Special Guest Writer
Mary Slater, Architectural Conservator
Plaster Problems at Blandwood Mansion
Recently I was contacted by Benjamin Briggs, Executive Director of Preservation Greensboro, regarding the repair of exterior plaster at Blandwood Mansion. He invited me to take a look at the plaster and offer my thoughts on how to address deterioration and ongoing maintenance. I was excited to visit this National Historic Landmark property situated amid the bustle of Greensboro. Constructed as a simple farmhouse in 1795, the building was purchased by North Carolina Governor John Motley Morehead, who commissioned renowned New York architect A.J. Davis to design an expansion. Davis added a central tower and symmetrical dependencies, finished with stucco to resemble an Italianate villa. The expansion, completed in 1846, is recognized by architectural historians as the oldest standing example of Italianate architecture in the United States.
After graciously leading me on an insider tour of the splendidly restored rooms of Blandwood, Benjamin showed me the exterior plaster covering the brick masonry walls of the 1846 addition. Right away I knew I was looking at a non-historic cement plaster: the hard, painted, smooth surface was in good to fair condition overall, but a few open cracks could be seen at stress points near window openings and at exposed chimney stacks; in addition, the plaster was discolored at the foundation and crumbling away from the damp brickwork beneath. Plaster at the adjacent dependencies exhibited a dense, spider web-like network of fine cracks that were partially obscured by multiple coats of paint. Benjamin explained that the plaster had been installed during a previous restoration campaign in the 1980s. Although the plaster had been applied with the best of intentions, both Benjamin and I recognized it as a historically inappropriate material for the building, which is contributing to the deterioration of the historic brick masonry. In this article I hope to shed some light on the problems posed by the use of cement plaster on historic buildings, and point out recent developments in the field of historic preservation that have the potential to improve the physical condition and historic authenticity of heritage properties.
The Role of Plaster in Waterproofing
Exterior plaster, also known as stucco or render, is an important aesthetic building element; it creates a specific effect of texture (and sometimes color) in designed buildings, and is a character-defining feature in historic architecture. Plaster also has a functional role in minimizing the intrusion of moisture into a building.
Water is the most significant agent of deterioration of building materials. It carries abrasive particles that erode surfaces (the Grand Canyon is a dramatic example of this process), it supports fungal growth that rots wooden features as well as higher plant forms whose roots displace building elements, and it dissolves water-soluble earthen materials such as adobe. Water also stresses porous materials by leaching binders and minerals, and it transports ice crystals and soluble salts that expand against pore walls and cause destruction at the microscopic level.
Waterproofing is therefore a critical component of building design, and primarily involves the exclusion of precipitation and groundwater by means of roofing, flashing, and drainage systems including gutters, downspouts, and foundation protection (known colloquially as establishing a good “hat and boots” to keep water out of a building). Wall systems play a secondary role in waterproofing, mainly shedding precipitation to the ground where ideally it is carried away from the building. Plaster serves as a protective coating in waterproofing walls.
Historically, plaster was a relatively porous material (usually a mixture of lime and sand or clay and sand), which did not render the wall impervious to moisture. Rather, the plaster got wet and gradually dried out; if the plaster was saturated and the underlying wall was wetted, the moisture evaporated outward through the plaster, allowing the wall to dry. Wetting and drying cycles would cause the plaster to deteriorate, necessitating the periodic replacement of plaster as part of building maintenance. Often, coatings such as limewash (also known as whitewash) would be applied to plaster, both as an attempt to improve waterproofing and increase the durability of the plaster, and as aesthetic enhancement to the building. Limewash is also relatively porous, and allowed for the evaporation of water from the walls. Both plaster and limewash were sacrificial coatings that would be renewed on a cyclical basis.
Today, we refer to the characteristic of porous materials drying out through natural cycles as permeability or “breathability”. Traditional building technology relies on this mechanism, and it is only in the last century that we have developed materials that counteract breathability and facilitate moisture-related deterioration. With regard to exterior plaster, the development of Portland cement represents the most significant disruptive and destructive factor in the treatment of historic buildings.
