Heritage Commission

CITY OF LACONIA HERITAGE COMMISSION Wednesday, October 13, 2021 - 5:00 PM City Hall - Armand A. Bolduc City Council Chamber Accepted November 10, 2021 10/13/2021 - Minutes 1. Call to order Jane Whitehead called the meeting to order at 5:02 pm. 2. Salute to the flag The commission saluted the flag. 3. Roll call Mark Haynes, Lois Kessin, Catherine Tokarz, and Jane Whitehead were present. Also seated at the table was Scott Ringer, who is proposed to be appointed as a member of the commission by City Council on October 25th. 4. Recording secretary Mackenzie Theberge 5. Staff in attendance Planning Director Dean Trefethen 6. Acceptance of Minutes from previous meeting 6.I. Acceptance of Minutes for July 14 C. Tokarz made a motion to approve the minutes. M. Haynes seconded the motion. All voted in favor. 7. City Council Liaison Report M. Haynes discussed that the motion on the executive council was not to move forward with the state school. M. Haynes also discussed that the Lake Shore redevelopment has budget to move forward. 8. Planning Board update D. Trefethen discussed that the applications for the Endicott Street condominiums were received and it will be a total of forty-eight units. 76 Lakeside Ave will be holding off on demolition. The Gardens Theatre located at 634 Main Street was bought. The existing six units are planned to be gutted to create one large unit, and the brick will be reappointed. The Holy Trinity project will be moving forward with their project also. D. Trefethen also discussed that the drive-in movie theatre will be potentially bought for redevelopment and any challenges will be dealt with. C. Tokarz requested a tour to be set up for Gardens Theatre before the work is done. 9. New business 9.I. Election of Chairperson  C. Tokarz requested a tour to be set up for Gardens Theatre before the work is done. 9. New business 9.I. Election of Chairperson The commission discussed on potentially putting off the election of chairperson until the next meeting. There was no motion made. L. Kessin motioned to elect J. Whitehead as Chairperson, C. Tokarz seconded the motion. J. Whitehead abstained. 9.II. 88 Leighton Ave North Contractor Jesse Lindland with Outside Inn Construction, represented the applicants Emily and Greg Bourbeau. J. Lindland briefly discussed that the building is to be demolished and that the lot has been mostly cleared. Photos of the house in its current state was given to the commission for review as well as what is proposed. M. Haynes made a motion to approve the demolition permit. L. Kessin seconded the motion. All voted in favor. 9.III. 79 Elm Street Attorney Shawna Bentley with Wescott law represented the applicant Paugus Properties. S. Bentley stated that not everything that is old means it is historic. There is consistent drug use and squatters at this location. S. Bentley discussed that the building does not have a unique design, the floors are vinyl, and interior is not structurally sound. The stairs are not up to code and the building has been vacant for quite some time. S. Bentley stated that the applicant wants to bring more character and something for the community. C. Tokarz stated that she does not disagree that there has been a lot of criminal activity. C. Tokarz asked D. Trefethen if we should have known about the issue of the stairs and if the police should be informing us for safety concerns. D. Trefethen explained that we do not go into buildings without a reason or permission to go in. This building would take a lot of reuse because it is structurally deficient. The Fire department usually informs us, and we act on these cases. J. Whitehead stated that the building is visually appealing and has a funky, unique character. J. Whitehead hopes for the new building to obtain the same character. L. Kessin made a motion to approve the demolition permit. M. Haynes seconded the motion. All voted in favor. 9.IV. 133 Leighton Ave South The current owners were present, they briefly explained that the building is dilapidated. The building is on a one acre lot, and they plan to build mostly within the same footprint. The new house will be expanded just a few feet in the back. C. Tokarz asked if there is anything left of the original 1880 structure. The owners are not aware if any of it is left, and there is no-one for them to get in contact for the documentation on the building. The fireplace is made of stone in the interior and on the exterior it is made of cinder blocks above the roof. The kitchen floor is at a slant of twelve degrees. L. Kessin questioned if the new house will be winterized for full time residency. The owners explained that it will be winterized but they do not plan on living there full time as the new house is meant for their children.  documentation on the building. The fireplace is made of stone in the interior and on the exterior it is made of cinder blocks above the roof. The kitchen floor is at a slant of twelve degrees. L. Kessin questioned if the new house will be winterized for full time residency. The owners explained that it will be winterized but they do not plan on living there full time as the new house is meant for their children. L. Kessin made a motion to approve the demolition permit. M. Haynes seconded the motion. All voted in favor. 9.V. 30 Dennis Ave Contractor Bruce Vaal represented the applicants Karen and Mark Urlage. B. Vaal explained that the owners had recently bought the property. The building is currently in the setbacks so the plan is to demolish and move the new building out of setbacks. B. Vaal discussed that the current layout is strange and that there is a a spiral staircase that leads into a closet which then leads into a bedroom. L. Kessin made a motion to approve the demolition permit. M. Haynes seconded the motion. All voted in favor. 10. Old business The board had no old business to discuss. 11. Public comment There was no public to comment. 12. Other business C. Tokarz mentioned that capturing real estate photos of historic homes is going great and that it is nice to have these images on file for the commission to review. C. Tokarz also discussed that the Evangelical Baptist Church located on 40 - 50 Washington Street seems to be painting the exterior. J. Whitehead stated that she would like to plan on giving awards again in the near future. L. Kessin asked D. Trefethen to find out why 76 Lakeside Ave is being sold and to see if we can hopefully have the demolition permit dropped. C. Tokarz asked D. Trefethen how many apartments are in the Colonial Theatre. D. Trefethen explained that there are a total of nine apartments with five already sold. The commission briefly discussed about how parking is an issue especially in Lakeport, and that this challenge is still being figured out at the moment. 13. Adjournment C. Tokarz motioned to adjourn, M. Haynes seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Meeting adjourned at 6:10 pm.