Repairs are in the works for 5 S. Main Street downtown.
The Clarkston Historic District Commission met with building owner Jim Sherman Jr. and Timothy Mack, general contractor, on Oct. 1, to discuss renovation of the 138-year-old building, home of The Clarkston News.
“The plan is to repair and replace what’s going on over there,” Sherman said.
Work will include removal and replacement of deteriorated bricks and stucco on the north, west, and south sides of the building, as well as repairs to the roof and gutters.
The project will take about 30 working days, Mack said.
The commission called for bricks and mortar to be replaced with historically accurate masonry. Vintage bricks reclaimed from old buildings in Detroit are available, said Commissioner Bob Sowles.
“There are tons of it,” said Sowles, who checked the building with a tap test as far as he could reach. “It’s not as bad as I thought. It’s a lot solider than I thought it would be.”
Commissioner David Bihl said HDC is charged with protecting Clarkston’s historic buildings and needs to know workers have the proper expertise with historic buildings.
“Someone has to do the work who understands how to work on a building that old,” Bihl said. “To vote yes, I need to know if the person doing the cement work is aware of the historic issues.”
Mack said he has worked on old buildings in Detroit, and will make sure materials match.
Commission Chair Cara Catallo said an engineer should check the building.
“The building is in such disrepair, it’s beyond ordinary maintenance,” Catallo said. “My concern is the repair will not be done properly ? I wouldn’t want the building owner to go through expense of repairing it if there’s a greater problem.”
The commission requested a complete list of materials, bricks, and mortar, to make sure it matches historic aesthetics, she said.
“We want to make sure it lasts another 100 years,” she said.
“It’s a beautiful building. It really is,” Sowles said.
Commissioners Bihl, Catallo, Sowles, and Rhiannon Cherwak voted unanimously to table the proposal pending additional information. Commission member Kevin Harrison was absent.