Portland Cement vs. Lime
The original plaster applied to the exterior walls of Blandwood was lime plaster (probably coated with limewash). Lime is an ancient building material and is most often produced by heating certain types of limestone in a kiln (although sea shells and coral can also be used to make lime). The “lump lime” or “quicklime” was then slaked by mixing it with water, resulting in a violent chemical reaction producing heat and caustic fumes. The slaked lime formed a smooth putty with excellent binding characteristics. Slaked lime could be mixed with sand to make mortar or plaster, or diluted with water to make limewash. Lime putty could be aged indefinitely if kept covered with water, which promoted increased workability of the material. Lime, because it is manufactured from unaltered natural materials, is a type of natural cement.
In the mid 19th century, an artificial cement was developed in Britain, named Portland cement for its resemblance to a gray sandstone quarried on the Isle of Portland in England. The material boasted many significant advantages over lime, including fast set, high, early strength, the ability to set in damp conditions (even under water), and increased water resistance after curing. Because it was packaged in powder form and did not need to be slaked, Portland cement was cheaper and safer than quicklime to transport and use. Portland cement, also referred to as Ordinary Portland Cement or OPC, is mixed with aggregate to make concrete, which contributed to a revolution in building technology in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Due to its many advantages, OPC supplanted lime as a building material in the United States. Today the bagged Type S lime we buy for building projects is merely a plasticizer meant to increase the workability of OPC materials such as mortar and plaster.
In the early decades of the 20th century, OPC was ubiquitous not only in new construction, but was also used in the repair, renovation, and restoration of heritage buildings (image, right, of recent repair made on historic building - not Blandwood]). The prevalence of OPC as a repair material in traditional buildings increased as interest in historic preservation in the U. S. gained traction in the mid to late 20th century. It was not until the 1970s and 1980s that the long-term performance of OPC materials raised concerns with stewards of cultural resources. The effects of using OPC in patches, mortars, and plasters were stark: historic fabric such as bricks, stone, adobe, and lime plaster adjacent to OPC materials exhibited severe erosion and deterioration. Preservation professionals were beginning to realize that many of the properties of OPC were incompatible with historic materials. The high compressive strength, low permeability, and presence of soluble salts in OPC materials transferred and concentrated structural and environmental stresses to the weaker historic fabric, accelerating the deterioration of the materials that the repairs were intended to preserve.
One of the most disturbing effects of OPC materials is demonstrated in the use of Portland cement-based plasters, which are not “breathable” like lime plasters, and tend to be covered with paint or elastomeric coatings which further reduce breathability. OPC plasters by their nature tend to crack. In new construction, cracks in concrete and OPC plaster are mitigated through the installation of control joints. Because traditional buildings lack control joints (and adding control joints would be visually inappropriate), OPC plasters on historic buildings develop cracks at stress points; also, crack networks can develop when curing conditions are too hot and/or dry. As a result, moisture enters through cracks in the plaster and cannot adequately escape. In addition, ground moisture absorbed in walls through rising damp is also trapped by OPC plaster. This effect can be catastrophic on adobe buildings covered with OPC plaster, where weakening and erosion of the underlying adobe is hidden behind the rigid plaster until structural failure occurs.
The Resurgence of Lime Plaster
By the time the historic preservation community fully acknowledged the incompatibility of OPC with most historic building materials, alternatives to OPC were relatively limited. Workers in the construction and traditional building trades were no longer trained in the use of lime, and in any case appropriate building lime was largely unavailable. Increased awareness of the pitfalls of OPC, in addition to research conducted and supported by academic institutions devoted to architectural conservation, has led to a revival of traditional building limes in the U.S. Today there are multiple sources for traditional lime mortar and plaster, as well as architectural specifications and training resources for masons and plasterers provided by lime manufacturers and distributors. College-level programs and vocational institutions are also producing graduates trained in the use of traditional building techniques and materials. Prominent programs include the American College of the Building Arts in Charleston, as well as North Carolina’s Edgecombe Community College in Tarboro.
Removing OPC plaster and re-establishing lime plaster on historic buildings will help slow deterioration facilitated by inappropriate OPC plaster. The lime revival is good news not just for the physical condition of historic fabric, but also for the visual authenticity of traditional buildings. Lime plaster and lime wash impart a depth and texture that cannot be matched by painted or integral-color OPC stucco. The translucence of limewash, in particular, creates a warm glow on a lime plaster wall that cannot be duplicated with modern materials.
