Preservation Awards
This year’s selections are an excellent cross section of what it means to live in a preservation oriented city.
10 Pickman Road
Janet Sherwood has just completed a sensitive renovation of her early 20th centry house, which was one of the first built on a former mid-18th century experimental farm. In the 1960s, the house was condemned following a fire, but Janet’s parents rescued it and renovated it into their home. Upon inheriting the house Janet began another renovation. She retained the original slate roof and replaced 1960s vinyl siding with wood-grained clapboards made of fiber cement; retaining wood trim and other details. She restored a decorative window on the side of the house that had been covered over by the siding. The interior of the house has been completely restored retaining all of the original woodwork. This project is a model for other houses on the street that are being renovated by new owners.
60 Derby Street
This is a fitting finale for David and Gina Atwood, who recently sold this house after a 7 year “labor of love.” When the house was purchased it was two one-bedroom apartments but, to quote the Gina “it was built as a stately single family home and was meant to be a single family home.” This restoration included historic paint colors, wood window restoration and replacement, maintenance of the wide pine floors, installation of wooden gutters, and restoration of 4 of the fireplaces in the home. As in many projects this work was done incrementally, which meant repeated visits to the Salem Historic Commission, truly a labor of love.
315-317 Essex Street
Stephen Morris of Colonial Remodeling Corp. undertook the transformation of a local fixture, the former Gainsboro photography studio and a boarding house, into six condominiums, working with local architect Morris Schopf to create an exterior that fits seamlessly in to the McIntire historic district.
1st Church in Salem, Unitarian
Across the street is the 1st Church in Salem, Unitarian. The addition to the back of the church building was planned for 100 years of future use. If only, if only, if only all building efforts were so far sighted. This architecturally appropriate addition of an elevator and stairway and renovation of most other spaces of this 19th and early 20th century building was designed by Mender, Tory and Spencer of Boston and the general contractor was Essex Builders of Westwood.
Lynn Duncan, City Planner; Department of Planning and Community Development; and the Salem Redevelopment Authority
Re-drafting of the Salem Downtown Renewal Plan
Without a doubt the Salem we have today is due in part to the implementation of the Heritage East and West Urban Renewal plans 40 years ago, which, as many know, replaced a plan that would have demolished the historic core of downtown. Protecting and promoting this successful plan was the aim of Lynn Duncan, the Planning Department, and the Salem Redevelopment Authority when they undertook the re-drafting of this plan in 2011 with the aid of Steve Cecil and Emily Innes of the Cecil group. While maintaining the original intent of the plan it was updated to reflect current design guidelines and clarify actions that the SRA can take, providing much protection to historic downtown buildings. We invite you to applaud the work of all involved in renewing this renewal plan.
Honorable Mentions
Appropriate maintenance is the hallmark of good stewardship over historic properties. We’d like to recognize with an honorable mention the work of the Salem Athenaeum to restore the center portion of the their front stairs.
We’d also like to recognize the Leavitt Chase Condominium Association for their maintenance project on the cornice of their building, during which they discovered that restoring historic fabric even if it appeared to be beyond repair was less expensive than replacement or even simply removing it.
2011 Preservation Award Winners (partial)