Agenda 03-09-20 CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH
HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION BOARD
REGULAR MEETING AGENDA
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DATE: Monday, March 9, 2020 TIME: 6:30 P.M.
PLACE: Intracoastal Park Clubhouse, 2240 N. Federal Highway
1. Pledge of Allegiance
2. Agenda Approval
3. Approval of Minutes— January 13, 2020
4. Communications and Announcements
5. Old Business:
A. Historic plaques for designated properties — Status of establishing a marker program including
conceptual layout, design and estimated unit cost and purchasing of sample product (see
accompanying combined staff report for update).
B. Boynton High School (125 E. Ocean Ave.) — Update on the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the
City's historic high school (see accompanying combined staff report for update).
C. Woman's Club of Boynton Beach — Update on the renovation of the City's nationally-registered, 1926
Woman's Club (see accompanying combined staff report for update).
6. New Business:
None
7. Other
8. Comments by members
9. Public comments
10. Announce date of next meeting — May 11, 2020
11. Adjournment
The Board may only conduct public business after a quorum has been established. If no quorum is
established within twenty minutes of the noticed start time of the meeting the City Clerk or designee
will so note the failure to establish a quorum and the meeting shall be concluded. Board members
may not participate further even when purportedly acting in an informal capacity.
NOTICE
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HE/SHE MAY NEED TO ENSURE THAT A VERBATIM RECORD OF THE PROCEEDING IS MADE, WHICH RECORD INCLUDES
THE TESTIMONY AND EVIDENCE UPON WHICH THE APPEAL IS TO BE BASED. (F.S. 286.0105)
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ADDITIONAL AGENDA ITEMS MAY BE ADDED SUBSEQUENT TO THE PUBLICATION OF THE AGENDA ON THE CITY'S WEB
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BE OBTAINED FROM THE OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
3 .
January 13 , 2020
meeting minutes
Minutes of the Historic Resources Preservation Board Meeting
Held In the Intracoastal Park Clubhouse
2240 N. Federal Highway, Boynton Beach, Florida
On Monday, January 13, 2020, AT 6:30 P.M.
Present:
Barbara Ready, Chair Mike Rumpf, Board Liaison
Ben Lowe
Mike Wilson
Jesse Wilson
Absent:
Hollis Tidwell, III
I. Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance
Chair Ready called the meeting to order at 6:36 p.m. Mr. Feldman led the Pledge of
Allegiance to the Flag.
Il., Agenda Approval
Motion
Mr. Wilson moved to approve. Mr. Feldman seconded the motion. The motion
unanimously passed.
III. Approval of Minutes July 8, 2019, and September 19,2019
Mr.Wilson noted he was not listed as present or absent at the July meeting. He supported
amending the minutes to reflect whether he was present or not.
Motion
Mr. Feldman moved to approve the July Minutes as amended. Mr. Wilson seconded the
motion. The motion unanimously passed.
Motion
Mr. Wilson moved to approve the September minutes. Mr. Feldman seconded the
motion. The motion unanimously passed.
Meeting Minutes
Historic Resources Preservation Board
Boynton Beach, Florida January 13, 2020
IV. Communications and Announcements
Mike Rumpf, Board Liaison, explained he hoped to have a Certificate of Appropriateness
(COA) filed soon and the Old High School is nearly ready to receive a temporary
Certificate of Occupancy. He hoped the Board's vacancies would be filled. Currently,
there are two regular and two altemate positions available.
Annual CLG Report. Mr. Rumpf advised the Annual Certified Local Government (CLG)
report was timely sent to the State and he anticipated it was accepted. He explained a
CLG is a title granted by the State Division of Historic Preservation to municipalities that
meet certain criteria. Achieving CLG status results in networking, training opportunities
and priority for grants. Mr. Rumpf explained it is a status the City will maintain.
Mr. Rumpf explained the COA is approval process required of a property proposed for
modifications when the properties are on the City's Local Register or National Register.
