Abby's House Crown Hill Properties (77 Chatham and 19 Crown Street)
At a glance
- What: Abby's House, represented by senior director of housing Justin Vartanian, has two buildings in the Crown Hill Local Historic District before the Commission: 77 Chatham Street and 19 Crown Street.
- Where it stands: resolved. Certificates of Non-Applicability granted 5-0 on 2026-07-23, and the remaining items decided 6-0 on 2026-08-06.
- Next: none recorded.
The work
- 77 Chatham Street: replacing the roof in kind (alternating purple and green slate, funded by a Community Preservation Act grant), repointing the foundation and repainting, plus a vinyl fence and side-porch work.
- 19 Crown Street: repainting trim, repointing brick (commissioners warned against sandblasting) and repairing the front porch.
Decisions
- 2026-07-23: Certificates of Non-Applicability granted 5-0 for the in-kind roof, repointing and repainting at both addresses.
- 2026-08-06, all 6-0: Certificate of Appropriateness for 77 Chatham Street allowing Trex porch components and a fence in a color matching it (Saddle) instead of plain white vinyl.
- 2026-08-06, 19 Crown Street: Trex and a handrail on the front porch were rejected and the work approved as amended (jack up the porch, new footing, selective carpentry, repaint to match).
Discussion time
About 31 minutes across 2 meetings (from transcript timestamps; approximate).
| Meeting | Minutes |
|---|---|
| 2026-08-06 - Historical Commission | 20 |
| 2026-07-23 - Historical Commission | 11 |
Log
- 2026-08-06 - Historical Commission - COAs for 77 Chatham Street (fence and side porch) and 19 Crown Street (front porch, as amended) approved 6-0.
- 2026-07-23 - Historical Commission - Certificates of Non-Applicability for 77 Chatham Street and 19 Crown Street approved 5-0; commissioners and staff advised against sandblasting the painted brick (hand stripping or a chemical peel instead), and Vartanian dropped repainting the foundation.