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Bluffton historic panel approves renovation and carriage house at 28 Wharf Street with design conditions
Summary
The Historic Preservation Commission approved a Certificate of Appropriateness for 28 Wharf Street on Feb. 4 with conditions including revised soffit/trim details, landscaping in place of a meter screen and spacing details for service‑yard boards; the applicant agreed to revise plans to meet staff and commission comments.
The Bluffton Historic Preservation Commission on Feb. 4 approved, with conditions, a Certificate of Appropriateness for renovations and a detached carriage house at 28 Wharf Street.
Staff advised the commission that the project proposes to expand an existing one‑story house from 1,157 square feet to about 1,508 square feet and to add a two‑story detached carriage house of roughly 768 square feet at the rear. Staff recommended approval with conditions that include: replacing louvered meter screening with landscaping to soften utility equipment; identifying materials for infill panels between porch piers; clarifying soffit material to achieve a beaded or V‑groove look (cedar or a treated-profile product was discussed as options); confirming whether metal foundation vents are appropriate; changing the proposed carriage‑house board‑and‑batten to horizontal lap siding (staff recommendation, not a UDO requirement); and submitting a revised landscape plan with a tree survey and demonstration of 75% tree canopy coverage.
The applicant (identified in the application materials as Malcolm Claxton on behalf of JRA Holdings) told the commission he was agreeable to addressing staff comments and to updating plans. Commissioners and staff worked through technical details including porch ceiling geometry (commissioners favored a flat ceiling on the porch for clarity in the construction drawings), column base sizing (request to use a 1x base rather than a heavier section), centering the porch beam on its supporting column, reducing the width of the gable vent trim (from a thicker 6‑inch trim to a narrower 3–4‑inch profile), and specifying spacing for service‑yard boards and HVAC screening details.
A commissioner made a motion to approve staff recommendations along with the additional commission comments (including reduced gable‑vent trim); the commission determined that metal foundation vents were acceptable in this case and the clerk announced the motion passed and the project was approved with conditions. The transcript does not record a roll‑call vote tally or named second; the clerk announced the result as 'motion passed' and the applicant acknowledged the commission’s direction.
Staff will require revised drawings and details reflecting the agreed conditions (soffit/profile clarifications, revised landscape plan and meter/ HVAC screening details) before building permits proceed.
