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Minutes 12-14-15MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL 100 E BOYNTON BEACH BOULEVARD, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ON MONDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2015 Present: Barbara Ready, Chair Eric Salomonsson, Vice Chair Jason Shaffer Hollis Tidwell, III, Alternate Cheryl Black, Alternate Absent: Roger Cope Michelle Dion Dr. Ginger Pedersen 1. Pledge of Allegiance Warren Adams, Historic Preservation Planner Chair Ready called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. 2. Agenda Approval Motion Ms. Oyer moved to approve the agenda as presented. Ms. Black seconded the motion that unanimously passed. 3. Approval of Minutes Warren Adams, Historic Resource Preservation Planner, noted on page three, Item D, second paragraph, the construction company was Reilly Construction not Wiley Construction. On page six, the first paragraph; there was discussion about designating the old section of Sara Sims cemetery. Mr. Adams thought it may have been Boynton Municipal Cemetery. Motion Ms. Oyer moved to approve the minutes as amended. Mr. Hollis seconded the motion that unanimously passed. 4. Communications and Announcements None. 5. Old Business: A. Boynton Woman's Club grant -funded window and door repairs Mr. Adams advised the Woman's Club changed architects from Roy Simon to Rick Gonzales. 1 Meeting Minutes Historic Resources Preservation Board Boynton Beach, FL December 1, 2015 They met in November, a contract was approved and the Woman's Club was signing the agreement. It would cost more to work with Mr. Gonzales, but they would receive a work schedule. If they cannot complete the work with this grant, they could use it for the next grant to show they were using the grant funds appropriately. They met with a representative from Coastal Millworks from Riviera Beach who did the windows for the Schoolhouse Children's Museum. Last year, the Woman's Club used a company from Orlando to replace three windows. Orlando is further away than Coastal Millworks. Since the company from Orlando was known for its work on historic projects, there was a concern they may get so much work from grant recipients, they may not be able to finish the windows for the Woman's Club in time. Mr, Adams explained both companies will be asked to respond to the Request for Proposals. B. Presentation to the City of Vero Beach on Boynton's Historic Preservation Program Mr. Adams explained he went to Vero Beach on November 12th and made a presentation regarding the Boynton Beach Historic Preservation program which was very well received. Vero Beach had a program for eight years that was not moving forward. They liked how Boynton focused on education instead of jumping in and designating several projects. The Boynton program designated some of the more significant properties and focused on obtaining grant funds to educate and work with people. There was a positive change in the way historic preservation was viewed in Boynton Beach since the program first started. He thought Vero Beach would use Boynton's model and move forward. C. Presentation to the Boynton/Lantana Rotary Club on Boynton's Historic Preservation Program Mr. Adams advised he was asked by Voncile Smith, Second Vice President of the Boynton Beach Historical Society, to make a presentation to the Rotary Club. He went for lunch and made the presentation which fostered local outreach and advertised what they were doing. The presentation was well received. Word about the program was spreading and the public was becoming informed. Mr. Adams advised when he speaks at various functions, he distributes brochures and information about the website. D. Barton Memorial Park Cemetery monument proposal Mr. Adams met with Reverend Dames, Dr. Brown of the New Disciples Worship Center and four long-time area residents on November 19th. The attendees liked the website and monument proposal. Mr. Adams obtained a few new names of decedents buried at Barton that he did not have before. He updated the list, gave it to Reverend Dames and Dr. Brown, and they will run it past their congregations. He also had cards to distribute requesting the name of the deceased and their date of death. Mr. Pinsky did not attend the meeting, but he did provide wording for a bulletin announcement and would provide wording for a radio announcement. They will hold another meeting in the near future. Mr. Adams thought this was a big step forward because they were really pleased the City was recognizing African-American history. Reverend Dames commented the project would not come to fruition overnight. It was just a matter of time before the effort gained momentum and then they would use the portable scanner to begin scanning photographs for the website. 