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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLandmark Preservation Commission - Minutes - 02/27/2008LANDMARK PRESERVATION COMMISSION Regular Meeting February 27, 2008 Minutes Council Liaison: David Roy (407-7393) Staff Liaison: Joe Frank (221-6376) Commission Chairperson: Alyson McGee SUMMARY OF MEETING: All projects for the 2008 Landmark Rehabilitation Loan Program were approved; a Rehabilitation Loan extension was granted for 509 E. Myrtle St. An update on repairs at the Waterworks building was provided. The DDA’s Alley Walkabout (LPC Special Meeting, February 13, 2008) was discussed. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Commission called to order by Chairperson Alyson McGee with a quorum present at 5:40 p.m. at 281 N. College Ave., Fort Collins, Colorado. Also present were Earen Russell, Alan Ballou, John Albright, Ian Shuff, Terence Hoaglund and Bud Frick were present. Karen McWilliams, Preservation Planner and Timothy Wilder, Senior City Planner represented City Staff. AGENDA REVIEW: The discussion about painting a mural in an alley in the Historic Old Town District was withdrawn by the property owner. Mr. Wilder added consideration of an extension for a 2007 Rehabilitation Loan, for the project at the Reinholt/Mitchell House, 509 E. Myrtle Street. Ms. McGee requested an update from staff on the Waterworks property under Other Business. STAFF REPORTS: Ms. McWilliams announced that the Advance Planning Department received a State Historic Fund Grant for the survey of Post-World War II commercial and residential properties. She also reminded the Commission that the City of Fort Collins will be hosting a state-wide Certified Local Government Commission Training Workshop, all day on May 2. All commission members are strongly encouraged to attend. The National Trust Conference will be in Tulsa, Oklahoma this year, and information for interested commission members was provided in the packet. Dan Corson, State CLG Coordinator, will be here to attend the May 14th LPC meeting to conduct the quadrennial CLG evaluation. City Council is looking at a change to the charter that will require board and commission members to have on-going training. The DDA has hired GreenPlan, Inc to do repairs to the irrigation lines in the Old Town Plaza. Mr. Wilder reminded the commission that the City has previously received a $24,000 SHF grant for no-interest loans to rehabilitate commercial properties. Staff expected to use it in conjunction with the City’s Rehabilitation Loan Program, but there is sufficient money this year to fund all of the projects submitted. Staff’s intent is to re-advertise the availability of funds for commercial projects, and hold a separate grant round. COMMISSION MEMBER’S REPORTS: Ms. Russell reported on the DDA meeting. Most of the topics concerned Beet Street events. She stated that the contract for studying alley improvements was signed. There is potential for moving the seasonal ice rink to Chestnut Street and creating a permanent location there, which would cost an additional $750,000. The DDA also discussed green building ideas and a railroad quiet zone in town. Ms. McGee attended the State Register Review Board Meeting. She announced that the Masonic Temple was recommended for listing on the State Register of Historic Properties. She spoke with their representative, and suggested that he meet with Ms. Landmark Preservation Commission February 27, 2008 Meeting Page 2 of 4 McWilliams and Ms. McGee regarding work the building needs and to explore funding ideas. Mr. Albright attended the charrette on the Old Post Office/ Museum of Contemporary Art building. The design work is being funded by a State Historic Fund Grant. He reported that there is virtually no historic fabric remaining in the interior of the building, which is where all of the renovations will occur. The only historic elements remaining are a small men’s restroom and a wall of an office. The historic main entrance is on Oak Street, although access has been off of College for several decades. While there was some consideration that the entry would be moved back to the Oak Street elevation, it has been decided against at this time. MINUTES: None PUBLIC INPUT: No public input. LANDMARK REHABILITATION LOAN PROGRAM: Allocation of Funds Mr. Wilder presented an overview of applications and information on the amount of funds available. Ms. McGee decided that Commission members will ask the applicants questions while they are giving their presentation, and discuss funding allocation at the end. Joann Thomas (Poudre Landmarks Foundation - Avery House, 328 W. Mountain) gave a short presentation regarding the Avery House fountain. There have been so many problems with the fountain that they have stopped running it. It has not functioned now for several years. Joshua Beck (owner, Rev. Joseph P. Trudel House, 610 Cherry Street) stated that his porch is in a serious state of disrepair. Kevin Murray of Empire Carpentry added that the posts are rotting. The bases are original. There may be some additional costs involved in the project that exceed what Mr. Beck identified. Ms. McGee asked Mr. Beck if he was prepared to cover those additional costs, and he replied in the affirmative. Anne Stewart (owner, Judge Claude C. Coffin House, 1006 W. Mountain) requested funds for storm windows. The house is drafty and they experience frost build- up on the inside of windows. She put a vent in the bathroom this past fall, which will help with the moisture problem, but is asking for funds for half of the storm windows as well as for carpentry wood. She expressed her thanks for the help she has received in the past for repairing her foundation. The commission discussed installation of the windows and issues that might arise in the course of that work. Ms. McGee asked Ms. Stewart if she would be willing to cover the additional carpenter fees if they exceed the $270 presented in her budget. Ms. Stewart said yes. Stover Mansion, 503 Remington Street - Kevin Murray represented the owners. He informed the Commission that the current roof is in poor condition. The owners want to reroof the 2 story front porch with TPO membrane. This alteration would last a long time and hold up well to hail. The owners would also fix the soffit and fascia, rebuild corbels as needed, and repair the leaks around the chimney. Tim Sharkey (owner, Bradley