Historic Shelburne Hotel restoration approved; board okays canopy variance with conditions

The Historic Preservation Board on April 13 approved a certificate of appropriateness for a multi‑phase renovation of the Shelburne Hotel at 1801 Collins Avenue and granted a variance to locate retractable canopy support columns within an existing nonconforming south setback.

Board members voted unanimously to approve the Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) after hearing a presentation from the applicant team led by Michael Larkin and owner Mitchell Cohen and expert testimony from historic preservation consultant Steve Abdikoff and architect Ray Fernandez. The board also accepted two voluntary conditions proffered by the applicant and directed staff to work with the project team on final design details for the south wall and canopy.

The project would remove a 1993 set of interior ‘‘townhomes’’ that subdivided a former double‑height Lapidus lobby, restore the lobby to its original volume, add a new pool and landscape area at the rear yard and introduce a retractable canopy at a mezzanine dining terrace on the south side. Staff recommended approval with conditions, including a requirement that the applicant submit an as‑built survey demonstrating the exact dimensions of the existing legal nonconforming side setback and that any expansion of the hotel’s food and beverage area be addressed through a modification of the property’s conditional use permit prior to issuance of a building permit.

Historic preservation consultant Steve Abdikoff told the board the design conforms to federal guidance. "In my expert opinion, the design is in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior Standards for Rehabilitation," he said during the…