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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010 Historic District Commission MinutesCITY OF LANSING Historic District Commission 5:30-7:00 p.m. Monday February 8, 2010 31anning & Neighborhood Development Conference Room 316 North Capitol Avenue, Suite C3 MINUTES 1. CALL TO ORDER A. Members Present: Philip Mondro, Cassandra Nelson, Tom Truscott, Nathalie Winans, and Kara Wood. B. Members Absent: Mary Toshach. C. Staff Present: Bill Rieske, Asst. Pig. Mgr. D. Others Present: Dorothy Boone, Lansing Development Office Manager 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA — It was moved by Ms. Winans, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously (5- 0), to approve the agenda as presented. 3. COMMUNICATIONS — None. 4. HEARINGS (ADVERTISED) — None. 5. PUBLIC COMMENTS — None. 6. STAFF COMMENTS — None. 7. PRESENTATIONS — Dorothy Boone presented information about properties in the floodplain (see Item 8B below). 8. BUSINESS SECTION A. Minutes for approval — October 5, 2009 meeting. It was moved by Ms. Wood, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0), to approve the October 5, 2009 minutes as presented. B. Old Business o Discussion of historic properties in floodplains (see Item 7 above) Ms Boone discussed information on three of the Federal programs that she works with: a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program to clear housing out of the floodplain, and two Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) grant to mitigate the effects of foreclosure. Both programs involve property acquisition and demolition using Federal funds, and thus each property is reviewed by the State Historic Preservation Office. All acquisitions are conducted on a voluntary basis, and incentives are provided using Down Payment Assistance program funds. The FEMA grant is to acquire and demolish 33 houses within the floodplain. It targets properties in the Urbandale and Baker-Donora areas near the Red Cedar River. Vacant properties are to be used for urban farming, flood control, and parks and open space. The NSP programs are designed to complement the FEMA program, targeting the same neighborhoods, along with the Comstock Park and Waverly/Jolly neighborhoods. The NSP 1 is able to include commercial properties, while NSP 2 is strictly for residential properties. Both NSP programs include funds for the rehabilitation of the most marketable units. The City provides these funds to non-profit development organizations, such as the Greater Lansing Housing Coalition, Franklin Street Community Housing Corporation, Habitat for Humanity, and the Ingham County Land Bank Fast Track Authority, which conduct the acquisition, demolition, and rehabilitation activities. The objectives of these programs include: • Reducing the risk of flooding on the Lansing housing stock. • Addressing the glut of vacant housing that currently plagues the City due to foreclosure and population declines, • Improving the condition and marketability of the remaining housing stock, • Upgrading the rehab standards for the remaining houses to include such items as LEED certification, passive solar design, and barrier -free accessibility, • Creating open space opportunities (e.g., parks, urban farming, etc.) for properties within the floodplains, • Eliminating the blighting influence of substandard and vacant housing, • Creating redevelopment opportunities that lead the way to nodal development, transit oriented development, and mixed -use buildings. No Commission action was taken. o Historic preservation planning and its relationship to the Master Plan Project. POSTPONED TO A SUBSEQUENT MEETING C. Other Business 9. PENDING ITEMS: FUTURE ACTION REQUIRED A. Discussion of potential policy regarding the designation of single resource properties that have already pulled building permits for renovation. B. HDC Guidelines and Review Procedures. C.. HDC-1-09, 509 Cherry Street, Riley Real Estate, Window Replacement. D. Neighborhood Pattern Book. 10. COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS — None. 11. COMMISSION MEMBER PRESERVATION RECOGNITIONS — None. 12. ADJOURNMENT. It was moved by Ms. Wood, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0), to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 6:59 p.m. Next regular meeting - 5:30 PM, Monday, March 1, 2010, in the PND Conference Room CITY OF LANSING Historic District Commission 5:30-7:00 p.m. Monday August 2, 2010 Planning & Neighborhood Development Conference Room 316 North Capitol Avenue, Suite C3 MINUTES 1. CALL TO ORDER — The meeting was called to order at 5:45 p.m. A. Members Present: Philip Mondro, Cassandra Nelson, Mary Toshach, Tom Truscott, and Kara Wood. B. Members Absent: Nathalie Winans. C. Staff Present: Bill Rieske, Asst. Planning Manager. D. Others Present: None. 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA — It was moved by Ms. Wood, seconded by Ms. Toshach, and CARRIED unanimously (5- 0), to approve the agenda as revised to include the communication regarding the Marshall St. Armory. 