Old houses, with paperwork.
Portland has several local historic districts, and changes to how a house looks from the street, including the roof material, can need review by the city before work starts.
When review usually applies
Repairing a roof with matching material generally isn’t a change in appearance. Changing materials, slate to asphalt, cedar to metal, or adding skylights or dormers on a visible slope often is. The city’s historic preservation staff can tell you exactly what applies to your house, and we’d always ask them first.
What we prepare
- Photos of the existing roof and its details.
- Samples or specifications of the proposed material.
- Drawings of any changes to dormers, skylights or flashing visible from the street.
- Notes on why a change is needed, if it is.
Most of our historic district work is like-for-like repair or replacement, which keeps the process simple. When a change is requested, we can usually suggest a material that meets the guidelines and still solves the problem.
In a historic district? We know the process.
The heritage roofing site, built in seven days.
Sixteen pages: three materials compared by lifespan, a repair-before-replace argument, ice dams explained for Maine, and Portland’s historic districts covered.