As appropriate materials are available, and trained practitioners in the preservation trades are becoming more numerous, the challenges posed by the deterioration of OPC plaster at Blandwood Mansion might be conducive for replacement with compatible lime plaster.
Economic Impacts of RehabilitationTax Credit Investment 2001 through 2012 in North Carolina
Total Number of Projects: 484
Total Development Expenditures: $1,098,143,898
Construction Jobs: 8,291
Permanent Jobs: 10,258
Total Number of Jobs: 18,549
Household Income Generated: $612,312,900
Rehabiliatation Tax Credit Investment 1979 through 2013 in Guilford County
Total Number of Projects in Guilford County 1979-2013: 50
Total Development Expenditures in Guilford County 1979-2013: $58,833,467.70
The history of federal tax incentives for historic rehabilitation began with the 1976 Tax Act, which included an accelerated depreciation of certain costs of rehabilitating properties on the National Register of Historic Places and a tax deduction for preservation easements. This incentive was enhanced to a 10 percent rehabilitation tax credit in 1978.
A significant step forward came with the Economic Recovery Tax Act (ERTA) of 1981, when the rehabilitation tax credit was expanded to a three-tier credit that provided a 25 percent credit for "historic rehabilitation" projects to National Register properties. ERTA became a useful tool to promote the rehabilitation of historic buildings that provided a stimulus for the economy during the Reagan Administration. This tool remains more or less intact from the late 1980s, though the credit has been reduced to 20% of eligible project costs.
Here in North Carolina, income tax incentives for the rehabilitation of National Register properties date back to the 1994, when the state began to provide a 5% credit for those taxpayers who receive the above federal credit. Effective January 1, 1998, the state increased the credit to 20% for the rehabilitation of income-producing historic properties. This essentially provided North Carolina investors with a combined 40% credit against eligible project costs. In addition, a 30% was provided for non-income producing properties such as private homes. In 2006, in order to encourage redevelopment of historic industrial sites, the state passed the “Mills Bill” to provide a credit for income- and non-income-producing historic mill properties.
North Carolina remains one of 29 states that provide credits toward rehabilitation of National Register properties. Since 1976, over 2,000 completed "certified rehabilitation" projects have been reviewed by the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office, representing over one billion dollars of investment in historic properties. The spinoff from all this activity includes permanent job creation, downtown and neighborhood revitalization, improved community tourism, and enhancement of community tax base. Investment in historic preservation is an investment in our communities.
Here in Guilford County, tax credits have spurred major reinvestment in our community that would likely not have taken place in their absence. Major early projects here included Market Square in High Point – one of the largest tax credit projects in the state for the first decade of the program. In Jamestown, the McCulloch Gold Mill was restored using credits. In Greensboro, high profile projects such as the Wafco Mill, The Lofts at Greensborough Court Apartments, and the Porter Drug Store were rejuvenated to take their places as community landmarks because of historic preservation tax credits.
Since those projects were completed, an additional $35,705,039 of work has been completed in Guilford County between 2003 and 2012 on income-producing properties. Guilford County, with its substantial older buildings, is a primary user of preservation tax credits in the state. Projects here range in size from the c. 1918 John Hampton Adams House on Main Street in High Point that now serves as an exclusive inn to the impressive L. Richardson Memorial Hospital that is now used for affordable elder care in eastern Greensboro. Projects include downtown Greensboro’s Elm Street Center conference and meeting space, the popular J.W. Jones Building that serves as the home of Natty Greene’s Brewhouse, and the F.W. Woolworth Building that brings tourists to the county as the International Civil Rights Museum. By 2013, a total of 58,833,467.70 has been invested in Guilford County by utilizing both federal and state tax credit programs.
