HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes1 of 3 CITY OF OSHKOSH LANDMARKS COMMISSION MINUTES DECEMBER 11, 2013 PRESENT: Vicky Redlin, Dennis Arnold, Shirley Brabender Mat tox, Karen Heikel, Sharon Kipetz, Steve Cummings and Angela Merrill EXCUSED: None 1 . CALL TO ORDER Ms. Redlin called the meeting to order at 3:06 pm a nd a quorum was declared present. 2. APPROVAL OF NOVEMBER 13, 2013 MEETING MINUTES Mr. Arnold motioned to approve the meeting minutes of November 13 th as presented. Motioned seconded by Ms. Heikel. Minutes were approved unan imously. 3. BUILDING PERMIT REVIEW Mr. Buck discussed the work at 519 Franklin and the status of its sale/ownership. General discussion on the changes to the home over the years took place. Mr. Buck stated that the owners were informed abou t the tax credit availability but they were uninteres ted. Ms. Heikel commented that 428 Church Avenue was being resided from the original wood to vinyl, which could be bad if done poorly. Mr. Arnold agre ed and said that it could be done in a historically se nsitive manner if the right style and color was cho sen but that the work had not been done yet and he expected it would be next spring. Mr. Arnold suggested tha t the contractor or owner be called to discuss coveri ng the wood siding rather than replacing it. Ms. Brabender Mattox inquired if we knew why they are c hoosing to replace rather not paint/reuse and Mr. Buck replied that he did not. Mr. Buck mentioned t hat Allen Davis, Director of Community Development and John Zarate, Chief Building Officia l will be at the January meeting to discuss what information is included with permit applications as well as other topics the Commission would have. M s. Brabender Mattox said that she fears loss of histor ic integrity through incremental change. Ms. Merri ll stated that if the permit was applied for early eno ugh or if it is a series of renovations that there should be sufficient time to supply enough information to und erstand the proposed work. Ms. Brabender Mattox asked if we could do a tax abatement program for hi storic renovation. Mr. Buck stated that he believe d that was not possible in Wisconsin. Mr. Cummings a dded that getting the information on tax credits to the owner before permit issuance could be the atten tion grabbing and incentive to get the correct information in and added that topics to discuss wit h Allen and John should include a potential residen tial TIF and the value of improvements versus historic p reservation. 4. HISTORIC PLAQUE REQUEST-1306 WASHINGTON AVENUE General discussion took place on the required eligi bility criteria of the home associated with the bui lding plaque application. Mr. Buck said the home is know n as the George Caswell House and described that it is a Tudor Revival style house constructed in 1936. He added that it has retained most of the Tudor Revival features including the large chimney, steep ly pitched gables, patterned stonework, multiple materials including half timber exposed framing, ta ller grouped windows and patterned stonework entrance cladding. Information provided including that the ownership was originally George Caswell of Caswell Factory Supply Company and then primarily b y the Minniear family until 2011 when it was purchased by the current owner. A motion was made by Ms. Heikel to approve the appl ication for 1306 Washington Avenue as it is a contributing structure within the Washington Street Historic District as well as its characteristic of the Tudor Revival style and its value in retaining arch itectural elements showing its significance. Motio n was seconded by Mr. Cummings. Motioned carried 6 ayes-0 nayes-1 abstention.
