2004-01-08 Historic Preservation Commission MinutesHISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES
January 8, 2004
1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
The meeting of the Edmonds Historic Preservation Commission was called to order at 3:30 p.m. in the 3rd Floor Conference
Room of City Hall, 121 — 5t1i Avenue North.
PRESENT ABSENT
Gregg Arnold, Vice Chair Darrell Marmion
Chuck LeWarne
Barbara Kindness
Michael Plunkett
Ed Baker
Steve Waite
2. ANNOUNCEMENT OF AGENDA
No changes were made to the proposed agenda.
STAFF PRESENT
Star Campbell, Planner
Rob Chave, Planning Division Manager
Ms. Campbell advised that Chair Marmion forwarded a message to her suggesting that the Commission should elect new
officers for the year 2004. The Commission agreed to discuss the election of officers as part of Item 8 — New Business.
3. READING/APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The December minutes were not available for approval.
4. REQUESTS FROM THE AUDIENCE
There was no one present in the audience.
5. DESIGNATION REVIEWS
Council Member Plunkett advised that the Commission's recommendation regarding the Museum is scheduled to go before
the City Council on January 20, 2004. While staff will be presenting the materials to the City Council, he questioned if a
Commission representative should also be available at that time to speak in favor of the application. He noted that since
Chair Marmion is the applicant, he would be present, as well.
Commissioner LeWarne felt it would be appropriate for a Commission representative to attend the City Council Meeting and
make a statement regarding the Commission's recommendation. Since Chair Marmion is the applicant, perhaps Vice Chair
Arnold could make this statement. Council Member Plunkett noted that the Commission representative could work with the
staff in making the presentation before the City Council. He added that the item would be scheduled on the City Council
agenda as a public hearing.
Mr. Chave explained that when the Planning Board and the Hearing Examiner refer items to the City Council, they let their
record speak for them. They, typically, don't send a representative before the City Council. However, if the Commission
feels it is appropriate, they could appoint a representative. Commissioner LeWarne felt that because the Commission is new,
sending a representative to the City Council to make a brief statement would provide some visibility to the public. Vice
Chair Arnold indicated that he would be able to attend the City Council Meeting on behalf of the Commission. Mr. Chave
suggested that because this is the only public hearing on the City Council's agenda for the 20', perhaps it could be scheduled
as one of the first items.
Vice Chair Arnold asked that Council Member Plunkett send an e-mail to each of the Commissioners prior to the January 20th
City Council Meeting notifying them of the agenda for that evening. Any Commissioners available that evening should be
encouraged to attend.
COMMISSIONER KINDNESS MOVED THAT COMMISSIONER ARNOLD, AS VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMISSION,
BE THE COMMISSION SPOKESPERSON ON JANUARY 20TH, WHEN THE DESIGNATION REVIEW GOES
BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION. COMMISSIONER BAKER SECONDED THE MOTION.
THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.
Council Member Plunkett suggested that because this is the first designation review to come before the City Council, it
would be good for the spokesperson to make sure the City Council has a good conceptual overview as they begin to focus in
on historic preservation issues so that the know exactly what they are being asked to do.
Commissioner LeWarne said that since this would be a public hearing, perhaps someone from the Edmonds/South
Snohomish County Historical Society should be invited to speak briefly before the City Council, as well. Vice Chair Arnold
said he would contact the president of the Society.
6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
There was no unfinished business scheduled on the agenda.
7.
a. Administrative Subcommittee Report
The Administrative Subcommittee indicated that they had nothing new to report to the Commission.
b. Communications Subcommittee Report
Commissioner Kindness reported that following the last Commission meeting, there was an article in THE ENTERPRISE, in
which Council Member Plunkett provided an interview regarding the designation review the Commission held for the
Museum application. His interview was very complete and informative. Hopefully, it was well received. She said at some
point, she hopes they will be able to get members of the community to write "letters to the editor" following Commission
articles in the local newspapers to increase the public's awareness as to the positive things the Commission is doing.
