Restoring an historic gem, from the bottom up

Members of the McKay family, which had occupied their home at 13 Gilmore St. for generations, were proud of their family homestead. So proud, in fact, that they had ordered an historic house plaque through the Foxborough Historical Commission that identified the building as being built by Daniels Carpenter in 1876, the year that American celebrated its Centennial. Mr. Carpenter himself was a blend of Foxborough's first two families, Daniels and Carpenter and there was much to be proud of.

But when changes in family circumstances dictated the sale of the home, most of the builders who had expressed an interest planned to demolish the structure to take advantage of the large corner lot to erect a new building.

Fearing there would be nothing left of the structure, they removed the historic plaque as a keepsake prior to the closing, fearing it might be the only thing left to remind them of their childhood home.

But wait. The successful bidder on the property wasn't one of the early builders who had planned to demolish the house. It was Maystar Realty, owned by Greg and Kathy Spier, and when Greg explained to the family that he and Kathy planned to save the historic home and restore it, they were overjoyed. They quickly gave Greg the historic plaque that it might remain on the house for all to see its proud history and extended their best wishes for a successful restoration.

Many challenges

Greg admits to thinking "it would only require a quick renovation before we could rent out each of the duplex units," but old houses have a way of striking the word "quick" from the vocabulary.

Renovations started with the "newest' section of the house, the one and one-half story kitchen wing. Added to the main building about 1920, it had settled six inches over its 20-foot length. Checking out the foundation, the problem quickly became much more involved. The wing had apparently been moved into place from another site. It was supported by a combination of stone rubble and oak logs directly on the ground without any footings.

The next 60 days were spent pouring footings and replacing wooden logs with metal columns on concrete footings. Four house jacks were used to raise, level and stabilize the wing.

"We were so excited to get the floor level," said Greg, "but then we had to straighten the windows which were now six inches out of level."

Stripping two layers of siding revealed the original pine shingles but also exposed the damage to the entire balloon beam framing that had been damaged by powder beetles. It would have to be replaced or removed.

Six months into the project, so much labor expended, but they would have nothing to show for the effort, as circumstances dictated there was only one possible alternative and that was to remove the wing and replace it with a new structure.

For less determined builders, that could have been a deal-breaker, but for Greg and Kathy, it was back to the Building Commissioner Bill Casbarra to check zoning, setbacks and building codes.

Casbarra ruled a new wing would be considered a new structure under current codes but that the main existing structure could be renovated under the remodeling section of the code as long as the original stairs connecting the two remained in place.

Determined to press forward, Greg and Kathy agreed to continue renovating the original structure and use the new, now expanded wing to provide new kitchens for both rental units.

They then brought in an architect to design the replacement wing that would complement the architecture of the original home.

While waiting for the final design, they decided to investigate the structural integrity of the remaining original structure. Considering the challenges that had been encountered in the wing, only the most determined - and courageous - would move deeper into the project.

When starting to remove the wood planking from the basement floor, they found the planks had been placed on top of chaffed oak logs cut flat on one edge to support the planks.

The oak logs had rotted and had to be removed. They also noted the brick and stone foundation under the main house had deteriorated. The bricks were lying loose on the ground.

Another critical item was the absence of a main structural beam supporting the two-story building. Back to the architect and Building Commissioner to learn what would be required.

The remedy would be to temporarily support the entire house while digging out and installing a new foundation and interior footings. Cement interior footings were put in place to support the entire house while pouring a cement footing and a new masonry block wall. With the use of a mini-excavator and a lot of hand digging, the basement floor area was also lowered for improved ceiling height.

Ready to restore

Once the building was finally structurally sound, work could commence on the actual restoration. Greg and Kathy were determined that the house would be rebuilt from the bottom up, and over the next few months that is precisely where they would be, any-where from the basement floor to the shingles on the roof.

The next challenging phase of the work would involve another family member, Greg and Kathy's nephew, Mark Lightbody. "His challenge was to rebuild the house from the inside out," said Greg, "starting with the replacement of all the foundations and main supporting beams.

Making another quantum leap forward, it was decided to remove all exterior siding and replace it with cement siding, build the curved top dormers in the mansard roof and replace all exterior rotted wood with PVC trim.

All windows were replaced with Energy Star Harvey windows and they took that even further by renovating the entire house to Energy Star standards. That required replacing insulation throughout the structure and installing a new heating systems with new 93% efficient HVAC units.

The original location of the lower level entry facing Gilmore Street was also rebuilt for new entrances to the lower levels.

In her element

As the structural part of the restoration neared completion, Kathy Crane Spier came into her own element, one of layout, design, color choices and accents. The history of the property promoted decisions such as red roof shingles on the mansard roof and selecting a dark gray exterior color, transforming one of the least attractive structures on the street into one of the most pristine homes in the neighborhood.

More than six months had passed since those first thoughts of a "quick renovation" had passed when guests were invited to a neighborhood party to see the finished product, the fully restored home with its new wing. Audible gasps could be heard as guests slowly made their way, room to room, through three floors of quality craftsmanship, unique design and tasteful appointments that included such practical applications as two bathrooms for each unit, new kitchens with stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops and a living area that said "welcome" to a home with a long history enhanced by a commitment to a total restoration.

"It certainly was challenging," said Greg of the project, "more challenging than we ever realized. But in the end, we have the satisfaction of having taken a building of historical significance and totally rebuilt it structurally and restored it to its original splendor, the gem of the neighborhood."

The commitment of Greg and Kathy Spier, together with Mark Lightbody, was recognized by the Foxborough Historical Commission with its 2011 Historic Restoration Award in appreciation of their efforts and as an encouragement to others who might also be inspired to give an historic property new life and prominence within the community.

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Restoring an historic gem, from the bottom up