This year, legislators will consider renewing the North Carolina State Historic Preservation Tax Credits program. The credit has been renewed twice before, each time enjoying broad bipartisan support because legislators recognize the importance of the tool in driving investment in our communities, whether they are major cities of the scale of High Point and Greensboro, or small towns such as Jamestown. In addition, the credit enhances tourism and small businesses on main streets. A 2008 study by UNC Chapel Hill estimated the program’s statewide impact of the economic benefits since 1998 have created 23,100 new full-time jobs. In addition, the report found that he state issued an estimated $179 million in historic tax credits and received tax revenues of approximately $55 million in direct taxes from the rehabilitation activities. That cost to the state of roughly $3.6 million per year in foregone revenues has stimulated approximately $160 million in new economic activity annually.
Each $1 in state historic tax credits issued has been leveraged to create $12.51 (for income-producing projects).
Let our representatives know that you support the extension of North Carolina’s Historic Preservation Tax Credit.
Members and friends of Preservation Greensboro met on February 18th to celebrate achievements of the past year at their 48th Annual Meeting held at the Greensboro Country Club. The organization reviewed benchmarks of 2013 and looked forward to planned events and activities in 2014 such as the Tour of Historic Homes and Gardens in Westerwood in May and other events to explore architecture and history.
The organization also honored noteworthy projects and individuals who have made significant contributions to help preserve our community. A total of four preservation awards recognized historic preservation initiatives that were sensitive to historic character and architectural integrity. Two individuals were recognized for their contributions.
In 1968, African-American architect Gerard Gray designed this home for his North Carolina A&T State University colleague Charles Fountain and his wife Fannie at 211 North Dudley Street. Gray taught in the Architectural Engineering program and utilized this lot in the Cumberland Project, the state’s first urban renewal undertaking. As a reflection of Fountain’s expertise as the head of the A&T landscape program, the front courtyard and patio feature and innovative Asian-inspired landscape screen that shields the house from the street. Inside the home, the house features a large central living room that links bedrooms to the left with a kitchen and dining area to the right. Working with architect Jill Spaeh, the current homeowners Laurel Stewart and Len Testa sensitively renovated the house with Modernism in mind, adding citron accent walls, upgrading a marvelous double bath, and adding a dream kitchen. The owners have added their own collection of mid-century furnishings that fit perfectly with the open and light floorplan. The Fountain residence was a participant in last year’s Loewenstein Legacy tour.
The Wachter House at 808 Olive Street in Fisher Park is, in many ways, a typical American Foursquare house. The Foursquare took its name in having simple square floor plan with four rooms to a floor. In the case of the Wachter House, the home takes design cues from the Prairie style, including its low pyramidal roofline and hipped dormer window, its banded windows, and its generous wide porch. Mrs. Wachter was the resident of the house when it was first listed in directories in 1920. Over the years, the house experienced some design miss-fires, including the application of oversized wood shakes to the exterior, and the installation of a ramp to the front door. Last year, the house was acquired by Pam Frye, a veteran house restorer. Pam removed the shaggy shake siding and restored the original clapboards and reinstated the porch design. She updated the interior to include a modern kitchen and bathrooms, and painted the house in a period-appropriate color. Today, the Wachter House is again a Greensboro classic Foursquare and a point of neighborhood pride.
This bungalow at 813 Olive Street in Fisher Park is just a few houses down the street from the Wachter House It was constructed around 1917, and its first occupants, Daniel Kenerly and his wife Rachael might have been the builders, as Daniel was listed as a carpenter in city directories. The home was built with typical Fisher details, including hardwood floors and an open floor plan, but the home has unusual details including the paneled brick porch piers, and pointed arch porch headers. The windows of the home are unusually delightful, sporting upper sashes with diamond details. The house was acquired by Kiet Nguyen and Jim Williams of Triad Residential Solutions from an estate last year. The house had not had major improvements in quite some time, and the restoration brought a new kitchen and bathrooms…but also preserved the charming porch details, wood floors and fireplace mantels. Today, this house and the nearby Wachter House represent renewed interest in Fisher Park as Olive Street and nearby blocks enjoy a flurry of superb restorations.
