Home Remodeling in Newport, DE
Kitchen, bath and exterior work for the old river town of Newport and the streets that grew around it.
Newport began in the 1730s, when building lots were laid out along the Old Kings Road where it ran close to the Christina River. John Justis bought 100 acres in 1735 to build a trading town, and street names from that first plan, Ayre, Augustine and John, are still in use. For a century Newport was a port and a stage stop, with wagons hauling grain to its docks, until the railroad arrived in 1837 and trade drifted to Wilmington. Industry filled the gap: by 1900 there were chemical works, a glue factory and iron works, and a pigment plant opened in 1908. The town was incorporated in 1873 and pushed its boundaries out on every side but the river in 1941. Several of its older buildings are on the National Register, among them the Collison House, a Second Empire frame house with a mansard roof built about 1885.
A Newport house, then, is either a 19th-century house near the river or a Cape Cod, a Colonial Revival or a rancher on the blocks that filled in during the 20th century. Both kinds are small by current standards and have had decades of piecemeal updates. Dawson's serves Newport for the kitchens, baths and exteriors they need next.
Permits from Town Hall, not the county
Newport runs its own permit desk at Town Hall on North James Street. The town spells out what needs a permit: structural work such as a roof, an addition or a demolition, plus plumbing, mechanical and electrical work, and every permit carries inspections. Fees are figured on the value of the job. Any contractor working inside the limits holds a Newport business license on top of the state one. The town also has its own zoning ordinance and board of adjustment, so a setback question on a tight lot gets settled in Newport too. Cross the line into Stanton or Marshallton and the same project goes to New Castle County's Land Use office instead.
Older houses near the river
The houses from Newport's port and mill years sit on narrow lots, with kitchens at the back and bathrooms that arrived long after the house did. A kitchen here is usually rebuilt where it is: cabinets scribed to walls that are out of plumb, new wiring and supply lines fed through the old chases, and the floor leveled before tile goes down. Bathrooms get a new subfloor, real waterproofing behind the tile and a fan vented outdoors. A Second Empire or Victorian house keeps its trim, so siding and window choices follow what the front of the house already shows.
The 20th-century blocks
The Cape Cods and ranchers are easier to open up. The wall between kitchen and dining room is rarely structural, a Cape's upstairs can become a real bedroom and bath with dormers and insulation, and a deck or a small rear addition fits where the yard allows. New windows sized to the original openings and fresh siding over house wrap are common needs on these houses.
Dawson's serves Newport for kitchens, bathrooms, basements, additions, windows, siding, decks and carpentry.
Nearby, Dawson's also serves Stanton, Elsmere, Marshallton and Wilmington.
Newport is part of the New Castle County, DE service area.
Ready to plan a remodel in Newport?
Call Dom with the address and the project, or send the details through the form. The walkthrough is free and the estimate comes in writing.