A Checklist for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings
Introduction
Rehabilitation acknowledges the need to alter or add to a historic building to meet continuing or changing uses while retaining the building's historic character.
This series of questions is designed to help anyone who is considering the rehabilitation of a historic building. The checklist suggests a typical process of documenting, evaluating, and assessing a historic building prior to undertaking rehabilitation work.
Please note that the following is general guidance; therefore, it cannot be used to determine which features of a specific historic building are important in defining the historic character and must be preserved, or which features could be altered - if necessary - for the new use. This kind of careful case-by-case decision-making is best accomplished by seeking assistance from qualified historic preservation professionals in the planning stage of the project. Such professionals include architects, architectural historians, and historians who are skilled in the preservation and rehabilitation of historic buildings.
- Check Available Documentation
- Evaluate the Historic Character (the way it looks today)
- Assess Architectural Integrity, Including Existing Physical Condition
- Plan for the Rehabilitation Work
- Check Codes and Other Legal Requirements
- Check Use of Federal Funds/Review Requirements
- Check Available Publications
1. Check Available Documentation Top
What historical or architectural documentation is available about the building and site that can help to determine how it looked early in its history, as well as the cumulative changes made over time? For example:
- state or local historical survey or inventory
- historical documents, views, photographs in libraries, archives, historical
societies, recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record
- National Register nomination
2. Evaluate the Historic Character (The Way It Looks Today) Top
Historic buildings are physical records of past inhabitants.
Thecharacter-defining aspects of the building that need to be identified
and evaluated may include the form and detailing of interior materials,
such as masonry, wood, and metal; exterior features such as roofs,
porches, and windows; interior materials, such as plaster and wood; and
interior features, such as moldings and stairways, room configuration,
and spatial relationships, as well as structural and mechanical systems.
What is the original configuration of the building? What are the
architectural changes that have been made over time during successive
occupancies?
They may include:
- additions such as a porch, wing, or upper story
- changes to surfaces and finishes (unpainted to painted, slates to asphalt; polychrome to monochrome)
- blocking of windows, removal of shutters
- changes to grade
- change to a cornice, loss of stairs or steps
- adding false fronts
- changes to basic plan (single family to multiple family).
- changes to the building site
Remember that most buildings change over time with different occupancies
and uses. These changes may or may not be an integral part of the historic character and should be evaluated very carefully prior to work.
3. Assess Architectural Integrity, Including Physical Condition Top
Has the architectural integrity of the historic building and its setting
been assessed? Architectural integrity means the intactness of the building as an
architectural system (its plan, features, materials, finishes, and
structural system).
Are there physical problems that threaten the building's architectural
and structural integrity?
Has a structural survey determined deficiencies due to settlement, deflection
of beams, seismic inadequacy, or cuts through structural members for mechanical
pipes and ducts?
Is there inherent material damage, such as material failure due to
poor design, poor quality materials, severe environmental or moisture
problems, neglect, or improper maintenance?
Is there human-inflicted damage, such as removed or lost
ornamentation, inappropriate coatings, bad repointing or cleaning, insensitive
additions, or partitioning of significant interior spaces?
Are historic features hidden behind later alterations? These may
include ornamental ceilings or cornices obscured by dropped ceilings.
4. Plan for the Rehabilitation Work Top
Have both the interior and exterior of the historic building been
thoroughly photographed to document their condition prior to any construction work?
Will testing be needed to determine the condition of the materials
or the systems?
Will the project require specially fabricated replacement materials,
such as terra-cotta or ornamental metals?
Will the project involve specialized crafts, such as stone carving or
ornamental plastering, and if so, where can the necessary expertise be
found? It is generally necessary to write unique specifications rather
than use standard specifications for certain types of work on a historic
building.
Will the impact of a proposed new addition or adjacent new
construction be minimized by keeping the size, shape, materials, and detailing in
scale with the surrounding environment?
What protective measures will be taken to preserve character-defining
features and finishes during the construction work?
Will the project require making bathrooms or other areas and
amenities accessible to persons with disabilities? Have options been studied to
achieve accessibility without threatening or destroying character-defining
interior spaces, features, and finishes?
On the exterior, will the rehabilitation work preserve distinctive
historic fabric and the historic character? Loss of fabric or change of
character often occur when:
- storefronts are altered
- visible skylights are added on top of an existing building
- new dormers are added on prominent roofs
- entire new floors are added on top of an existing building
- porches are enclosed
- new window openings are created
- brick walls are abrasively cleaned
- configuration and detailing of new window sash is historically
inappropriate
On the interior, will the rehabilitation work preserve distinctive
historic fabric and the historic character? Loss of fabric or change of character
often occur when:
- principal rooms are partitioned
- interior plaster is removed to expose brick
- interiors are gutted to introduce new atriums or add new floor levels
- significant stairs are removed or altered
- prominent hallways are narrowed in width
- decorative ceilings are covered by dropped ceilings
Will an architect or other qualified historic preservation personnel be
available during construction to ensure that work is carried out
according to established preservation principles?
Have construction personnel received adequate training in undertaking
historic preservation work?
5. Check Codes and Other Legal Requirements Top
Are there easements, overlay zones, or local ordinances governing
alterations to property (check deed records, zoning offices)?
Depending on the current or anticipated use (museum, commercial/retail,
public space), how does the Americans with Disabilities Act, a federal
civil rights law, apply to the historic building?
How do state and local building codes apply to the historic building?
What impact will they have upon the character and integrity? Are code
variances available? Are there code equivalency possibilities for the building?
Is local historic preservation commission review required?
6. Check Use of Federal Funds / Review Requirements Top
Will federal funds be involved in the project, necessitating review
by the State Historic Preservation Office and consultation with the
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation?
Will federal historic preservation tax incentives be used? If so, do you have a copy of the Secretary of the Interior's Standards
for Rehabilitation (36CFR 67)?
Have you obtained a copy of the Historic Preservation Certification
Application package from the State Historic Preservation Office?
Please note that for federal historic preservation tax credits, the
Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation (36 CFR 67) take precedence over local requirements and design guidelines.
7. Check Available Publications Top
|
