Roofs and Roof Elements

This material is presented for informational purposes only. Herron-Morton Place holds no liability for inaccuracies that may be contained herein. Individuals are urged to contact the Indianapolis Historic Preservation Commission for complete guidelines as may apply to your project.

An exception is available for qualifying low-moderate income homeowners (owner-occupants).

• Original slate should be repaired rather than replaced. If replacement is necessary, new or imitation slate is preferred. Consider retention of good slates for installation on roof slopes visible to the street. If replacement with slate is not economically possible, use asphalt or fiberglass shingles in a pattern and color similar to the original slate.
• Preferred colors for asphalt or fiberglass roofs are medium to dark shades of grey and brown. Solid red or green roofs are appropriate on some early 20th century buildings.
• A flat roof which is not visible from the ground may be repaired or reroofed with any material provided it remains obscured from view.
• Adding a slope to a problem flat roof may be considered if it is not visible from the ground or does not effect the character of the building.
• If a drip edge is used, it should be painted to match the surrounding wood.
• Gutters and downspouts should match the building body and/or trim color.
• Repair and retain built-in gutters or rebuild them in a similar configuration using alternative materials.
• Where exposed rafter ends were original, roof mounted or half-round hung gutters are preferred. Consider channeling water runoff on the ground rather than installing gutters when none originally existed.
• Flat surfaced skylights with frames which match the roof color may be considered if they are inconspicuous and do not alter the building's basic character.
• Original chimneys which contribute to the roof character should be repaired and retained. If no longer in use, they should be capped rather than removed.

• Avoid alteration of the roof slope and shape unless past inappropriate alterations are being reversed.
• Avoid white, light, or multi-colored shingles and rolled roofing.
• Avoid the addition of dormers on roof area which are significant to the character of the building.
• Avoid covering exposed rafter ends with a gutterboard and never cut or alter decorative rafter ends to accept a new gutterboard.
• Avoid skylights on prominent roof slopes which affect the building character. Bubble style skylights break the roof plane and should be avoided unless they cannot be seen from the street.
• Avoid placing mechanical equipment such as roof vents, new metal chimneys, solar panels, T.V. antenna/dishes, air conditioning units, etc. where they can be seen from the street or effect the character of the building.