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, August 25, 2021 6:00 PM City Hall, Council Chambers As of June 11, 2021, Governor Pritzker moved Illinois to Phase 5. Under Phase 5, all sectors of the economy can resume at regular capacity with new safety guidelines and procedures . In compliance with Center for Disease Control (CDC), 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, Brian Bessler, Candace Johnson, Kailee Lowry, Sharon Merwin and Steven Wright Absent Mary Beth Gannon, Bill Habiger, Kevin Heinemann, Aaron Mikottis and Sara Stovall APPROVAL OF MINUTES A motion was made by Candace Johnson, seconded by Sharon Merwin, to table the July 28, 2021 meeting minutes. The motion was carried by the following vote: Aye: Adamowski, Johnson, Merwin and Wright Abstain: Bessler and Lowry July 28, 2021 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission TMP-2294 Committee-of-the-Whole Workshop Meeting Minutes Page 1 of 4 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes August 25, 2021 Committee of the Whole Attachments: 07-28-21 COW Minutes JB CITIZENS TO BE HEARD ON AGENDA ITEMS This section is for anyone wanting to speak regarding non-agenda items and are allowed 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 announced that the National Park Service awarded the City of Joliet $35,000 to prepare a National Register Historic District nomination for the Illinois State Penitentiary at Joliet. The City Council approved the Certified Local Government grant agreement with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources at their August 17, 2021 meeting. The grant is for $17,500 to update the designated historic properties inventory. The total project budget will be $24,000 with the remaining being funded by the City. Ms. Bernhard is seeking proposals from three Consultants for review and selection by the Commission. Ms. Bernhard did not have any updates on the Certified Local Government Grant Funded railroad museum project . Ms. Bernhard met with Chairman Adamowski and Bob Nachtrieb who is a former JHPC Commissioner and local historic district resident to go over the first two chapters of the design guidelines. Ms. Bernhard shared copy of the design guidelines with the Commissioners. Ms. Bernhard announced the roof on the US Steel Administrative building has been repaired and the interior will be repaired later. Ms. Bernhard explained that the building would be painted soon, the commissioners went over the paint colors and details. The Commissioners viewed pictures and discussed the details of the US Steel Administrative building. Ms. Merwin asked for an update on the documents from the US Steel Building. Ms. Bernhard said there is no extra staff to scan in the documents. Ms. Merwin & Ms. Johnson said they would volunteer to pick up some of the documents and Mr. Wright stated he may have storage space for some of the paperwork. Ms. Merwin stated there are some large maps. Ms. Bernhard received some updates on the Casseday house from Mr. Elvis Madison, the Chairman of the Will County Black History Committee. The electricity has been connected, the weeds will be cut down within the next few weeks and the window boards must be painted to one color. Chairman Adamowski asked if the electric panel is in place, Ms. Bernhard did not know. Ms. Bernhard received an update about the St. John's Survey. The Consultant will be sending a report over by Friday, August 27th. The Consultant would like to present at the November JHPC meeting for final comments. The Downtown National Register Historic District Survey project is moving forward with individual building research being started. Ms. Bernhard updated the meeting dates for November & December, both meetings will be moved to the third Wednesday of each month. Chairman Adawmowski suggested permanently moving the meeting to the third Wednesday of each month, Ms. Bernhard suggested the commission discuss this at another meeting. Ms. Bernhard has issued three certificates of Page 2 of 4 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes August 25, 2021 Committee of the Whole appropriateness. Ms. Bernhard announced she spoke with Councilwoman Quillman regarding the Raynor's Addition Historic District, the residents of that district are not quite ready to file yet. b.Committee of the Whole (COW) There was no discussion on this subject. OLD BUSINESS A. Candidates for future landmarks Ms. Bernhard does not have any updates on the 417 Taylor Street property. 804 W. Marion Street will be discussed at the October JHPC meeting. Ms. Bernhard has not reached out to Steven to work on the Oakwood Cemetery nomination, it will be discussed at the September meeting. Ms. Bernhard was asked to look into 219 N. Hickory Street at the July meeting and she had an update. It was designated as a public nuisance. Neighborhood Services said the property is in bad shape and may be headed for demolition if it is not improved. Ms. Bernhard received a lot consolidation request for 1160 Black Road and spoke with the homeowner about land marking the home. The current homeowner is interested in land marking the house. NEW BUSINESS A. Urban Conservation Districts Ms. Bernhard reached out to Mr. Douglas Kaarre, a Consultant with the Lakota Group, who is working on the City’s design guidelines. Mr. Kaarre referred Ms. Bernhard to a community in Texas that employs neighborhood conservation districts. Ms. Bernhard and Ms. Merwin discussed the information they have discovered. B. Recognition programs and alternatives There was no discussion on this subject. C. Certificate of Appropriateness application There was no discussion on this subject. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS Ms. Merwin mentioned an upcoming deadline for the National Trust for Historic Preservation fund grant program in October and February. Ms. Merwin presented information from an article in the Times Weekly newspaper about historic preservation funds in Will County. Ms. Merwin thought that the Commission should try to have positive press through the Times . Ms. Bernhard acknowledged that this article referenced the grant funds that City of Joliet was notified about a few months ago. This is not a new award. The City Council just approved the Page 3 of 4 Joliet Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes August 25, 2021 Committee of the Whole grant agreement to accept the funds. The NPS grant award is new. A formal announcement has not been made yet since Ms. Bernhard is waiting details to be approved by the NPS and City in order to send out a press release about the funds. Ms. Johnson asked to have Neighborhood Services check on 116 N. Center Street & 200 N. Center Street. Mr. Wright announced that he spent August 9th at the Joliet Prison site with a photographer from the National Park Service. The images will go onto the Library of Congress' website. The photographer also photographed at the US Steel property and Oakwood Cemetery . PUBLIC COMMENTS This section is for anyone wanting to speak regarding non-agenda items and are allowed 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 A motion was made by Kailee Lowry, seconded by Sharon Merwin, to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: Adamowski, Bessler, Johnson, Lowry, Merwin 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 4 of 4