3. COMMUNICATIONS — Mr. Rieske distributed a draft of the National Register nomination for the Marshall Street Armory. A copy of this draft was also submitted to the SHPO. A short discussion ensued, including the observation that the chimney evident in the rendering of the N side is not shown on the rendering for the S side. (Note: Retaining the chimney is included in the proposed project.) The Commission will review a revised draft of the nomination at a subsequent meeting. 4. HEARINGS (ADVERTISED) — None. 5. PUBLIC COMMENTS — None. 6. STAFF COMMENTS — None. 7. PRESENTATIONS — None. 8. BUSINESS SECTION A. Minutes for approval — February 8, 2010 meeting. It was agreed by consensus to defer consideration of the February 8 minutes to the next meeting. B. Old Business 1. HDC Guidelines and Review Procedures. A discussion ensued about the draft design guidelines packet that was developed by former planning intern Jeff Stivenson and distributed on July 20 prior to this meeting. A discussion ensued, with differences of opinion expressed. The main points of this discussion included: ■ The information in the packet was presented as separate documents to give it more flexibility in use. • The required contents of Certificate of Appropriateness (CoA) applications should be included, ■ The guidelines should include a discussion about colors, with a statement on the HDC position regarding colors, • The focus should be on exterior changes, • The HDC should ask Bob Christenson to review the architectural styles section, • Diagrams rather than photos should be used, • Much of the subject matter should go online, • While the HDC's mission is to promote historic preservation and its benefits, its purview focuses on reviewing building permit applications for properties within historic districts. By law, the creation of new districts is handled by separate study committees. In Lansing, these study committees are regarded as subcommittees of the HDC. A discussion ensued about raising the profile of historic preservation within the community, including the possibility of conservation districts. • With a shortage of staff in the Planning Office, HDC members may help with the guidelines packet on a voluntary basis. • Ms. Toshach offered an example from Indianapolis, volunteered to work on the guidelines to make them more user-friendly. She also offered to work on raising the profile of historic preservation in Lansing. • Mr. Rieske said he would work on including the required contents of CoA applications. Commission members agreed to revisit this item at its next meeting. C. Other Business — None. PENDING ITEMS: FUTURE ACTION REQUIRED A. Discussion of potential policy regarding the designation of single resource properties that have already pulled building permits for renovation. B.. HDC-1-09, 509 Cherry Street, Riley Real Estate, Window Replacement. C. Neighborhood Pattern Book. 10. COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS — None. 11. COMMISSION MEMBER PRESERVATION RECOGNITIONS — None. 12. ADJOURNMENT. It was moved by Ms. Toshach, seconded by Mr. Truscott, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0), to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 6:56 p.m. Next regular meeting - 5:30 PM, Monday, September 13, 2010, in the PND Conference Room CITY OF LANSING Historic District Commission and Marshall St. Armory Historic District Study Committee 5:30-7:00 p.m. Monday, September 13, 2010 Planning and Neighborhood Development Conference Room 316 N. Capitol Ave., Lansing MI 48933 MINUTES CALL TO ORDER — The meeting was called to order at 5:38 p.m. A. HDC Members Present: Philip Mondro, Cassandra Nelson, Mary Toshach, Tom Truscott, and Nathalie Winans. HDC Members Absent: Kara Wood (excused). B. HDSC Members Present: Jason Kildea, Cassandra Nelson, Mary Toshach, and Nathalie Winans. B. Staff Present: Bill Rieske, Asst. Planning Manager. D. Others Present: Benjamin and Thomas Mondro. 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA — It was moved by Ms. Winans, seconded by Mr. Truscott, and CARRIED unanimously, to approve the agenda as printed. COMMUNICATIONS — None. 4. HEARINGS (ADVERTISED) — None. PUBLIC COMMENTS — None. 6. STAFF COMMENTS - None 7. PRESENTATIONS — None. 8. BUSINESS SECTION A. HDC Minutes for approval — February 8, 2010, August 2, 2010 meetings. 1. It was moved by Mr. Truscott, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously, to approve the February 8, 2010 minutes as printed. 2. It was moved by Mr. Truscott, seconded by Ms. Toshach, and CARRIED unanimously, to approve the August 2, 2010 minutes as printed B. Old Business — 1) Marshall Street Armory National Register Nomination. It was moved by Ms. Toshach, seconded by Mr. Truscott, and CARRIED unanimously, to approve the National Register Nomination as printed. 2) Marshall Street Armory Historic District Study Committee Preliminary Report — Approval for distribution. A discussion ensued. The main points included: (i) The chimney will remain, but is not functional. (ii) Mr. Kildea has 1924 plans in PDF format. (iii) Ms. Toshach asked about the significance of the exterior landscaping. Sanborn maps may show the historical site layout. It was moved by Ms. Toshach, seconded by Mr. Truscott, and CARRIED unanimously, to approve the distribution of the Preliminary Report for comments, subject to edits and corrections, and that the Mr. Kildea present the construction plans to the HDC prior to the issuance of a building permit. 