423 NORTH HOWARD ST. VISUAL STRUCTURAL ASSESSMENT

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3 Urgent Needs II City of Baltimore No NORTH HOWARD ST. 423 North Howard Street (circa 1880) is a multi-story building constructed second in row south of Franklin Street and between the vacant properties of, 425 and North Howard Street. A load-bearing brick structure, the west elevation fronting North Howard Street is three stories tall. The vertical arrangement of this elevation is a straightforward base-body-capital tripartite scheme common to 19 th and early-20 th century urban commercial buildings. A solitary sheet metal entablature or roof cornice painted black crowns the top of the building, spanning the full-width of the building at the top of the third floor. VISUAL STRUCTURAL ASSESSMENT This next-to-the-end building has had much damage done to the structure from a compromised roof system. The roof has an open hole that has allowed continual water passage to the floors below. This water intrusion has caused wooden framing members and masonry exposed beneath the hole to become saturated and rotted, incapable of sustaining either gravity or lateral loads. As a potential result of this action, the fronting Howard Street masonry wall is bowing outward at the second level. Some structural lintels are missing and the south wall masonry is compromised. There is a past tension-tie cable at the second floor installed that appears to have been placed as a repair to sidewall stability issues. This cable is now failed. Much of the plaster, lathe, planking and ceiling framing for all the floors and roof have fallen and come to rest on the lower floors. These items are now wet and heavy laying as additional unanticipated dead loads on the floors. 1

4 Urgent Needs II City of Baltimore No To stabilize this building, all the aforementioned debris must be removed from all the floors in order to properly access what covered parts have been compromised and could not be seen from our visual inspection. The roof structure will need to be repaired in at least one main location and several other less conspicuous locations so that an entirely new roof can be installed. This will include some rework to the adjoining masonry and roof flashings. A valid tension-tie system will need to be installed to stop any further outward bowing of the front masonry wall. This will need to be secured to appropriate joist/beam anchorage points in the floor system. The side-to-side tension connections may need to be re-established at the upper floors once the debris is removed and a better assessment can be ascertained. It is anticipated that one of the lateral wall bracing schemes will need to be implemented in order to insure side-to-side stability of this unit. There are also some holes noted in the walls themselves which will need to be repaired to prevent future water infiltration and wall strength reduction. The wall fronting on Howard Street does not appear to be of immediate concern but we recommend that a tie-back system be implemented within 6 months from the date of this writing. There are a number of windows and doors openly exposed that will need to be covered as part of the work to protect this property. In order to secure this building we suggest using the structural bracing schemes shown in SH-1 SH-2, SH-3, SH-5 and/or SH-7 in part or in combination in the Appendix. JMT estimates that the costs to stabilize this structure in approximately $114,666, as detailed in our conceptual cost estimate attached to this report. ARCHITECTURAL ASSESSMENT Presumably, this building featured a storefront configured similarly to the partially covered storefront of 407 North Howard Street; however, the ground level of this building was covered entirely, from several courses of brick beneath the secondfloor masonry openings to the sidewalk, by a protective plywood enclosure preventing observation of the exterior storefront. The interior of this building reflects a historic mixed-use with commercial spaces on the ground level and dwellings upstairs. The upper levels each feature a front parlor 2

5 Urgent Needs II City of Baltimore No overlooking North Howard Street; the rear half of the building features a two story light well or areaway, established by erecting an exterior wall south of the party wall shared at the first. The width of the offset allowed placement of a one-over-one double-hung wood window facing east on the second and third floors. Water infiltration has damaged the eastward windows of the light well/areaway, resulting in first floor ceiling damage and saturated floor decking, floor coverings, and surrounding damage to plaster-on-brick wall finishes. SIGNIFICANT FEATURES 1. West elevation second and third floor window openings with brick jack arches and cut stone window sill blocks. 2. West elevation sheet metal roof cornice. 3. Mixed-use building with first-floor commercial and upstairs dwellings. 4. Intact 19th century interior features including second- and third-floor fireplaces, stairs, and stair and landing railing. 5. Second- and third-floor dwelling floor plans. 6. Two story light-well along north wall of second- and third-floor dwellings. CONDITION ASSESSMENT 1. Extensive water damage 2. Needs new roof and flashing 3. West elevation upper-level wall bows outward 4. Inadequate tie-back system present along west elevation upper-level brick façade 5. Minor cracking evident at interior corners at numerous upper-level windows 6. Some bricks missing at light well/areaway windows in presence of water infiltration 7. South wall needs extensive brick repair and pointing 8. Missing lintel and hole in roof/ceiling above light well/areaway window 9. Needs window closure and sealing throughout. 3

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