Porches, Decks, Balconies, Patios, and Docks

Protection

• Original entrance features should be retained even if they will no longer be used because of a change in the building’s function.
• Surface treatments such as cleaning, paint removal, and reapplication of protective coating systems should be done to protect the masonry, wood, and metals comprising the entrance features.

Reconstruction

• A new entrance feature may be replaced when using historic evidence that confirms that one was originally present. Alternatively, if a similar nearby structure has a porch or stoop, the design may be replicated.
• If documentation on the exact design of the entrance feature is not available, the replacement porch should be a simplified design that is appropriate to the architectural style of the building and the district.
• If no evidence exists that a particular entrance feature existed, a sensitive and appropriately scaled patio or outdoor seating area is a suitable alternative.
• New entrance features on secondary elevations are permitted when required for the new use when done in a manner that preserves the historic character of the building (i.e., ensuring that the new entrance feature is clearly subordinate to original primary entrance, porch, etc. and does not cause the loss of architectural features).

Repair and Replacement

• Repairing should be the first option which includes patching, splicing, consolidating, and otherwise reinforcing them using recognized preservation methods.
  • Repair may include the limited replacement in kind or with a compatible substitute material of those extensively deteriorated features or missing components of features when there are surviving prototypes, such as balustrades, columns, and stairs.
• Replacement in-kind of an entire entrance feature is allowed when it is too deteriorated to repair if using the physical evidence as a model to reproduce the features or when the replacement can be based on historic documentation.
• Original wood railings should be replicated with a replacement wood railing that matches the profile, size, spacing, and proportions of the original. If originally painted, the new railings should also be painted.
  • Railings should have both a top and bottom rail with bottom rails clearing the floor by a few inches. Unmodified 2’x4’ boards should not be used as a top rail as they do not properly shed water. Balusters should not be attached to the sides of the top or bottom rails.
  • Balusters should be spaced with a clear opening no greater than 4 inches unless historical evidence demonstrates otherwise.

  Ballusters should not be attached to the sides of the top or bottom rails

• If replacing a rounded wood column with a square wood column, a cap and base roughly half as tall as the column is wide should be included. The width of the columns should match the width of the beam it supports.
  • Because square wood posts are susceptible to damage in their corners, a chamfer of 45 degrees should be cut into each corner of the post.
  • When using panels to construct the column, materials should be chosen to avoid horizontal seams and should be mitered at the corners. When framing the panels, 1” thick boards that are no wider than 1/3^rd the width of the column is recommended.
• The column base should never protrude beyond the edge of the porch flooring and should align with the face of the pier or foundation below.
• The horizontal beam that holds up the roof (often part of an entablature) should not be wrapped with synthetic material, however when approved the material should be installed so the grain runs horizontal as an original wood beam would appear.
  • The beam should rest on the column with the outside edges aligning with the column shaft. This centuries old design element seen throughout Lincoln homes is structurally the best approach to porch loading.
  • If wrapping a support beam in wood, the seams between the horizontal faces and the bottom should be on the underside of the beam. Any overhang from the bottom of the beam wrap will allow water to sit and rot the wood.

  The porch skirting and railings above are not an appropriate treatment for a historic building. The square columns that replaced originally rounded columns illustrate the panel design with base and cap concept, however the tapered design is not true to the prairie box style of the home.

• Skirting should never wrap the entire porch base and conceal the column piers. The design should replicate the original which allowed for airflow beneath the porch.
• Porch ceilings most commonly were wood, often in a tongue and groove installation. If deteriorated beyond patching and repair, simulated tongue and groove panels are an acceptable substitute. Vinyl should not be used unless demonstrated as the only alternative.
• If using the same kind of material is not feasible for portions of the work, then a compatible substitute material may be considered. The alternative material should replicate the texture, appearance, and size of the original.
  • When replacing stone bases or piers, stacked, faux stone is prohibited. It is recommended to reuse the original block. If salvaging the material as a structural member is not feasible, use it instead as a cover to replicate the original appearance of the block.
    • Split faced concrete block may be considered as a substitute when the original material is too damaged to reuse. Smooth faced concrete block is not recommended.
  • Wood porch columns, particularly tuscan columns, are challenging to replace in-kind. A suitable substitute for a wood column is a molded composite column.

  These railings are not compliant with the guidelines, with a modern metal spindle going directly to the porch floor. The stone column base should also not be painted.

 Alterations

• Enclosing original porches on secondary elevations is allowed when required by a new use, when done in a manner that preserves the historic character of the building (e.g., using large sheets of glass and recessing the enclosure wall behind existing posts and balustrades).

• Porches on primary elevations should not be enclosed, however screening when done in a manner that does not obscure major architectural details or building features may be approved on a case by case basis.
• Replacement designs that do not alter the overall opening may be allowed to accommodate a new use such as the replacement of an entrance within the same opening using a glass garage door for a restaurant use.
• If a balcony is to be added to a building where there were previously none, the material should be pressure treated wood or non-rusting metal with an open design that allows visibility to the building walls. The design, including the support material, should match the architectural style of the building. (i.e. a Victorian home should not have heavy wood brackets to support the balcony more commonly found in Georgian architecture.)

• Reorienting front steps to accommodate modern accessibility and access codes should be done to retain the overall appearance of the porch or stoop.
• The addition of railings and other safety or accessibility features on loading docks to accommodate reuse or adaptation of the building is allowed when the design is simple and does not compete with or obscure important architectural details of the building.