by William F. Galvin

HARWICH – The Royal Apartments building at the corner of Bank and Parallel streets will be getting an exterior facelift. The historic district and historical commission last week approved the changes to the building, which is located in the Harwich Center Historic District.

The property, which had previously housed The Royal at Harwich Village senior living facility, was purchased by Royal Apartments, LLC, a Brookline company, in 2019. The planning board approved three special permits in 2021 to allow the structure to be converted into 26 apartments. 

However, Gregory Winston and David Plunkett, the former owners of the property who own the abutting property, objected to the planned development and filed a lawsuit against the planning board and the new owners.

The structure was built in 1825 and was home to the Ellis Tavern and the New Winslow Hotel, said James Bustamante, the spokesperson for the owners, when making a presentation to the commission March 15. He said there are no plans to change the exterior appearance of the building.

The plan is to replace exterior rot as well as the trim, main and front doors and windows, Bustamante said. The cedar clapboards on the front of the building and cedar shingles on the sides and rear of the building will also be replaced. A new roof and gutters will be installed and the porch and decking will be reconstructed. The paint color will match the current building.
Commission member Robert Doane said there are missing shutters on the Bank Street side of the building. Those will be replaced, Bustamante said. After some discussion about the historic color of the shutters, it was agreed they would be painted black.

Members of the commission were concerned about the different window pane configurations now in place. Bustamante said the plan was not to change those configurations. But the commission agreed there should be more conformity, approving two-over-two window configurations for the front and gable sides of the building.

HDHC Chair Mary Maslowski wanted to know whether there were plans to alter parking and lighting. Bustamante said there will be no changes at this time, and eventually the owners will be back before the commission seeking full site plan approval. The commission approved the certificate of non-applicability for the exterior renovations to the structure. 

Email William F. Galvin at billy@capecodchronicle.com