Vice Chair Arnold distributed the second rough draft of the Historic Preservation Commission's first video for Channel 21.
He said that because some of the Commissioners did not forward any comments regarding the first draft, he assumed that
they liked the draft as presented. While he is facilitating the creation of the video, he would like to have some help from the
Commission to make sure the right properties are featured. He said he did receive some good feedback from some of the
Commissioners, and he made changes to the draft.
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January 8, 2004 Page 2
Vice Chair Arnold announced that Dan Dewsome, who is responsible for video production at the Edmonds Community
College, has agreed to produce the video himself. This project will fulfill one of the college's goals of being involved with
the community. He would be available to shoot the video the second week of March. He noted that the Commission would
only have one more meeting before that date, so it is important for them to get the third draft done. The third draft should be
close to what they end up with for the video, itself. The Commission also has to coordinate the availability of
Commissioners, and it might be appropriate to have back up replacements available. He emphasized that all Commissioners
are invited to participate in the video. One issue that needs to be considered while shooting the tape is weather. It is
important to do this on a sunny afternoon, so Commissioners who are interested in participating will have to be flexible.
Vice Chair Arnold referred the Commission to the updated draft of the brochure that will be produced by the Commission.
He said he received in-depth feedback from a few of the Commissioners, so there have been significant changes made since
the last time it was reviewed. He asked that Commissioners review the new draft and provide any comments they might have
as soon as possible. He suggested it would be great to have the brochure completed by the time the video is presented on
Channel 21 for the first time. He suggested that all feedback should be forwarded to him as soon as possible so he can
prepare a final draft of both the brochure and the video for the Commission's review at the next meeting.
Council Member Plunkett thanked Vice Chair Arnold for all of his work in putting together the video and the brochure drafts.
He emphasized to the Commission that Vice Chair Arnold is still seeking input on additional photographs that can be used
for the video and the brochure. Vice Chair Arnold referred to the group of pictures that Ms. Campbell put together for the
Commission. He suggested that Commissioners Waite and LeWarne look through the pictures and identify those they
believe are most appropriate.
Council Member Plunkett said that in addition to providing pictures to illustrate historic structures that no longer exist, it is
important to include photographs of historic buildings that are currently being used. The most important task is to identify
those structures that are usable and economically viable for preservation efforts. The remainder of the Commission agreed.
Commissioner Waite reminded the Commission of the need to gain approval from owners before using pictures of existing
buildings in either the brochure or the video. Commissioner LeWarne suggested that a picture of a recently demolished
building would be more appropriate than a picture of building that was demolished years ago since many people might not
remember these older situations.
Chair Marmion arrived to the meeting at about 3:50 p.m.
Vice Chair Arnold asked that the Commissioners spend some to time directly after the meeting to work with him on the
computer to make additional changes to the brochure and video drafts.
C. Historic Register Subcommittee Report
The Historic Register Subcommittee did not have any activities to report to the Commission.
d. Incentives Subcommittee Report
Commissioner Waite said that he and Commissioner Baker met with Jeannine Graf, the Building Official recently to review
the draft policies that were prepared by the building staff. He distributed copies of the draft policies. Ms. Campbell clarified
that the draft policies were not ready for distribution to the Commission until a half hour before the meeting was to start. Ms.
Graf has suggested that the Commissioners hold off on discussions related to the policies until the next meeting. Council
Member Plunkett pointed out that if this document would have been available a week earlier, the Commission could have
held their discussion without having to wait an additional month. Ms. Campbell expressed her view that staff took quick
action to prepare the draft policies, especially given the holidays and the weather conditions.
Commissioner Baker explained that he and Commissioner Waite met with Ms. Graf yesterday, and reviewed the entire draft
proposal. Some changes were made, and he urged the Commissioners to carefully review the document.
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Commissioner Waite suggested that more important than this document, the City publishes handouts for their customers.
These handouts condense the policies to one page and translate them into layman's terms so they are easy to understand.
