Commission asks for simpler design at 3 New Mill Street after concerns over overlapping masses

The commission held an application for a two-story addition at 3 New Mill Street that would include a residential elevator, asking the applicant to simplify the proposal so the new mass reads as one integrated addition rather than multiple overlapping elements.

Chip Webster presented the plans and said the addition is primarily to provide interior accessibility and to house an elevator shaft; the design team proposed a Bay element on the First Floor and a narrow elevator volume on the left side of the two-story mass. Commissioners said the current composition looks "complicated" because a small forward mass appears to be piggybacked on the larger addition. Commissioner Mickey said the proposal "+looks like piggybacking one addition on top of another" and recommended a simpler gable or hip form. Several commissioners suggested changing the small forward element to a single-story form or unifying the addition under one primary roof plane.

The motion to hold for revisions directed the applicant to return with simplified massing: either a single gable or a single-story bay that ties into a single roof plane, and to reduce the visual complexity visible from the street. The commission's chair asked that the applicant avoid overlapping small masses that create an awkward silhouette and to provide a clearer street-facing profile when the design returns. The motion carried unanimously.