It reviews proposed changes against the Secretary of the Interiors standards for
modifications of historic structures. The State has a registry of properties eligible for
designation. The criteria for designation is the property must be at least 50 years old.
Other criteria included architectural style, if a historic person is affiliated with the property
or a special event affiliated with the property. The City has 11 properties on the Local
Register and.five are single-family homes. The other properties are sites, commercial
properties or institutions such as the Boynton Woman's Club. One of those on the list is
311 NW 18f Avenue, known as the Gerger House. Audrey Gerger was a longstanding
owner of the house., which is a duplex. Ms. Gerger lived in one half of the building. In
2012, she petitioned for local designation. The home was sold and she moved. The new
owner is a small corporation LLC owned by a real estate investor and his mother, who
love the property. Mr. Rumpf met with them to review the process to make improvements,
but they want to preserve the structure. Over the past few years, some historic properties
were demolished due to lack of care. There are one or two other properties, which are
ideal candidates for the Registry, but the City cannot force designation, but they were so
deteriorated they eventually had to be demolished. Mr. Rumpf took pictures so the City
could document the structures.
Mr. Rumpf explained the windows on the Geiger House were changed prior to
designation and discussion followed, generally, the interior of the residence can be
changed, but not the exterior. The more visible the property, the higher the scrutiny of
the review and the tighter the requirements. If someone wants to add a solar panel, dish
or antenna,they can only be added behind the structure as the front is the most protected
and the addition must be permitted and reviewed. Mr. Wilson explained his home was
built in 1958. It originally had jalousie windows and doors, which were changed out. The
home faces a cul-de-sac. Mr. Rumpf explained windows are more temporary. Mr.
Feldman agreed. Warren Adams, former Historic Preservation Planner, had looked at
Mr. Feldman's home. The entry door on the front part of the house, was not originally as
the area was a sleeping porch, but the original front door and windows to the interior of
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Meeting Minutes
Historic Resources Preservation Board
Boynton Beach, Florida January 13, 2020
the home were still intact. Mr. Adams had agreed; the home could be designated in the
future if desired. The Woman's Club had undergone a more stringent review. The Board
tried to make the criteria to be on the Local Register less stringent to encourage people
to participate.
Mr. Rumpf distributed a matrix of what is used to determine the review process for a
specific change to a historic structure, which was reviewed. He then reviewed the table.
If changes are not more than 20% to the structure, staff could conduct the COA review.
If higher or on the front of the structure, it would come before the Board for a COA review.
It was noted it is costly to go through the review. Mr. Rumpf reviewed the criteria for staff
and Board reviews for COAs.
Dr. Lowe asked about the term "contributing." Mr. Rumpf explained the term would not
apply as the City does not have a historic district, but does have historic sites. A historic
district would have a cluster of historic homes and individual assets. If someone lives
next to a designated property in a historic district and that person's home has some
historic qualifies, but was not individually designated, they would be subject to some
standards to protect the other designated home within the district. Forming a district
requires polling the homeowners in the proposed area and receiving approval from a
super majority of homeowners. Mr. Rumpf explained some individuals may fear an
insurance company requiring a premium to insure historic homes because it was thought
they were more expensive to maintain because of the requirements. The advantage of
having a designated historic home was the tax credit given for 10 years. The ad valorem
credit applies to anyone on the Local Register, not just historic districts. There is no
minimum number of homes required to be a historic district.
Chair Ready thought the Board could make a renewed effort to form a district, as in the
past they were almost able to create one. The Board could help write a letter and go
door-to-door to explain to homeowners why they would want to designate. Mr. Rumpf
recalled there was an area south of Boynton Beach Boulevard and west of Seacrest,
behind the Post Office, along NW 1st Avenue that was a potential district. 1-95 divided the
area as there are some beautiful older homes west of 1-95. The City had a consultant
develop a complete list of eligible properties in 1986. Mr. Rumpf commented he had
thought about sending out basic letters to those on the original inventory, whose homes
were most valuable. There were quite a few properties that were not re-inventory that
are now 50 years old. There are more properties that could be added, but do not have
the same value and characteristics such as age, appearance and architectural style. Mr.