2 Meeting Minutes Historic Resources Preservation Board Boynton Beach, FL December 1, 2015 A question was posed about the verification process. Mr. Adams responded they had discussed this at the meeting. He felt there needed to be some qualification such as a burial certificate, but because it was an unofficial cemetery, there was very little information available. It would be sufficient if someone said someone was buried there because they witnessed it. They would take the word of the family members and the clergy could be of help in this regard. Chair Ready inquired how many people were buried there. The highway was completed by 1979 and they did not know if anyone recorded the burials prior to then. The list Mr. Adams had dated back to 1974 which suggested there were 58 burials, but they did not know the names of half of the decedents. Some had wooden markers that disappeared. The first step was to gather the names. Mr. Adams had another two or three lists with 10 or 15 names and commented there may be some overlap. The long-time residents at the meeting provided another seven or eight names. Mr. Adams preferred to have a residents' committee handle this and noted the monument had to be able to accommodate the additional names. The committee did not know how much money needed to be raised for the monument. Mr. Adams was unaware of any grants for a monument and noted the City would not pay for headstones; however, he pointed out Mr. Pinsky had agreed to investigate funding for the monument. Mr. Shaffer asked if there were any local artists or sculptors that could be involved and if they would make the monument an event. Mr. Adams thought holding an event when the monument was installed would be fantastic and the City recognizing an African-American Cemetery as having historic significance, and going a step further to recognize people buried there, would be good for the neighborhood and provide good publicity. Chair Ready noted the public art at the Carolyn Sims Center was commissioned and the community participated in the design process. The end result was something the community embraced. E. Florida Master Site File survey Mr. Adams advised the survey was still ongoing. He wanted to have all of the 1996 entries updated or surveyed by the end of the year. He was on track to complete the task, noting there were about 50 left. F. Historic Site Markers Mr. Adams explained the Erie Landmark Company, who creates metal markers, did not respond to his initial request or follow ups. He had emailed them the design and asked if they could work from a photograph. He advised them the City was starting a historic marker program and they could get more business from the City, but there was no response. Mr. Adams contacted another company about ceramic markers and asked about rough estimates. They told him to email them which he did, but that was six weeks ago. He also sent them a photograph and a drawing. 6. New Business: A. 2016 Celebration of Conrad Pickel Event Mr. Adams advised the City started planning next year's event. He was working with the 3 Meeting Minutes Historic Resources Preservation Board Boynton Beach, FL December 1, 2015 Boynton Beach Historical Society to handle the bus tours, and the City would handle the events, exhibitions and speakers. He was waiting on a response. They could use City buses for the tour, so the cost was only about the driver's hourly rate for two to three hours. Janet DeVries, Archivist with the Boynton Beach Historical Society, seemed to be favorable to the tour which would be held in May during Preservation Month. The exact date is to be determined. Photographs of the last event were viewed as contained in the Power Point presentation. The plan was to, again, make the event a free event. B. Requirements for Establishing a Historic District Mr. Adams explained this item was a request from Board Member Tidwell. Mr. Adams reviewed a PowerPoint explaining the requirements for creating a Historic District, Mr. Adams explained when considering historic districts, there had to be a concentration of significant properties and a period of significance. Some districts could have two periods of significance and applications are initiated by a simple majority of property owners within a proposed district. Each property owner in the district has one vote, and the owners are determined by the most current Palm Beach County Tax Roll. Fifty-one percent of the property owners supporting the application are needed. Mr. Adams reviewed buildings could be significant in one or more ways. They could be associated with historic events or significant persons. They could embody distinct characteristics of a type, period, method or particular style. Other considerations were the building could represent a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction, but it could yield information important in history, or be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Districts could contain contributing and non-contributing structures, but the majority should be contributing and they should be fairly concentrated and contiguous. Alterations to non- contributing sites are subject to a Certificate of Appropriateness application and staff and Board review. Mr. Adams reviewed district boundaries do not have to follow block or subdivision patterns, but they cannot be overly erratic in an attempt to include outlying sites. Streetscapes, planning, settings and lands such as parks and others could be contributing features and should be considered in the application process. There were no recommendations for size. They just need to have a justifiable approach. He pointed out they would not designate a district for two properties, but they would designate the properties individually. A district can be expanded. This occurred in Delray Beach because large new construction was approved in a historic district and it made sense to remove the new construction. This increased the percentage of historic sites by removing the non-contributing sites. They could extend the boundaries or create a new district depending on the circumstances, but property owners must be fully informed via notifications which could be a difficult and contentious process. The cost to create a district consists of $10 per designation