Board approves storefront conversion, new metal awning at 48 North Beaver Street

The York City Historic Preservation Board on Monday approved plans to replace an aluminum-and-glass skylight and related glazing at 48 North Beaver Street with a sealed storefront system and to replace faded fabric awnings with black corrugated metal.

Travis Kepler, with Warehouse Architects, said the proposal is largely unchanged from a package the board reviewed about two and a half years earlier and that the existing skylight assembly is leaking and “not very energy efficient.” Kepler said the applicant originally planned to reinstall a skylight system but manufacturers’ pricing made that cost-prohibitive, so the project team revised the design to a storefront glazing wall and metal panel cladding to keep a similar street-facing aesthetic.

Kepler said the design removes two large overhead glass doors shown in the earlier submission and replaces them with a continuous storefront wall on the street side. He said the team plans to use anodized aluminum storefront framing and a silver 6-inch metal panel reveal to match existing silver-toned elements. The application packet also shows replacement of fabric awnings with a black corrugated metal canopy to provide greater durability.

Board members asked whether the net visual effect from the street would be noticeable; Kepler replied that the change will result in “a little bit more silver” at the street but that the northern façade will remain largely glazed and the appearance will be closer to the existing condition than the prior overhead-door scheme.

A motion to approve the application as submitted was made and seconded and the board voted in favor; the chair called the vote unanimous.

The board did not attach additional conditions to the approval in the record and did not record individual roll-call votes in the meeting transcript.