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HEMA No. 2024-03 – The St. Thomas-Hamilton House (1002 N. French Street) July 15, 2024 Page 9 4 3 8 8 French Park Architectural Design Guidelines (“Guidelines”) As previously stated in the Project Background section of this report, the applicant submitted two cycles of the neighborhood review application. As part of the neighborhood review, the French Park Architectural Review Committee (FPARC) was tasked with determining whether the proposed work is consistent with the Guidelines. As outlined in Exhibit 11 of this report, the FPARC largely supports the proposed work. This includes the retention and restoration of three exterior doors along the south and eastern elevation, and the porch restoration, including the removal of the porch enclosure at the southern façade, and the retention/restoration and or replacement of character-defining elements (e.g., porch posts, brackets, balustrade, frieze, spandrels, skirting, and stoops). However, the FPARC opposes the use of metal railings for both the porch stoops and the staircases leading to the two-story addition. Given the feedback provided by the FPARC, the applicant elected to hire two qualified individuals to provide a historic assessment of the proposed work, both who summarized that the proposed work was consistent with both Guidelines and the SOIS. Therefore, the applicant elected to proceed with the requested HEMA without FPARC support of the proposed metal railings. Due to the discord between the FPARC and the applicant, planning staff provides a more in-depth comparative analysis between the Guidelines and the SOIS, shown in Exhibit 11. Based on this analysis, staff has determined that the entirety of the proposed scope of work, including the metal railings, is in conformance with both the Guidelines and the SOIS. Specifically, staff determined that the proposed treatment for the exterior doors is in conformance with the Guidelines, as they will be retained and restored to a period-correct style. Moreover, the proposed treatments for the removal of the porch enclosure and the restoration of the character-defining features is in conformance with the Guidelines, as the guidelines recommend and prioritize identifying, retaining, repairing, and preservation of character-defining features. Lastly, the proposed concrete pier walls and the metal handrails/guardrails will be in general conformance with the Guidelines, since they’ve been determined to be compatible with the historic porch elements, but differentiated in a way to not create a false sense of history. Moreover, the proposed metal handrails and guardrails will be designed in a simple form and styling and finished in a dark color so that they recede from view. The overall simplistic design along with use of distinct materials will ensure that all alterations will be compatible with the historic building. However, to ensure the final design is aesthetically harmonious and of a high-quality design, a condition of approval has been included as part of this project, should the Historic Resources Commission seek a metal handrail design that incorporates additional embellishments and/or ornamentation, which can be deemed as appropriate and compatible with the architectural design. This recommendation requires that the property owner coordinate with staff on the final design of the metal railings prior to permit issuance. Historic Resources Commission 146 7/15/2024