Work begins on restoration of historic Shingle House
WARWICK This past week Stephanie Reinert, an architectural designer and preservationist with the Dobbs Ferry firm of Stephen Tilly Architect, and her co-worker Deepa Parthasakathy, a junior architectural designer, were busy gathering measurements and other vital information at the 1744 Shingle House on Forester Avenue. Last May, the Historical Society of the Town of Warwick Historical Society, which has owned the building since 1916, was selected to receive a matching grant of $250,000 from the State of New York’s Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) for the restoration of the historic building. The cost of the work, which has just begun, has been estimated at $500,000. The restoration is expected to take two years. The Shingle House, the oldest house in the Village of Warwick, located diagonally across from the original Wisner Library, was the first building acquired by the Society. It was built in 1764 by Daniel Burt for his son Daniel Jr. on a site close to The King’s Highway, a major colonial route from Pennsylvania and New Jersey up to the Hudson River and New England. With its shingled sides and saltbox outline, the Shingle House is typical of New England homes built at that time. The State requires that all firms working on the Shingle House should have experience with the Secretary of the Interior Standards and the Society is encouraged to use women or minority owned businesses, which are certified by the New York State Department of Economic Development. Every step of the way must be submitted and approved by the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) and matching funds raised as the project goes along. Monies only come after each phase is complete. However 'matching’ can be in the form of money, volunteer work or a donation of materials. Earlier this year Patricia McConnell, president of the Society, Sheila Warner and Jo Hull attended an orientation meeting at the OPRHP regional office in Staatsburg, where they were promised technical assistance and general support from the staff. - Roger Gavan