Two buildings up for Raleigh historic designation

The Raleigh City Council held a joint public hearing on Tuesday about Raleigh Furniture Building, 119 E. Hargett St., and the Paula and Elsie Stahl House, 3017 Granville Drive.

The Raleigh Furniture Company building, a brick three-story late Romanesque Revival commercial building incorporating Italianate elements, was built in 1914. The building has been restored to a historically accurate wood storefront including a fully glazed transom and a copper cornice. The upper stories are divided into three bays by brick pilasters and horizontal corbelled molding that frames both stories of each bay.

In the 1920s and 1930s, East Hargett Street between Fayetteville Street and Blount Street became a center of commerce and was known as the ‘Black Main Street” due to its location near City Market, Moore Square and predominately African-American communities. The Raleigh Furniture Company building is one of a few architecturally significant buildings remaining from that time.

The Stahl House is a contemporary ranch that includes window walls, an open interior floor plan, a low-pitched side-gabled roof and post and beam construction. The house was designed by local architect Milton Small and built by Frank Walser in 1956.

Officials say the house is significant in the development of post-war architecture in Raleigh and as a rare example of a house in the contemporary style.

Following Tuesday’s hearing, the council referred the matter back to the Raleigh Historical Districts Commission, which will review information received during the public hearing and make a final recommendation to council during its regular meeting on June 21.