3) Discussion of DRAFT HDC guidelines packet. TABLED. C. Other Business PENDING ITEMS: FUTURE ACTION REQUIRED A. Discussion of potential policy regarding the designation of single resource properties that have already pulled building permits for renovation. B. HDC Guidelines and Review Procedures. C. HDC-1-09, 509 Cherry Street, Riley Real Estate, Window Replacement. D. Neighborhood Pattern Book. E. Historic preservation planning and its relationship to the Master Plan Project. 10. COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS. A. Ms. Toschach asked about the status of Commission members — who has been appointed/reappointed to the Commission. B. Ms. Winans suggested that Nancy Finegood, of the Michigan Historic Preservation Network, be contacted regarding commission member training through MHPN. C. Mr. Truscott discussed the potential significance of the BWL water plant at Michigan and S. Cedar, and the original governor's mansion on Main Street (a Greek revival structure). D. Ms. Winans discussed a property at the NW corner of Cherry and Hillsdale, with a dilapidated front porch. It is owned by Yip Tan, who owns several rental residential properties in Cherry Hill. 11. ADJOURNMENT. The meeting was adjourned at 6:31 p.m. Next regular HDC meeting - 5:30 PM, Monday, November 1, 2010, in the PND Conference Room. Next HDSC meeting — TBA. P:\PLANNING OFFICE\Historic District Cmsn\HDC 2010\Minutes\HDC Minutes 100913.doc CITY OF LANSING Historic District Commission 5:30-7:00 p.m. Monday October 4, 2010 Planning & Neighborhood Development Conference Room 316 North Capitol Avenue, Suite C3 MINUTES CALL TO ORDER — The meeting was called to order at 5:45 p.m. A. Members Present: Philip Mondro, Cassandra Nelson, Tom Truscott, Nathalie Winans and Kara Wood. B. Members Absent: Mary Toshach C. Staff Present: Bill Rieske, Asst. Planning Manager. D. Others Present: Jason Kildea, from the Gillespie Group Dave VanderKlock, from Studio Intrigue Beth Monteith Dave Muylle 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA — It was moved by Mr. Truscott, seconded by Ms. Wood, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0), to approve the agenda as printed. 3. COMMUNICATIONS — None. 4. HEARINGS (ADVERTISED) — None. 5. PUBLIC COMMENTS — Public comments were taken during the relevant agenda item. 6. STAFF COMMENTS — None. PRESENTATIONS — None. BUSINESS SECTION A. Minutes for approval —September 13, 2010 meeting. It was moved by Mr. Truscott, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0) to approve the September 13 minutes as printed. B. Old Business 1. Marshall Street Armory Mr. Rieske introduced the topic by noting that this review is not mandatory, since the historic district is not in place as yet, This review is thus a courtesy by the Gillespie Group. Mr. Kildea and Mr. VanderKlok presented the construction plans for rehabilitating the building. The main points were: ■ Regarding the grounds, since the 1950s, a retaining wall, along with a gravel drive, were paved over, so the existing improvements to the grounds have no significance. ■ A ramp is planned for SW corner of the building to provide barrier -free access to the front door. • A glass canopy will be installed over the front door, which will provide some protection from the elements while offering a view of the cornice from that location ■ A clear, penetrating sealer will be installed on the brick to protect the wall from the elements. This sealer will be "breathable", so as not to inhibit moisture release from the brick. ■ The development team has worked with the SHPO on the specifications from the outset to ensure that the redevelopment meets the Secretary of the Interior's requirements. ■ The plans have been approved by the SHPO, and are before the National Park Service for final approval. C. Other Business. • Mr. Muylie and Ms. Monteith inquired about establishing a local historic district for the area bounded by Michigan Avenue on the south, Rumsey on the west, Marshall on the east, and the green space (north of Jerome) on the north. The historic district, as proposed, would not celebrate Lansing notables, but rather, the "working people" that made that neighborhood their homes. • Mr. Mondro noted that this would be a larger district, not centered on a single resource. • Ms. Winans noted that there's a growing interest in "vernacular" architecture. • Ms. Wood added that there may be a potential for a strong educational component to such a district. 9. PENDING ITEMS: FUTURE ACTION REQUIRED A. Discussion of potential policy regarding the designation of single resource properties that have already pulled building permits for renovation. B.. HDC-1-09, 509 Cherry Street, Riley Real Estate, Window Replacement. C. Neighborhood Pattern Book. D. HDC Guidelines and Review Procedures. 10. COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS — None. 11. COMMISSION MEMBER PRESERVATION RECOGNITIONS — None. 12. ADJOURNMENT. It was moved by Ms. Wood, seconded by Mr. Truscott, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0), to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 6:56 p.m. 2 CITY OF LANSING Joint Meeting Historic District Commission and Marshall Street Armory Historic District Study Committee 5:30-7:00 p.m. Monday, December 6, 2010 Planning and Neighborhood Development Conference Room 316 N. Capitol Ave., Lansing MI 48933 MINUTES CALL TO ORDER — The meeting was called to order at 5:36 p.m. A. HDC Members Present: Philip Mondro, Cassandra Nelson, Mary Toshach, Tom Truscott, and Nathalie Winans. HDC Members Absent: Kara Wood (excused). B. HDSC Members Present: Jason Kildea, Cassandra Nelson, Mary Toshach, and Nathalie Winans. C. Staff Present: Bill Rieske, Asst. Planning Manager. D. Others Present: None. 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA — It was moved by Ms. Toshach, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously to approve the agenda as corrected. 3. COMMUNICATIONS — Staff comments from the SHPO regarding the Marshall St. Armory HDSC Preliminary Report 4. STAFF COMMENTS - None MARSHALL STREET ARMORY HISTORIC DISTRICT STUDY COMMITTEE REPORT A discussion ensued about the preliminary report draft and the SHPO comments received. Mr. Rieske reported that the Planning Board had indicated their support by endorsing the Preliminary Report and its recommendations. He also pointed to the draft ordinance for the final report for City Council consideration. Mr. Kildea reported that the National Register District has been approved by the National Park Service, along with the proposed rehabilitation specifications with some modifications. The plate glass canopy slated for the building's south entrance was deleted, and revisions were made to the interior stairway and first floor hallway specifications. Study Committee Action: The Study Committee held a public hearing, at which no further comments were received. By consensus, it was agreed that the only necessary change to the report is that the map be revised in accordance to SHPO comments. It was moved by Ms. Toshach, seconded by Ms. Winans, and CARRIED unanimously (4-0) to approve the Preliminary Report as is, with map changes as recommended by the SHPO. Having no further business, the Study Committee adjourned its meeting. Commission Action: It was moved by Mr. Truscott, seconded by Ms. Nelson, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0) to support and endorse the Study Committee's action on the report. 6. PRESENTATIONS — None. HDC MINUTES FOR APPROVAL —October 4, 2010 meeting. It was moved by Ms. Nelson, seconded by Mr. Truscott, and CARRIED unanimously (5-0) to approve the minutes as presented. 8. APPROVAL OF 2011 HDC MEETING SCHEDULE — It was moved by Mr. Truscott, seconded by Ms. Toshach, to approve the 2011 meeting schedule as presented, including the following: 1) Commission member training through MHPN — It was agreed to schedule this training for January 10, 2011, immediately after the first HDC meeting of the year. Ms. Winans will contact MHPN to set it up. 2) 2011 Work Program meeting — It was agreed that the February 7, 2011 meeting focus on work program items. Some work program items may include: o The website, o Guidelines, o An overview of historic district designation options, o Outreach to the Convention & Visitors Bureau, e.g. walking tours o Possible CLG grant projects, o Potential underwriters or sponsors for Commission outreach and events, o Preservation awards. Possible reception/workshop, with a panel of experts, o Preservation week, o Preservation markers ($3,500 for a 2-sided marker) 9. PENDING ITEMS: FUTURE ACTION REQUIRED A. Discussion of potential policy regarding the designation of single resource properties that have already pulled building permits for renovation. B. HDC Guidelines and Review Procedures. C. HDC-1-09, 509 Cherry Street, Riley Real Estate, Window Replacement. D. Neighborhood Pattern Book. E. Historic preservation planning and its relationship to the Master Plan Project. F. Muylle proposal for east side historic district. 10. PUBLIC COMMENTS — None. 11. COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS • Ms. Nelson noted that there's a need for more Commission members. • Mr. Mondro reported that he contacted the LBWL about the train station property on S. Washington, and asked to be kept apprised of its progress. He also noted how good the Accident Fund building looks with its lights on at night. • Ms. Toshach suggested that a study be done on the significance of Lansing school buildings. She also noted that no mention of either the Downtown Lansing Historic District or historic preservation tax credits is made on the websites of the EDC and Downtown Lansing Incorporated (DLI). • Mr. Truscott reported on a planned 5-year celebration of the Civil War sesquicentennial, involving the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, the Earl Nelson Singers, and various school bands, being held at the State Capitol and potentially in venues like Cooley Law School Stadium. The events are being planned by the Friends of Michigan History. 12. ADJOURNMENT — The meeting was adjourned at 6:58 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Bill Rieske, HDC Secretary Next regular HDC meeting - 5:30 PM, Monday, January 10, 2010, in the PND Conference Room 2