Friday, June 13, 2008 11:11 PM CDT
Work progresses on Charleston's historic Livingston Lord home
By ROB STROUD, Staff Writer
rstroud@jg-tc.com
CHARLESTON — A property owner’s plans for restoring the former home of Eastern Illinois University’s first president on Seventh Street were discussed on Friday by the Charleston Historic Preservation Commission.
The commission also approved a certificate of appropriateness for a porch restoration on Sixth Street in the city’s historic district. This was the first time a property owner has sought a certificate, a kind of work permit for historic structures, since the district was created in March.
Thomas and Salisa Olmsted, owners of Painted Lady restorations, have purchased the Livingston Lord house at 838 Seventh St., where records indicate Eastern’s first president resided 1903-33. They are restoring the long-neglected home and plan to sell it.
“From everything we can tell, they are doing a magnificent job of bringing this building back,” said Kit Morice, chairwoman of the commission.
Morice said the commission has not received a certificate application yet from the Olmsteds yet, but she anticipates getting one. The couple has submitted other documents to the city detailing their plans for the house.
A certificate will be needed for the reinstallation of handrails between the support posts on the front porch, Morice said.
Although the front porch work does not require a building permit, she said a certificate would be needed because ornate handrails were a major part of the house’s Queen Anne architecture.
Morice said a certificate would also be required for the Olmsteds’ plans to construct a new carriage house and remove an existing garage, work that also would need a building permit. There is no fee for the certificate.
Olmsted said he has not gotten far enough into the commission’s review process to evaluate it yet. He said the city staff has been helpful with his electrical and plumbing inspection needs.
His work crews have been making repairs to the house’s roof and exposing original decorative trim that was covered by siding many years ago, Olmsted said.
“It was a beautiful house they covered up,” Olmsted said.
In other matters, the commission approved Bob and Lola McElwee’s certificate application to restore a front porch at their home, 1011 Sixth St. The McElwees said they plan to repair and restore the porch, which is starting to pull away from their home.
Morice said a certificate is not needed for the McElwees’ planned addition to the back of their home because the city’s historic preservation ordinance focuses on the “street appearance” of historic structures. Still, the McElwees said the addition will match the home’s design.
Adopted in fall 2004, the city’s historic preservation ordinance can be used to designate properties as landmarks or historic districts to help ensure their preservation.
Owners of properties with this designation must go through a hearing process to acquire certificates before then can make significant alterations. Minor repairs, painting and most other work that does not require a building permit are exempt from this process.
Bob McElwee said he is pleased with how quickly the commission handled his certificate application and with his neighborhood being part of a historic district.
“We think it’s absolutely wonderful that we have some guidelines to keep our neighborhood in as close to the original shape as possible,” McElwee said.
Contact Rob Stroud at rstroud@jg-tc.com or 348-5734.
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