The Historical and Architectural Review Board granted a certificate of appropriateness to Robert Raymond Rooke and his fiancée Alexandra MacLean for a mudroom addition to the rear of their house at 42 E. Church St. Contractor Tim Deily accompanied the couple at the July 10 meeting held in the Rotunda to assist with the proposal. He provided the additional information the board had requested from a previous meeting when the application had been tabled. The eight-foot by eight-foot, single-story mudroom for their brick residence is part of a kitchen rehab project.

Approval was granted for cedar clapboard siding with painted wood fascia and wood tongue and groove porch ceiling and soffit, foundation with smooth stucco finish, hip roof to match slope of existing main roof with half-round copper gutters and round down spout.

The single pane, double hung wood windows at the back and wood door at the side of the addition are reclaimed.

The porch includes repurposed wrought iron handrails, tongue-and-groove floor boards, wood treads and enclosed risers, and a wood lattice skirt board.

The homeowners were permitted to paint the new addition to match existing colors, but were encouraged to use the already approved brown, tan and green, since they had planned to paint the entire house with that palette in the near future.

The commissioners approved the installation of a 2.25 foot by 11 foot transom sign to Kofi Armah for 81 W. Broad St. His original proposal for plain sans serif letters on Plexiglas was refused, it was suggested he incorporate his “Coal Lounge & Grill” company logo into the red and gray sign and add a pinstripe. Newly reinstated member Beth Starbuck sketched out the design incorporating the board’s input and gave it to Armah.

It was stipulated the signage material be a plywood or medium density overlay (MDO) panel. The building is owned by Domenic Villani.

HARB member Rod Young mentioned he had sampled the West African cuisine at Armah’s restaurant and recommended it to the others.

Another restaurateur scored a COA for new signage at 553 Main St. Representing Casa del Mofongo was owner Jose Collado. His successful proposal included a circular two-sided blade sign featuring the round company logo in a copper-gold over black with pinstripe to hang from an existing bracket. Flanking the entrance are angled storefront windows. Approval was granted for the restaurant’s name and leaf logo in off-white on each of the windows facing the street and a larger etched-look leaf graphic on each of the inside-facing windows. At left on the double entrance doors is the company logo and on the right side, the business hours are posted.

Collado also received approval for the company name and leaf graphic in off-white on a black flame-retardant awning. When asked about the other awning poking into his storefront space, Collado replied it belongs to the Social Security office next door.

The new Spanish restaurant is where Hardball Cider’s tasting room had been located in the Woolworth Building, which is owned by Rubel Street II, L.P.

Representing the Moravian King’s Daughters and Sons Home, Sean O’Keefe was granted approval to install a 2-foot by 3-foot sign in the front garden area of 61 W. Market St. Located to the left of the front entrance, the sans serif lettering is fuchsia with thin black outlines on a cream colored background. There is a logo at top and a black line around the edge of the shaped sign. It was stipulated the two supporting 4x4 pressure-treated posts be painted black.

Owned by Moravian Union of the King’s Daughters & Sons, Inc., the historic brick property is an assisted living and short term care rehabilitation facility.

The voting for all proposals was unanimous.

The Historical and Architectural Review Board regularly meets the first Wednesday of every month to review all exterior changes proposed to buildings in the Bethlehem Historic District north of the Lehigh River. When a proposed project receives a certificate of appropriateness from the board, applicants must wait for City Council to vote on it before proceeding.

Vice Chairman Philip Roeder announced that in keeping with increased transparency for the public, the city plans to begin digitally recording these hearings and posting them on YouTube, beginning in August. He also asked members to consider a new start time ranging from 5-7 p.m. to make it more convenient for applicants and members of the public to attend.