application up to $500. Mr. Tidwell commented on historic districts and thought of the Old High School and its fate. If the High School was demolished, what comes next is only bound by the developer, his team and counsel. No one else reviews it. If the new structure is in a historic district, it would come before the Board which could be a benefit. Chair Ready explained the Historic Preservation 4 Meeting Minutes Historic Resources Preservation Board Boynton Beach, FL December 1, 2015 Ordinance already encompassed this concern because the school is on the Local Register, and the Ordinance stipulates for a simultaneous approval which means that the demolition application comes before the Board, but a basis for the Board to deny demolition is there is no building approved to replace it. This would stop people from tearing down historic buildings and leaving the lot vacant. Mr. Adams would like to see historic districts created, but acknowledged it is a difficult process. There are a number of areas in the City that could be designated and it would be good to find a pocket of property owners with a high support rate. If there was a concentration of homes in an area, they could approach the neighborhood. Discussion followed that long-term property owners do not want to have anything to do with the City because being involved with the City is nothing but trouble. Mr. Adams suggested focusing on the positive and not the negative, emphasizing the benefits, If it was such a bad thing, Delray Beach and West Palm would not be successful. Most alterations would be reviewed by Mr. Adams and could be reviewed in a day before being submitted to the Building Department. Additions and changes would go before the Board, but the intention is to receive preapproval first. Ms. Oyer noted historic preservation in Pearl City, Boca Raton, and other lower socio-economic communities created community pride. Residents have reunions and parties. Mr. Adams agreed and commented it could also enhance commercial areas and there are all sorts of incentives, grants and tax credits. Chair Ready requested Mr. Adams send the Ordinance to the members via email link. She commented the Ordinance indicates demolition by neglect was prohibited. Mr. Adams advised they did not have the required amount of properties to create a historic district on Ocean Avenue. He explained how the calculations would work for properties on Ocean Avenue from Seacrest to the Intracoastal, and on each side of the street. In the future when more buildings became 50 years old, a historic district could be established. 7. Other None. 8. Comments by members Mr. Shaffer advised he would not be present at the next meeting. Mr, Adams commented there would not be a lot on the agenda and he still had not received the designation application for the house on Seacrest, which would have an alteration mostly on the back of the building. He asked if the members wanted to meet in January or on February 8th and there was agreement not to meet in January unless something significant occurred. As for the public meeting that was held regarding Rick Gonzales' ideas for the Old High School, Chair Ready commented the meeting was very informative and she was happy with his proposal because the majority of the building was for a community use funded through apartment buildings. Vice Chair Salomonsson was impressed with the way he proposed to use the Old High School to consolidate some of the older buildings across from the High School and use the High School for those activities and eliminate the non-descript buildings due to future renovations in the area. They could have City Commission meetings in the Old High School 5 Meeting Minutes Historic Resources Preservation Board Boynton Beach, FL December 1, 2016 and incorporate event availability. Boynton Beach is the third biggest City in the County and there were no buildings or venues in the area that could accommodate 500 or 600 people which would be a draw for events. Mr. Gonzales also tied in the potential Guy Harvey building. The High School is close to 1-95 and accessing the building would be easy as it would not have the traffic impact Atlantic Avenue had on Delray Beach. Chair Ready had attended a seminar regarding the Community Reinvestment Act and thought the citizens should be holding banks accountable. Banks are required to use their money to reinvest in the community in which they serve and can use the money to issue municipal bonds. She suggested if the Old High School could be used for services that benefit the community, they could qualify for municipal bonds. The proposed consolidation of services in the Old High School would also save the City money and the plan was similar to the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council's plan to consolidate buildings. Shops and restaurants could help subsidize some of the cost, but Ms. Oyer did not like the apartments and parking garage that would be on Seacrest Boulevard and First Avenue, which would obstruct the view of the Old High School. The estimated price was $4 to $5 million, which Chair Ready thought was low. Ms. Oyer suggested approaching the Palm Beach Historic Preservation Board, known as the Landmark Preservation Board for assistance. 9. Public comments None. 10. Announce date of next meeting — January 11, 2016 None. 11. Adjournment Mr. Adams wished the members a great holiday. There being no further business to discuss, Chair Ready properly adjourned the meeting at 7:35 p.m. 6 ojuRi Catherine Cherry Minutes Specialist 121515 I