Commission finds Kingsbury House at 1427 Great Plains Avenue a historic asset; owner proposes limited demolition to preserve main structure

The Needham Historical Commission on June 16 voted that the Daniel Kingsbury Jr. House at 1427 Great Plains Avenue is a historic asset, advancing the application to a public hearing where the commission will review a proposal that preserves the main, historically listed structure and replaces a lower side addition.

The project team, represented by architect Andrea Draudt of Gilmore Builders and builder Eric Gilmore, told the commission their intent is to preserve and rehabilitate the main 2½‑story, five‑bay Colonial/Federal core of the house while removing a 1½‑story side addition and rebuilding that wing in similar massing to make the property usable for a 21st‑century household. The applicants stressed the main block is listed locally, in the Massachusetts Historical Commission records and on the National Register of Historic Places; the team said the side addition is not described in those listings.

Andrea Draudt told the commission the house dates to about 1794 and is a contributing resource in the McIntosh Corner Historic District. “The goal in purchasing the property was to preserve it,” Draudt said, and the proposed work aims to “preserve the main existing 5‑bay 2½‑story structure with its foundation, all the exterior trim details” while replacing the lower addition to provide a usable kitchen, garage and family room.

Commissioner Jeffrey Heller recused himself from the review because he is the owner of the house through an LLC; the commission recorded the recusal and noted he would sit silently in the audience. With one recusal and two absences, the commission voted 4‑0 that the property is a historic asset. The chair explained that if the commission proceeds to a public hearing following receipt of demolition paperwork, the hearing will focus on the age and significance of the addition and the question of whether a demolition moratorium should be imposed for the addition.

The commission reiterated the procedural steps: once the owner files the demolition plan and the building commissioner confirms the plan’s contents, the town manager’s office will accept the submission and the commission will start its notice clock. The commission cannot, at this initial determi­na­tion meeting, distinguish which portions of the structure are historically significant; that evaluation will be part of the subsequent public hearing.

The commission recorded the vote to find the property historic and said it will schedule the public hearing after staff confirm the demolition‑plan paperwork is complete.