Selma Appearance Commission approves porch enclosure at 611 West Waddell Street

The Town of Selma Appearance Commission on Dec. 16 approved a certificate of appropriateness allowing homeowner Leland Bell to enclose a 7-by-14-foot section of his porch at 611 West Waddell Street to create an art room.

Commission members opened a quasi‑judicial hearing on the application and heard a staff presentation and testimony from Bell. In staff remarks, a representative said the application included a letter and photographs documenting existing damage and the proposed work. The commission then closed the hearing, accepted the testimony as part of the record and voted to approve the certificate of appropriateness.

Bell told the commission he did not plan to increase the house footprint and would use the same color vinyl siding that is already on the house, with white trim. “I’m going to use the same vinyl siding,” he said. He described replacing an underbuilt, thin concrete foundation that had been damaged by burrowing animals and replacing it with a properly thicker foundation and added insulation. On construction details he said the new exterior would be plywood covered with a modern foil-faced foam insulation and the siding applied over that; the interior walls would be sheathed. A commissioner asked whether the floor would remain wood or be replaced; Bell described upgrading the foundation to meet current practice.

A commissioner also noted current code requires an eight-inch foundation in that context; a discussion of the foundation specification took place during the hearing but the transcript did not cite a specific code section. The application materials and photographs were entered into the record before the vote.

Motions recorded in the meeting minutes show the hearing was opened by motion, closed by motion, testimony was accepted, and the commission approved the certificate of appropriateness. The vote was recorded as in favor; the transcript records commissioners saying “Aye.”

The commission did not specify additional exterior design conditions beyond use of matching vinyl siding and insulation described by the applicant. Staff will file the certificate and proceed with next steps for permit processing as appropriate.