A notice was posted in Thursday’s Winchester Star for the proposed demolition of structures at 411 and 514-520 South Loudoun Street for the August 18 Board of Architectural Review, 4 PM at Rouss City Hall. We are awaiting further clarification at the time of this post, but we will follow up with additional information when/if it becomes available.
Both structures are deemed architecturally contributing to the Historic District, and PHW has received word of several people who would like further investigation into the ability to rehab these structures. 411 S. Loudoun (believed to date to the 1860s through deed research, with likely late 19th century porch embellishments) is a typical Winchester vernacular house, similar to many others that were bought, resold, and restored in the Potato Hill neighborhood. The houses at 514-520 S. Loudoun may be the last intact frame Queen Anne style rowhouses left in the Historic District, possibly due in part to their relatively late construction date of 1903.
PHW’s preference is always to attempt rehabilitation for our contributing Historic District properties, particularly if there are people willing to undertake the work. As we have seen through PHW’s Revolving Fund and other private investments over the years, some truly astounding work can be accomplished by motivated and dedicated individuals. We hope that whatever entity undertakes the necessary work on these properties will do so in a manner sensitive to this special neighborhood and its plethora of early historic homes.