House Style: Victorian

Project Type: Remodeling Additions

Location: Salt Lake City, Utah

Originally Built in: 1905

OVERVIEW

Kermit & Noreen's residence was built in 1905 and is located in one of Salt Lake’s Historic Districts. A rear addition had been built previously, but the front façade of the home had lost some of its original victorian appeal. When a photo of the home in its original condition was found, the owners began to consider a renovation. At some point the front porch had been altered from it's original circular column style and replaced with wrought iron. Also, the original shakes in the main house and porch gables were covered by aluminum siding. The goal of this project was to restore the porch to its original exterior architectural style, and incorporate a small rear addition.

THE STORY

Since the home was located in a historic district, not only was a building permit required but approval of the city planning department and the approval of the Historic Landmark Commission. The architectural plans had to accommodate the historic character of the area and follow the established guidelines. Restrictions on the size and shape of any addition as well as the materials used for the renovation must be followed.

The first item of business was to replace the aluminum siding and windows that had been installed on the rear addition. The 1050 square foot home was also in need of a slight expansion to accommodate an additional guest bathroom. The rear entrance was adorned by a haphazard aluminum awning, which would have to be replaced. The roof over the addition had a history of leaking and required a complete overhaul.

The principle objective of the project however, was a historical restoration of the front porch. The home had lost some of its charm when the original wood columns were replaced with stringy iron columns and railings to surround the porch, and the roofing beams were wrapped in aluminum.

THE SOLUTION

An addition of a new bathroom off the back bedroom was completed to create a guest suite but due to zoning and historic district requirements there was only room for a slender 50 square foot bathroom. The additional space would be enough to contain a toilet, pedestal sink and shower. One of the interesting architectural elements of this bathroom is the mirror floating over the glass block window.

The aluminum wrapping was stripped from the beams and the iron columns and railings removed. New wood columns to match those found in the original photo, and painted white, replaced the iron ones. A new railing was also added. The original wood siding in the front gables, previously covered with aluminum siding, was uncovered and restored.

The existing flat roof was replaced by a hip roof to match that of the original home. The decaying aluminum siding and windows were replaced with fiber-cement siding and Pella wood windows. And finally, the aluminum awning was replaced with a custom-designed wood awning.

Noreen was happy to take on the responsibilities that came along with remodeling in a historic district. She states “We knew we wanted to do some renovation, and this was an extra incentive to do it right”.