Loading...
Minutes 10-14-13 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD MEETING HELD ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2013, AT 6:30 P, IN CITY HALL CHAMBERS 100 E. BOYNTON BEACH BOULEVARD, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA PRESENT: Roger Cope, Chair Warren Adams, Historic Resource Michele Dion, Vice Chair Preservation Planner Linda Stabile Jason Shaffer Eric Salomonsson Robert Weiss Barbara Ready, Alternate ABSENT: Dr. Ginger Pedersen 1. Pledge of Allegiance Chair Cope called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. and the members recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. 2. Agenda Approval Warren Adams, Historic Resource Preservation Planner, added to Item 6. New Business: • Item C - 2511 North Lake Drive • Item D — Florida Municipal Achievement Award, and • Item E — Florida's Comprehensive Historic Preservation Plan. There were no objections to the additions. 3. Approval of Minutes Mr. Adams made the following changes: • Page 1, Item 2 " ... noted neither the publi^ n o r * "° applicant was present for this item." • Page 2, Item 5, fifth paragraph, " .. he was requesting the funds be transferred to the next fiscal year to offset the cost of the exhibit event." • Page 4, Item 6, first paragraph, "The 4g4#s p linths are six -feet tall, with a 13 to MEETING. MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14, 2013 15 -foot column topped with a single glass and metal lighting unit." Motion Ms. Ready moved to approve the amended minutes. Mr. Salmonosson seconded the motion that unanimously passed. 4. Communications and Announcements Mr. Adams announced Dr. Pedersen called to advise she would not be present for the meeting. A. Dewey Park Dedication Ceremony Mr. Adams attended the renaming ceremony along with members of the Historical Society and City Commission. It was an interesting event and he noted the Dewey's created the first subdivision in the City. B. Florida Trust Event Mr. Adams attended this event, held at the offices of REG Architects. He spoke with Kelly Christianson, the Preservation Planner from Lake Worth, and they discussed at length what each municipality was doing with Historic Preservation. Individuals at REG Architects believe Boynton Beach is an up- and - coming community and they were hearing good things about the City. He noted 50 to 60 people attended the event. C. SE Florida Archaeological Society Lecture On October 19, 2013, Mr. Adams would give a lecture in Jensen Beach on building archeology projects in the United Kingdom. He invited the members to attend as he would reference projects undertaken in Boynton Beach. The lecture will take place at 2900 NE Indian River Drive, Jensen Beach, at 10:30 a.m. 5. Old Business: A. Historic Designation of the Boynton Hills Lights Mr. Adams reported this item was approved by the City Commission and it is the fifth site in Boynton Beach on the local register. He explained the Palm Beach Post contacted him about the matter and he distributed an expose from them on the item. He commented it was quite a good article. He also explained he sent information to the rin the lights. Westinghouse does have a Westin Historical Society regarding them sponsoring g g giving program for non - profits as he contacted them over a year ago to see if they could provide solar fittings for the lights, but because the Board is not a non - profit, they could 2 MEETING MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14, 2013 not accommodate him. He hoped if the Historical Society would sponsor the lights, they could obtain the fittings. It was also suggested the Garden Club work on the land around the lights. He had to investigate how the City would handle this as the property was City -owned property. He thought it would be a nice project. Audrey Gerger, member of the Garden Club was present and Mr. Adams advised he would contact her to bring the matter before the Board. Ms. Ready also commented the Historical Society had already voted to participate in the Boynton Hills Light project and they were ready to go. Mr. Adams advised he would contact them to work out the next step. B. Celebration of Conrad Pickel Mr. Adams had a meeting with Dr. Pedersen and Janet DeVries regarding the Historical Society's involvement in the overall project. A celebration involving an exhibit on stained glass, a presentation and display of Mr. Pickel's work, and a bus tour is scheduled for May 24, 2014, during Preservation Month. A reception and demonstration is also included. Mr. Adams will have another meeting with Mr. Pickel and he agreed to inform the members so they could attend. So far, nothing was decided, but it was hoped they would start putting things in place at the next meeting. They have a provisional program that still needs to be sorted out. Ms. Ready explained the Historical Society wants to plan some type of special activity in which to participate. She invited the members to join the Historical Society and announced the membership fee was $25 per year. C. Grant awards The Small Matching Grant for 2013/2014 that the Committee was working on for a Heritage Trail, interactive map and educational brochures had received a partial award of $1,8,250; however, the State informed Mr. Adams they received more funding so the City will receive the full grant amount. The Downtown Trail, the Cemetery Trail and all they sought funds for would be funded. The full funding was $28,552 plus $2,000 from the CRA for the Trail. The State is still working on the grant agreements, so Mr. Adams had to obtain updated costs for the signs and brochures. Once he had that information, the State would include it in the contract and the Committee can move ahead with the project. The City has still not received official confirmation of their ranking for the 2014/2015 grant for the smart phone application. Mr. Adams explained the City was ranked first, but the application has not been ratified by the National Park Service. 