Korjeff Letter 554 Wianno Osterville 10-13-22
To: Frances Parks, Chair, Barnstable Historical Commission
cc: Michael Schultz, Owner’s Representative
From: Sarah Korjeff, Preservation Specialist
Date: October 13, 2022
RE: Proposed alterations to 554 Wianno Avenue, Osterville
These comments are intended to supplement to my previous memo to the chair of the Barnstable
Historical Commission dated August 23, 2022. They address revisions to the previously proposed plans
for 554 Wianno Avenue in Osterville, which is a contributing building in the Wianno National Register
Historic District. These comments are for the Barnstable Historical Commission’s consideration as they
review this project and decide whether it constitutes a “substantial alteration” requiring Cape Cod
Commission referral.
The applicant has proposed revisions to their plans and developed graphics to illustrate their proposal.
The revised plans and graphics were provided in a package dated 9-27-2022. They show in purple
shading the extent of the existing building that would be retained in the recently proposed plans.
The proposed plans clarify that the existing roof line and roof structure of the original L-shaped massing
will be preserved. Key features of the water-facing façade would be preserved, including the original
gable roof form, the original second floor angled bay window, and the prominent first floor porch. The
more recent second floor projection (which is not historically significant) would be removed and
replaced with a window arrangement that maintains the original asymmetrical character of that facade.
Original elements of the first-floor porch that were previously removed but are well documented in
photographs would be restored.
Key features of the ell facing Wianno Avenue would also be preserved, though in a less conventional
way. The applicant has described how they would separate the existing end wall and jerkinhead roof
form (the small hip roof) from the rest of the structure in one piece and slide it closer to the street,
infilling rafters and new wall studs in the approximately 10-foot space created. This would allow much of
the architectural detailing to be retained while extending the length of the ell. As part of the design, the
existing second-floor porch would be re-interpreted as an inset porch along the side of the ell. From the
street façade, the building would have a very similar character.
The proposal would retain the original building massing with the highest ridgeline, and the new addition
proposed to the rear would have a ridgeline approximately 10 inches lower. This ensures that the
original structure facing the water would remain the tallest and most prominent part of the building.
The proposal would also maintain the building’s distinctive skirted shingle courses between floor levels,
and woven shingle details at the corners of the building.
The building is proposed to be shifted on the lot approximately 9 feet closer to the street, a move that
would be a modest change, given the size of the lot, and that would still retain the building’s original
orientation to the water and to the street. As such, the proposed relocation would be unlikely to impact
the building's historic significance.
The proposed project involves numerous alterations to a complex building that has already seen a lot of
change during its history, but the current proposal preserves the most significant and distinctive
massings and architectural details that remain today. As such, the proposed project would not likely
threaten the building’s contributing status in the Wianno National Register Historic District and would
not constitute a substantial alteration requiring Cape Cod Commission review.
Please feel free to contact me if you have questions about these comments.