sided wall. An obviously modern addition can be appropriate in the H-1 overlay as long as it does not detract from or overwhelm historic features, and is of a scale and level of detail that is compatible with and defers to the historic structure.

9) Fiber cement board (FCB) siding has been allowed on at least one rear addition within the ONK District, with a smooth finish only -- no faux wood-grain. In this case FCB is not proposed to be utilized as horizontal siding, but on flat panels, and on the overall roof support beam and deck apron. FCB has not been approved in the form of flat panels or beam covering as a precedent in ONK; therefore, an actual sample or clear photo on a specification sheet should be provided for HZC review.

10) CMU foundation was utilized on the existing earlier addition, and the intent is to use it also on the addition to tie it in with the existing. Exposed CMU foundation can be approved only if painted and the amount exposed is too little (less than 8 inches) to feasibly allow parging after grading is completed. Otherwise, the foundation would need to be covered in parging or brick in order to be compatible with other foundation materials in the district.