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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEHC Reg 01-05-16 apprvd 02-02-16 (2)City of Elgin Elgin Heritage Commission January 5, 2016 Minutes A. The meeting of the Elgin Heritage Commission was called to order at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers by Chairman John Wiedmeyer. 1. Members Present: Elizabeth Femal, George Rowe, Judith Van Dusen, Scott Savel, Steve Thoren, Tom Krebsbach, Rebecca Hunter, Judith Rivera and John Wiedmeyer 2. Members Absent: None 3. Others Present: None 4. City Staff Present: Christen Sundquist, Historic Preservation Planner B. Approval of Minutes: 1. A motion was made by Commissioner Rowe to approve the November 3, 2015 minutes as submitted. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Hunter. The motion passed 9-0. C. Recognize Persons Present: None D. Plaque applications: 1. 1262 W. Highland Avenue – Commissioner Hunter reminded the Commission that only two Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog houses have been plaqued. She also stated that at the time when the Commission created this specific plaque, it was agreed to only include Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog houses and not include the other mail order companies. It was also agreed at that time, that the Commission should follow the same requirements as the Heritage Plaque applications. Chairman Wiedmeyer stated that the Commission should reconsider having the other mail order houses included in this group as there has been so few Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog houses that have plaques. Commissioner Van Dusen stated that 1262 W. Highland is in really great shape and retains much of its original features. Chairman Wiedmeyer pointed out that the historic significance in the application was lacking and would like the applicant to provide a paragraph indicating a lineage of who lived on the property, and any other information the applicant can find about the original owner. The Commission agreed that a paragraph should be submitted that highlights the history of the home and its past owners as this information will be placed on the www.historicelgin.com website. Commissioner Femal stated that there is strong evidence that it was a Sears, Roebuck and Company home but still would like to see the history of the original owners. Commissioner Hunter stated that she would like to have two things changed on the Elgin Heritage Commission: Minutes Page 2 January 5, 2016 application including, the architect should be changed to “Sears, Roebuck and Company,” and state that E. Harrison Powell as the “mortgage trustee,” and not the builder. It was agreed to withdraw the plaque application for review until the applicant provides a paragraph on the history of the home. E. Old Business 1. Reports from Neighborhood Groups on Heritage Related Activities i. Elgin Area Historical Society – Commissioner Rowe thanked the Heritage Commission for the donation to the Historical Society for the purchase of new equipment. ii. Elgin Area Historical Society - Commissioner Rowe also passed around the Courier News article that highlighted 302 W. Chicago. He stated the Historical Society has already received $50,000 in grants for the stabilization of the structure. Commissioner Rowe noted that former Heritage Commission Chairman, Bill Briska, and Elgin History Museum Director, Elizabeth Marston, have been working very hard to fundraise for the project. It was stated that it will be a three-year project to put together a plan for the rehabilitation of the building though, the adaptive reuse of the building is preliminarily planned to be a neighborhood based museum that could be used for educational purposes and neighborhood meetings. Commissioner Rowe also mentioned that the schools within the area would be able to walk to this museum versus being bused to the Elgin History Museum on Park Street. Commissioner Savel stated that this is a great project and is interested in seeing the progression. Commissioner Thoren mentioned that there are many people in the area that are excited to volunteer their time to help any way they can. Commissioner Rowe stated that much of the work to the building will have to be completed by professionals but there is a lot of work that needs to be done on the property that they would welcome any volunteer for their help. 2. Mayor’s Initiative Ideas i. Directional Signage Update No update ii. Web Based App Ms. Sundquist gave an update on the website and showed the Commission what has currently been done. She stated that it is very easy to add new locations and that all of the information placed on the website has come from the plaque applications and past research projects. Commissioner Rivera mentioned that the website was impressive and that it had a lot of potential. Commissioner Krebsbach asked if we are able to retain the information that was submitted for the Guide-By-Cell platform. Ms. Sundquist noted that she had all of the information and audio and placed all of the sites that were on Guide-By-Cell on the website already. Ms. Sundquist noted that on each page there is an audio button but it has been slow to Elgin Heritage Commission: Minutes Page 3 January 5, 2016 record audio for each site. Commissioner Hunter and Commissioner Thoren expressed their interest in helping record some of the audio on the website. The Commission also agreed that there are some items that could be added such as a drop down menu under the “About” page that highlights the history of each district and lists out the landmarks. Ms. Sundquist stated that she will look into having a drop down menu but it depends on how the web platform is set up. Chairman Wiedmeyer also mentioned that this would be a great place to have brochures of specific tours of each neighborhood that the user can downloa d if they prefer a hard copy when they are walking around Elgin. Chairman Wiedmeyer stated that the tour brochures of each neighborhood should be consistent with one another in design. It was also stated by Chairman Wiedmeyer that the Commission