West Whiteland Township Historical Commission Agenda March 13, 2017 6:30 P.M. WORK SESSION CANCELLED THIS MONTH 7 P.M. Business Meeting I. Call to Order II. III. Public Comment Old Business There is no Old Business. IV. New Business A. Applicant: David Heath Historic Site: Site 149, Class I / Grove Historic District Site Address: 1402 S. Whitford Rd. Request: Discussion and guidance regarding repairs to carriage barn B. Applicant: Hankin Group Historic Site: Site 205, Class I (Ivy Cottage) Site Address: 301 W. Lincoln Hwy. Request: Redesign of previously approved plan for Marquis at Exton V. Approval of Minutes for February 13, 2017 VI. Historical Commission Concerns A. Township update B. Town Tours & Village Walks VII. Adjournment
West Chester Office 535 N. Church Street, West Chester, PA 19380 P: 610.436.9000 F: 610.436.8468 commonwealthheritagegroup.com WC-224 Mr. John Weller, AICP Director of Planning and Zoning, and West Whiteland Township Historical Commission 222 North Pottstown Pike Exton, PA 19341 RE: Land Development Application for: Marquis at Exton apartment project Redesign, aka the Chandler Tract Dear Mr. Weller, A Land Development Application has been submitted by The Hankin Group for the Marquis at Exton apartment development on the 21.505 acre Chandler Tract located at 3011 West Lincoln Highway (U.S. Route 30). The project includes constructing five separate apartment buildings containing 240 new apartment units, a clubhouse connected to two of the apartment buildings, an outdoor swimming pool, sports court and parking for the residents. The property also contains three existing Class I historic resources, the Ivy Cottage dwelling, an adjacent barn and springhouse. These resources are to be retained and adaptively reused; the Ivy Cottage dwelling for offices, and the barn as a maintenance building for the apartment complex. The subject property is located on the north side of the Lincoln Highway approximately midway between PA Route 100 to the east, and N. Whitford Road to the west. The site is bounded by Waterloo Boulevard on the north, the Whiteland Towne Center shopping center and Albert Miller Memorial Park on the east, and the Otto s Mini automobile dealership on the west. In accordance with the West Whiteland Township Zoning Ordinance, Article XVI: Historic Preservation, Commonwealth Heritage Group (Commonwealth) has reviewed the proposed undertaking for potential impacts on the Township s designated historic resources. Commonwealth previously reviewed the Conditional Use Application in April of 2016. For our detailed comments please refer to the Commonwealth letter of April 26, 2016. For this current review we reviewed the drawings submitted with the Land Development submission; Drawings 1of 18 through 18 of 18, last revised on 2-7-2017, prepared by Edward B. Walsh & Associates, Inc. Commonwealth also reviewed the 2016 Conditional Use drawing package and the Impact Assessments Reports-Historic Resources, Recreation, Environmental Impact Study, dated 3-4-2016, prepared by Ray Ott & Associates. A detailed Historic Resources Impact Study was OTHER LOCATIONS Jackson, MI 517.788.3550 Ann Arbor, MI 517.262.3376 Milwaukee, WI 414.446.4121 Tarboro, NC 252.641.1444 Ogden, UT 801.394.0013 Alexandria, VA 703.354. 9737 Charlottesville, VA 434.979.1617 Littleton, MA 978.793.2579
Page 2 prepared previously (1988) for a prior land development submission involving this site. At the request of the West Whiteland Historical Commission, the Ray Ott & Associates study was prepared as an addendum to that earlier study to concentrate on specific mitigation measures. No architectural plans or building elevations or renderings were provided for Commonwealth s review. Therefore, other than scale and massing, this review cannot comment on the impact the architectural design may have on the historic resources. It be should also be noted that the Land Development submission documents do not propose detailed treatments of the historic resources. Historic Resources Impacted by the Proposed Project In accordance with Section 325-92.A of the Township Zoning Ordinance, Class I, II, or III historic resources located within the boundary of a proposed project site or within 300-feet of the boundary of a proposed project site shall be reviewed for potential adverse affect. Commonwealth s review of the Land Development submission has determined that the following designated historic resources are on the site of the proposed Marquis at Exton apartment project: Site #205 Ivy Cottage, 179 West Lincoln Highway, 1799 (remodeled 1886) - Class I Historic Resource Eligible for the National Register. (Located within the Chandler Tract property) o An adjacent stone springhouse, stone barn and decorative