Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Committee of the Whole

150 West Jefferson Street City of Joliet Joliet, IL 60432 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes Commission Members Quinn Adamowski Brian Bessler Mary Beth Gannon Bill Habiger Kevin Heinemann Candace Johnson Kailee Lowry Sharon Merwin Aaron Mikottis Sara Stovall Steven Wright Wednesday, May 26, 2021 6:00 PM City Hall, Council Chambers As Phase 4 of the Restore Illinois Plan continues, Governor Pritzker is moving Illinois forward to a Bridge to Phase 5 mitigation on Friday, May 14, 2021. In order to adhere to social distancing guidelines, the capacity in Council Chambers will remain at 18 members of the public. During meetings, any member of the public physically present in the Council Chambers in excess of the limit will be asked to wait in another room with live feed to the meeting until the Citizens To Be Heard on Agenda Items section or Public Comments section of the meeting has commenced. Speakers will be rotated into Council Chambers to allow everyone an opportunity to speak. Pursuant to the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity’s Guidelines, it is recommended that any individual appearing in-person wear a face-covering to cover their nose and mouth. Citizens who are unable to attend the meeting can email comments in advance of the meeting to publiccomment@joliet.gov. CALL TO ORDER DECLARATION OF QUORUM Present Quinn Adamowski, Bill Habiger, Candace Johnson, Kailee Lowry, Sharon Merwin, Sara Stovall and Steven Wright Absent Brian Bessler, Mary Beth Gannon, Kevin Heinemann and Aaron Mikottis APPROVAL OF MINUTES Page 1 of 5 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes May 26, 2021 Committee of the Whole March 24, 2021 Historic Preservation Commission TMP-1694 Committee-of-the-Whole Workshop Meeting Minutes Attachments: 03-24-21 COW Minutes JB A motion was made by Candace Johnson, seconded by Kailee Lowry, to approve: March 24, 2021 Historic Preservation Commission Committee-of-the-Whole Workshop Meeting Minutes. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Adamowski, Habiger, Johnson, Lowry, Merwin, Stovall and Wright April 28, 2021 Historic Preservation Commission TMP-1695 Committee-of-the-Whole Workshop Meeting Minutes Attachments: 04-28-21 COW Minutes JB A motion was made by Candace Johnson, seconded by Bill Habiger, to approve: April 28, 2021 Historic Preservation Commission Committee-of-the-Whole Workshop Meeting Minutes. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Adamowski, Habiger, Johnson, Merwin, Stovall and Wright Abstain: Lowry CITIZENS TO BE HEARD ON AGENDA ITEMS NOTE: There is a new temporary procedure for public speaking. Details can be found on the Joliet.gov “Public Comments” web page. This section is for anyone wanting to speak regarding items listed on the agenda . Anyone speaking on an agenda item is entitled to speak for a maximum of 4 minutes. It is not a question and answer period and staff and the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission do not generally respond to public comments. Please note speakers who engage in conduct injurious to the harmony of the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission shall be called to order by the Presiding Officer and may forfeit the opportunity to speak. COMMITTEE AND STAFF REPORTS a.Staff Report Ms. Bernhard gave the staff report. Ms. Bernhard heard back from the State of Illinois Historic Preservation Office, and they are funding the Certified Local Government grant application that was submitted earlier this spring. The Certified Local Government grant will be used to update the designated historic properties inventory, a $24,000 project. The information collected will be uploaded to a web-based platform. The next step will be requesting quotes from consultant firms to complete the research. Ms. Bernhard gave an update on the Railroad Certified Local Government Grant funded Page 2 of 5 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes May 26, 2021 Committee of the Whole project. The State of Illinois would like to move forward with the Railroad Museum, this project has been extended to September of 2022. Ms. Bernhard is working with Greg Peerbolte to get a large portion of the project completed this summer. The State of Illinois did not open up the grant round in 2020 due to the pandemic, therefore they plan to do another grant round opening in 2021. b.Committee of the Whole (COW) There was no discussion on this subject. OLD BUSINESS A. Candidates for future landmarks: i. 804 West Marion Street Ms. Bernhard did not have any updates for 804 W. Marion Street. Ms. Johnson mentioned that the thematic style of the