House, 1609 Remington Street) gave a PowerPoint presentation on his three projects. He plans to install a new roof and understructure, replace the existing non-historic siding with original style horizontal cedar siding, and install a new historically accurate front entry door. He is also going to re-do the hardwood floors on the interior. He intends to install Tyvek under the siding, which he highlighted as important because it breathes. He also mentioned the possibility of Landmark Preservation Commission February 27, 2008 Meeting Page 3 of 4 blowing cellulose into it. It was suggested that he use skip sheathing under the wood roof shingles, as he will get twice the life out of the new roof compared with plywood sheeting. Tom Boardman, PLF president, and Katherine Woods, PLF Friends of the Museo (Poudre Landmark Foundation - Romero House, 425 Tenth Street). Ms. McGee questioned the amount requested. She stated that $6,000 is a lot for the repairs as described. Ms. Woods clarified that the cost is for re-mudding the entire building, not just the portion to be repaired. There is a also a covenant on the building, since state funds were used to restore the building. Mr. Boardman said that the Museo is becoming very popular. They hold an open house at least once each month, and are encouraging more and more groups of people to tour. Mr. Frick had a question on the window sills. He pointed out that it would help if the proposed sill were extended through the trim on the sides of the windows. There was discussion about replacement of the redwood sill: will they be taking out part of the existing sill and replacing it with a redwood sill with drip, or adding a redwood piece to the existing sill. Chris Reid (owner, E.J. Gregory House, 215 Whedbee Street) is applying for funds for window rehabilitation. The windows all appear to be original. He has already paid for custom made screens out of his own funding, which cost $5,600. The windows themselves need quite a lot of repair. He also needs to put in gutters because the roof is draining off onto the foundation and causing some problems. This request is for rehabilitating the seven windows. Ms. McGee pointed out that two of the applications are for buildings owned by the City of Fort Collins (Avery House and Romero House). Since these buildings are not likely ever going to be sold, funds allocated to these projects will likely never be recaptured for future use. There is a distinction because the city leases the buildings to the PLF, which is then responsible for raising funds for restoration and repairs. The Commission decided that while certainly eligible for funding, city properties should rank lower on the funding scale than equally good non-city projects. This funding distinction would only become an issue in years where there are not sufficient funds to cover all qualifying projects. The Commission then discussed two applications where people were not here to present: Hottel/Hoffman House, 426 E. Oak Street. There are red flags on the amount of the quote submitted, and the Commission questioned if JD Enterprises has the knowledge of preservation repair techniques needed to do the work properly. Ms. McWilliams observed that each project will still need to come before the commission for design review and be approved before the work can begin. The Commission decided that it would approve funding for this project, but that the work will need to meet its standards. Sondberg House, 237 West Street. The applicant has asked for funds to install a new membrane roof. The Commission asked for clarification that the funds would go towards only the historic roof and not to the addition. Mr. Frick moved that the Commission approve the funding for all of the projects for the 2008 Landmark Rehab Program. Mr. Ballou seconded the motion. Motion passed (7-0). Mr. Wilder presented the request for a one year rehabilitation loan extension for the project at the Reinholt/Mitchell House, 509 E. Myrtle Street, funded in 2007. Landmark Preservation Commission February 27, 2008 Meeting Page 4 of 4 Mr. Albright moved that the commission extend the rehabilitation loan for 509 E. Myrtle Street for one year. Ms. Russell seconded the motion. Motion passed (7-0) Update on Waterworks Building: Susan Hoskinson and Ms. McWilliams presented. The work to remove the unauthorized Kwik Krete repairs is not complete. A tour of the building revealed more critical issues that need to be addressed, most notably the south wall that is close to failure. Additionally, there are approximately 16 different types of materials and mixtures used for repairs on the building. Ms. Hoskinson and Ms. McWilliams proposed that the City use the funds that would otherwise go for removal of the Kwik Krete as part of a match for a Historic Structure Assessment. The HSA would be for just the Waterworks building itself, instead of a larger planning grant. Ms. Hoskinson stated that the PLF’s Friends of the Waterworks will meet in order to get an idea of what they would like to recommend as their next steps. Ms. Hoskinson has always felt the pressure of the previous decision made by the LPC to remove the Kwik Krete immediately, but before work could even begin, winter had set in. The Friends will be proposing some resolution, but it may not fit into the Historic Structures Assessment framework that Ms. McWilliams is describing. Mr. Frick moved that the commission postpone the Kwik Krete removal that was previously directed to be done, to be revisited at a future date, that date yet to be determined. Mr. Hoaglund seconded the motion. Motion passed (7-0.) Ms. McGee asked for continued updates on this project. The Commission will have a presentation on this at its meeting on March 12th. OTHER BUSINESS: Mr. Frick and Mr. Albright discussed the Alleyway Walkabout, which they attended as LPC members. The Walkabout, held on February 13, was sponsored by the DDA. Attendees toured the alleys in Old Town and near CSU. Design, materials, views, pedestrian traffic, truck traffic, car traffic, etc., were all discussed. The alley by the proposed convention center was stressed, since the hotel/convention center will be taking up two-thirds of the block. All agreed that the walk was well-coordinated and informative. Additional meetings on the alley project will be held in the next few months. Meeting adjourned at 7:37PM Respectfully submitted by Kara Smith, Secretary