Historic Preservation Committee

TOWN OF LOS GATOS HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE REPORT MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING JANUARY 22, 2025 The Historic Preservation Committee of the Town of Los Gatos conducted a regular meeting on January 22, 2025 at 4:00 p.m. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER AT 4:00 PM WELCOME TO NEW MEMBERS Planning Commissioner Emily Thomas and Committee Member Alan Feinberg ROLL CALL Present: Chair Susan Burnett, Vice Chair Lee Quintana, Planning Commissioner Emily Thomas, Committee Member Alan Feinberg and Committee Member Martha Queiroz. Absent: None VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS Wayne Heimsoth, Veterans Foundation of Los Gatos and Campbell, American Legion Post 99, - Please add the old fire station at 4 Tait Avenue to the Historic Inventory. They have been working with the Town for four to five years to make it a Community Center. Their three veterans’ organizations need a small office and a meeting room. They meet three to four days a month. They are hoping to rent it for a dollar a year. Instead of selling the building, it could be used as a community center. Their volunteers could help with the need to fix it. CONSENT ITEMS (TO BE ACTED UPON BY A SINGLE MOTION) 1. Draft Minutes of the November 20, 2024 Historic Preservation Committee Meeting 2. Draft Minutes of the December 18, 2024 Historic Preservation Committee Meeting MOTION: Motion by Committee Member Queiroz to forward a recommendation of approval of the above request to the Community Development Director. Seconded by Vice Chair Quintana. VOTE: Motion passed 3-0-2, Planning Commissioner Emily Thomas and Committee Member Alan Feinberg abstained. 110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6874 www.losgatosca.gov PAGE 2 OF 5 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JANUARY 22, 2025 PUBLIC HEARINGS 3. 155 Hernandez Avenue Request for Review Application PHST-24-024 Consider a Request for Approval to Construct Exterior Alterations to a Pre-1941 Single- Family Residence on Property Zoned R-1:8. APN 510-40-152. Exempt Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines, Section 15301: Existing Facilities. Property Owner: Catherine Nadeau. Applicant: Marcie Macdonough. Project Planner: Ryan Safty. Chair Burnett recused themselves due to living within 500 feet of the property. Ryan Safty, Associate Planner, presented the staff report. Opened Public Comment. Marcie Macdonough, Architect, Leah Costas, Designer, and Catherine Nadeau, Owner - Owners want to preserve but update the house. Some of the dual-pane windows keep the heat in and cooler air out. To make the upstairs more functional and live-able, they want to raise the plate a foot and the pitch half an inch per foot. The main ridge would be raised two feet but is set far back. The feel of the house will not change. They have worked on historic homes in the past San Jose’s Hanchett and Hester Park area. The goal is to honor the house and make small adjustments. The windows they are planning to use were approved in San Jose. They will replace all original windows as like-for-like, but will remove and replace some windows that were added in the 1950’s. Committee members asked questions of the applicant. Marcie Macdonough, Architect, Leah Costas, Designer, and Catherine Nadeau, Owner - Some of the windows don’t work. Some of the original windows are painted shut and non- functional. Some windows are from the 50’s and will be replaced. From the street no one will know the difference. The depth will be a true 2 x 4 frame. The measurement from the exterior window jamb will be the same. The windows are casement and not double-hung. They plan to keep the carport and use it to cover building materials during construction. Afterwards, it could be embellished to fit more with the house. The windows on the east side stay the same. Maximum height issues are addressed by extending a planter and moving some of the downstairs windows. Some door locations are shifted due to the new stair location. Old aluminum kitchen sink window and round bathroom window will be removed. The front windows will be like for like. Dormers would be changed from six feet to a normal six feet and eight inches to provide adequate headroom. Closed Public Comment. PAGE 3 OF 5 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JANUARY 22, 2025 Committee members discussed the matter. The changes to the pitch of the roof are very minimal. The view from street won’t be change very much. Respectful of the house’s historic nature. The quality of the windows will be improved. It maintains the character of the house. MOTION: Motion by Commissioner Thomas to forward a recommendation of approval of the above request to the Community Development Director. Seconded by Committee Member Feinberg. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 4-0-1. Chair Burnett recused. 