Comments Off on Darrel Williams on the Future of the Excelsior Club
August 27, 2020
Plans to rehabilitate the historic Excelsior Club are moving forward. As The Charlotte Post article below notes, the buyer of the property “has put out a call to action for a “dream team” of Black professionals to revitalize the site.”
Comments Off on Camp North End Awarded Fitwel Community Design Certification
August 25, 2020
Camp North End, which includes the newly-designated historic landmark, Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant, has been named “one of the first four properties in North America to receive a Fitwel Community Design certification for implementing health benefits as part of their design.” Commercial Property Executive recently interviewed Tommy Mann, Development Director for ATCO Properties & Management, on how the organization is bringing new life into the historic site.
Comments Off on Congratulations to the Winners of the Charlotte Preservation Awards
August 21, 2020
The Charlotte Museum of History’s virtual Charlotte Preservation Awards ceremony held on August 20 showcased many notable properties throughout the area that have been thoughtfully and successfully preserved. The Historic Landmarks Commission would like to congratulate HLC Senior Preservation Planner, Stewart Gray, for his work on the Huntersville Town Jail; HLC Commissioner, Brian Clarke, for being recognized with the Award with Distinction for his restoration of the Sloan-Porter House; and HLC Executive Director, Jack Thomson, for emceeing the night’s ceremony.
From the Museum:
Congratulations to all our nominees and winners for this year’s Preservation Awards!
Our independent panel of judges were so impressed with all of the nominations – which is why we added the Award with Distinction category!
Here’s a brief overview of the winners:
Infill | Residential: 208 Grandin by Williams Farrow.
This brand-new construction was modeled after a home in the 1923 Sears catalog. This attention to detail means it fits in perfectly with its Wesley Heights neighbors.
Preservation in a Small/Medium Community: Mooresville Historic Wall Mural Restoration.
This new category for 2020 was designed to honor projects in small towns outside Mecklenburg County and the historic mural restoration in Mooresville hit the nail on the head! This project really shows how a small upgrade can have a big impact in a historic downtown.
Excellence in Preservation | Community: Huntersville Town Jail.
The jail is Huntersville’s oldest municipal building, constructed as a public works project during the Great Depression. After years of neglect, the Jail is now a community space and will be the center of a planned pocket park.
Excellence in Preservation | Advocacy: NCModernist.
George Smart founded NCModernist in 2007 and since then his largely volunteer team has documented over 2000 modern homes in North Carolina and about 400 in Charlotte alone. All of this information is free and accessible to architectural enthusiasts, realtors, and anyone who want to find it.
Preservation | Commercial: 2322 Dunavant.
This Southend warehouse was a blank slate and would probably have been torn down by any other developer. But Argos Real Estate Advisors transformed it into the cool mixed-use space it is now. Today, the space contains the restaurant, The Dunavant, with additional space for future offices.
Preservation | Residential: W Park Ave – Historic Wilmore Renovation.
When Sarah & Alex Wheat first looked at this house, it was difficult to see past the decay (and the oil drum weirdly in the living room). Thanks to their strong preservation ethic, their home retains much of its historic charm, including the original windows!
Award with Distinction | Sodoma Law – The Graham.
This historic cotton mill in the heart of Fourth Ward has had many stories over its 100-year lifetime, including a plane crash! Thanks to the efforts of Ratzlaff Construction, CDesign, and SGA | NarmourWright Design, the empty shell was brought back to life, with several historic elements intact or adapted inside the open space.
Award with Distinction | Sloan-Porter House.
The restoration of this 18th century home, one of the few left in the county, was truly a labor of love for Brian Clarke and Sarah Hammett Clarke. Doing much of the work themselves, they restored the home to honor its deep history in the Steele Creek Community.
The next meeting of the Design Review Committee of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission will be held VIRTUALLY on Wednesday, August 26 at 8:00 a.m.
Access to the meeting will be provided by both video (internet) and audio (internet OR telephone).
