OLDNBPT

Preservation / Do I need approval?

Paint and masonry

Paint color is not reviewed anywhere in Newburyport. Brick and stone are different downtown, and older houses carry lead-paint rules no matter where they are.

Last reviewed against the ordinances September 30, 2026

Or read the part for your area: Fruit Street district · Downtown · Rest of the historic district · Elsewhere in the city

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Fruit Street Local Historic District

Fruit Street and a few neighboring lots on High and Prospect Streets, sixteen buildings in all. Its own commission reviews any exterior change seen from the street.

  1. No review of color exempt

    Paint color is excluded from review by the ordinance. The Commission keeps resource material on appropriate color schemes if you want it.

    Code ch. 16 §§16-6–16-8; M.G.L. c. 40C

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Downtown Overlay District (DOD)

The downtown part of the Newburyport Historic District. The Planning Board reviews work on historic buildings and all new construction.

  1. No review of color not reviewed

    A change of paint color is expressly not a change in appearance downtown; repainting is ordinary maintenance.

    Zoning §XXVII-D.2, 13; Zoning §XXVII-C.3, §XXVII-E; §X-H.5

  2. Building Commissioner and Zoning Administrator enforce

    Historic brick and stone downtown follow their own rules even as maintenance: don’t paint masonry that has never been painted; repoint with lime mortar, not Portland cement, raking the joints by hand; no sandblasting; clean only to stop deterioration, by the gentlest method, and only with the Planning Board’s written approval first; no sealants or water-repellents unless shown not to trap moisture; keep painted historic advertisements where feasible.

    Zoning §XXVII-G

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Demolition Control Overlay District (DCOD)

The rest of the Newburyport Historic District, outside downtown and Fruit Street. The Zoning Board reviews major demolition of contributing buildings; the Historical Commission keeps roof changes.

  1. No historic review not reviewed

    The DCOD reviews demolition only. Painting, including a new color, is not reviewed.

    Zoning §XXVII-D.5–6; §XXVIII-D.1–2; DCOD demolition diagrams (Apr 8, 2022); Zoning §XXVIII-D.2, E.1; §5-307

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Everywhere else

Outside Fruit Street and the two overlays: most of the city, and a few lots at the edges of the historic district. Only the citywide demolition delay ordinance, for buildings 75 or more years old.

  1. No historic review not reviewed

    No City board reviews paint color.

Wherever the building is

  1. Lead paint state and federal rules

    In a house built before 1978, a contractor who disturbs painted surfaces must be certified for lead-safe work under the federal Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, which Massachusetts administers. This has nothing to do with historic review and applies everywhere.

  2. Zoning Administrator first stop

    Every project starts with a zoning determination. The Zoning Administrator says which of the reviews on this page apply to your building and your plans, and whether the work also needs zoning relief. The site can tell you what the ordinances say; only that determination tells you what applies.

    §5-308(A); Flowchart

Repair first

Guidance