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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 1/8/2002 - Landmark Commission THE CITY OF MCHENRY LANDMARK COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 8, 2002 THE MEETING WAS CALLED TO ORDER AT 7:21 PM BY CHAIRPERSON GREG LOFGREN AT THE MCHENRY MUNICIPAL CENTER.. MEMBERS PRESENT INCLUDED: JUDY FRANKS, KAREN JAMES, MERLE JANSSEN, DAWN JOHNSON, SUE KOTOMSKI, GREG LOFGREN, PAT SCHAFER, SHELLY TROST, ILENE WIEDEMANN, AND LORI WILHELM. MEMBERS ABSENT: GRETCHEN THOMAS. GUEST PRESENT: SUE HENDRICKSON. DAWN JOHNSON MOVED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE DECEMBER 4 , 2001 MEETING. SHELLY TROST SECONDED THE MOTION. NO DISCUSSIONS WERE NOTED, AND THE MOTION CARRIED. GREG LOFGREN REPORTED EXPENSES OF $22.68 FOR BLANK VIDEO TAPES FOR COPYING THE SURVEY TAPE. THE BALANCE IN THE GENERAL FUND STANDS AT $2,429.20. THE FACADE GRANT BUDGET STANDS AT $12,800.00. DAWN JOHNSON MOVED TO ACCEPT THE BUDGET REPORT, LORI WILHELM SECONDED THE MOTION, AND THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. DAWN JOHNSON BROUGHT A COPY OF THE PROPOSAL FOR THE DIGITAL CAMERA. GREG WILL TURN IT IN NEXT WEEK. GREG ASKED SHELLY TROST TO COMMENT ON THE HOUSE AT THE CORNER OF GREEN AND JOHN STREETS. SHE AND HANK NELL WERE NOT ABLE TO GET TO THE HOUSE BEFORE THE EXTERIOR WALL WAS COVERED OVER. SHE DID TALK TO THE OWNER WHO STATED THERE WERE POSTS IN THE BASEMENT WITH BARK ON THEM. SHELLY WILL TRY TO SET UP A TIME WHEN THE WEATHER IS WARMER TO VIEW THE BASEMENT. CHAIRMAN LOFGREN ASKED MEMBERS WHO HAD NOT FILLED OUT CERTIFIED CITY FORMS TO DO SO BEFORE THE END OF THE MEETING. HE WILL THEN GET THE FORMS TO THE MAYOR, AND THE PAPER WORK CAN BE SENT IN TO THE STATE. IF MCHENRY GETS CERTIFIED CITY STATUS FUNDS MAY BECOME AVAILABLE TO HELP WITH LANDMARK COMMISSION CONCERNS. CHAIRPERSON LOFGREN ASKED THE COMMISSION FOR INPUT ON THE PROPOSED BUDGET FOR 2002. ITEMS ON THE 2002 BUDGET PROPOSAL WERE REVIEWED: 1. $30,000 SET ASIDE FOR THE ASSEMBLY OF THE THOMPSON CABIN WHEN SITE IS DETERMINED. NANCY FIKE STATED THAT $25,000 WAS SPENT TO RESTORE THE GANNON CABIN AT THE MCHENRY COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY IN THE MID-1990'S. 2. $3,000 TO SURVEY THE PETERSEN HISTORIC SITE'S STRUCTURES. THIS WOULD BE USED TO DETERMINE RESTORATION PRIORITIES ON THE BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES. 3. $1,000 FOR A DIGITAL CAMERA. AS THE SURVEY CONTINUES, PICTURES NEED TO BE TAKEN. PHOTOGRAPHS SHOULD BE TAKEN OF FUTURE DEMOLITIONS AND FACADE CHANGES UNDER THE PRESERVATION ORDINANCE. 4. $3,000 TO SURVEY KNOX PROPERTY STRUCTURES. THIS WOULD BE USED TO DETERMINE RESTORATION PRIORITIES ON THE HOUSE AND THE BARN. 5. $1,500 FOR MEMBERS TO ATTEND CONFERENCES. THESE MEETINGS HELP MEMBERS KEEP CURRENT ON PRESERVATION INFORMATION. 6. $1,500 TO CONVERT THE BUSINESS SECTIONS' SLIDE SHOW INTO VIDEO. A SLIDE SHOW OF THE HISTORIC BUSINESS SECTIONS OF MCHENRY HAS BEEN MADE, BUT A BETTER PRESENTATION COULD BE MADE WITH A NARRATED VIDEO. 