Facade funds OK’d for business

A downtown Portland business will get some help with new windows.

During back-to-back meetings Thursday morning, Portland Historic Preservation Commission and Portland Facade Committee approved a certificate of appropriateness for new windows on the north side of Reclaiming Design and agreed to cover half of the cost of cutting the openings.

LeeAnn Miller has been renovating 206 N. Meridian St. as the new home for her interior design business. The north wall was exposed this year when the City of Portland tore down the structures at 208 and 210 N. Meridian St. after they had been declared unsafe.

Miller plans to add three second-floor windows in locations similar to where they were located when the building was constructed more than a century ago.

During a brief session, the historic preservation commission approved the certificate of appropriateness for the windows. It was required because the new windows will include vinyl.

Commission members Emily Goodrich, Rusty Inman and John McFarland approved the certificate, noting that the new windows will match those in the rest of the building.

The facade committee — Joe Johnston, Mayor Jeff Westlake and Inman — then discussed a request from Miller for funding to help with the installation of the new windows. (A door that had been previously discussed was removed from the request.) Miller provided two quotes for the preparation work — cutting the spaces for the windows into the north wall — but said cost the of the windows themselves will depend on the final size of the openings.

The facade committee agreed to cover half the cost of the window preparation work with a maximum total of $34,199 and asked Miller to return with quotes for the windows when they are available.