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Historic Preservation Board approves restoration of transom windows at 325 West Main Street
Summary
The board approved a certificate of appropriateness to remove stucco/parging and reconstruct historic transom windows at a contributing downtown building; applicant Bob Pontarelli said the project will use new rough openings and historically styled windows, non-tinted low-E glass and painted wood framing to match adjacent storefronts.
The Historic Preservation Board on March 18 approved a certificate of appropriateness to remove existing parging and reconstruct the transom windows at 325 West Main Street.
Board members voted by voice to approve demolition of the existing covering material above the storefront and to install new framing and transom windows as shown in the applicant’s drawings. The applicant’s architect, Bob Pontarelli of 629 East Gandy, told the board the work would remove the parging and install new structure to create rough openings for historically styled transom windows.
The board described 325 West Main as a contributing building and said returning the glazed transoms above the storefront would restore an original façade feature. Pontarelli said the new glazing would be low-E but not tinted, and that he would specify painted, exterior-grade wood window frames though alternatives such as polyurethane were under consideration for durability. A board member emphasized the importance of avoiding tinted glass and asked that the approved window specifications be clear; Pontarelli said the owner would pick the final product but that the applicant could note preferred units on the drawings.
Members also discussed matching the number, size and color of the windows to the adjacent building to maintain consistency across the storefronts. One board member said existing framing was likely not reusable and urged removal of the nonhistoric material so the new windows read as historical.
The motion to approve the certificate of appropriateness — permitting removal of the covering material and reconstruction of the transom windows at 325 West Main Street — passed on a voice vote with no roll-call tally recorded in the minutes.
The board did not attach additional conditions beyond the certificate; staff did not report any follow-up actions tied to other city approvals.
