How does a preservationist go about restoring a historic structure?
The National Register of Historic Places is part of the National Park Service and Department of the Interior.
Doing a restoration project on a historic home is rewarding, but also technically difficult.
Doing a restoration project on a historic home is rewarding, but also technically difficult. First, if the historic home is listed on the National Register of Historic Places – as the Felt Mansion is – then all work must be done with approval from the State Historic Preservation Office , also known as SHPO (pronounced “shippo”). Therefore, plans for every project, from painting rooms to replacing electrical or HVAC systems, must be submitted to SHPO, then reviewed and approved by SHPO, before any work can begin. This is a long and arduous process. The result is always a product of compromise.
The Michigan State Historic Preservation Office is known as SHPO (pronounced “shippo”) for short.
SHPO typically desires that original elements be retained.
SHPO typically desires that original elements be retained (even if those elements are non-functional) – and sometimes that simply is not feasible or practical for a restoration for adaptive use. One example of this is the requirement by SHPO that we keep the original radiators even when we replaced the old boiler heating system with an energy-efficient heat pump system. Throughout the mansion, guests will still see the original radiators, even though (for rental purposes), we would have preferred to remove them.
When guests tour the Felt Estate, they are seeing the original colors chosen by Dorr Felt.
Also, many people, when touring the mansion, ask why we picked such unusual colors for the rooms in the Felt Estate. The reason for this is not because we simply liked those colors. Instead, because it is a restoration project, SHPO required a faithful restoration of the original colors. So, we employed a paint specialist to determine the first coat, the original coat of paint, so we would know the original color. When guests tour the Felt Estate, they are seeing the original colors chosen by Dorr Felt. Learn more about paint analysis.
Guests also ask whether the wallpaper is original to the home. Sadly, none of our wallpaper is original. However, when we removed the partition walls added during the Seminary years, we found remnants of the original paper. That gave us the color palate and pattern on which we could base our reproduction paper. So again, when visitors tour the estate, they are seeing papers very similar to the original giving them an accurate idea of what was there in 1928, the year of completion.
SHPO is even more determined to see that the exterior of historic structures remains intact.
But projects are not limited to the interior of the estate. In fact, in many ways, SHPO is even more determined to see that the exterior of historic structures remains intact and true to their original look because this can have an impact on entire neighborhoods. Therefore, every project on the exterior also need SHPO review and approval, including the 75-diameter water garden.
The restoration of the Felt Mansion took many years to complete – and restoration of the ancillary buildings, the carriage house and barn, are still ongoing. We hope you will visit the estate soon to see this amazing restoration project for yourself.
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Written By: Patty Meyer, Director of Friends of the Felt Estate. Patty has been the Director of Friends of the Felt Estate since its inception in 2001. As the director she started and led the community restoration project of the estate and oversees the ongoing preservation of the estate.
Photo Credit: Brian D Smith Photography. Brian D Smith is an award winning, published wedding, portrait and editorial photographer in Charleston, South Carolina and Northern Michigan, servicing any destination in the world. Follow him on Instagram: @briandsmithphotography