Why Red Wing is differentDoes a re-roof in one of Red Wing's historic districts need extra approval?
It can. Red Wing has five locally designated historic districts: St. James, Downtown, Historic Mall, West Residential Conservation and South End Residential Conservation. Exterior changes to buildings in those districts go through the Heritage Preservation Commission's design review, which the city now handles through its Cloudpermit portal, on top of the regular building permit. We check your parcel before the estimate so a like-for-like repair doesn't turn into a surprise review.
Red Wing started protecting its old buildings early. A Historic Site Committee formed in 1967, and City Ordinance No. 62 created the Heritage Preservation Commission on November 10, 1975. As of 2018 the city counted 24 sites on the National Register of Historic Places and three National Register districts, including landmarks like the 1904 T.B. Sheldon Memorial Auditorium, one of the first municipally owned theaters in the country.
For roofs, that history shows up as steep Victorian gables, brick and limestone walls, box gutters and old chimneys, especially in the blocks around downtown and the West and South End residential districts. About 26% of Red Wing's homes were built before 1940, so we plan for board decking, extra layers and masonry flashing on those houses and photograph every slope and trim detail before work starts. The Commission's design review form asks for current photos of every side of the building, and our dated photo report covers that.
