Auburn’s North College Historic District writes its own rule on shutter material, and that rule contradicts the common assumption that decorative plastic shutters are fine on an older house. This post walks through which materials and proportions align with the district’s standards, what triggers a review before you order, and why functional exterior shutters still matter on East Alabama exposures. Keith Davis leads our Auburn franchise and works with homeowners restoring heritage properties across the region.<\/p>\n
According to the City of Auburn Historic Preservation Commission’s North College Historic District Design Review Standards<\/a>, wood, louvered or solid panel shutters are appropriate; plastic shutters are inappropriate.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The standard applies to historic homes within the North College Historic District and governs exterior changes visible from a public right-of-way. The rule names material directly, not just appearance, which is what separates this local standard from generic period-style advice. Most national guides treat plastic as acceptable if the look reads right, and the district’s language closes that door. For Exterior Shutters<\/a> inside the district, material is reviewed alongside proportion and panel type.<\/p>\n
The district language treats the categories this way:<\/p>\n
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- Wood shutters, in louvered or solid panel construction: appropriate<\/li>\n
- Plastic shutters: inappropriate<\/li>\n
- Aluminum or vinyl shutters: flagged as inappropriate in related contexts, and the same logic carries over to shutter material decisions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
When Older Auburn Homes Need Shutters (and When They Don’t)<\/h2>\n
Census data places the local housing stock’s median year built at 1980, so most houses in the area are not in the historic-district category, and shutter decisions on those homes are aesthetic. According to the Census Bureau’s 2024 ACS 5-year table B25035<\/a>, Auburn’s median year structure built is 1980. For the smaller subset of older homes inside the North College Historic District or in similar pre-war neighborhoods across East Alabama, the HPC’s “style, proportion, and character” test applies before any shutter decision.<\/p>\n
A common forum question is whether a particular older house was even built with shutters originally. That question matters because adding shutters to a home that never carried them can read as costume rather than restoration. Work through this list on your own house first:<\/p>\n
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- \u2610 Does my home sit within the North College Historic District boundary?<\/li>\n
- \u2610 Do original photographs or paint shadows show shutters were ever installed on the windows?<\/li>\n
- \u2610 Do the window proportions allow a shutter to cover the opening when closed?<\/li>\n
- \u2610 Is the architectural style one that historically used operable shutters (Greek Revival, Victorian, Colonial)?<\/li>\n
- \u2610 Are nearby same-era houses shuttered in a comparable way?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
If most answers point toward shutters being original to the home or the style, the project is a restoration question. If they do not, treat any outdoor shutter installation as a design addition and weigh it accordingly.<\/p>\n
Wood, Composite, or Vinyl: The Material Decision for Older Homes<\/h2>\n
National guides usually collapse this to wood versus PVC. The local standards add a regulatory filter most of those guides miss, and that filter changes the order of operations: district status first, then climate fit, then maintenance. Material selection drives historical accuracy and long-term performance on restoration projects.<\/p>\n
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