The repair of a historic building is often considered the ultimate recycling project. As architect Carl Elefante stated, “the greenest building is the one that already exists.”

Traditional materials are typically more durable and contribute to the building’s resilience to the more severe weather affiliated with climate change. The use of traditional materials and tools often relies on the expertise of local craftsmen, which contributes to climate change through reducing waste and in building community resilience.

Thanks to a $5,800 grant from Preservation Massachusetts and the 1772 Foundation, the Spalding House will be getting a bit of a facelift. The façade of the home will receive preparation and a new coat of paint with a special focus on the entrance doorway, which is highly “alligatored.” The East and West sides of the home will receive preparation and touch-up painting. Window restoration work will include repair of the dutchmen on five windowsills and replacement of custom band molding on five windows. In addition, we plan to repair a section of soffit, fascia, and rakeboard in the top left corner of the front elevation.

As noted in Preservation Massachusetts press release: “This program reinforces the great needs that our many historic buildings have and the amount of work the organizations responsible for them undertake. The work they do today ensures these important parts of our history and community remain for the future.”

Contractors for the project will be Picard Construction and FD Rocha and Company.