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Commission approves altered windows, skylight review at 314 Church Street
Summary
The commission approved a certificate of appropriateness for 314 Church Street with conditions allowing wider windows and requiring skylight product information for staff review; staff cautioned the widened proportions could read as mid-century rather than historic.
The commission voted to approve a certificate of appropriateness for work at 314 Church Street, allowing the applicant to raise the sill on a pair of rear windows and to install a skylight, with conditions that product information for the skylight be submitted for staff review and that window trim and siding match the existing addition.
Staff presentation: Jessica (staff) said the house — in the Northside Historic District — includes historic fabric plus later additions and is currently clad in synthetic siding. She told commissioners the two existing paired windows behind an egress stair are 24 inches wide and 70 inches tall and explained the applicants sought to both raise the sill and widen openings. “The historic windows are all 30 by 64,” staff said, and the owners’ revised proposal would replace the pair with windows proportionally closer to the other openings. Staff recommended approval of trim and siding and recommended staff review of skylight product information, but noted it did not recommend approval of the widened window proportions as originally proposed.
Owner comment: The owner, Bethany, told the commission wider windows would create more interior daylight and said her contractor indicated a slightly taller standard window (up to about 52–54 inches) might be possible. “Looking at it, it did look to me more similar to the windows above to have the somewhat wider windows,” she said, and added she did not plan to remove the exterior staircase.
Commission action and rationale: Commissioner Beck moved to approve the certificate as described in the staff report with conditions; after discussion commissioners amended the motion to permit 30-inch-wide replacement windows to better match the proportions of the house’s other windows. Commissioner Lewis argued the slightly wider, shorter windows would better match the house’s fenestration pattern and be less visually jarring. The amended motion passed by voice vote.
Next steps: Staff will confirm skylight product details and ensure trim, siding and window installation meet the conditions noted in the approval.
