Conceptual Design For Senior Center To Be Reviewed Wednesday

There will be a special meeting of the Design Review and Preservation Board tomorrow evening (Wednesday, December 28, 6PM, Room 208), to discuss the plans for renovations to the Eckersley Hall School Building. Eckersley Hall, on Durant Terrace behind Illiano's Pizza on South Main, was built as a public elementary school after World War I, and used most recently by Saint Sebastian's Church as a private school. The Common Council voted to purchase the building from Saint Sebastian for $800,000 for use as a Senior Center and Municipal offices.

The architectural firm Quisenberry Acari has created conceptual plans for the conversion. The Planning Department has posted on its web site a Site Plan Map, a Floor Plan and Elevation Rendering, and 3D views of the exterior.

The largest proposed change to the exterior is the addition of large structure on the south end to re-orient the building by creating a new main entrance, to house stairs, and most importantly to house an elevator for handicapped access. Thus, instead of a building which is symmetrical and entered from the long side with many windows at ground level, people will enter towards the end of the building in an addition with no windows at ground level. The architects have echoed the original on the elevator addition, but the addition de-emphasizes the Dutch Façade which now symmetrically bookends the school building.

According to the Planning Department web site,

Middletown's Design Review and Preservation Board was set up by Ordinance, section 26-10 in 1998, to act in an advisory capacity to the Planning and Zoning Committee. ...
The board's goal is not to get in the way of improving Middletown, but rather preserve and promote the character and heritage of our neighborhoods and business areas. [emphasis mine]

The Design and Review Board reviews signs on all of the city's commercial corridors, and significant changes to properties in the downtown and village districts. Additionally, they are charged with reviewing any significant changes to properties of historic significance. The Eckersley Hall building is on the Greater Middletown Preservation Trust's Inventory of Historical and Architectural Resources, and thus any changes must be reviewed by DRPB.

According to city guidelines the DRPB refers to the National Department of the Interior Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties. These include the following statement:

Finally, alterations and new construction needed to meet accessibility requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 should be designed to minimize material loss and visual change to a historic building.

The City's summary of those guidelines also include the following:

New additions, exterior alterations, or related new construction shall not destroy historic materials that characterize the property. The new work shall be differentiated from the old and shall be compatible with massing, size, scale, and architectural features to protect the historic integrity of the property and its environment.

Another sentence in the City's guidelines speaks to the importance of preserving historically significant artwork, such as the mural painted by WPA artist Albert McCutcheon during the Depression:

Significant archaeological resources affected by a project shall be protected and preserved. If such resources must be disturbed, mitigation measures shall be undertaken.

After review by the DRPB, the project next goes to the Planning and Zoning Commission. They have scheduled a Public Hearing for this at their January 12th meeting (7PM, Council Chambers).