Otis Place · No. 11–13 · NWB.2682
11-13 Otis Place
- Built
- c. 1885
- Style
- Italianate Italianate
- MACRIS
- NWB.2682 ↗
History
Otis Place was laid out around 1880, and most of the homes were built over the following thirty years. The development was primarily driven by Orlando and Willard Hatch, carpenters and ship joiners who owned multiple properties on the street.
The homes are vernacular in style but reflect elements of earlier Victorian architecture. Otis Place was developed to meet the demand for middle-class housing near Newburyport’s central business district. Residents typically included clerks and managers of nearby businesses. The street remains essentially unchanged from its appearance at the turn of the twentieth century.
Planning work on this building?
Reviews that may apply
Newburyport Historic District (National Register, listed 1984) · Downtown Overlay District (DOD) · Parcel 14-16-A/B · Zone R3
Planning Board decides
Downtown, new construction, alteration or demolition of a historic building (individually listed or contributing in 1984) needs a DOD special permit, judged against the Secretary of the Interior's Standards; the Historical Commission sends an advisory report. Replacing windows, doors, signs, awnings or fences is reviewed by the Planning Office at staff level, with a window inventory; a new opening in a wall needs the Board. This lot is in an underlying R3 district, where alterations (not demolition) of a one- or two-family house are excluded from DOD review. The demolition delay ordinance does not apply downtown except to work the Zoning Administrator excludes from DOD review.
Zoning Administrator first stop
Every project starts with a zoning determination from the Zoning Administrator, which says which of these reviews apply and whether the work also needs zoning relief (a special permit for a non-conformity, or a variance). Fees, forms and filing deadlines are on the City’s site.
Not legal advice, not an official City publication, and not the position of the Historical Commission or any board. Says what the ordinances say as of September 30, 2026; the Zoning Administrator decides what applies. Boundaries: Merrimack Valley Planning Commission / City of Newburyport GIS (MIMAP); 1984 status from the National Register nomination's district data sheets. City's quick guide to the DCOD and demolition delay ↗ · Do I need approval? Project by project →
More built 1860–1900
Sources
- Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System, NWB.2682, NWB.AO