3301 Magazine St

District: Garden District - Partial Control

Owner: 4307 DHV LLC

Rating: Non-Contributing

Applicant: Steven Belflower Architect LLC

Description: Demolition of more than 50% of the roof of a Non-Contributing rated, one-story, commercial building.

HDLC Guidelines:

Section 12, Pages 23-24 of the Guidelines for New Construction, Additions and Demolition, state that the demolition of all or portions of historic resources within a local Historic District or Landmark site are considered drastic actions since they alter the character of the area. Once historic resources or buildings that contribute to the heritage of the community are destroyed, it is generally impossible to reproduce their design, texture, materials, details and their special character and interest in the neighborhood. As a result, the HDLC rarely considers the demolition of Significant or Contributing buildings or structures within a local Historic District or on a Landmark site to be an appropriate option.

Staff Recommendations:

Based on Sanborn map research, the existing masonry building was possibly constructed as early as 1885, within the period of significance for the local historic district. However, the building has been highly altered over the years including the removal of the corner awning and a rear addition between 1909 and 1951 which enlarged the overall building footprint. It is unclear if the current door and window openings are original, however, there does not appear to be any historic doors or windows extant on the building. A previous HDLC building survey from 2002 notes the building as "Unrated." Based on this, the minimal amount of historic building fabric remaining and due to the possibility that the existing building is a more recent construction (built after the 1951 Sanborn map), HDLC considers the building to be Non-Contributing rated. The applicant is proposing to demolish 100% of the existing roof to accommodate a new rooftop and rear addition. Based on the building's lack of historic building fabric and Non-Contributing rating, Staff has no objection to the partial roof demolition application.