Service Area · Dennis, MA
Adding on to a home north of Route 6 means designing for the Old King’s Highway committee as much as for your family. We plan additions that suit the house, the district and the way you live.
Dennis village, from Route 6A past the Cape Playhouse and Dennis Union Church to the side streets beyond, sits inside the Old King’s Highway Regional Historic District. New construction visible from a public way, including most additions, generally needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the town’s committee. That shapes everything from the roofline to the siding and windows.
We design additions that respect the original house: matching proportions, a roof pitch that suits the main block, traditional trim and materials that pass review. Placing the addition to the rear or side often keeps the street view intact. At PJCC Building & Remodeling, the approval process is part of the design from the first sketch.
Additions designed for Old King’s Highway approval and the character of the house.
Whole home renovations that bring the original house up to the addition’s standard.
An addition in a historic district has to look right and pass review, then be built so the join between old and new never shows. Our carpenters handle the trim and finish work that makes that happen, and we bring three decades of Cape Cod experience to the planning. The business holds full licensing and insurance.
More on our approach is on the home additions page.
The committee looks at how an addition relates to the existing house and the street: its size, roofline, windows, siding and trim. Additions that read as secondary to the main house, use traditional materials and sit to the side or rear tend to fit best.
We prepare drawings and material choices with the review in mind, so the approval runs alongside the rest of the planning rather than holding it up.
We start with the existing structure and the lot, then work through design with you. Next come the historic application, the Board of Health review if bedrooms are added, conservation review if wetlands are nearby, and the building permit. Construction follows: foundation, framing, roofing, siding, windows, systems, insulation and finishes.
The same careful sequence applies on historic homes in South Dennis, which has its own district along Main Street.
Additions south of Route 6 work differently. In South Dennis, a local district on Main Street has its own commission, and in Dennis Port, flood zones and small lots matter more than historic review.
Along the bay side to the west, Yarmouth runs its own Old King’s Highway committee for the same district.
Near the Cape Cod Museum of Art and the village center, we often design rear additions that give an older home a modern kitchen and family room while leaving the front untouched. Closer to the bay, owners tend to want first-floor bedroom suites or mudrooms that handle sandy summer traffic.
Plymouth’s historic center, which we also serve in Plymouth, faces a similar review process for additions.
Walk us through what the family needs from the extra space and we will look at the house and lot together, then explain what the Old King’s Highway committee tends to look for. Get in touch for a visit.
begin
Every project begins with a conversation. Share a few details and we’ll be in touch within one business day to schedule your in-home consultation.
370 Upper County Rd Bay #1, Dennis Port, MA 02660, United States
Usually, yes. New construction visible from a public way inside the district generally needs a Certificate of Appropriateness. Additions that cannot be seen from a way or public place may qualify for an exemption. We prepare the application with drawings and material details and build the review time into the schedule.
Usually with a smaller, secondary wing to the side or rear, in the tradition of the ells many old Cape houses already have. Matching roof pitch, trim and window proportions keeps the original house dominant. Many of the older homes along Route 6A in Yarmouth grew the same way.
Possibly. Salt marsh and coastal banks near the bay bring the Conservation Commission into the picture, through either a Request for Determination of Applicability or, for most additions, a Notice of Intent. Local bylaws can add stricter limits. We check the setbacks before design so the addition goes where it is allowed.
Dennis was listed as a stretch energy code town on the state’s June 2025 adoption list, and new construction such as an addition is built to the code in effect. That affects insulation, windows and mechanical systems. We confirm the current requirement with the building department during design.
Yes, and it is a common addition on the Cape. A connecting mudroom needs fire separation from the garage, a roofline that suits the house and attention to whether it changes the room count for septic purposes. A well-detailed connector can look original to the house, and it is a popular choice in South Dennis as well.
Size, foundation type, whether it is one or two stories, septic implications, historic review requirements and the level of finish all play a part. Tying the addition into an older house can add work at the roof and walls. We walk through each factor with you before pricing.
