Historical Integrity of Steadman Houses on Alexander Street Needs to Be Preserved
To the Editor:
On Monday, July 15, at 4 p.m. the Princeton Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) will hear applications from the Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS) to strip the historic fabric from five houses located on their campus at the intersection of Alexander and Mercer streets, specifically numbers 15-17, 19, 25-27, 29, and 31 Alexander Street. A sixth house, at 44 Mercer Street, has already been stripped of its historic siding and windows, the result of an administrative waiver granted in error. Four of the Alexander Street houses are the work of Charles Steadman, Princeton’s noted 19th century architect and builder. Together with the Steadmans and related period houses on the opposite side of Alexander Street, this grouping is at the core of the Mercer Hill Historic District and are key contributors to it, forming an iconic, character-defining gateway to Princeton.
In its applications filed last Friday, July 5, PTS seeks HPC approval to replace the historic clapboard siding, window trim, and shutters with synthetic materials, including HardiePlank, a fiber cement siding, and Boral, a composite material made of polymers and coal-fired power plant waste, or fly ash. All windows are to be replaced rather than repaired. HPC ‘s decisions are governed by Princeton’s Historic Preservation Ordinance and guided by the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties. The first principle of the Ordinance is to maintain and repair the original fabric of a historic building. PTS’s plan would violate this fundamental principle. The existing original clapboard and window trim on the elevations of these houses that are visible from the public right of way — and so subject to HPC review — appear to be in good condition notwithstanding their age and should not end up as landfill.
The importance of the Steadman houses on Alexander Street has long been recognized by historians, architects, city planners, and the public at large. In her highly regarded Princeton Architecture: A Pictorial History of Town and Campus, Connie Greiff cited the four Steadmans owned by PTS and part of this application (numbers 19, 25, 29, and 31 Alexander Street) as among Steadman’s best work. She described the unified grouping of houses as “a remarkable survival of an early nineteenth-century middle class neighborhood … the whole complex could serve as a model to today’s developers, a visual dissertation on how to achieve variety … these Alexander Street houses have a certain monumentality, derived from their compact cubic shape combined with solid, well-ordered classical detail and proportion.” (p. 93). Indeed, a photo of this streetscape, representing the town, graces the cover of her book.
The Mercer Hill Historic District Association strongly opposes PTS’s plan to destroy the historic character of the Alexander Street houses. We urge the HPC to enforce the provisions of the Historic Preservation Ordinance and deny these applications. We encourage all to attend the July 15 hearing in support of our position.