wood gazebo are associated with Ivy Cottage Additionally, it has been determined that the following designated historic resource lies within 300 feet of the project site property boundary for the proposed Marquis at Exton apartment project: Site #204 Whitford Lodge, 179 West Lincoln Highway, 1782-1783 - Class I Historic Resource Eligible for the National Register. (Located approximately 265 feet from the east property line of the site) Commonwealth s review is limited to the affect on the above mentioned historic resources. Commonwealth reviewed the submission documents referenced above and conducted a recent field review of the historic resources to evaluate the potential effect posed by the proposed residential apartment buildings and related site work including roadways, parking lots, sidewalks and landscaping. Site Visit Observations: 1. Ivy Cottage is a Georgian style stone residence that was heavy renovated c. 1886 as a country house in the Queen Anne Style. The original construction and the nineteenth century renovations were carefully designed and constructed in a craftsman like manner. The home retains a high degree of integrity and architectural fabric. The decorative woodwork, windows and doors are generally in very good condition. The property has obviously been well maintained.
Page 3 2. The adjacent stone barn with wood sided additions is located directly north of Ivy Cottage. The barn is in generally good condition. It is closely concealed by vegetation at the west side. 3. An early stone springhouse is located to the southeast of the Ivy Cottage, near the adjacent stream. The springhouse as an arched stone roof structure, covered in earth. Numerous trees are growing from the top of the structure. 4. A decorative wood gazebo of unknown date is located to the northwest of Ivy Cottage, and directly west of the stone barn. 5. Whitford Lodge is located along Lincoln Highway, approximately 265 feet west of the Chandler Tract property boundary. The building is currently unoccupied but in good condition. Design Review Comments: The revised 2017 site plans and 2016 Impact Assessment Report submitted with the Land Development submission were reviewed. The previous design has been revised to reduce the number of apartment buildings from six to five. The total count of apartments is unchanged at 240. Site development is arranged in three clusters. Cluster 1 encompasses the historic Ivy Cottage structures at the southwest corner of the property. The new apartments are clustered into two areas, on the east and west sides of the existing stream that divides the property. Cluster 2 is located on the west side of the stream and lies to the north of the Ivy cottage grouping. Cluster 2 now consists of two four-story apartment buildings connected by a central two-story clubhouse, and a separate five story apartment building at the northwest corner of the project site. Cluster 3 is located on the east side of the stream. Cluster three now consists of just two five-story buildings arranged in an L configuration with an outdoor swimming pool at the intersecting corner. Previously the project consisted of six separate apartment buildings, which were slightly smaller in footprint than the current proposal. The deleted sixth building was located in Cluster 3. It was a four-story building running east to west directly adjacent to the Lincoln Highway. Deleting that building will provide a more open view from the roadway into the Marquis at Exton development. One of the remaining buildings (Apartment Building No. 4) has subsequently been enlarged from 48 units to 72 units. This five-story building is directly east of the historic Ivy Cottage complex, but the existing stream and vegetated flood plain provide a visual buffer. The existing historic structures are located in Cluster 1 at the southwest corner of the project site. The stone house and barn will be retained and adaptively reused for office and storage space. The historic spring house will be retained and preserved. The revised work site plan shows an elliptical loop driveway with parking to the west of the house. This is a preferred approach rather than a more conventional rectangular parking lot. Many trees will be removed but the design indicates a number of old growth trees will be retained where possible. The existing gazebo was evaluated for relocation, but it was determined during the previous review process that the building was too fragile to move without being completely disassembled and rebuilt. A new sports court (presumably tennis) has been added at the southwest portion of Cluster 2, approximately 100 feet north of the historic barn. Previously one of the Apartment Buildings was in this location, but has been shifted approximately 70 feet further from the barn. That building