7. $1,000 FOR A SMALL PORTABLE BATTERY OPERATED PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM. WHEN THE COMMISSION HOSTS CERTAIN EVENTS IT WOULD BE NICE TO BE ABLE TO MOVE AROUND WHILE SPEAKING TO THE AUDIENCE. IT WOULD BE ESPECIALLY USEFUL WHILE CONDUCTING THE WALKING TOURS ON RIVERSIDE DR. AND RT. 120. 8. FACADE GRANT AMOUNTS AS PER THE COUNCIL'S PAST BUDGET PROPOSALS. AMOUNTS FOR BUDGET ITEMS NUMBERS 1, 2, 4, 6, AND 8 WERE KEPT THE SAME. BUDGET ITEM NUMBER 3 WAS RAISED TO $1,500. THE PROPOSAL SENT IN FOR THE DIGITAL CAMERA WAS OVER $1,000. THE COUNCIL HAD ALLOCATED $500.00. SINCE THE COMMISSION'S PROPOSAL WAS HIGHER MORE MONEY MAY BE NEEDED IF COUNCIL DENIES THE REQUEST. BUDGET ITEM NUMBER 5 WAS RAISED TO $3,000. THE COST FOR THREE MEMBERS TO ATTEND 2001'S PRESERVATION CONFERENCE WAS APPROXIMATELY $1,000. IF MORE PEOPLE ATTEND, COSTS WILL INCREASE. BUDGET ITEM NUMBER 7 WAS INCREASED TO $1,500. ALTHOUGH, A PORTABLE PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM HAS NOT BEEN PURCHASED WHAT HAS BEEN INVESTIGATED HAS COSTS HIGHER THAN ORIGINALLY PROPOSED. A NEW BUDGET ITEM WAS PROPOSED CONCERNING SPECIAL EVENTS. THE COST OF THE JUNE HERITAGE DAYS WAS APPROXIMATELY $2,517.00. IF ANOTHER EVENT IS SPONSORED THE 3 COMMISSION FELT NEW DOLLAR AMOUNTS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE. IT WAS ALSO MENTIONED THAT THIS FIGURE MAY NEED TO BE LARGER AS PLANS TURN INTO REALITY. THE LAST ITEM PROPOSED WAS $5,000 FOR BUILDING A REPLICA OF THE SPRING HOUSE IN THE POCKET PARK BEHIND WALGREENS ON MAIN STREET. HANK NELL FIGURED AN APPROXIMATE COST OF $5,000. CENTRUM CORPORATION HAS DONATED $1,000 TOWARDS THE CONSTRUCTION. THERE IS STILL THE FEELING THAT CENTRUM SHOULD DO MORE. DAWN JOHNSON MOVED THE BUDGET PROPOSAL BE APPROVED, PAT SCHAFER SECONDED THE MOTION, AND THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. THE BUDGET PROPOSAL LED INTO A DISCUSSION ON FUTURE SPECIAL EVENTS. THERE WAS AGREEMENT THAT THE COMMISSION WOULD NOT DO ANOTHER HERITAGE DAYS THIS YEAR. EVENTS NEED TO BE SMALLER IN SCOPE AS MEMBERS ARE ALL VOLUNTEERS AND HERITAGE DAYS TOOK A GREAT MANY HOURS OF PLANNING AND ATTENDANCE AT THE EVENT. IT WAS STRESSED THAT ANY EVENT SHOULD SHOWCASE A PARTICULAR PART OF MCHENRY'S HERITAGE. THE EVENT SHOULD BE OF A MUCH SHORTER DURATION THAN 2 DAYS. THE EVENT SHOULD NOT BE SCHEDULED WHEN OTHER POPULAR EVENTS IN THE COUNTY ARE TAKING PLACE. THE EVENT SHOULD NOT BE DURING FIESTA DAYS AS THE COMMISSION ALREADY DOES THE WALKING TOURS. THE IDEA OF A HAUNTED HAYRIDE ON MAIN STREET WAS BROUGHT UP AGAIN. LORI WILHELM DISCUSSED THE FARMER'S MARKET THAT THE COMMISSION HAD SPONSORED IN THE PAST. THIS WAS AN EVENT HELD IN THE FALL AT LANDMARK SCHOOL. CHAIRMAN LOFGREN BEGAN A DISCUSSION ON THE BACKHAUS PROPERTY BY STATING THE MAYOR HAD CONTACTED HIM CONCERNING A MEMO FROM THE PROPERTY OWNERS REGARDING THE STRUCTURES ON THE PROPERTY AND THE ORIGINAL