Architectural board approves modular two-family house at South Fulton Avenue with conditions

The Mount Vernon Architectural Review Board on Oct. 12 approved a certificate of appropriateness for a new two-family modular house at 245–145 South Fulton Avenue, contingent on corrections to submitted drawings and renderings.

Board members said the application — represented by design professional Shaheen Bridal — included updated three-dimensional renderings, a landscaping plan and material samples, but showed several inconsistencies between the technical elevations and the visual rendering. “The rendering needs to be updated to reflect the door, the railing and the proper stairs,” a commissioner said during the hearing.

The board’s approval was conditioned on several specific corrections: the submission must show the basement door and a railing to accompany it; the drawings must accurately depict the stairs and the driveway slope; the renderings must match the technical elevations; and drainage details (a trench or French drain at the base of the driveway) must be noted on future submissions. The board also asked the applicant to show the proposed retaining-wall finish and to paint or otherwise finish the foundation to match the substrate shown in the plans. Shaheen Bridal confirmed the materials and the revised siding, trim and roofing selections on the record.

Discussion during the hearing focused on grade and code issues: commissioners raised that the site’s grade means the house will appear shorter in person than in the rendering and asked the applicant to depict actual step counts. The applicant acknowledged the elevation differences and said the rendering had been prepared by a third party and did not accurately show the number of steps; the applicant confirmed there would be seven steps at the front entry. Commissioners also pressed the applicant to show how the site drainage will be handled; the applicant said a French drain and a trench drain are proposed at the bottom of the driveway and that those details will be placed on the plan.

The board voted to approve the application subject to the listed corrections. The vote was recorded as unanimous by the commissioners present.

The board’s conditions are intended to ensure the final construction matches the approved architectural details visible from the public right-of-way and that site drainage and pedestrian-safety features are represented on the record.

The applicant may return to the board with revised plans that address the stair, door, railing, drainage and rendering corrections. The board’s staff will compile the conditions into a written list for the applicant.