2 of 3 5. LETTER OF SUPPORT FOR 531 N MAIN ST REDEVELOPMENT Mr. Buck went over a project for the relocation of the Neleven/DealerFire Corporate Headquarters into 531 North Main Street, which is historically known as the Frank Percey Gun and Fur House. He added that the building is commercial vernacular and was built in 1900 with an addition in 1907 and it is a contributing structure of the North Main Street His toric District. Mr. Buck stated that the Landmark s Commission has been asked to consider providing a l etter of support for a WEDC Community Development Investment Grant application for which historic preservation is a criterion. Mr. Buck sta ted that plans have not yet been submitted but believes they will be brought to the Commission in January. Following discussion it was motioned by Ms. Kipetz to draft a letter of general support and highlight how the preservation and relocation of a new business i nto a historic building and district is a developme nt “positive” and that the Commission looks forward to working with the owners on any exterior renovation . Motion was seconded by Ms. Brabender Mattox. Motio n carried unanimously. 6. ANNUAL REPORT Mr. Buck distributed and went over the draft copy o f the annual report for review and comment before finalization. Mr. Arnold motioned to approve the a nnual report with Mr. Cummings seconding. Ms. Brabender Mattox suggested an amendment to add lang uage to the end of the CR Meyer Acanthus Award text to include “, many of which are on the Nationa l Register of Historic Places”. Amended motion was agreed to by Mr. Arnold and seconded by Mr. Cumming s. Amended motion approved unanimously. 7. GOALS FOR 2014 Mr. Buck distributed the 2013 goal list including t he Commissioners who are working on them. He also provided past goal lists ranging from 2008 to prese nt and asked that the Commissioners look them over and develop a new goal list for discussion at the J anuary meeting. Mr. Buck suggested that the Commission try to limit the items to a half dozen o r so but said that they should not be concerned wit h dropping or adding former goals based on their desi red work program for the upcoming year. 8. WORKING GROUPS a. Website – Mr. Buck explained that there were three chronolo gies included in last meetings packets. Ms. Redlin suggested that all three timelines be co nsolidated into one to update the website. Ms. Kip etz said that she wants to update the housing styles se ction as many of the examples were not very good representations or the homes of the photos used wer e modified. Ms. Brabender Mattox stated that the State Historical Society’s website will have photos of Oshkosh homes that can be searched by style and community. Ms. Brabender Mattox suggested that the annual repo rt be included on the website. Ms. Kipetz mentioned that she hopes to investigate the use of a mobile application for access to touri ng brochures and other Landmarks information. She ant icipated having much more detail by the end of February. b. Tourism/Brochures – Ms. Redlin said she had been looking at timelines and the old brochures and will be updating the main brochure with new photogr aphs. Mr. Buck asked if the working group has stil l been in contact with the Convention and Visitor Bur eau. Ms. Redlin said that she has been and after t he information is updated then the design can be draft ed. She will be meeting with the CVB regarding funding a small printing of the brochure and we can then put it on the website and set up tours. c. Historic Marker/Plaque Program – Mr. Buck mentioned the status of the building pla ques approved at the last meeting and the names proposed for them . He also went over the progress of advertising fo r a Limited Term Employee to do the research on the his toric markers program. Mr. Cummings stated that the Winnebago County Archeological and Historical S ociety is also considering a marker program and hope to work with the Community Foundation to do mo re of a regional program. Ms. Kipetz stated that she will be attending a Wash ington Avenue Christmas party and would like some
3 of 3 historic structure plaque brochures and the plaque sample to hand out and show. Mr. Buck stated he would give her some following the meeting. d. Grant/Budget – No report except there will be $500 for a mailing in 2014. It was mentioned that there may be many grants available for historic pre servation and tourism and that Commissioners should keep their eyes open for any that will go with the 2014 goals. Ms. Brabender Mattox said she was interested in trying to get historic designation fo r a neoclassical commercial district on Washington Avenue just east of Main Street. Mr. Buck suggeste d that the Commission come up with a detailed program and budget and request the funding each yea r connecting it with economic development, neighborhood revitalization and/or tourism. e. Riverside Cemetery – No report but discussion took on beginning the ce metery working group again in spring with an initial meeting with Bill Sturm. Discussion took place on the status and condition of the chapel. f. Historic Bar Elements – No report. 9. AGENDA ITEMS FOR NEXT MEETING/COMMISSIONER STAT EMENTS Mr. Buck mentioned that the goals for 2014 will be an item as well as discussion with Mr. Davis and Mr . Zarate. 531 North Main plans may also be on depend ing on plans being submitted. Mr. Cummings offered to bring photographs of historic structures and other program materials he picked up on his tr ip down south. 10. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Cummings motioned to adjourn. Motion was secon ded by Mr. Arnold. Motion approved unanimously. Meeting adjourned at 4:38 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, David Buck, Principal Planner