ANNEXATION AGREEMENT. ACCORDING TO THE AGREEMENT THE HOUSE IS TO BE DONATED TO THE CITY THROUGH THE LANDMARK COMMISSION. THE COMMISSION THEN IS TO TRY AND ACT ON MOVING THE STRUCTURE. IN THE MEMO, DATES WERE ALSO LISTED AS TO WHEN THE DEADLINES WERE FOR VIEWING THE STRUCTURES. THIS OCCURRED TWO WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS. GREG HAD NO TIME TO ACT ON THIS, AND A DEMOLITION LETTER FROM COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT HAD NOT BEEN RECEIVED BY THE COMMISSION. WHEN GREG RETURNED FROM OUT OF TOWN AFTER CHRISTMAS HE WAS NOTIFIED THAT THE OUTBUILDINGS HAD BEEN TAKEN DOWN. RYAN SCHWALENBERG, BUILDING COMMISSIONER, SAID THAT HE HAD GONE TO THE SITE AND TOLD THE WORKERS TO STOP, BUT THE DEMOLITION CONTINUED. THE CITY DID ISSUE A TICKET AND FINE TO THE OWNERS. COMMISSION MEMBERS EXPRESSED THEIR DISGUST WITH THE OWNERS. ATTENTION TURNED TO THE RESIDENCE ON THE BACKHAUS PROPERTY. GREG RELATED TO THE MEMBERS THAT THE COMMISSION HAD LOOKED INTO THIS MATTER A FEW YEARS AGO. THE OWNERS WERE NOT INTERESTED IN ANY ADAPTIVE USE OF THE STRUCTURE ON THE PRESENT SITE. MOVING THE STRUCTURE OR DEMOLITION WERE THE ONLY OPTIONS. AT THE TIME SOME PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS WERE APPROACHED TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANY INTEREST. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT IT WOULD COST ABOUT $60,000 TO MOVE THE STRUCTURE ABOUT 1/2 MILE. SHELLY TROST ALSO STATED THAT IN HER INVOLVEMENT WITH A HOUSE TO BE MOVED IN CRYSTAL LAKE THAT A ONE MILLION DOLLAR BOND FOR POSSIBLE DAMAGE TO UTILITIES WAS ALSO REQUIRED. SEVERAL OTHERS MENTIONED COSTS OF THE LOT, FOUNDATION. STRUCTURAL REPAIRS AFTER THE MOVE, AND REBUILDING FEATURES OF THE HOME THAT COULD NOT BE MOVED. IT WAS DECIDED THAT THE COMMISSION WOULD TRY TO GET THE DATE OF JANUARY 13 AT 1:00 PM TO VIEW THE EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR OF THE HOUSE. PAT SCHAFER WOULD CONTACT MR. DAVID BACKHAUS TO CONFIRM. IT WAS ALSO DECIDED THAT THE COMMISSION WOULD TRY TO GET PICTURES OF THE DEMOLISHED OUTBUILDINGS. DISCUSSION MOVED TO THE PROGRESS OF THE NOMINATION OF THE HISTORIC MAIN STREET DISTRICT. GREG INFORMED THE COMMISSION OF HIS MEETING WITH THE MAYOR AND DOUG MARTIN, CITY PLANNER. THE MAYOR HAD SUGGESTED POSSIBLY HAVING AN INFORMAL TYPE OF MEETING WITH OWNERS IN THE AREA BEFORE GOING TO THE PUBLIC HEARING. COMMISSION MEMBERS OFFERED SEVERAL SUGGESTIONS: COFFEE AND COOKIES, PHOTO DISPLAY, SURVEY SHEETS AVAILABLE, PANORAMIC VIEWS OF THE STREETSCAPES, LETTERS SENT TO NOTIFY THE OWNERS, AND EFFECTIVE PUBLICITY. GREG INFORMED THE COMMISSION OF A TARGET DATE, THE END OF JANUARY, BUT ALL WILL DEPEND ON THE STEPS IN THE ORDINANCE BEING REVIEWED BY THE CITY ATTORNEY. SINCE THIS IS THE FIRST NOMINATION PROCESS THE COMMISSION NEEDS TO DO THIS CORRECTLY AND HOPEFULLY, WITHOUT LEGAL SURPRISES. MERLE JANSSEN MOVED FOR ADJOURNMENT AT 8:55 PM, LORI WILHELM SECONDED THE MOTION, AND THE MOTION CARRIED.