The public will be given the opportunity to speak on the agenda items. In order to speak, you must register by 12:00 p.m. on August 25 by sending your name and agenda item of interest to Elizabeth.Stuart@MeckNC.gov. Note that comments will be limited to THREE MINUTES per speaker.
PLEASE NOTE
Instructions and a link for attending the meeting will be posted here by 7:00 a.m. on the day of the meeting.
You should plan to log into the meeting by 7:45 a.m. on the day of the meeting to ensure that you will be admitted to the entire meeting. Please sign in with your first and last name.
For the best results we strongly urge you to download the Zoom meeting app well in advance of the meeting and familiarize yourself with the software.
If, for any reason, there are technical problems with the virtual meeting before or during the meeting, please return to this pageto repeat the login process and/or for any additional instructions or information.
Comments Off on Design Review Agenda – August 2020
The Design Review Committee meeting scheduled for Wednesday, August 26, 2020, will be a virtual meeting. Please note there will be no accommodation for any in-person attendance. If you need special accommodations, please contact the HLC office at 980-314-7660.
August 26, 2020 – 8:00 a.m.
1. Chair’s Report: Garrett Nelson
2. Staff Report: Jack Thomson and Stewart Gray
3. Ranson House, 412 S. Old Statesville Road, Huntersville, N.C.
The applicant is seeking a Certificate of Appropriateness for road widening along Mt. Holly-Huntersville Road (SR2004) for a new roundabout for the Town of Huntersville’s Main Street Upgrades Project and addition of a lane and sidewalk.
Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation
Meets
Distinctive features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property shall be preserved.
New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction shall not destroy historic materials that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the property and its environment.
New additions and adjacent or related new construction shall be undertaken in such a manner that if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired.
Consider
The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of historic materials or alteration of features and spaces that characterize a property shall be avoided.
4. Freeman House, 201 S. Ames Street, Matthews, N.C.
From the applicant: The historic house currently sits on property owned by Matthews Presbyterian Church. The church wants to utilize the land for possible expansion and plans to tear down the house if no one will move it. My wife and I own the lot next door and we want to move the house to that lot and then renovate and restore it. We plan to add additional square footage at the back of the house to make it usable for our family. Although this application is just for the move, we want to get feedback from the commission to insure that our vision for the future of the house would meet the appropriateness standards. Our plan involves, 1. tearing down the existing structure on our lot (not historically significant), 2.,rebuilding the barn that straddles our property line so that it is sound and totally on our property, 3, moving Freeman House onto our lot and 4. adding additional living space to rear of historic house. The church is supportive of these plans and has given us until the end of year to have the house moved. They may extend that if necessary due to the pandemic but there is no guarantee.
Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation
Meets
The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of historic materials or alteration of features and spaces that characterize a property shall be avoided.
Distinctive features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property shall be preserved.
New additions and adjacent or related new construction shall be undertaken in such a manner that if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired
Consider
Each property shall be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or architectural elements from other buildings, shall not be undertaken.
New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction shall not destroy historic materials that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the property and its environment.
The applicant is seeking conceptual approval for exterior designation repairs and replacements only. Front entry requires accessible parking spaces proposed to go in the location of the existing gas tanks that are to be removed. Existing windows to be repaired or replaced as feasible. General repairs to exterior required from years of vacancy and vandalism. Owner is seeking conceptual approval prior to closing on the property.
Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation
Meets
The historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved. The removal of historic materials or alteration of features and spaces that characterize a property shall be avoided.
Each property shall be recognized as a physical record of its time, place, and use. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or architectural elements from other buildings, shall not be undertaken.
Distinctive features, finishes, and construction techniques or examples of craftsmanship that characterize a property shall be preserved.
Consider
Deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature shall match the old in design, color, texture, and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features shall be substantiated by documentary, physical, or pictorial evidence.
6. Update on Rezoning of the Shaw Property, 2400 Mecklenburg Avenue, Charlotte, N.C.