Page 4 originally contained 48 apartments but has been reduced in size to 36 apartments. This is a positive development in the current revised plan. Two historic markers are to be provided per the General Notes on sheet 2 of 18. One marker is located along Route 30, where the path from the historic site parking area joins the new sidewalk along Route 30. The second marker was not found on the drawings, but a suggestion would be near the driveway entrance from the Marquis Drive that runs along the west side of the property. Conclusions and Recommendations: Historic Ivy Cottage and associated structures: The proposed development and site design is generally respectful of the historic Ivy Cottage, barn and springhouse as a unified group, set in an open landscape, in compliance with Section 325-87: Integrity of historic setting, of the Zoning Ordinance. The proposed loop driveway serves to unify the historic portion of the site and provide parking in a low impact arrangement. The natural buffer created by the stream and the proposed landscaping serves to define the historic section of the property, and also shields the historic resources from the new construction. The new apartment buildings are tall and massive but kept at a respectful distance from the historic structures. The newly revised site layout actually provides additional separation from the new apartment buildings in Cluster 2. Conclusion: Based on Commonwealth s review as described herein, with regard to general site development we see no serious adverse affect on the historic structures related to Ivy Cottage. Recommendations for the treatment of the historic Ivy Cottage, related structures, and site are as follows: 1. Ivy Cottage - The proposal to adaptively reuse the house as office space is appropriate and should not require radical modifications to the building s exterior or interior. Ivy Cottage retains a high degree of integrity for exterior materials. Based on views seen through windows, the interior also appears to retain a high degree of integrity. No details are provided for the planed renovations. Any new work should be undertaken in a manner that minimizes changes to the greatest extent possible. An office use will be preferable to renovating the building to accommodate apartments, which could be much more invasive. Modern building systems and code upgrades will be required but can be implemented in a sensitive manner. Any proposed renovations should be reviewed by the Historical Commission in detail. 2. Stone Barn - The planned adaptive reuse of the barn for the site s maintenance office or storage use is appropriate. No details are provided. Similar to the house, proposed renovations should respect the original barn s historic character and original details to the greatest extent possible. Any proposed renovations should be reviewed by the Historical Commission in detail. 3. Springhouse - The existing springhouse is to be retained. The springhouse is somewhat hidden in the new growth woods along the stream. It is in generally good condition but requires the removal of miscellaneous small trees from its doomed earthen roof. A door or gate should be considered to prevent access to the interior. Any proposed renovations should be reviewed by the Historical Commission in detail. 4. Gazebo The existing gazebo will be demolished.
Page 5 5. As provided in 325-90 of the Township Zoning Ordinance, any proposed rehabilitation, alteration or enlargement of a Class I, II or III historic resource must be in substantial compliance with the Secretary of the Interior s Standards for Historic Rehabilitation. 6. Two permanent historical information markers are indicated to be erected on the historic Ivy Cottage site. The markers should contain informational text, maps, and graphic images to document the property s history, links to the Thomas Family, the evolution of Ivy Cottage as a country house, and its place in the wider history of West Whiteland. We recommend four panels of 4 x 4 feet each. Historic Whitford Lodge: The historic Whitford Lodge is located 290 feet east from the southeast corner of the property boundary. The formerly proposed four story apartment building closest to Whitford Lodge has been deleted from the project in the newly revised site design. The separation distance and proposed site landscaping for the Chandler Tract mitigate any adverse impact on Whitford Lodge. Conclusion: Based on Commonwealth s review as described herein, no adverse affect related to Whitford Lodge. Should you have any questions or comments please do not hesitate to contact this office. Sincerely, Philip Yocum, RA, NCARB, LEED AP Preservation Architect cc: Candice Myruski Wade Catts