S.R. Moss Cigar Co./Lancaster Press Building N. Prince Street, - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

S.R. Moss Cigar Co./Lancaster Press Building N. Prince Street, Lancaster, PA Historic Rehabilitation Design Proposal

Introduction to the Project: The Resource • Built in 1907 for the S.R Moss Cigar Company to replace earlier building destroyed by fire • contributing resource to both the North Prince Street Historic District (1989) and the Lancaster City Historic District (2001) • Vacant since 1992, rehabilitation has proven to be challenging due to its size, the density of surrounding development, and the restricted availability of parking within the immediate area • It remains as one of the few major tobacco-related landmarks in the city that have not been rehabilitated since the late 1980s, when local preservation efforts teamed with the city's business leadership to target their redevelopment

Introduction to the Project: The Resource

Introduction to the Project: The Resource

Introduction to the Project: The Resource

Introduction to the Project: The Resource

Introduction to the Project: The Project • Will convert the building into residential apartments with some retail/restaurant space at the lower floor • Will be rehabilitated in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards • Historic exterior and interior features will typically be retained and repaired as needed

Introduction to the Project: The Project South Elevation

Introduction to the Project: The Project West Elevation

Introduction to the Project: The Project East Elevation

Introduction to the Project: The Project North Elevation

Introduction to the Project: The Project Main Floor Level

Introduction to the Project: The Project Typical Upper Floor Plan

Introduction to the Project: Issues to Discuss 1. Demolition of the noncontributing office addition 2. The appropriateness of the elevated pedestrian connector 3. The location and design of the elevated pedestrian connector 4. Windows 5. Fire Escape 6. Exterior Stair 7. Design of the main entrance 8. Demolition associated with the city’s parking garage project

1. Demolition of the Office Addition • Built in 1956 to house the offices of Lancaster Press • Listed as a noncontributing resource in the Lancaster City Historic District (outside the period of significance of 1760 to 1950) • Noncontributing to N. Prince Street H.D. (1881-1938)

1. Demolition of the Office Addition • Post-War Modern style office building does not relate architecturally to the tobacco warehouse district to the west, nor the primarily residential character of the buildings to the east

1. Demolition of the Office Addition • Necessary to make possible the rehabilitation of the historically significant and highly visible Moss/Lancaster Presser Building • No other place available for vehicle circulation necessary for the rehab. • A) Alley too narrow – B) Loading area too tight – C) No major street access A ¡ B ¡ C ¡

1. Demolition of the Office Addition • A) Alley too narrow

1. Demolition of the Office Addition • B) Loading area too tight

1. Demolition of the Office Addition • C) No major street access

2. The Connector Overhead connectors are common to Lancaster’s historic industrial resources, particularly its tobacco related buildings • Secure, covered access from the parking garage is essential to the success of the rehabilitation of the Moss/Lancaster Press Building • The design of the connector, at least as it spans N. Market Street, will reflect the traditional design of typical historic connectors

2. The Connector Overhead connectors are common to Lancaster’s historic industrial resources, particularly its tobacco related buildings

2. The Connector Including tobacco warehouses …

2. The Connector … and spanning major streets

2. The Connector … and even the S.R. Moss Cigar Factory and Warehouse that preceded the present building

2. The Connector • The connector will be visible only from a very narrow view angle down N. Market Street (a narrow alley)

2. The Connector • The design of the connector, at least as it spans N. Market Street, will reflect the traditional design of typical historic connectors

3. 408 N. Market Street • Built circa 1880 as a rental property • 1 st known tenant was Joseph Dellet’s Lancaster Steam Cigar Box Factory • Later became Charles Ursprung’s horse collar factory • Contributing resource to City of Lancaster Historic District • Not included in the N. Prince Street H.D.

3. 408 N. Market Street • The building has been altered • The original proposal was to demolish the building in order to accommodate the connector and additional parking • Locating the connector north to the alley is not preferred because it requires additional structure to span the driveway • There are also issues with where the connector can tie into the parking garage

3. 408 N. Market Street • A The ramp will result in the loss of minimal historic fabric and is reversible • B The upper left window will be removed but a reveal will be retained in the brick infill • C The modern entrance stop will be removed to allow the entrance to be lowered to a new floor level at grade A ¡ B ¡ C ¡

3. 408 N. Market Street • The building is only visible along N, Market Street – essentially an alley • It can barely be seen from Lemon Street

3. 408 N. Market Street

4. Windows The majority of the windows are in deteriorated condition and/or are missing partial or complete sash. Operability, energy efficiency and maintenance are an issue for this largely residential project. The proposed work would be to salvage enough historic windows to complete the basement and first floor levels and then install new replacement windows to match at the upper floors. Due to the height of the building, the visual character of the windows should not be altered.

4. Windows

4. Windows

5. Fire Escape The fire escape is a character-defining feature and will be retained. The proposed work would convert the fire escape landings into balconies. Privacy and life safety considerations require that the flights of stairs be removed. The owners would like to remove the complete stair system. The diagonal outer stringer and possibly the outer railing could be retained (with the treads and inner stringer removed) to visually express the stair if absolutely necessary.

6. Secondary Stair The stair is a character-defining feature and will be retained. The preferred option for life safety and security considerations would be to retain the landing but to remove the staircase. Alternately, we could retain the stair and block it with a simple rail.

7. Design of Main Entrance Historically, this opening accessed an interior loading dock.

8. Demolition Associated with the Parking Garage The parking garage is a separate project being undertaken by the City of Lancaster. Our project will lease space in the garage and will be physically attached to it by the crossover. The garage requires access to North Queen Street and that will require the removal of a building.

8. Demolition Associated with the Parking Garage The building in question is a former industrial building that was later converted into apartments. While it is a contributing resource to the City of Lancaster historic district, it is otherwise inconsistent with the residential scale of the neighborhood and without its removal, development of the garage would not be feasible. The garage is necessary to accommodate redevelopment on the adjacent blocks that will result in the rehabilitation of the Moss/Lancaster Press Building and hopefully others.

8. Demolition Associated with the Parking Garage �� � ��� ��� � �� ��� � �� � ��� ���� �� ��� �

Summary • The S.R. Moss Cigar Company/ Lancaster Press Building is one of the most significant and prominent of Lancaster’s important collection of historic tobacco-related resources • It is also one of the last of such resources to be rehabilitated • Vacant since 1992, rehabilitation has proven to be challenging due to its size, the density of surrounding development, and the restricted availability of parking within the immediate area.

Summary • The project is seeking to rehabilitate the building for a compatible use • Some modifications are needed to accommodate rehabilitation, but will adversely impact the building’s historic fabric or features • Adverse impacts have been limited to secondary adjacent buildings and have been designed to minimize their overall impact on the surrounding historic district