The Sarah and Max Klein House at 1719 Madison Avenue in Sunset Hills was built around 1938. The charming Period Cottage is composed of a handsome fieldstone façade, a small arched niche window, and a “catslide roof” on the front gable. In 1938, Max Klein was the sales manager of Klimate-Pruff Manufacturing. The couple lived here with their two children. In 2007, the side porch was enclosed with an awkward arrangement of windows and a paneled wood door on its façade. When Leslie and Mike Stainback acquired the house, it was in need of new mechanical equipment and a sensitive redesign. The house was renovated in a way that enhanced its overall design with period shutters and the addition of a shed dormer window to capture interior space. Today, the house shines along with other period homes in Sunset Hills, as of 2013 Greensboro newest National Register Historic District!
Two awards recognized volunteers. Ivan Saul Cutler was recognized for his innovative work in rebranding Blandwood Mansion with the Blandwood Volunteer of the Year Award. Kay Stern was honored for her early work in fundraising to save Blandwood in 1966, as well as he recent initiative to preserve her Mid-Century Modern Home with a preservation easement. In recognition of her contributions to the organization, Preservation Greensboro recognized her with the Volunteer of the Year Award, the organization's highest honor.
Preservation Greensboro is a membership organization and the city’s leading advocate dedicated to the conservation of treasured places. Established in 1966, it operated Architectural Salvage of Greensboro, Blandwood Mansion, the Blandwood Carriage House, the Morehead Forum and serves as an advocate for historic preservation throughout Guilford County.
A new report by researchers at Rutgers University examines the economic impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit. Enacted by Congress in 1981 as part of an economic stimulus package, the Federal Historic Tax Credit (HTC) provides a 20% income tax credit for the rehabilitation of certified income-producing historic properties.
This study presents information regarding the economic and other benefits of the tax credit (e.g., providing incentives for such projects as the Elm Street Center (image, right) and the International Civil Rights Museum that spur downtown revitalization). Recurring year-by-year economic returns from the use of the HTC include enhanced tourism in areas of heritage and cultural travel (a multi-billion dollar industry); the historic tax credit providing adaptively-reused and other commercial space for businesses that annually have a payroll and tax payments (such as Revolution Mill); and the positive federal historic tax credit investment impact on property values, which which in turn have annual tax, wealth, and other benefits.
Historic preservation is already well-known to boost investor and neighborhood confidence and promote community-wide revitalization, as seen in center city neighborhoods such as Aycock, College Hill, Southside, and Fisher Park (image, right). In addition, historic preservation results in harder to measure enhanced “quality of life” gains that increase the desirability of cities with character and sense of place. All of these factors are critical in understanding the full impact of historic preservation, as this study begins to explore.
You can read more about the impact of historic preservation on job creation, the economy, housing diversity, and tax revenue here. You can also explore a number of case studies that demonstrate the breadth, and depth of tax credits, and explain how these tools might be applied in other cities, such as Greensboro!
In partnership with National Trust Forum News
Work is progressing on placement and restoration of the two-story duplex across from Blandwood Mansion at the corner of West Washington and Edgeworth streets in downtown Greensboro. The 100-year-old structure was recently moved from its original location on nearby Blandwood Avenue in order to make way for construction of the new Guilford County jail.
Upon completion, the building will be leased by the Zenke family, the developers and owners of the project. The family is now beginning to discuss leasing ideas for the building from prospective tenants.
In its form as a duplex, the comfortable brick building with stone window sills and broad front porch offers exciting possibilities for dual purposes. Its two front doors could lead to a single business inside, but each door could also open to complementary establishments. Imagine, for example, one door leading to a book store…the other to a coffee shop. Inside, the boundaries between the two could blend as a single space. The same dual purpose could apply to a flower/gift shop, an art gallery/dessertery, a dress/shoe shop, or any permutation thereof!
The first floor offers 1,932 square feet of space that will include an ADA accessible restroom. Stairs lead to the second floor containing 1,260 of space. A full basement will feature and additional 1,932 square feet of space with an outside entry. Limited parking is available on site.
With some fast action, the building might also hold a restaurant if structural requirements are met early in the restoration process. Greensboro has yet to have a downtown “old house restaurant” in the manner of Zevely House in Winston-Salem or Second Empire in Raleigh.
The duplex sits at one of the most travelled in-bound intersections in downtown Greensboro, and overlooks the shaded lawn of Blandwood Mansion, the nineteenth century home of Governor John Motley Morehead. Those interested in learning more about the opportunities of leasing the duplex may contact the developers by email.
