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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLandmarks Minutes 12.10.2025 If anyone requires reasonable ADA accommodations, please contact Avis Seizert at (920) 236-5773 December 10, 2025 Landmarks Commission Meeting Minutes CITY OF OSHKOSH LANDMARKS COMMISSION Minutes December 10, 2025 (Approved at the January 14, 2026 Commission meeting) PRESENT: Shirley Brabender Mattox, Steve Cummings, Rich Green, Councilman Brad Spanbauer, Alec Lefeber, Jeanne Tondryk ABSENT: Vicky Redlin, Nikki Stoll Olthoff CITY STAFF: Avis Seizert, Museum Archivist and Staff Liaison; Sara Rutkowski, Director of Community Development; Kimberly Gierach, Deputy Director of Community Development Agenda: 1) Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 3:03pm by Ms. Brabender Mattox. 2) Consent Agenda Consent Agenda items are those items of a routine administrative nature that are voted on by the Commission in a single vote. The Commission has been furnished with background material on each item. Any member of the public or Commission may request that an item be removed from the Consent Agenda for discussion and to be voted on separately. Consent agenda items considered included: a. November 12th Meeting Minutes Mr. Green motioned to approve, seconded by Mr. Cummings. Motion passes unanimously by voice vote. 3) CLG Grant Update – Shirley Brabender Mattox Ms. Brabender Mattox updated the Commission that because the grant application needs to be approved by both the City Manager’s office and the Common Council, the Commission will be unable to submit an application for the Hazel Street Historic District due to time restraints. She has notified Jason Tish with SHPO, as well as affected residents. The due date for next year’s letter of intent is in September, so both the Commission and City Staff should plan ahead and make preparations for the next cycle. 4) Chapter 30 Zoning Code – Article XIV – Historic Preservation Ordinance – Subcommittee Update Ms. Brabender Mattox and Mr. Green updated the Commission about their progress since the last meeting. Mr. Green noted that they are following the outline that was presented last month and are still working on the first step but are making good progress. Ms. Brabender Mattox noted that she has made contact and confirmed with Jason Tish, the State’s CLG coordinator with SHPO that they If anyone requires reasonable ADA accommodations, please contact Avis Seizert at (920) 236-5773 December 10, 2025 Landmarks Commission Meeting Minutes are on his schedule for ordinance review. He will provide some guidance and feedback on particulars to work on and pay attention to so that they are still in line with CLG requirements. She also noted that Mr. Tish had some questions for the Commission including the review’s objectives, other City entities with involvement, and any anticipated conflict. Commissioners and City Staff discussed these points. Commissioners also discussed the intended audience for the reviewed ordinance. Ms. Gierach noted the importance to outline roles and responsibilities in the updated ordinance and that developing a document where all entities are on the same page will help with compliance, workflow, and effectiveness. 5) Discussion of Commission Goals Ms. Seizert began by giving an overview of the way she tallied and compiled the results of Commissioner rankings and submissions for Commission project priorities. Ms. Rutkowski informed the Commission that Community Development has recently been downsized by multiple positions due to City reorganization efforts, so this should be taken into account when setting expectations for City staff assistance and workload. Based on Commissioner tallies and submissions, completing the Historic Preservation Ordinance review and the creation of historic design guidelines were identified as top priorities for Commissioners. Discussion commenced about what the creation of design guidelines could entail and how it would fit in with other City ordinances. Ms. Rutkowski noted that this is a complicated matter that would need to be more thoroughly investigated and evaluated. Commissioners also discussed the matter of revisiting the Grand Oshkosh renovations as a priority. Ms. Rutkowski discussed that at this time, nothing was ready to be finalized or decided. Discussion turned to project that the Commission believes can be easily and quickly done and that a point person could be assigned to the various initiatives and projects. Ms. Rutkowski assisted individual Commissioners with choosing projects that they would like to take on. She instructed Commissioners to provide Ms. Seizert with updates in a document that she can put on the Consent Agenda when they are ready to bring said updates to the rest of the Commission. Ms. Gierach exited at 3:59p.m. Discussion continues about how to coordinate multiple efforts together. Ms. Rutkowski exited at 4:04p.m. 6) Local Landmarking Discussion If anyone requires reasonable ADA accommodations, please contact Avis Seizert at (920) 236-5773 December 10, 2025 Landmarks Commission Meeting Minutes Ms. Brabender Mattox noted that the Commission’s primary focus is local landmarking as it is the greatest protection that they can offer historic structures. The Commission discussed the process for applying and being approved for this designation. Councilman Spanbauer suggested that a visual aid will help citizens understand and follow the process. The Commission also discussed the importance of consistency of following relevant guidelines and the important of the ordinance review in the area so that such guidelines are understandable and useable. 7) Commissioner Statements a. Monthly Building Permit Reports: November Permits Commissioners discussed the purpose of this agenda item and the goals that the Commission has in this area. Some discussion focused on the process that permitting goes through and how communication channels with the City and the Commission can increase for historic properties. Processes for review were addressed as potential areas to improve the Commission’s workflow and advance their mission. b. Sustainability Plan Update – Councilman Brad Spanbauer Councilman Spanbauer updated the Commission that the City has decided to end their current contract with GRAEF, the entity working on the City’s sustainability plan. At the previous evening’s Common Council meeting, ARPA funding was approved for use in this matter. The Minnesota firm, paleBLUEdot will pick up the project and continue it from it current point moving forward. Councilman Spanbauer exited at 4:53 p.m. 8) Staff Liaison a. Agenda Items for Next Meeting Local landmarking discussion; permitting process; Commissioner updates for Consent agenda 9) Adjournment Mr. Lefeber motioned to adjourn, seconded by Mr. Green. The motion passed unanimously by voice vote. The meeting adjourned at 4:59pm.