Rumpf attended a training session held for Certified Local Governments. They were
discussing ranch style homes, and whether the homes were worthy to be designated.
The homes do represent a style at one time, but there was no consensus to do so. Mr.
Rumpf favored contacting those individuals on the original inventory as it contained a list
of eligible homes for local designation based on architectural style. Mr. Rumpf would like
to send letters to make them aware of the Historic Preservation program and the benefits
of it. As to districts, it was noted there was another home on the fringe of Ms. Gerger's
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Meeting Minutes
Historic Resources Preservation Board
Boynton Beach, Florida January 13, 2020
home, which could have created a District.
Chair Ready noted a prior discussion about Leisureville, Sterling Village and older
condominium ,senior-type communities. They had no architecturally redeeming qualities,
but they contributed to the fabric and the development of the City. In the past, they had
tried to convince Sterling Village to be the first community to be designated due to the
history of Boynton Beach. The tricky part was trying to get a 51% of Sterling Village.
Historic Trail Sites. Mr. Rumpf announced that staff is beginning an inventory of signs
that need to be replaced along the Trail. He noted the signs are budgeted.
Board Meeting starting time. Mr. Rumpf explained the City Commission changed its
meeting times from 6:30 pm to 5:30 pm. Liaisons are offering the advisory boards the
same option. Mr. Rumpf asked If there was a preference. After brief discussion, there
was agreement to continue the status quo and meet at 6:30 p.m. Mr. Rumpf pointed out
the public hearing items at City Commission meetings would be heard at 6 pm and not
5:30 pm.
5 Old Business:
A. Historic plaques.
At the last meeting, staff was to continue exploring using Grandview Aluminum products,
but they had a glitch in the design. The Board had contemplated whether to include the
date or not, or some version. The plaque went to the company's simple design version;
but the Board was not pleased with the outcome. The company used a basic graphic
selected from a library of graphics. The sign was a two-dimensional process. The options
were to use a 3-D, more complex design,or a 2-D which is much simpler. A more intricate
design requires a 3-D version, which was costlier. The Board was steered towards the
2-D process, rather than using a graphic artist for the 3-1)design. The Board had wanted
to provide the computer version, buy Mr. Rumpf was informed they could not, as
Grandview uses a specific sculptor for the process. The Board could not use their own
artist.
Mr. Rumpf was dealing with a representative of the company and learned he has to go
back to the manufacturer directly to see if he could work with them, and asked what was
the minimum graphic they could provide them, because the representative indicated it
would have to be sent to the company's sculptor. It would be more expensive to create
a 3-D plaque to create a 3-113 mold as opposed to a 2-D mold. Mr. Rumpf wanted to
research the matter further to help the Board determine if they want to continue with the
graphic or move onto someone else. The plaque is aluminum so the option may be
limited. Mr. Rumpf noted there was no rush to pursue because there were few property
owners requesting the plaques and they were under no obligation to use Grandview. The
City has not used the company previously. Mr. Rumpf had video slides the members
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Meeting Minutes
Historic Resources Preservation Board
Boynton Beach, Florida January 13, 2020
viewed. Chair Ready inquired if he knew what companies made plaques for other
municipalities and learned Mr. Rumpf had their contact information. Discussion followed
that other than the Old High School or Woman's Club, the City did not have any iconic
buildings. It was not uncommon for municipalities to use an outline of a structure. Mr.
Rumpf would contact other cities to find out who made the plaques and how they were
made. Some cities use different materials. Dr. Lowe commented people he spoke with
wanted a historic district or building. A lot of the members wanted to have dates on the
plaque. Chair Ready explained adding the date added to the cost. Mr. Rumpf explained
excluding the up front design cost, he anticipated the cost was about$300. Chair Ready
did not favor using the silhouette of the Children's Museum as the Historical Society uses
it too although it would be more recognizable. She supported honoring the Old High
School. Dr. Lowe liked the main feature of the high school. There was brief discussion
about including the date on a smaller oval plaque that could be attached into the larger
oval. Chair Ready queried if Grandview had provided a cost for the more detailed plaque
and learned they had not. The Board would have to give them a digital graphic image
they would forward to the sculpture.