4. 328 Bachman Avenue Minor Residential Development Application MR-24-016. Consider a Request for Approval to Construct a Second-Story Addition Exceeding 100 Square Feet and Exterior Alterations to an Existing Contributing Single-Family Residence in the Almond Grove Historic District on Property Zoned R-1D:LHP. APN 510-14-037. Exempt Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines, Section 15301: Existing Facilities. Property Owner: Snighdha Uday Dharmavaram Applicant: Bess Wiersema Project Planner: Maria Chavarin Maria Chavarin, Assistant Planner, presented the staff report. For the record: the Staff Report erroneously categorized the residence as a “Contributor” to the Almond Grove Historic District. The Residential Design Guidelines does not list the property as a Contributor to the district. Committee asked questions of Staff Maria Chavarin, Assistant Planner, and Sean Mullin, Planning Manager The property is not listed under the Residential Design Guidelines as a Contributor. The County Assessor’s database shows a build date of 1900. Additional records showed a build date of 1885. The Bloomfield survey has it listed as 1980. It is pre-1941 and in a historic district. It is still subject to the Design Guidelines. To be considered as a Contributor, the property would need to come before the Town Council. The Town Council would then ask for a recommendation from the Historic Preservation Committee. A Contributor is subject to a higher level of scrutiny. PAGE 4 OF 5 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JANUARY 22, 2025 Opened Public Comment. Applicant presented the project. Bess Weirsema, Applicant, Studio 3 They are removing any vinyl windows. The front and two street sides are in good condition. Most of the work will be on the shanty-like additions to the back of the house. Interior remodel that returns the upstairs to the original layout. They intend to make it a habitable home for a multi-generational family while maintaining the character of the house in the neighborhood. They will match existing details such as the siding and trim. They will use a French door and not a five-panel door in the back. Committee members asked questions of the applicant. Bess Weirsema, Applicant, Studio 3 They plan to blow in insulation in the attic area and some of the uninsulated interior spaces. The addition of 100 square foot on the second floor includes closet space under the eaves. They are trying to maintain an existing portion of the roof by tucking it under an existing window and above another existing window. There is not a wing coming out. All the geometry is coming together at an interior corner. It does not pitch back down. It leaves the primary more historic gable to match the two streetside gables. Closed Public Comment. Committee discussed the matter. No mention of reinforcing the structure and earthquake proofing. The Committee focuses on design and not the structure. The design is in keeping true to its nature. It is a good remedy for the additions in the back. They are making the windows more consistent. It is very thoughtfully designed. They understand the history of the home. It’s an important home that was left off a list and is on a very visible corner location. Thank you for providing the existing and the proposed elevations. The house will appear unchanged after the project is completed. MOTION: Motion by Commissioner Thomas to forward a recommendation of approval of the above request to the Community Development Director. Seconded by Committee Member Queiroz. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 5-0. PAGE 5 OF 5 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JANUARY 22, 2025 OTHER BUSINESS (Up to three minutes may be allotted to each speaker on any of the following items.) Chair and Vice-chair will be elected. MOTION: Motion by Chair Burnett to nominate Vice Chair Quintana as Chair. Seconded by Committee Member Feinberg. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 5-0. MOTION: Motion by Vice Chair Quintana to nominate Committee Member Queiroz as Chair. Seconded by Chair Burnett. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 5-0. REPORT FROM THE DIRECTOR Sean Mullin, Planning Manager • All decisions of the Director aligned with the recommendations of the previous meeting. • An appeal by 55 Ellenwood was considered and granted by the Planning Commission. • An appeal by 228 Bachman to be considered at tonight’s Planning Commission meeting. COMMITTEE MATTERS • Thank you to Susan Burnett for her chairmanship. • Add on the next meeting and agenda the conduct of the Committee meetings. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 4:53 p.m. This is to certify that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the January 22, 2025 meeting as approved by the Historic Preservation Committee. /s/ Sean Mullin, AICP, Planning Manager  This Page Intentionally Left Blank