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Historic commission continues review of 165 North High Street conversion after window and egress concerns
Summary
The Historic Resources Commission continued its review of a proposal to convert the second and third floors at 165 North High Street into apartments after staff and commissioners pressed the applicant for historic‑window details and clarified egress and property‑line concerns; the commission moved the window package to staff approval and continued the rest of the application.
The Historic Resources Commission on March 19 reviewed a continued application for 165 North High Street to convert second- and third-floor offices into apartments, remove a north‑elevation fire escape and install code‑compliant egress stairs.
HPO staff told the commission the application responds to a September 2024 code violation for the removal of window sashes without a certificate of appropriateness and reported a September 9 site visit showing a mix of sash types across facades. "The application is in response to a code violation from September 2024 for the removal of sashes without a certificate of appropriateness," staff said.
Christopher Jolly of Darren Ranker Architects, the project architect, told the panel that many of the missing sashes are not on site and would have to be recreated to match existing configurations. "Any missing sashes, they're not on the property ... they would need to be recreated to match the existing windows," Jolly said.
Commissioners and staff pressed for specifics: whether replacement sashes will be wood; a window‑by‑window elevation key; clarification whether all elevations or only the north and east facades are affected; and verification of property boundaries because the proposed fire escape exits into a legally separate parcel. Staff recommended the replacement sashes match appropriate historic configurations (for example, 9‑over‑9 or 4‑over‑4) rather than one‑over‑one single‑light sashes.
To speed parts of the work while preserving historic fabric, the commission voted to move the proposed window package to staff approval so that restoration work could proceed once staff is satisfied with the window key and materials. The commission then continued the remaining portions of the application to allow the applicant time to submit revised drawings, a site plan showing property lines and any materials required by Building & Zoning Services.
The commission noted that the property is in the downtown commission district as well as the Historic Resources Commission jurisdiction and that HRC approval is required before any downtown commission action. Staff said it will post written feedback and the motions from the meeting to the application portal within several business days.
Next steps: the applicant is expected to submit the requested window elevations, ownership verification for the parking lot parcel, and any BZ/permit-related documentation requested by staff; the commission did not adopt other changes at the meeting.