Chair Ready approached the Historical Society to help subsidize the signs and the only
hold up was providing a cost. Mr. Rumpf was already pursuing a 3-D version with them,
but he could discuss converting a high school facade graphic into something simple in
two-dimensional version, or send a picture to Grandview in a two- dimensional. Mr.
Feldman suggested using an image of the kapok tree. It is the big tree with really deep
roots and a good photographer could take the photo. Dr. Lowe noted the current bridge
could also be used as an image. Mr. Rumpf commented he would use some of the
examples given and work with the company with the different ideas to see what options
the City has. A silhouette of the entire high school,the Kapok tree or the bridge would be
considered. Mr. Rumpf agreed to check with the company and report back to the Board.
If there is information he can exchange in the interim, he would email the members and
get their opinions. There was consensus the Board liked having the dates being added
on and there was agreement the members like the words "The City of". There was
consensus to use the word "site" and not the word "property." Mr. Rumpf will continue
using the oval plaque.
B. Boynton High School (925 E. Ocean Ave.)— Update on the rehabilitation and
adaptive reuse of the City's historic high school (see accompanying combined
staff report for update.)
Mr. Rumpf explained the building is moving along and most of the Board members toured
the facility. It was hoped City staff would move into a portion of the building by the end of
next month. Chair Ready asked what color the school would be. Brief discussion followed
there were issues with the stucco and the contractor was fixing some items. The beige
color was similar to the original color of the building; however, it was thought it was not
very attractive. The members noted there was a hallway, which divided the downstairs
which previously was a wall. Mr. Feldman lied that the City found the space for the
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Meeting Minutes
Historic Resources Preservation Board
Boynton Beach, Florida January 13, 2020
staging and storage in the area around the stage for events. He thought it would be great
for a conference or wedding. Mr. Rumpf noted this was the first building to be a stage
requiring air conditioning, which ties into the District Energy Plant/System (DEP/DES)
which is cooling the building. The chiller was more cost effective to have. The DES is a
giant cooling system. Air conditioners have a condensing and coil system and then an
air handler to circulate the cold air. It is a two-part process. It is cheaper to have a giant
cold water production plant that pipes and circulates the water to the independent
systems it was designed to service. The DES creates the cold water and pipes it through
insulated conduits to the air handlers in the units, which it is energy efficient. The DES
will handle the public buildings in the town Square and other buildings on the campus or
surrounding campus. The cost to the end user, in part, will be based on how warm the
water is that is sent back to the chiller. The chiller uses an insulated system and there is
vey little radiation of heat. A DES could be an option for the Mall Master plan.
C. Woman's Club of Boynton Beach— Update on the reroofing and renovation of
the City's nationally-registered, 1926 Woman's Club
Mr. Rumpf explained they are finishing up contracted work and seeking a tenant or
management firm for the building.The CRA and City are both exploring options. He noted
the building has parking deficiencies, which is a factor in considering prospective tenants.
In order to secure an agreement to use the Woman's Club for a wedding, the renter must
have a parking plan. Parking was always a problem. The Florida Surfing Museum is
reviewing the building. The Historical Society was also looking for a permanent home.
Mr. Rumpf agreed to keep the Board apprised.
6. New Business
None.
7. Other
8. Comments by members
Chair Ready announced the Historical Society is hosting, with the 1st Presbyterian
Church and the Woman's Club, a Highwayman's artist show and sale, Saturday at the
Church on SW 6t'Avenue from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. In February, the Historic Society's next
program is the Panther Ridge Conservation Center, which is a big cat rescue in
Loxahatchee.
9. Public Comments
None.
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Meeting Minutes
Historic Resources Preservation Board
Boynton Beach, Florida January 13, 2020
10. Announce date of next meeting -March 9, 2020
11. Adjournment
There being no further business to discuss, Chair Ready adjourned the meeting at 7:46
p.m.
