Significant Restoration Planned For Queen Anne Inn Plan Clears Historical Commission

CHATHAM – One of the town’s most recognizable properties, the Queen Anne Inn, is in line for a significant facelift. But when it’s complete, the architect hopes most people won’t notice the change.

 The new owners have proposed replacing the roof, siding, windows and three dormers, with the goal of addressing water leaks and deterioration of the building, the oldest portion of which dates back to 1835. Earlier this month, the historical commission approved the plan, which also aims to bring the inn up to modern safety and accessibility codes.

 “We view ourselves as caretakers of a building that’s important to this community and has been around for a while,” architect Derek Rubinoff told the commission on April 7. “We want to make it beautiful again and restore it.”

 While the renovation will also include indoor spaces, the historical commission only has jurisdiction over the exterior changes. “Generally we will be replacing with materials that are more durable than the existing materials, but the idea essentially is to maintain the look of what you see now. Just clean it up and replace the stuff that’s rotted,” Rubinoff said.

 The project team planned to replace the cedar shingle siding on the front and right side of the building with gray cement-based siding designed to mimic the look of shingles, with white cement-based clapboards on the left side and rear. Those products have at least a 20-year warranty, Rubinoff said. 

 The windows will be replaced with top-of-the-line historically accurate windows, and the ornate entry door would be rebuilt “with the same architectural detail or something very close to it, with PVC types of product,” he said, referring to polyvinyl chloride plastic. The window trim would also be PVC.

 “Good thing you’re not on Nantucket, because this is going to be one plastic house,” historical commission Chair Frank Messina said. 

 “It’s great to see somebody come in and want to protect a building instead of change the whole thing,” commissioner Nancy Barr said. While she understands the durability of more modern building materials, "I particularly have a challenge with the front, a streetscape, going from a traditional wood shingle to a cement shingle,” she said. Even though the cement-based siding is textured to mimic wood, “they are not historic,” she said. Using PVC for the door and window trim “changes, for me, the historical significance of those character-defining features,” Barr added. 

 Resident Ellen Briggs of the group Protect our Past said she is excited that the renovation will be historically sensitive, but she warned against the use of PVC products, which emit toxic gases when heated. “It’s a fact that I think you all should know about,” she said. Briggs urged the architect to favor “original materials which have stood the test of time.”

 The building’s existing chimneys are mostly non-functional and have caused roof leaks, according to the project team. If the commission desires, the project could include replacing them with false chimneys to preserve the original appearance, Rubinoff said.

 “I personally would almost rather see them gone than a fake chimney,” Barr said. 

 With the owner, Charles Hajjar, signaling a willingness to use cedar shingles instead of cement-based siding on the front of the building, the commission voted unanimously to approve the project. While the commission was divided on the matter of the faux chimneys, a majority favored having them.

 “Once you take those chimneys down, that building can be pretty, but it could’ve been built five years ago,” Messina said. “And the town loses a little bit of our sense of place.”

 The project is awaiting final site plan approval from the planning board. The owners say the inn will be open as usual this summer, with renovations taking place in the fall and winter. The restored building will be ready by summer 2027.