The city Landmarks Commission gave its approval of the alteration plans for the Delta Upsilon Fraternity House located on North Frances Street and listened to a proposal that included tearing down the Highlander, which is located on West Gilman Street, at a meeting Monday.
Landmarks Commission Chairman Stuart Levitan said the alteration plan for the Delta Upsilon Fraternity House is a “beautiful project.”
The plan includes changing the windows of the house back to their historic style, adding a front entry stoop that will act as an Americans with Disabilities Act accessible ramp and slightly expanding the size of the house under the second story porch, according to Mark Bastian, who is an architect for the plan.
George Austin, a representative of the philanthropic organization the Tosa Foundation, said the foundation is helping pay for the house’s alterations and the house is a “historic landmark.” He also said, “the alterations will give it 100 years more of life.”
Levitan said, “That [the Delta Upsilon Fraternity] is restoring and renovating in an architecturally conscious manner is a real testament to that fraternity. It should be a model for other fraternities in the Langdon neighborhood to emulate.”
According to Levitan, a fraternity that has not emulated this model is Sigma Epsilon, which wanted to tear down its house.
The commission also heard a proposal made by representatives of Steve Brown Apartments that included tearing down the Highlander. Steve Brown Apartments owns the Highlander and believes it is not marketable at this point.
Levitan agreed and also said the outside of the Highlander is an “eyesore” and the inside of it has a floor plan that is not good for the current times.
Landmarks Commission representative David McLean said, “The Highlander doesn’t fit into the historic district and it came after the dates of significance in that district, so it could come and go and no one would really care.”
Levitan also said, “I don’t think anybody would mourn the loss of the Highlander, but whether tearing it down and replacing it with different buildings is consistent with the city ordinance is yet to be seen.”
Steve Brown Apartments will return to the Landmark Commission with further plans for the Highlander on Nov. 25.