Since this will likely be many people's first experience with historic preservation, he and Commissioner Baker emphasized
that it is extremely important that the handout be written so that the impression is that the City is trying to assist people and
encourage historic preservation. The draft policies are very technical and could be a burden for the property owners to
interpret. Staff has indicated that the policies could be summarized in a handout and written to be more user friendly.
Commissioner Waite said the Incentives Subcommittee believes this is very important, and the Commission should carefully
review this handout once it has been prepared to make sure it meets their intent.
Vice Chair Arnold inquired if the Commission needs to review the draft policies and make changes before the summary
handout can be prepared. Commissioner Waite said he would request that staff provide the language for the summary
handout well in advance of the next Commission meeting so that the Commissioners can review the document and be
prepared to make comments.
Vice Chair Arnold inquired if the Incentives Subcommittee feels the proposed draft policies would be acceptable enough to
the remainder of the Commission that they would not be wasting staff time by having them draft the user friendly version to
be done in two weeks in order to save time.
Chair Marmion said it appears that the first three policies address guidance as to how the Commission should move forward.
Everything else suggests that the Unified Building Code be followed, which is already a code requirement. Commissioner
Waite agreed. There is nothing new, and most of the items are a reiteration of what should be done anyway. The first
introduction to a property owner would be the user-friendly handout that is to be prepared by the staff. If a property owner
decides to move forward, they would use the official policy document.
Council Member Plunkett inquired if the Incentive Subcommittee believes the steps outlined in the draft policy document
identify the appropriate steps for what should be done to implement the historic preservation code. Commissioner Baker
answered affirmatively. Because it is important to get off on the right foot, a pre -application meeting should be held between
the applicant and the building official. After that, the application would be required to follow all of the regulations already
identified in the Code. He said he recommends that the Commission endorse the draft policies as presented by the staff, and
he felt it would be appropriate to ask Ms. Graf to start working on the user-friendly handout.
Commissioner Waite agreed with Commissioner Baker. He added that because this is a draft document, it is still subject to
Commission input, which could be provided at the next meeting.
Chair Marmion said it is important to identify which sections of the code are being referenced. Commissioner Waite agreed.
He noted that Items 6 — 11 are reiterations of the code, and do not necessarily have to be stated in this policy section.
The Commission agreed that the Incentives Subcommittee should request that staff move forward to create a draft user-
friendly document by January 29r''. The Commission would review and comment on both the draft policy document and the
user-friendly handout at their February meeting.
Chair Marmion recalled that the Commission previously discussed that it is important to note that historic properties are also
subject to Architectural Design Review. He referred to Section 5 of the draft policies, and suggested that this be worded to
indicated that ADB review is related to the certificate of appropriateness.
Council Member Plunkett referred to Section 1 of the draft policies. It appears that staff is recommending that the City
adopt, by ordinance, the Washington State Historic Building Code document. He inquired if the Commission should also
endorse this code by writing a letter to the president of the City Council, encouraging the City Council to adopt it. Chair
Marmion recalled that Ms. Graf previously suggested that this should be done via a policy letter. Council Member Plunkett
recalled her statement that most of the code could simply be referenced, but there was at least one item that would require an
ordinance. He said he would assume this is it. Commissioner Waite said he would research this further. He said he believes
the Washington State Historic Building Code is already referenced in the Edmonds Community Development Code.
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Council Member Plunkett suggested that Commissioner Waite research this issue further. If he finds that the Washington
State Historic Building Code is not referenced in the Edmonds Community Development Code, he questioned if the
Commission should write a letter to the City Council President, stating the Commission's endorsement of referencing this
code by ordinance and asking him to put the item before the City Council for consideration.
Mr. Chave said that if the Commission is expecting to have a user-friendly version available for Commission at the next
meeting, the Commission should also ask Ms. Graf to clarify whether or not an ordinance is necessary. Council Member
Plunkett suggested that the Incentives Subcommittee should seek an answer as to whether or not an ordinance is necessary
much sooner. That would allow the Commission to forward a letter to the City Council President as soon as possible.