To those who participate in this Saturday's (Aug 22, 8:30 am) Green Hill Cemetery friends work session, you will be richly rewarded!
For those who are happy to spend their Saturday morning assisting in sprucing up the cemetery, remember to bring something for your refreshment, and then enjoy a 1.5 hour walking tour by volunteer Ann Stringfield AFTER the work session. The tour time depends on when the work session ends. This special tour is offered only to those who help with cemetery clean-up and is ONLY available for those who come to work this Saturday morning.
For those who are interested in learning more about the cemetery, the next public tour will be available for $5 per person on Sunday October 25, 2;00 pm, weather permitting.
Green Hill Cemetery is a public cemetery operated that is maintained by the City of Greensboro. The cemetery opened in 1882 and occupies 51 acres in the heart of the Gate City. The cemetery serves as an historic and cultural resource for the community by featuring the final resting place of notable citizens and finely-crafted funerary art. Its conservation has been the concern of the Greensboro's preservation community for many years.
If romantic Victorian cemeteries are your thing, be sure to join the Friends of Green Hill Cemetery Facebook page, or visit their website.
We can only imagine what Greensboro's Downtown Greenway will be like when completed, though workers have laid asphalt for the path through the Warnersville neighborhood already. The complete experience remains a few months away when the "softscape" is installed once the summer's heat has faded (image, right).
In the meantime, linear park enthusiasts in Greensboro can look to New York for a glimpse of what our urban pathway might some day feel like. An article in today's New York Times reviews the favorable public reaction to the High Line, an abandoned over-street industrial rail line that snakes over the streets of the Chelsea neighborhood in western Manhattan. “Here people tend to be more friendly,” says Kathy Roberson in the article, “Those same people, you might see them someplace else and, you know, they’re kind of stressed.” Here in Greensboro, the Downtown Greenway is expected to promote the health and wellbeing of Greensboro's center city population in the same manner by providing safe opportunities for outdoor exercise or relaxing contemplation.
The article points out that the High Line has already developed It has its own economy, including pre-packaged lunches, an art scene with drawing students and photographers, and micro-neighborhoods and hot spots that shift in feel throughout the day. The Downtown Greenway will likely function on a similar level by spurring economic development along its length and by celebrating local history and neighborhood character through the use of innovative and exciting works of public art. One such piece, created by Rhode Island artist Brower Hatcher, will anchor the southwestern quadrant of the park just off Lee Street (image).
Certainly Greensboro is not Manhattan, and though portions of our own Downtown Greenway will someday occupy a presently active industrial railroad bed like the New York park, most of our park will remain on terra firma. However, the community excitement and character-building comparisons will likely be similar. Like the High Line, the Downtown Greenway will become a signature feature of the Gate City that will profile our community's innovation and artistic prowess. The combination of art and nature juxtaposed within an urban setting will likely draw visitors from around Greensboro, not just the adjoining neighborhoods.
Great things are in store for Greensboro. In the meantime, the High Line in Manhattan will have to suffice as a temporary (and distant) fix.
I have never heard someone from Charlotte say "I went to Greensboro the other day and their roller coasters are so cool."
I have never heard someone from Raleigh say "I was in Greensboro yesterday and the mall there is so cool."
I have heard people from both cities (and others) say "I was in Greensboro last weekend and South Elm Street is so cool!" In fact, I know some folks who enjoy a get-away weekend here to enjoy the art galleries, coffee shops, theatres, and restaurants...in the kind of urban environment that is rare in North Carolina. South Elm Street has made Greensboro cool.
The News and Record's Jeri Rowe wrote two great articles on our eclectic South Elm Street, the heart of the Old Greensboro Historic District. He captured the spirit of the neighborhood, including the blend of uses, attitudes, backgrounds, and architecture (image, right) that is special to that part of downtown. The photo essay by Jerry Wolford is fantastic. If you are not from Greensboro...or you don't take the paper, it's worth a perusal.
I am inspired to clarify the characteristics of a family of buildings that exist along South Elm Street that I pointed out to Jeri in our discussion. I am not aware of any other buildings in the state that have the same features. To my knowledge they are unique to the Gate City. Maybe later this week if I have some time.
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