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Commission approves amendments for 36 Bruin Road COA with conditions
Summary
The Historic Preservation Commission approved an amendment to the Certificate of Appropriateness for 36 Bruin Road, allowing a screened roof well, relocating a rear door, railing changes and added pavers, while requiring retention (but black‑out) of two windows and additional screening details.
The Beaufort County Historic Preservation Commission voted to approve an amended Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) for a two‑story commercial building at 36 Bruin Road in the Old Town Bluffton Historic District, subject to conditions addressing rooftop screening, window treatment and porch details.
Staff presented the amendment as a minor change to an earlier approval and recommended approval with conditions while flagging two determinations that needed explicit HPC direction: whether removing two left‑elevation windows was appropriate and whether the proposed roof well and gutter configuration were suitable under the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO).
James Atkins of Court Atkins Group, representing the applicant, told the commission that the roof well was placed to follow UDO guidance for locating mechanical systems in the side/rear yard and that screening parapet walls and matching siding would be used to conceal rooftop equipment. Atkins said the project team had created an exterior storage/mechanical room accessed from outside because interior space constraints required equipment to be off the primary interiors.
Commissioners said they were generally comfortable with the roof well so long as additional articulation (panel detailing or louvers) and matching color/material treatments were used to minimize a long blank wall. Several commissioners urged that the parapet and screening be detailed to avoid future increases in visible equipment height.
A motion to approve the application with conditions — including: (1) the roof well and parapet detail to be adjusted to echo adjacent paneling or louvers; (2) retention of the two windows but blacking them out from the interior; (3) relocation and dimension requirements for porch railings; (4) addition of brick pavers at the front porch; and (5) centering the second‑floor rear door — was made and seconded. The commission voted in favor and the motion passed. Staff will record the conditions in the final COA and work with the applicant on detailed submittals.
Next procedural steps: staff will finalize the approval package and the applicant must provide final drawings showing the refined parapet/louver detail and gutter configuration before stamp‑off for permits.