Vice Chair Arnold summarized that the Commission would like Commissioner Waite to find out, within the next four or five
days, if an ordinance is necessary. If an ordinance is required, the Incentives Subcommittee should draft a letter to the City
Council on behalf of the Commission asking them to adopt the ordinance.
Mr. Chave emphasized that it is important for the Commission to be as specific as possible when designating properties.
Chair Marmion agreed, and said it is important to identify whether it is the inside or outside of the structure, or both, or just
specific features, etc. Mr. Chave said that while the applicant is responsible to identify the portion of the property they are
seeking a designation for, the Commission has the ability to recommend either less or more than what the applicant has
identified. He explained that written specific element preservation recommendations are important for use by the Building
Official in order determine whether required code upgrades threaten or destroy the historic significance of a building.
8. NEW BUSINESS
a. Election of Commission Officers
Chair Marmion said the by-laws indicate that the Commission must elect new officers at the first meeting of the year. The
by-laws also state that the Chair can serve for no more than two consecutive terms. He noted that he has served as chair of
the Commission for 2002 and 2003.
Chair Marmion said that while he does not mind serving as the chair again, he believes it is good to move the responsibility
around to allow others an opportunity to serve in this capacity.
COMMISSIONER KINDNESS MOVED TO NOMINATE COMMISSIONER ARNOLD AS CHAIR OF THE
COMMISSION FOR 2004. COMMISSIONER LEWARNE SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED
UNANIMOUSLY.
COMMISSIONER LEWARNE MOVED TO NOMINATE COMMISSIONER WAITE AS VICE CHAIR OF THE
COMMISSION FOR 2004. COMMISSIONER BAKER SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED
UNANIMOUSLY.
9. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS
a. Historic Building Permitting Policies Document from Building Official
Mr. Chave said he just spoke with Ms. Graf, and she indicated that an ordinance would be required in order to adopt the
Washington State Historic Building Code document. She was planning on bringing this ordinance before the City Council in
the spring in conjunction with the other new building codes as one package. Therefore, he said he does not feel it is urgent
for the Commission to send a letter to the City Council asking them to adopt an ordinance immediately. He suggested that
when the ordinance does go before the City Council, it would be appropriate for the Commission to write a letter of support.
The Commission asked that the Incentives Subcommittee prepare a letter, as recommended by the staff, for the Commission
to review at the next meeting so that it is ready to go forward in the spring.
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b. Historic Inventory Status and Collection of Time Sheets
Mr. Chave advised that the advertisements for the Historic Inventory Consultant should be going out next week in various
publications. Applications should be arriving before the end of the month. It is likely that staff will ask at least one member
of the Commission to participate in the application review. The Commission gave this assignment to Commissioner
LeWarne. Commissioner Kindness asked that staff provide each Commissioner with a copy of the advertisement that would
be sent out.
Staff requested that Commissioners hand in their time sheets for the past month. Staff needs to know the date, the number of
hours and the type of work that was done. The work must be specific to the historic inventory process.
10. REVIEW OF NEXT MEETING AGENDA
Commissioner Arnold reviewed that the Communications Subcommittee would be bringing forward a revised draft of the
videotape script and of the brochure. The Incentives Subcommittee would be bringing forward a letter to the City Council
regarding the proposed ordinance. The Commission would also review the draft historic building permit policies and the
user-friendly version.
11. HISTORIC PRESERVATION CHAIR COMMENTS
Vice Chair Arnold provided no further comments during this portion of the meeting.
12. HISTORIC PRESERVATION MEMBER COMMENTS
Chair Marmion said he appreciated the opportunity to be chair of the Commission for the past year and a half. The
Commission is a good team to work with. He added that the Commission has received a lot of good press since the last
meeting. He congratulated those Commissioners who provided comments to the newspapers.
Commissioner Waite thanked Chair Marmion. He said that being the first chair of the Commission is not easy, but he did a
great job.
13. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 4:00 p.m.
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