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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes CITY OF OSHKOSH LANDMARKS COMMISSION Minutes June 121h,2019 PRESENT: Shirley Brabender Mattox, Paul Arnold, Steve Cummings, Nikki Stoll Olthoff,Jeremy Galica EXCUSED: Matt Mugeraur, Elizabeth Hintz ABSENT: None STAFF AND OTHERS: Steven Wiley, Aron Groth(1526 Algoma Blvd.) 1. Call to Order Chair Brabender Mattox called the meeting to order at 3:03 p.m. and a quorum was declared present. 2. Approval of May 81h,2019 Meeting Minutes Ms. Brabender Mattox asked the Commission if there were any revisions for the May meeting minutes. No commissioners had any revisions so the Commission voted 4-0 to approve the minutes as written (Cummings/Galica). 3. 1526 Algoma Boulevard proposed work-Aron Groth-Discussion/Action Aron Groth of the Martin Luther Church introduced himself. Ms. Brabender Mattox remarked that the structure was in good condition. Mr. Groth explained that he was proposing a flat roof over one side of the altar. The roof leaked in this location and Mr. Groth was looking to address the problem. He noted that the visual impact of the proposed roof was to be minimal due to its low profile. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked who the architect of the church was. Mr. Groth replied that Ben Ganther's father was the architect. Mr. Groth stated that Drexel Building was working with the church and that the contractor had the original blueprints. Mr. Groth was a member of the congregation, the property chairman, and had his own construction company. Mr. Arnold asked how tall the parapet was above the flat roof. Mr. Groth replied that the parapet was 19 inches in height. He explained that with the rubber roof someone had to go up and shovel snow every winter. Mr. Groth then showed the portion of roof that would be replaced as part of the project. Drexel was engineering the trusses. Currently a 12"x12" scupper was the only location where water could leave the roof section. As part of the new project,a gutter system would run along two eaves and dump into the scupper. The main roof slope was 14:12 and came down to a 30 degree slope. Mr. Arnold asked if the flat roof would also be done on the southeast roof. Mr. Groth answered that the southeast roof would not be replaced at this time. The issue with the southwest roof was exposure to sun and rain so this roof was a priority. Mr. Arnold and Ms. Brabender Mattox explained that the proposed roof work would have some impact on the building's symmetry but that the visual impact would likely be minimal. Mr. Groth explained that the roof leaked after putting rubber roofing on and that it was primarily a winter issue. He thanked staff and the Commission for the input. The Commission voted 5-0 to support the proposed roof work (Arnold/Cummings). 4. 217 High Avenue-Discussion/Action Mr. Wiley explained that there were no major updates on this item. The owner/property manager had to obtain additional exterior photographs to submit with the initial questionnaire for the Wisconsin Historical Society to determine eligibility for the National and State Registers. Mr. Wiley explained that the owner/property manager had most of the information necessary for submitting but had not yet taken the photographs. Inspections had issued a citation since no work was done on the property to address the peeling paint. Ms. Stoll Olthoff asked if the issue was due to the property owner/manager having no time to take images. She stated that she was willing to take exterior photographs if necessary. Ms. Brabender Mattox explained that she and staff had worked on helping secure tax credits for the Frontenac building and that she would reach out to Ms. Morris. Ms. Stoll Olthoff stated that she would help. 5. Building Permit Review The Commissioners discussed the list of historic building permits. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked about 1025 Merritt Avenue and stated that the tax credit approval letter from State architect Mark Buechel was important. Mr. Wiley explained that the contractor was in and had provided the approval letter the owners had received from the Wisconsin Historical Society. He stated that the existing attached garage was to be removed and a new carriage style garage was to be constructed consistent with other garages in the area. For 919 Merritt Avenue, Ms. Brabender Mattox explained that she would reach out because she was not sure if the reroofing work was for the entire roof or just a partial roof. Mr. Cummings asked if the property was a single-family. Mr. Wiley confirmed that it was. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked whether there were replacement windows or not as part of the work. Mr. Wiley stated that he did not believe replacement windows were included since they were not mentioned in the permit. 6. Smith School-Discussion Mr. Cummings stated that the information in the Commission's packets came from a former employee of the schools. The person was concerned with the future of the Smith School building. The school building required upkeep and maintenance and according to the information provided,the building was not maintained. Mr. Cummings stated that the idea was raised for a potential developer to obtain the building and convert it to apartments. Mr. Cummings stated that the Commission should support maintaining the building and that developers have done this for many past examples. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked what the deed addressed. Mr.Cummings was not sure if it was the whole property or just a portion. He stated that he would address the Smith School issue at the WCHAS meeting later that night. Ms. Brabender Mattox mentioned the idea of the Rec Department moving in but they would have to maintain the building. Ms. Stoll Olthoff asked if the issue of closing Smith School was for sure decided. Mr. Cummings answered that the issue was decided long ago. He stated that there was a correlation between schools and the conditions of the neighborhoods. Mr. Galica explained that he would not want the property to become a vacant lot. The Commission was in support of saving the William Waters building and supporting sensitive reuse for the property. 7. Chief Oshkosh-Steve Cummings-Discussion Mr. Cummings explained that he, Ms. Brabender Mattox, Dennis Zack from UW-Oshkosh, and Mr. Wiley were going up to Keshena on Monday,June 171h to meet with the Menominee Indian Nation. Mr. Zack was involved with the project and a meeting was set up from 10:30 am-11:30 am. Mr. Cummings stated that the group was planning to meet with some of the same people they had met with previously. The four directions (North, South, East, and West)were culturally significant and discussions had occurred regarding having four signs. Mr. Cummings stated that the group would have to work with the Parks Department in order to implement the signage. Mr. Cummings explained that he, Ms. Brabender Mattox, Mr. Zack, and Mr. Wiley would leave City Hall at 9 am on June 171h and he shared a few copies of the current narrative with the Commission. Ms. Brabender Mattox suggested tightening up the narrative. Mr. Cummings stated that if any commissioners wanted copies of the current narrative they could ask Mr. Wiley. 8. 415 Linde Street Plaque-Action Mr. Wiley explained that he had included information on this item in the Commissioners' packets and that this item had come before the Commission the previous summer. The Commission had approved the plaque and now the owner was proposing language for the plaque. Mr. Arnold stated that he was happy with the proposed wording. Ms. Brabender Mattox explained the plaque presentations that Landmarks did for each plaque were important. Mr. Wiley explained that he would follow up with the owner and foundry to get the plaque put into production. The Commission approved the proposed wording 5-0 (Stoll Olthoff/Arnold). 9. Historic Preservation Plan and Project-Jeremy Galica/Steven Wiley-Update Mr. Wiley stated that he was working on the plan but that he had not had an opportunity to work on it recently. He wanted to do another workshop and explained that Mr. Burich had recommended that the Commission and Mr. Wiley draft much of the plan and then seek public input. Mr. Wiley explained that Mr. Galica had completed his content analysis of statutes, ordinances, and existing preservation plans. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked Mr. Galica how his content analysis turned out. Mr. Galica stated that he received positive feedback from his professor. Mr. Galica stated that staff and the Commission's current approach of examining other communities' plans and using existing plans as a basis was ill-advised. He stated that the APA offered a planning guide for preservation planning that the Commission could follow. Mr. Wiley stated that it was standard planning practice to examine case studies. Ms. Brabender Mattox mentioned Green Bay as an example and stated that it was important to stay informed as to what other communities were doing. Mr. Wiley stated that he would like to schedule another workshop to discuss the plan. 10. Lakeshore Historic Site-Discussion Mr. Wiley stated that he had contacted Peggy Veregin at the Wisconsin Historical Society and she had told him that she would do a bit of research and follow up with him. Archeological sites were somewhat different than buildings when nominating them for the State/National Registers. Ms. Brabender Mattox explained that the UWM Cultural Resource Management team had stated that they believed that a portion of the Lakeshore site was eligible for the National/State Registers. 