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2005-09-08 Historic Preservation Commission MinutesHISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 8, 2005 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 — 51 Avenue North. PRESENT ABSENT STAFF PRESENT Stephen Waite, Chair Rob Chave, Planning and Development Services Manager Deborah Binder Barbara Kindness Norma Bruns Brian Hall Michael Plunkett READING/APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes from June 9, 2005 and August 11, 2005 were approved as corrected. REPORT CHAIR WAITE REGARDING HISTORIC ELEMENTS OF THE OLD EDMONDS HIGH SCHOOL BUILDING Chair Waite reported that he met with representatives from the Edmonds Museum and the Public Facilities District regarding historic elements that exist at the old Edmonds High School site. He advised that most of the discussion was related to the portico entry, and the Public Facilities District is in the process of soliciting a bid alternative from the general contractor. He expressed the Commission's desire to preserve this element. It is now up to the Public Facilities District to determine if they have available funding to do so. They also spoke to the contractor about the bricks. The contractor has determined that they do not contain asbestos so they could be incorporated into the portico as part of a pathway. Chair Waite further reported that items such as the traditional classroom door, the mailboxes, an old school bell and the two pressure gauges in the boiler room have been put on a list. He felt they would be successful in salvaging these items. Now there is a question of where and how they would be displayed. Demolition of the structure would begin soon. Commissioner Kindness suggested the Commission invite a representative from the Public Facilities District to a future Commission meeting once the groundbreaking has taken place and the project is underway to report on the status of the list of historic items. Chair Waite agreed that this would be appropriate. He also said he would keep track of the situation and provide a report to the Commission. DISCUSSION REGARDING THE OPTION OF INVITING GUEST SPEAKERS TO FUTURE COMMISSION MEETINGS Chair Waite suggested the Commission invite guest speakers to future meetings to provide short presentations that would educate and provide information to the Commissioners regarding various aspects of historic preservation. Commissioner Hall recalled that Jennifer Gerend, Edmonds Economic Development Director, offered to speak with the Commission. Mr. Chave advised that Ms. Gerend is currently working on an Economic Development Plan for the City that would be incorporated into the City's existing Comprehensive Plan. Chair Waite indicated that he would contact Ms. Gerend to schedule a date for her presentation. INTERVIEWS OF APPLICANTS FOR VACANT HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION POSITIONS The Commission spent some time interviewing Christy Gurley and Kenneth Chandler, who were candidates for the vacant Historic Preservation Commission Position. DISCUSSION OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION GOALS AND OBJECTIVES Commissioner Hall said he reviewed the Historic Preservation Commission Ordinance as well as the Commission's Mission Statement in the brochure and the Community Culture section of the City's Comprehensive Plan. He was able to identify possible Commission goals such as education, maintenance, preservation of historical sites, and policies in the Comprehensive Plan. He suggested the Commission's most important goal should be to continue to maintain and expand the inventory of historic sites. In order to accomplish this goal, he recommended the Commission set a goal for adding three or four new structures to the register every year. The other smaller goals that have been identified previously by the Commission all have a part in helping them accomplish their main goal of getting buildings on the register. Commissioner Hall said that while the current subcommittee structure was effective in the past, the Commission has grown beyond this arrangement. He suggested the Commission identify new subcommittees to address the needs and goals of the Commission now. Once the subcommittees have been established, the Commission must clearly identify the responsibilities of each one. He suggested that the Commission should focus on creating a historic preservation plan. In addition, the Commission should also focus on the historic buildings that are located outside of the downtown. Mr. Chave suggested that at the next meeting the Commission could brainstorm a list of goals. The list could then be narrowed down and details could be applied to the remaining goals. Then the Commission could prioritize the goals and expand them into a work program. Chair Waite referred to the main goal recommended by Commissioner Hall, which is to maintain and expand the inventory of historic sites. He explained that this goal would be supported by goals such as public awareness and grant funding. Council Member Plunkett said the point of placing a structure on the register is to preserve and protect it, which is the essence of what the Commission was created for. The Commission agreed that their mission is historic preservation, and the goals are intended to help them accomplish their mission. They agreed that no goal would be more important than getting properties on the historic register. The subcommittees should be formed with the intent of helping to get properties on the register. Mr. Chave suggested that the Commission spend some time at their next meeting discussiong how they can accomplish their goal of getting properties on the register. They could brainstorm smaller goals as a group and prioritize those they want to work on first. For example, while public awareness is not a goal in and of itself, it does have implications beyond just registered properties. If the Commission wants to get involved with cultural tourism, it could have economic development implications. Perhaps it would be appropriate for the Commission to have a discussion with the City's Economic Development Director about what role cultural tourism and historic preservation would have in economic development. He noted that the "Preserve America Program" offers cultural tourism grant funding and recommended the Commission continue to consider cultural tourism opportunities. Commissioner Binder said the Commission should consider why they have not yet received applications from property owners who are interested in placing their properties on the register. She recalled that at the public forum that was held in July, people expressed their fear that being on the register would impact their future options. She suggested that the Historic Preservation Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 2 Commission carefully consider the barriers that have prevented them from achieving their goals. People know the City has a historic preservation program, and the Commission must figure out why they are not receiving any applications. Commissioner Kindness suggested that the Commission conduct research to determine if the incentives that are offered by the City are enough. Mr. Chave reminded the Commission that with established programs there is a lot of status attached to being on the register. Unfortunately, the City is in a position of trying to build their program, and this means the Commission must go to the property owners. Hopefully, once they do this enough, the property owners will start approaching the City. Council Member Plunkett expressed his belief that the subcommittees that were formed by the Commission to implement their goals have been sitting unfilled and unstructured this year. He said they have already gone through the transition period, and now they need to create new subcommittees that put implementation tools in place to fulfill the main goal of getting properties on the register. The remainder of the Commission agreed. They further agreed to hold a brainstorming session at their next meeting to identify main goals and discuss how each one could be implemented. The Commission agreed that their previous goals have been recently achieved, and now they must shift gears in order to move forward. Commissioner Hall expressed his concern that waiting for an additional month to continue the discussion could cause them to lose momentum. He suggested that the Commission get a discussion going amongst themselves before the next meeting via email. That way, the list of goals could already be identified for further discussion and prioritization at their next meeting in October. Mr. Chave cautioned against group emails since this could be considered a public meeting. He advised that it would be better for the Commissioners to contact each other on a one-to-one basis. He suggested that Commissioner Hall collect comments from the other Commissioners and then forward them to staff. Staff could send them out to each member of the Commission. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 5:15 p.m. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes September 8, 2005 Page 3