3 MEETING MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14, 2013 D. Barton Memorial Park Cemetery The City Clerk's Office referred Vicki Garret to Mr. Adams as she was interested in cemeteries and genealogy and was looking for information on the City's cemeteries. She agreed to conduct research to identify who may be buried at Barton Memorial Park. This was something Mr. Adams had started and he provided her with the information he had and she would conduct the research and share the results with him for future use E. CRA Award for the Little House The CRA won a Florida Redevelopment Association Award for outstanding Rehabilitation Renovation or Reuse project for the Little House. He was asked to participate in a video that would be viewed when they receive the award which will be shown at the end of the meeting He noted the video was very good. F. 918 SE 4 Street Mr. Adams explained this building was next to the Women's Circle. He had not heard anything back about the home so he contacted the interested individual and learned one estimate to move the home was $49K The owner would make a decision this weekend whether he would move the home and let him know G. Mission Statement At the last meeting, the Committee had reviewed the Ad Hoc Committee Mission Statement and discussed adopting the Statement, but a suggestion was made to add additional wording to explain how the goal would be met. Mr. Adams commented he had not had an opportunity to review it. The members agreed to postpone the item to the next meeting. 6. New Business: A. 316 NW 1 Avenue Mr. Adams advised the department received a fence application for the front yard of the home at 316 NE 1 Avenue. The applicant sought to replace the part of the wall that was demolished with a white picket fence. He pointed out the home was not designated as historic and he contacted the owners who advised they do not live there. They showed up one day and part of the wall was gone. They came to the office and he spoke to them about the Preservation Program at length. They plan to do work on the house and reinstate the pal-la-di-um palladian style of the window that is there and make repairs to the roof. They were unsure about designation, but they mentioned they want to construct an addition If that were the case, he suggested they consider designation and he mentioned the tax credit program as long as the addition was appropriate. He advised them to speak to him before they did anything so they would not lose eligibility 4 MEETING MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14, 2013 for designation or tax credits. He reached out to them, but could not do anything else. The fence application was basically approved. He commented there may be an option. If the owners decide to designate the home and apply for the tax credit, a condition could be to put the wall (fence) back. The owners appear to be doing much work, and hopefully it would be appropriate. Mr Adams had noted the fence wall, in the past, was cracked. Ms. Ready inquired about the left side of the fence. She thought it would be less expensive to use cinderblock and additional materials to make it look like the original. They will keep the existing wall and use the fence in the gaps. Brief discussion followed whether the Building Department would require a homeowner drawing if the fence footer still stood. About 12 to 15 feet of the wall (fence) was missing and it was hoped later, they could require the wall be replaced It was important they maintain what they have left. Audrey Dance Gerger, 331 NW 1 Avenue, lives just west of the home. The home has a concrete wall fence on the other side of the driveway, which was slanted and hit by a truck. There is a garage in the back. She advised the home was lovely and meticulously kept It has wooden floors and a young couple purchased it and was doing a great deal of work on the home She would like to see the wall (fence) restored to its original condition and noted there is a break in the wall by the driveway. The house next door has a white picket fence and it was believed that was the rationale for using the white picket fence on this property Mr. Adams explained a few meetings back, they discussed if the garage could be attached to the home and still get the tax credit, so he explained they may or may not keep the garage. If they added it, it would be in their interest to designate the home. Ms. Gerger explained the couple that purchased the home live in Delray Beach and were traveling back and forth making repairs before planning to live at the premises. Ms. Gerger also planned to circulate a petition in the neighborhood to create a Historic District. Mr. Adams explained he was assured they would keep the one section of the wall. B. Lake Boynton Estates Gate Post Potential Designation. Mr. Adams had received an email from Dr. Pedersen suggesting they move ahead with the designation of the above. He reviewed the Post was at the entrance of Lake Boynton Estates Subdivision and it was the only post that remained. Its setting was compromised by the railroad and development around it. An advertisement from 1924 for the subdivision was viewed and it was very similar to what was there. Not long ago, there were plants removed from the deteriorating post. Some of the metal also appeared to be expanding and some of the stones were blowing off. While the post is owned by the City, the problem is it is located in the right -of -way. It did not have an address or legal description. He spoke with ITS and they agreed to assign it an 5 MEETING MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14,2013 address, so they can move ahead with a designation application. Discussion followed whether