11. Social Media-Discussion/Action Mr. Wiley explained that he had not had a chance to post new material to the Facebook page. Ms. Stoll Olthoff explained that she could help. Ms. Brabender Mattox stated that it was important to post material regularly for the page to maintain its presence. Otherwise people would forget that the page existed. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked Commissioners to forward to Mr. Wiley any material they were looking to post. 12. Commissioner Statements a. 404 W. New York Avenue: Local Landmarking-Shirley Brabender Mattox/Rich Green Ms. Brabender Mattox explained that she would assist with this after the Acanthus Awards. b. 2019 Acanthus Awards-Update Ms. Brabender Mattox explained that she, Ms. Stoll Olthoff,Mr. Arnold, and Mr. Wiley were at the award presentation at the May 28f Common Council meeting. She stated that the Commission presented a powerpoint during the presentation showing images of each property receiving an award. She stated that Becky Brown, one of the owners of 456 Mount Vernon,had attended the award presentations and flown from Texas to be there. Mr. Cummings mentioned that Jenna Golem and Carey Sharpe had invested a significant amount of money into the renovation of the Eagles Club building. He stated that he had watched the presentation and that it was one of the best he had seen. Ms. Brabender Mattox mentioned that Terry and Matt Laib were there at the presentations also. She thanked Ms. Stoll Olthoff and Mr. Arnold for their research and contribution for the Acanthus Awards and for attending the presentation. c. Feedback on Landmarks Website Stats-Steven Wiley Mr. Wiley shared the Landmarks website stats from the past month. He explained that the number of page views had decreased from 208 to 184 since April,the number of unique pageviews had decreased from 162 to 132,but the average time on the page had increased from 0:58 to 1:03. d. Historic Plaque Presentation-456 Mount Vernon St. -July 91h Ms. Brabender Mattox stated that Ms. Brown was planning a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Doe House. Ms. Brown was also planning a potential open house. Ms. Stoll Olthoff asked Mr. Wiley to let her know the specific date and time when he knew. e. Frontenac Building Update-Steven Wiley Mr. Wiley explained that the paperwork and images were submitted to the state and that he and the owner was waiting to hear back from the state architect. f. June 1st Evening on the Avenue-Update Ms. Brabender Mattox provided an update on the Evening on the Avenue event. She explained that the library was celebrating their new Historic Walking Tour for Washington Avenue. She stated that many people came to the event and that a number of groups helped put it on. Mr. Arnold stated that he and his wife were at the event on June 1st and they represented Dr. Henry W. and Mrs. Emma Morganroff who had built their house in 1910. Mr. Arnold stated that it was a shame that the four vintage cars at the event were closer to North Main and not the event itself. No owners were nearby for questions. Mr. Arnold stated that the evening overall went very well. g. 303 Washington Avenue (Corbett House)-Discussion-Steve Cummings Mr. Cummings explained that he did not have any further updates since speaking with owner Randy Schmiedel who indicated that he did not have plans to demolish the property. 13. Agenda Items for Next Meeting (July 10,2019: 3 PM in City Hall Room 203) Ongoing items such as the Building Permit Review, Historic Preservation Plan, Lakeshore site, and Chief Oshkosh signage would remain on the agenda. Mr. Cummings asked that the next agenda include a discussion on properties where owners had not kept the yards up. He also mentioned that the Winnebago County Historical Society was planning an event for October 271h as part of the 100 year celebration of the county historical society and the idea was to focus on 20 historical figures from the various communities in Winnebago County. Of the 20 figures, 9 could be from Oshkosh. 14. Adjournment Mr. Cummings made a motion to adjourn and Ms. Stoll Olthoff seconded. Meeting adjourned at 5:07 pm (5-0). Recorded by: Steven Wiley,Assistant Planner