Janesville historic commission approves certificate for South Wisconsin Street house damaged in April fire

The Janesville Historic Commission on June 17 approved a Certificate of Appropriateness for work to repair a house at South Wisconsin Street that suffered substantial fire damage in early April.

Commissioners said the project will replace or repair roofing and attic structures compromised by the April 4 fire, reconstruct a chimney to closely match the original and raise the roof structure slightly to create more headroom inside while keeping exterior changes minimal.

Commissioner Mitchell Gough, who presented the item, said the rebuilt chimney will largely be an aesthetic feature after repairs are complete: "It will more or less be a kind of aesthetic piece to maintain the character the exterior character of the home as it currently is after all of the fixes have been made." He described replacement of the chimney and limited exterior work as necessary to restore the building for continued habitation.

Gough and fellow commissioner Jim Terrell described the roof work as requiring removal of compromised framing; the roof will be lifted to gain interior headroom but the exterior roofline will be altered only by a few inches and covered with a polyurethane material. Terrell said the existing band board below the soffit, now about 3 inches, will be widened to roughly a foot to provide the added headroom and a look similar to other neighborhood houses.

Paul Davis, identified in the meeting as representing the contractor, confirmed the chimney was not heavily used for utilities and that the upper chimney stack would be removed and reconstructed. Commissioners asked whether a wood-burning appliance remained in the upper floors; Davis and the presenters said the wood stove had been on the ground floor and the chimney wall running up to the third floor would be removed.

Commissioner Mitchell Gough moved to "find that the proposed project meets the criteria for granting a certificate of appropriateness." The motion was seconded, commissioners voted in favor and the motion passed. No commissioners voiced opposition during the vote.

The commission treated the project as a restoration-focused repair following fire damage; no additional design conditions or denials were recorded during the meeting. Work decisions described at the hearing include chimney reconstruction to replicate the existing appearance, roof framing replacement with a slight increase in interior headroom and a widened band board below the soffit.