O.therine Chevy
Minutes Specialist
7
OLD BUSINESS
5.
5 .A Historic plaques
5. B Boynton !jigh School
ON=
5,. 0 Woman 's Club
DEPARTMENT OF DEVELOPMENT
TO: Chair and Members
Historic Resources Preservation Board
FROM: Michael Rumpf
Development Director
DATE: March 5, 2020
RE: Historic Resources Preservation Board
Regular meeting of March 9, 2020
Staff Report
Item 4. Communications and Announcements
Bonton's Centennial Celebration Events — Historic Sites Tour— City staff wants
to include in the agenda of celebration events a tour of historic-sites in the.City. Eleanor
Krusell, Public Communications & Marketing Director, has asked for staff and Board
assistance in organizing the event including suggested stops or informational topics to
include in the tour. Staff will be quickly assembling a working group of interested individuals
to assist with organizing and conducting the tour, including a representative from the Board.
331 NW 1st Avenue — Staff had previously reported that this property, known as the
Audrey D. Gerger House after the original petitioner for local registry in 2012, had been
purchased by an investor. The investor plans to restore and maintain the historic property, as
well as add some enhancements. Recall that the house was built in 1926/1927, and that this
Mission style structure resembles a single-family house, but is actually a duplex, and a rare
example of a Mission style, two-family house in the City.
Staff had also reported that a request for Certificate of Appropriateness was
anticipated from the new owner, as required for the planned improvements. Staff is just
updating the Board with new information from the owner including the phased approach for
making the improvements starting with a roof replacement. The replacement of the roof, if
replaced with like or similar materials does not require Certificate of Appropriateness review,
which would be confirmed through review of the building permit application that was recently
filed.
Item_ 5.A. Historic Plagues for Designated Pro ernes
The Board continues to consider a preferable and feasible design for a historic marker, and
identify manufacturers who can provide the preferred design at a reasonable cost. The
Board is considering alternatives to the high school crest as a centerpiece on the plaque,
which could not accurately replicate using the simple and less costly 2-D design process.
Therefore staff was directed to consider alternatives to the crest centerpiece, as well as
identify alternative manufacturers.
Staff has been contacting the preservation offices from other cities and is obtaining a
collection of sources used by others and some feedback on their respective experiences.
Staff is also attempting to contact two local businesses as referred by Grandview Aluminum,
in response to the unavailability of the local representative that had been our contact. Staff
will provide an update at the meeting on the growing list of other manufacturers, and will
begin providing conceptual design ideas to some of them to obtain ideas and options. Staff
will update the Board prior to the next meeting with any progress made and/or additional
design options using the suggestions from the January 13th meeting.
Item S.B. Boynton HlSIh School X125 E. Ocean Ave.)
This project is still in the final stage of rehabilitation and should receive a temporary
certificate occupancy (TCO) within two weeks. Along with final inspections, the remaining
elements to complete primarily involve, in part, the following: the ADA access ramp on the
east side, installation of electronic access systems in selected doors, elevator approvals by
state and fire inspectors, and installation of hand railings for the access ramps leading into
the auditorium. Certain Recreation Department staff are preparing to setting up offices in the
building, and the first event scheduled for the building is to occur on April 13th and 14th
which is a continuing education training class held by the BOAF (Building officials of
Florida).
Item 5.C. Woman's Club of Boynton Beach
The exterior and interior painting and waterproofing of the building is finished, thereby
completing this significant renovation project! CRA staff conducted a final "walk through" on
January 3rd and officially accepted the work on January 17th. CRA staff is currently working
on minor cosmetic improvements such as replacing doors, window hardware, and kitchen
ceiling tiles, window tinting, etc., all in preparation for larger and more formal events as well
as the upcoming activation and open house. The project was completed for less than
$241,000, approximately $950 under budget. Also, the project was awarded a Blighted and
Distressed Property Clean-Up and Beautification grant from the SWA in the amount of
$66,000.
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