should speak with the Downtown Neighborhood Association as they are in the beginning of creating a brochure template of the Downtown Commercial District to see if they are interested in having their brochure designed with a similar, cohesive template. Ms. Sundquist mentioned that she has a meeting with the Downtown Neighborhood Association – Tour Committee next week Tuesday and she will bring up this suggestion. iii. Cancellation of Guide By Cell – next steps for current signs Ms. Sundquist stated that Guide-By-Cell offered to lower the cost per year for the use of their platform to $250.00. The Commission was paying $475.00/year. Commissioner Femal asked staff what the usage of the site was this past year. Ms. Sundquist stated that it was around 100 people. Commissio ner Femal stated that this is not a wise investment even with the discounted price due to the lack of users. Commissioner Femal stated that the signed can be covered with an applique that directs the user to the website with a QR code or web address. Commi ssioner Savel stated that almost everyone has a smart phone and when a user is at the site they would have to use the phone to call the number, so it makes sense to direct them to the website than pay extra to direct them to an automated message. Commissioner Krebsbach stated that Signs-By-Tomorrow is fairly reasonable and do good work for a possible place to get vinyl stickers that have the website information that can be placed over the Guide-By-Cell phone number on the signs. The Commission asked staff to look into the cost of vinyl stickers and any recommendations that the sign businesses may have on how to cover the number on the Guide-By-Cell signs. A motion was made by Commissioner Femal to cancel Guide-By-Cell services. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Krebsbach. The motion passed 9-0. 3. Ideas for More Advertisement for the Historic Rehabilitation Grant Program i. Ms. Sundquist stated that there will be no grants this year but this should be a discussion when grants do become available again. Chairman Wiedmeyer mentioned Elgin Heritage Commission: Minutes Page 4 January 5, 2016 that a workshop on how to fill out the grant applications along with a presentation of before and after photographs of past grant projects could be very beneficial to residents who are unsure about participating in the grant pro gram. The Commission agreed that when grants do become available, setting up a workshop and lecture would be invaluable and that they will discuss this when there are grants again. F. New Business 1. 2015 Budget wrap up report and 2016 budget projections i. Ms. Sundquist stated that in the budget year of 2015, the Commission saved a large amount by having volunteers create the heritage plaques as well as having staff design the Mayor’s Awards and December Plaque Awards brochures. Ms. Sundquist noted that the remaining balance was $1,315.55 and was donated to the Elgin Area Historical Society for purchase of new equipment. Ms. Sundquist stated that for 2016, the Heritage Commission will have an extra $475.00 due to the cancellation of Guide-By-Cell and the cost to create the heritage plaques were placed on last year’s budget. A new cost for the 2016 budget will be the renewal of the website platform. 2. Illinois Historic Preservation Agency CLG Grant i. Ms. Sundquist stated that the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency is offering a grant to all Certified Local Governments for historic surveys, National Register nominations, preservation planning projects and public education programs. She noted that the grant application deadline is fast approaching and does not leave enough time to prepare documents for submittal, however, the Commission should begin to prepare ideas for the possibility of applying to the program in 2017. Ms. Sundquist noted that there are still 13 areas that have not been surveyed that were a part of the 2005 Comprehensive Plan. It was noted that a neighborhood group should contact the Heritage Commission that they are interested in having their area surveyed before the Commission puts effort into a grant application. Commissioner Femal asked staff what kind of information can be used from a survey. Ms. Sundquist stated that surveys help inventory the city’s older established neighborhoods and can be used for neighborhood development plans, rehabilitation guidelines for individual buildings, broader community based projects and creating a base for a possible National Register or a local district. Chairman Wiedmeyer stated that this may be a possibility for future IHPA CLG grants and that they should begin to plan and prepare now. Commissioner Rowe asked if the grant could be used for creation of brochures. Ms. Sundquist stated that the grant does allow for public education projects such as the production and distribution of information i n various media. Chairman Wiedmeyer also noted that using the grant for a window restoration workshop during Preservation Month would also be something to look into for next year as it would give the Commission time to research and receive cost estimates for the work. G. Other Business Elgin Heritage Commission: Minutes Page 5 January 5, 2016 1. Commissioner Rowe mentioned that the latest Crackerbarrel was distributed and an article on Henry Jensen, written by David Siegenthaler, highlighted the new annual Henry Jensen Award, instituted by the City of Elgin at last year’s Mayor’s Awards. Commissioner Rowe noted that this was perfect timing as the call for nominations for the Mayor’s Awards will be announced soon. Ms. Sundquist noted that the call for nominations for the Mayor’s Awards will be announced on January 25 th with a deadline of February 26th. The preservation month event form will also be announced on January 25th but with a deadline of March 25th. H. Adjournment A motion was made by Commissioner Savel to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Femal and passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Christen Sundquist, Historic Preservation Planner Community Development Department Approved: 02/02/2016