it was feasible to relocate the post. The argument against doing so is it would be removed from its original context. The homes formerly in the neighborhood are gone. There is only one gate post left so moving it could be an option. Currently, the subdivision is known as Lake Boynton Estates and there are about three original homes remaining in the neighborhood. The Post was in fairly good condition and there was consensus to move forward with the designation application. On a different matter, there are three loading docks, also known as stanchions, from the train depo, made of coquina at that location and a suggestion was made to identify them with a plaque. Mr. Adams agreed to gauge the reaction in the office about starting a designation application for them. A suggestion was also made to obtain estimates to move them. This was discussed at the Historical Society meeting. C. 2511 North Lake Drive Mr. Adams explained he received a demolition application for a home on the Intracoastal roundabout constructed in 1956. There was nothing significant about the home, which was vacant and a resident was complaining about rodents. The doors and windows were open so he signed off on the permit to demolish the home. D. Florida Municipal Achievement Award Mr. Adams submitted an application for the award earlier in the day. They were applying to the Florida League of Cities for the "Teaching Your City's History and Heritage" category. Boynton's application was submitted on the basis of the heritage education program, which dates back to the brochures published by the Ad Hoc Committee, then the Heritage Trail, archeology investigations, upcoming smart phone application and the Conrad Pickel Celebration. The winners would be announced in December. A video, which would be viewed later in the meeting, would be submitted as part of the application. E. Florida's Comprehensive Historic Preservation Plan Every few years the State revises its Comprehensive Preservation Plan. Mr. Adams was involved in one of the subcommittees that was asked to comment on the Plan during the planning stages. The comments were released. He had several copies of the Plan which he later distributed to the members. Due to technical difficulties, the two videos planned to be viewed at the meeting would be shown at next month's meeting. One video created by the CRA included Mr. Adam's and his comments. The second video was created by the ITS Department as part of the City's application for the League of Cities Award, and was basically images of the 6 MEETING MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14, 2013 historic sites. 7. Other None. 8. Comments by members Ms. Ready suggested Mr. Adams compile a report about the program, what has been accomplished and approach the City Manager to make a presentation to the City Commission She thought if and when a presentation is made, the members be apprised of the date so they can attend in support. Mr. Adams also announced he applied to his professional organization, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for accreditation in historic building conservation. To be eligible, the applicant must submit a report on five projects they worked on, a history of what was done, ensure one is up -to -date with continuing professional development, and then interview with a panel in London which was done. Mr. Adams announced he received his accreditation and he is the first in the USA to receive the designation. He explained the organization was formed in 1868 and they have about 100,000 worldwide members At the moment, there are about 4,000 members in the Americas and only 50 to 60 members are accredited in conservation in the world. The members congratulated Mr. Adams on his achievement The City's Communications Manager issued a press release announcing the accomplishment. Chair Cope will make a brief presentation at the next meeting about a house that went through the Preservation Board process in Delray Beach to provide the members with an understanding of the process. Ms. Ready invited the Board to become a member of the Historical Society. The membership fee is $25 per year. The Society has free events and on Monday at the Library, Palm Beach Post Cartoonist Pat Crowley will speak about the Royal Poinciana Hotel in Palm Beach All were invited to attend 9. Public Comments Ms. Gerger explained the home next to the property at 316 NW 1 Avenue was going to be put up for sale. The owner passed away, had no children and was unmarried. She left the home to her niece in Pennsylvania. The niece came down a few times and has an attorney. The home has a reverse mortgage, reversed at peak and the bank was taking the home. Friends of the deceased, the Browns, have a key to the home, but the bank will lock the doors soon. Ms. Gerger suggested she speak with the Browns to allow Mr. Adams to see the inside of the home. She expressed the home has a porch and petri pecky cypress doors and ceilings, many French doors, two bedrooms, a bath 7 MEETING MINUTES HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FL OCTOBER 14, 2013 room off the bedroom in the front and a white fence. The home is on three lots. One lot had a pool, the house was on another, and the third is a vacant lot. She was unsure of the Bank that owns the property and explained the home was gorgeous and well preserved. Mr. Adams expressed he was interested in viewing the home. Ms. Gerger noted the owner redid the wood floor. The home has a fireplace and a lot of special wood finishes with molding on the ceiling. There is a small building in the back for a washer and dryer, storage and then the garage. 10. Announce date of next meeting — November 11, 2013 11. Adjournment Motion There being no further business to discuss, Chair Cope adjourned the meeting at 7:30 p.m. Catherine Cherry r Minutes Specialist 901593 8