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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/02/2013M Heritage Commission City of Elgin Elgin Heritage Commission July 2, 2013 A. The meeting of the Elgin Heritage Commission was called to order at 7:03 p.m. in the City Council Chambers by Chairman Bill Briska. 1. Members Present: William Briska, Elizabeth Femal, Rebecca Hunter,Tom Krebsbach, William Ristow,Judith Rivera, Scott Savel, and John Wiedmeyer 2. Members Absent: James Halik 3. Others Present: None 4. City Staff Present: Amy Munro, Historic Preservation and Grants Planner B. Approval of Minutes: The minutes were amended to reflect Commissioner Krebsbach's attendance. A motion was made by Commissioner Wiedmeyer to approve the March 5, 2013 minutes. Motion seconded by Commissioner Femal. The motion passed 7-0. C. Recognize Persons Present: None. D. Plaque Applications: 1. 711 Brook St. Discussion took place regarding the application. Commissioners agreed that the property is significant; however, they directed Staff to work with the property owner on including an architectural history with the nomination. Commissioners agreed that the architectural information could be submitted either in the form of a short narrative or with a sketch/image which shows the building's architectural style together with the applicant's identification of design details which are characteristic of the building's architectural classification. Following the applicant's submission of the requested information, the plaque application will be reviewed by the Commission. A motion was made by Commissioner Ristow to table review of the plaque application. Motion seconded by Commissioner Krebsbach. The motion passed 7- 0. Discussion also took place regarding future plaque applications and communicating expectations to applicants. Commissioner Ristow recommended that example applications be provided to potential applications which show the minimum and quintessential applications that have been approved by the Commission. Commissioner Hunter also suggested that the plaque pamphlet be updated to include research details which pertain to obtaining architectural information. This information should also be included on the Commission's City webpage. Ms. Munro also confirmed that the $50 application fee goes into the Commission's budget. E. Old Business 1. Watch Case Marker Installation Ms. Munro reported that the Public Works Department installed the marker. 2. Preservation Month Events Review Chairman Briska provided an update on the attendance numbers for the Preservation Month events. The majority of events were well-attended. 3. Historic Rehabilitation Grant Update Ms. Munro announced that the City receive ten (10) 50/50 applications and four (4) 75/25 applications. The applications will be forwarded to the City Council for review at their July 24, 2013 meeting. A significant amount of grant funding remains in the 75/25 program. Per City Code, the excess funds can be re- allocated to the 50/50 program after 9 months (based upon the calendar year). Due to the excess funds, Commissioners inquired about whether or not the funds will be put back into the grant program or placed in the City's general budget. Commissioners discussed revisions to the grant program. Concern was expressed regarding the program's timetables and realistic expectations for applicants to obtain COA approval, contractor estimates and the required documentation to support their application request. Commissioners suggested that applications be announced immediately following the City's budget approval which would allow potential applicants to obtain their COAs and contractor estimates. In past years, the application deadline has been in March, however, discussion took place regarding potentially extending the deadline to May. Staff will assess the potential for revising the Code's nine month excess fund re-allocation requirement and other program guidelines. Commissioners also discussed increasing promotion of the grant program, especially the 75/25 component. Communication ideas discussed were door hangers, social media, and water bill announcements. 4. Cell Phone Tour Website Status Chairman Briska and Ms. Munro are working on map information to be provided to the graphic designer for inclusion on the website. The map will identify each . • Elgin Heritage Commission:Minutes Page 3 July 2,2013 cell phone tour site with a hyperlink to the site's audio file. 5. Review of the Illinois State Historic Preservation Conference (Commissioner Rivera) Commissioner Rivera provided an overview of her Conference session.The Conference's focus was on making preservation relevant for everyone. Commissioner Rivera expressed her enjoyment of the networking and informational opportunities that the Conference provided and noted that other attendees were impressed by Elgin's established historic preservation programs. 6. Heritage Commission Budget Update Ms. Munro updated the Commission on the budget. Commissioners discussed future expenditures to anticipate such as plaques and the December plaque recognition ceremony. 7. NHS and the Elgin Bungalow Initiative Update Chairman Briska discussed the partnership among NHS, Landmarks Illinois, the City of Elgin and Elgin Area Historical Society's Bungalow Initiative.The initiative will focus on developing assist in developing guidelines and promotional/informational materials for the City's bungalows.The objective is to create programming details to establish a city-wide Bungalow Historic/Thematic District. Although details are still under development,the anticipated district would be non-contingous and participation would be voluntary. Ultimately and similar to the City's historic districts, the EHC would oversee this program.The property owners would experience the same expectations and benefits as the City's historic district and landmark property owners. Funded through by the Driehaus Foundation, the initiative will be managed by the Elgin Area Historical Society. The anticipated project completion date is March 2014. F. New Business 1. Funding Request,$500 for Elgin Black History Video Project Chairman Briska presented a funding request from the Elgin Area Historical Society to support Phase 1 of a video project that will focus on Elgin's African American history which will span its pre-antebellum to current day events. The funding for the first phase is to support expenses related to conducting video- taped interviews and obtaining oral histories from Elgin's African American citizens. The archival footage from with out-takes will be used in a 30 to 60 minute video production. One other objective of phase 1 is to produce a short trailer from these interviews, as well other footage that already exists, to use for promotional and fund raising efforts. A motion was made by Commissioner Ristow to approve the Elgin Black History Video Project$500 funding request. Motion seconded by Commissioner Hunter. The motion passed 7-0. Elgin Heritage Commission:Minutes Page 4 July 2,2013 2. Report on DRSC Activities Ms. Munro inquired about whether Commissioners were satisfied with remaining updated on DRSC activities via their inclusion on the DRSC agenda distribution list. Commissioners confirmed that this was a good way to remain apprised of the historic district projects. Ms. Munro also announced that the Commission's DRSC appointed member terms expired on June 30, 2013 and requested that the Commission appoint members to the DRSC. A motion was made by Commissioner Rivera to appoint William Briska, Bill Ristow, Scott Savel, and John Wiedmeyer to the DRSC. Motion seconded by Commissioner Femal. The motion passed 7-0. 3. Municipal Code Amendments By resolution, the Commission directed Staff to review the Code requirements for DRSC appointment eligibility. Given the difficulty in filling the DRSC positions as well as interest in offering residents to serve on the DRSC who live outside of the historic district boundaries, efforts to investigate the potential to modify the requirements should take place. Discussion took place regarding changing the DRSC EHC membership from four to no less than three members, not to exceed six members,term limits similar to EHC membership (staggered)for historic district DRSC representatives, and the potential for one of the members to be an at-large member from outside of the historic district. The at-large member would be appointed by the EHC. A motion was made by Commissioner Rivera to pass a resolution directing Staff to amend the DRSC EHC appointments as stated above. Motion seconded by Commissioner Femal. The motion passed 7-0. G. Staff Announcements,Other Business: 1. Other Commissioner Hunter shared unique broken glass details that she discovered embedded in her porch stucco. Commissioner Ristow discussed U-46's recent Observatory preservation project and encouraged commissioners to visit the facility. H. Adjournment A motion made by Commissioner Hunter to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Femal and passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, • Elgin Heritage Commission:Minutes Page 5 July 2,2013 A‘,.1 PA4AAAr- Amy Munro Historic Preservation and Grants Planner Approved: August 6, 2013