home needs to be determined. Ms. Bernhard agreed. ii. 214 Herkimer Street Ms. Merwin stated she has been working on this property. Ms. Merwin has taken pictures of the property to present. Ms. Merwin and Ms. Bernhard presented the pictures to the Commission. The Commissioners discussed the architectural details and updates to the home. Ms. Merwin talked about the ownership history of the home. Ms. Merwin, Ms. Johnson and Ms. Bernhard talked about the current garage and the previous carriage house . Ms. Merwin talked about the current owner possibly selling the house and the new owner possibly not moving forward with preserving & restoring the home. Ms. Merwin would like to ensure the home will be historically protected in the future. The Commissioners agreed to move forward with making this home a historic landmark. Ms. Merwin asked Ms. Bernhard about the past zoning of the property. Ms. Bernhard believed the home was previously multi-family, which got down zoned in 1994 to R-2 single-family residential. Chairman Adamowski asked if anyone else had questions. No one came forward. Chairman Adamowski thanked Ms. Merwin for her presentation. iii. Big Brothers Building Ms. Johnson has been working on the historical narrative for this property; however, there are some missing dates. Ms. Johnson has concluded that the style of the building is a commercial colonial revival, with federal revival influences. Ms. Johnson has not completed the architectural report, she still needs to visit the site. Ms. Merwin asked who owns the building, Ms. Johnson replied Big Brother Big Sisters owns the building but it is currently for sale. Chairman Adamowski asked if any had questions. No one came forward. Page 3 of 5 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes May 26, 2021 Committee of the Whole iv. Oakwood Cemetery Ms. Bernhard gave an update on information she has received along with Mr. Wright. Mr. Wright talked about his research of the Oakwood Cemetery. Mr. Wright talked about prominent Joliet figures who were buried at Oakwood Cemetery. Ms. Bernhard talked about preserving the Oakwood Cemetery and working with Joliet Township to landmark the site. Ms. Merwin asked if there were financial incentives if the property is Government owned. Chairman Adamowski responded that because it is Government owned, the Oakwood Cemetery has a budget and finances to maintain the land . Chairman Adamowski also said landmarking Oakwood Cemetery would add a layer of protection to the cemetery. Ms. Johnson added that there had been work performed on the land to the back with headstones found in a pile. She is hopeful landmark status will protect the cemetery from unauthorized changes and construction. Ms. Bernhard presented the Commission with pictures she took at the site, the Commissioners discussed the photos. NEW BUSINESS A. Thematic District Criteria Ms. Bernhard did not have any updates on the thematic district criteria. B. Certificate of Appropriateness Application Ms. Bernhard did not have any updates on the certificate of appropriateness application update. Ms. Bernhard suggested some possible additions to the application to make the process easier for applicants to understand. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS Ms. Merwin talked about a free Zoom meeting for the National Association of Preservation Commission. Ms. Merwin will look into other historic preservation Zoom meetings. Ms. Johnson finished the Sear's self-guided tour book, she sent it to Ms. Bernhard for review. PUBLIC COMMENTS NOTE: There is a new temporary procedure for public speaking. Details can be found on the Joliet.gov “Public Comments” web page. This section is for anyone wanting to speak regarding items listed on the agenda . Anyone speaking on an agenda item is entitled to speak for a maximum of 4 minutes. It is not a question and answer period and staff and the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission do not generally respond to public comments. Please note speakers who engage in conduct injurious to the harmony of the Joliet Historic Preservation Commission shall be called to order by the Presiding Officer and may forfeit the opportunity to speak. ADJOURNMENT Page 4 of 5 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes May 26, 2021 Committee of the Whole A motion was made by Sharon Merwin, seconded by Candace Johnson, to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Adamowski, Habiger, Johnson, Lowry, Merwin, Stovall and Wright This meeting will be held in an accessible location. If you need a reasonable accommodation, please contact Christa M. Desiderio, City Clerk, 150 West Jefferson Street, Joliet, Illinois 60432 at (815) 724-3780. Page 5 of 5