FARMINGTON, CT — March 28, 2025 | By Jack Beckett | The Farmington Mercury
In a meeting that can only be described as quietly theatrical, the Farmington Historic District Commission gathered on Tuesday, March 25, to deliberate over four applications—each modest in scope, none without subtext.
On the surface: an air conditioning unit, a hanging sign, a screened generator, and a proposed Cape Cod-style house. Beneath that: questions of architectural purity, neighborhood compatibility, and whether vinyl windows are the beginning of the end.
Spoiler: they are. Or at least, they still are, according to the Commission.
The entire meeting, equal parts civil and existential, is available here: Watch the full video
📍 36 Colton Street – A Heat Pump Gets Its Day in Court
Applicant: James J. Ryan
Ask: Mini-split AC/heat pump with visible piping
Result: Approved, with conditions
James Ryan, a homeowner on Colton Street, would like to breathe in the summer without hoisting massive window units twice a year.
“They’re very heavy,” he explained. “And expensive to run.”
His solution: a mini-split system, with the outside compressor partially visible, but modestly screened by white lattice, a recurring motif of the evening. A pipe will run along the exterior of the house, painted white.
Ted Sanford sighed on behalf of all exterior pipes: “They’re the worst part of those AC units, but it’s pretty well hidden.”
Michelle Phelan double-checked: “The piping will be white?”
Ryan: “That’s a must.”
Jim Calciano, ever the chair, asked if the lattice would match the one on the gas meter. It would. And just like that, the matter of Ryan’s climate control was settled—with lattice, as the Lord and the Commission intended.
📍 7 Brick Walk Lane – A Sign Hangs, and That’s That
Applicant: Lori DeYantis (Modern Glow)
Ask: 17” hanging sign
Result: Approved
DeYantis presented a straightforward sign: whitewashed wood, black resin letters, hung on an existing bracket. The shop is called Modern Glow, though the sign itself is cheerfully traditional.
“It’s all-weather,” DeYantis noted, perhaps aware that historical fidelity is less important than durability in New England.
Jim Calciano, doing his best minimalist impression: “It fits the bracket.”
Joanne Lawson, ever the rule-follower: “The measurements are compliant?”
They were. The Commission nodded. The sign passed. One more sign in a town full of signs. No drama. Just glow.
📍 7 Mountain Road / 49 Main Street – Miss Porter’s Screens Her Generator
Applicant: Miss Porter’s School
Ask: Replace enclosure for new generator
Result: Approved
Jackie Murray, representing Miss Porter’s, made the case for a new fence around a newly installed generator. The fence will be 8 feet tall, solid wood, painted white. It will not have a roof—because it’s a fence.
“We’d like to make it look better than the existing structure,” Murray said. A low bar, based on the photos.
Henry Portill, walker, observer, questioner: “Is there going to be enough airflow on the paved side?”
Murray promised to ask someone who would know.
Ted Sanford liked the upgrade. Joanne Lawson admitted she had trouble even finding the existing one—which, in this context, is the highest possible compliment.
🏠 7 Church Street – Where the Vinyl Hits the Fan
Applicant: Jack Kemper, Architect
Owners: Tad and Joanne Diesel
Ask: Temporary certificate for new single-family home
Result: Approved (eventually), with conditions
This one had everything: history, scale, good faith, tension, and the introduction of vinyl windows, which landed like a plastic fork at a silver-plated dinner table.
Architect Jack Kemper presented a 2,000-square-foot Cape Cod-style home for the long-empty lot at Church and Hart Streets, complying with most prior conditions (including turning the house to face Church Street), but requesting to shrink the original 70-foot setback to 58 feet.
Not a single commissioner objected to the setback. Or the bluestone porch. Or the SmartSide siding. Or the garage placement. Or the columns. Or the materials, generally. Except—the windows.
Vinyl, Kemper offered politely. From Coltec. Simulated divided lights. Proven performance. Nice mullions.
Jim Calciano did not hesitate:
“We’ve never approved vinyl windows. Ever.”
He said it slowly, like it was being etched into granite.
Then added, with the fatalism of a man who’s seen this battle too many times:
“They just don’t belong in the Historic District.”
Michelle Phelan and Ted Sanford backed him. Joanne Lawson seemed to recoil slightly from the word “vinyl.” The room held its breath. Kemper backed off with the smooth professionalism of someone who’d seen this coming.
Other features were debated calmly:
- Siding: LP SmartSide (approved)
- Roof: Charcoal architectural shingles (approved)
- Bluestone porch: Confirmed after earlier internal indecision
- Lighting: Recessed porch lighting acceptable; fixtures TBD
- Garage doors, exterior doors: Not yet approved
- Columns: Square, with two half-columns on the house (after a brief column-counting exercise led by Shannon Rutherford, the real MVP of zoning math)
🧾 Public Input
Peter Mastropietro, 18 Church Street, endorsed the project:
“It’s a significant contribution to the neighborhood. And I’d encourage some open-mindedness on window technology.”
Frank and Anne Sanford sent in a letter of support, praising the home’s scale, materials, and the Diesels’ intention to install a veterans memorial bench.
✅ Final Vote:
The house was approved with clear conditions:
- Siting and setback: ✔️
- Siding, roof, porch, columns: ✔️
- Vinyl windows: ❌
- Doors, garage doors, lighting: 🟡 pending future review
📋 Administrative
- February 18, 2025 Minutes: Approved
- Next Meeting: TBD
- Henry Portill: Arrived late
- Ted Sanford: Stepped in for Cliff
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About the Author
Jack Beckett
Writer. Resident. Column Counter. ☕
Senior correspondent for The Farmington Mercury, where we cover lattice, porch lighting, and the slow, deliberate war against vinyl windows.
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Jack Beckett
The Farmington Mercury
“Always last to breaking news, and always present for the clapboard debates.”
