The back porch on the old house has carried three generations of coffee mornings, and now the boards give and the steps lean toward the alley. About 32% of the city's houses went up before 1940, many of them on compact city lots. We rebuild that porch, or put in a deck the yard can hold.
Greensburg Decks
Half of Greensburg's homes date to 1957 or earlier, 45% are rentals, and over a third are in buildings holding two or more units. With the city's inspectors visiting rentals on a cycle, the outdoor projects here come in a few familiar shapes.
If your prewar house has a one-story back porch off the kitchen, open on three sides, it has seen a lot of weather. Eventually its posts decay where they meet the floor, the boards tilt yard-ward, and the steps separate.
It comes apart down to grade. Fresh footings go in under the frost, and a new frame follows the old porch's lines with solid posts, beam and joists, while the rails and steps are rebuilt to today's heights and spacing.
Porch and deck framingIn R1 and R2, the city limits land coverage to 40% and holds back a 30- or 20-foot rear yard. Owners want to know the largest deck those figures leave room for behind their house.
Existing roofs and paving get added up first. Single-story open porches may project a dozen feet into a yard while staying 3 feet back from the line, and before drawing, we ask the city whether a deck is read the same way.
Greensburg setbacksUnless the owners live in every unit, the city sends an inspector on a two-year rotation and again at a sale. Landlords tend to call once a rail shakes or the decking turns spongy.
Posts, ledger and joists are examined, then repaired or replaced. Guards and handrails are fastened through to the structure so they don't loosen, and photos of the finished work go to you for the inspector's file.
Greensburg rentalsWhen a big house was split into apartments, a second-floor porch or an outdoor stair sometimes became the upstairs unit's way in. Every tread faces the weather, and tenants climb it with arms full of groceries.
Stringers, treads and landings are rebuilt on footings, with uniform risers, a rail from top to bottom and guards anywhere the fall exceeds 30 inches. On an upper porch, the posts, beams and ledger are checked before any new boards.
Railings and stairsWithin the downtown overlay district, outside work can't start until City Council signs off, following a planning commission recommendation. Owners close to the courthouse ask whether their deck is covered.
When the deck counts as exterior work in the overlay, the request goes in with drawings and materials chosen to suit the building, and nothing is ordered until approval. The review itself is described on our Greensburg exterior page.
Downtown approvalsCovering the patio turns a small yard into a room for rainy evenings and July afternoons. A normal winter here delivers some 44 inches of snow; the cover has to bear it and drop it clear of the walls.
Its framing is sized to the snow, its roof joins the house under flashing, and its gutter drains toward the alley or another spot clear of the foundation. No post hole is dug until the zoning permit arrives.
Covered patiosHousing: Census ACS 2020–2024, city only. Coverage, rear yards and porch reach: zoning Chapter 265. Rental and sale inspections: city code Chapter 205.
The rest of the job
How it runs, what it costs and who builds it are on our main decks & covered patios page.
Decks in Greensburg
A Greensburg deck runs into three city rules: the zoning permit with its yard limits, the inspection cycle for rentals and sales, and the certificate downtown projects need.
40%Land coverage cap in R1 and R2
Building or enlarging any structure first takes the planning director's zoning approval. Coverage tops out at 40% in R1 and R2, and open porches can still project a dozen feet with 3 feet to spare. The yard table is on our additions page.
Greensburg setbacksEvery 2 yrsCity inspection of rentals
Rentals and partly rented buildings see an inspector within every two-year span and ahead of each transfer, and the adopted maintenance code expects decks and porches to be sound with guards that hold. The program is outlined on the city hub.
Greensburg rentalsCouncilApproves downtown exterior work
Downtown, outside projects need Council's certificate, which follows a planning commission review. A deck there gets that approval before anything is bought. Our exterior repairs page explains the steps.
Downtown approvalsDeck Questions
These come up as we look over an old porch with Greensburg owners and landlords. For how the work unfolds, see our service page for decks.
Ask a QuestionFootprint, height, any tear-off of an old porch and a possible roof all shift it. On a prewar house, a porch rebuild may start from new footings. The number is written up once we've seen the lot.
What decks costYes. Building or enlarging any structure here takes a city zoning permit, and the state building code governs the construction. Drawings and both applications are part of our job.
Greensburg permitsOpen porches of one story may come to 3 feet from a lot line, projecting a dozen feet into the yard. Whether a deck falls under that same rule is a question we put to the city before sketching anything.
Greensburg setbacksNot by itself. A National Register listing puts no restriction on an owner building with private money. Council's certificate is a downtown overlay rule; it doesn't reach the hill.
Downtown approvalsDEP maps old workings beneath much of Greensburg, densest to the north of the county courthouse, and homeowners coverage leaves subsidence out. If a roof or room will be tied to the house there, look the property up on the state map first.
Coal under GreensburgOther Services
Indoors, Greensburg owners bring us kitchens, baths, attic and cellar rooms, additions and windows, and outside, trim, siding and porch repairs. Pick a page below.
Kitchen RemodelingNew layouts, new cabinets, new counters: framed, built, and installed by the same crew.View Service
Bathroom RemodelingFull gut renovations with proper waterproofing, new framing, and tile set by hand.View Service
Attic FinishingUnused attics framed into bedrooms and offices: subfloor, insulation, drywall, and a proper stair.View Service
Basement FinishingUnfinished basements turned into real rooms: framed, insulated, drywalled, and finished by our crew.View Service
Additions & ADUsAdditions and accessory dwelling units (ADUs), framed from the ground up and tied in clean.View Service
Windows & Exterior DoorsWindows and exterior doors set, flashed, and trimmed so water stays out of the wall.View Service
Exterior Restoration & Structural RepairsRotted trim and siding, sagging joists, failed sills: opened up and repaired to solid wood.View ServiceVerified Google Reviews
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Tell us about the project in the form or give us a call. Either way, estimates are free and the number is the number — priced to the actual work, written down before anyone swings a hammer.
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