Historic District Commission Meeting

HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION MINUTES OF August 3, 2020 The Historic District Commission of the City of Norman, Cleveland County, State of Oklahoma, met for the Regular Meeting on August 3, 2020, at 5:30 p.m virtually via Zoom. Notice and Agenda of the meeting were posted at 201 West Gray Building-A, the Norman Municipal Building and at www.Normanok.gov twenty-four hours prior to the beginning of the meeting. Commissioner Russell Kaplan called the meeting to order at 5:34 p.m. Item No. 1, being: Roll Call. MEMBERS PRESENT: Mitch Baroff Greg Heiser Russell Kaplan Joan Koos Brent Swift Emily Wilkins Barrett Williamson Michael Zorba MEMBERS ABSENT: Brent Swift A quorum was present. STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Anaïs Starr, Planner II Tara Reynolds, Admin Tech III Jeanne Snider, Assistant City Attorney GUESTS: Cassidy Mulligan John & Sandra Ryden Rick Hall Eric Anderson Karen Thurston Erin Schier Steven Smith Mark Krittenbrink * Item No. 2, being: Approval of the Minutes from the June 1, 2020 Regular Meeting Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 2 of 4 Motion by Mitch Baroff for approval of the minutes from the June 1, 2020 regular meeting; Second by Emily Wilkins. The motion was passed unanimously. * Item No. 3, being: 3. HD (20-09) Consideration of a Certificate of Appropriateness request for the installation of National Register plaque on the front of the house for property located at 620 Tulsa Street. Motion by Mitch Baroff to approve item #3; Second by Emily Wilkins. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicant, John Ryden, discussed the reasons for the project:  The plaque will be affixed to the wall with screws and adhesive. Commissioner recommending making the attachment in a mortar joint. No public comments were made. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  The plaque looks good, and it’s a wonderful idea. In the future there should be uniformity and consistency of plaques in the Historic Districts. The motion was approved unanimously. Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Item No. 4, being: HD (20-10) Consideration of a Certificate of Appropriateness request for the replacement of windows, replacement of front door, widening of the driveway, installation of French doors on rear of the house, modification of existing carport with a gabled roof, and the installation of a 6' side yard fence for the property located at 713 Cruce Street. Motion by Michael Zorba to approve item #4; Second by Greg Heiser. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The first portion of the request discussed was the replacement of front, side, and rear windows. The applicants, Steven Smith discussed the reasons for the project:  The applicant is fixing up the house. The windows have gaps, do not work properly, and are not efficient. Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 3 of 4 Public Comments were made By Karen Thurston and Rick Hall, which are attached. Ms. Thurston added that the applicant’s choice seems acceptable because he is keeping the same design. She would like to keep the same historic character of the structure. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  The window appearance should stay similar to the current configuration. Windows are a significant feature of historic houses.  The light patterns should stay the same. The applicant amended his application to keep the same window configuration for side & rear windows, a 6 over 6 light pattern. Motion to amend the application to postpone the front three windows for discussion at a future meeting, and approve the replacement of side and rear windows with 6 over 6 configuration by Michael Zorba. Second by Emily Wilkins. The motion was passed 5-2. Mitch Baroff - Yes Greg Heiser – Yes Russell Kaplan – Yes Joan Koos – Nay Emily Wilkins - Yes Barrett Williamson – Nay Michael Zorba – Yes The next item of the application discussed was the front door replacement. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicants, Steven Smith discussed the reasons for the project:  The current front door is deteriorated, and he would like to replace it with a solid wood door. Public comments were made by Karen Thurston, which are attached. Ms. Thurston added that the chosen door is beautiful. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  It is a good choice of door, and everyone was pleased. The motion was approved unanimously. The next item of the application discussed was the driveway widening. Anais Starr presented the staff report. Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 4 of 4 The applicants, Steven Smith discussed the reasons for the project:  They would like to widen the driveway because of a safety concern, and additional access to park cars. There is no on-street parking. Public comments were made by Phillip Caldwell, Greg & Julie Jungman, Rebecca Patton, Steve Kock, David & Vicky Dollarhide, Cameron Brewer, and Karen Thurston, which are attached. Ms. Thurston added it needs to keep the character and safety of a residential home, and the driveway has space for 3 vehicles. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  Do not want parking in front yards.  The Historic District guideline 2.4.2 state we can not go over 10 feet in driveway width.  More parking in the front yard will undermine the historic character of the neighborhood.  Commissioners would consider approving parking on the rear of the house.  Guidelines 2.4.5 states driveway approaches can be a maximum of 16ft wide at curve and maximum 10ft wide. The applicant withdrew the application for a driveway expansion. The next item of the application discussed was the French door installation. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicants, Steven Smith discussed the reasons for the project:  Installing a French door for access to the back patio. Public comments were made by Karen Thurston, which is attached. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  The door is not visible from the front, and is made of wood, and is acceptable. The motion was approved unanimously. The next item of the application discussed was the modification of the car port. The applicant withdrew his application to modify the carport. The next item of the application discussed was the installation of a side yard fence. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicants, Steven Smith discussed the reasons for the project:  The request for the fence is for privacy from the alley. Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 5 of 4 Public comments were made by Karen Thurston, which are attached. Ms. Thurston added it makes sense, and sounds nice. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  It would not impact the visibility of the house, and acknowledged a need for privacy. The motion was approved unanimously. Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Item No. 5, being: HD (20-11) Consideration of a Certificate of Appropriateness request for the demolition of existing garage, construction of a new garage, removal of existing driveway, and the installation of a side/rear yard fence for the property at 536 Chautauqua Avenue. Motion by Emily Wilkins to approve item #5; Second by Joan Koos. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicant, Mark Krittenbrink, discussed the reasons for the project:  The current garage is in poor condition and too small. The new garage size was chosen to fit modern vehicles and some storage space. The owner, Eric Anderson, stated the garage was built on top of the sewer line. Public comments were made by Cameron Brewer, which are attached. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  The materials and doors acceptable, but the size is concerning. Closer to 535 square feet is more appropriate rather than 576 square feet. There is concern about setting a precedent for larger garages in the future.  While the size is concerning it is only 35 extra square feet.  It is not visible from the street so that makes the size more acceptable.  Demolishing the existing dilapidated structure is fine, and 24 X 24 is not an excessive size. We want people to continue to invest in their properties and allow for modern conveniences, which includes larger vehicles.  The garage is proportional to the large lot, and house size.  The revised guidelines will offer better guidance for garage sizes.  Based on the current guidelines we cannot approve garages larger than 535 feet.  The Commission would like to have a future discussion item about garages and size. The motion was approved 5-2. Mitch Baroff – Nay Greg Heiser – Yes Russell Kaplan – Yes Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 6 of 4 Joan Koos – Yes Emily Wilkins – Nay Barrett Williamson – Yes Michael Zorba - Yes Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Item No. 6, being: HD (20-12) Consideration of a Certificate of Appropriateness request for the installation of driveway and parking spaces in rear yard for the property at 619 W Boyd Street. Motion by Emily Wilkins to approve item #6; Second by Greg Heiser. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicant, Cassidy Mulligan, discussed the reasons for the project:  The driveway doesn’t connect to the existing parking pad – creating a muddy mess. There is also a need for more parking spaces. No public comments were made. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  The fence blocks the view of the parking area, and it is in the rear of the house. It sounds like a good solution due to its location and being next to a restaurant.  There are a lot of unique factors in this case – such as location, a large lot, it’s not visible from public view, and it is already a muddy parking lot.  There is already an existing curb cut, driveway, and parking pad, it’s just missing the connecting driveway, and the additional parking is the only question. The motion was approved 5-2. Mitch Baroff – Nay Greg Heiser – Yes Russell Kaplan – Yes Joan Koos – Nay Emily Wilkins – Yes Barrett Williamson – Yes Michael Zorba - Yes Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 7 of 4 Item No. 7, being: HD (20-13) Consideration of a Certificate of Appropriateness request for the installation of a new garage off the alleyway and the installation of stained glass into the existing backdoor of the house for property at 626 S Lahoma Avenue. Motion by Barrett Williamson to approve item #7; Second by Greg Heiser. Commissioner Joan Koos recused herself from this item. Anais Starr presented the staff report. The applicant, Dave Koos, discussed the reasons for the project:  They would like to utilize the current pad, but if they make the garage smaller than the pad it won’t support the structure properly. Therefore they would like the originally approved garage size of 624 square feet. Public comments were made by Cameron Brewer, which are attached. Commission comments and discussion consisted of:  This request was previously approved in 2006, and the pad was built, but the garage was not.  Due to the foundation already being there and the request already previously being approved it is fair to approve this request.  This size is greater than the guidelines allow. The motion was approved 5-2. Mitch Baroff – Yes Greg Heiser – Yes Russell Kaplan – Yes Emily Wilkins – Nay Barrett Williamson – Yes Michael Zorba - Yes Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Item No. 8, being: Staff report on active Certificates of Appropriateness and Administrative Bypass issued since June 1, 2020 and consideration of six-month extension requests for expiring COAs.  904 Miller – applicant not responding and no action taken.  510 Shawnee - Applied for building permit.  720 W Boyd – Building Permit to be applied for soon.  535 E Boyd – Work complete on house & garage.  503 Tulsa - Work complete.  447 College - Work almost complete.  518 Chautauqua – Work not started. Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 8 of 4 6 month extension requests – None. Administrative bypass:  619 Chautauqua – Overhead garage door. * Item No. 9, being: Discussion of progress report regarding the FY 2019-2020 CLG Projects. 16,767 CLG Allocation $150 – NAPC Dues, Renewal Renewed $1,500 – APA Conference, September 2019 $14,517 – Consultant Update Historic District Guidelines City Matching $35,000 Kick-off Meeting Guideline Update with Consultant December 2019 Consultant continues the revision of Guidelines, delayed by Coronavirus Pandemic. Contract amended to extend through September. * Item No. 10, being: Discussion regarding the update of the Historic District Guidelines.  Contract was extended, and the review process will be shortened to ensure an August 15 deadline. * Item No. 11, being: Discussion of progress report regarding the FY 2020-2021 CLG Projects. 2021 Certified Local Government Fund Allocation $13,875 CLGF total allocation (may be more later) Proposed CLG Projects for 2020-21: $150 NAPC Dues $2,500 Planning Conference attendance $11,225 Production & Distribution 2020 Historic Preservation Guidelines $5,584 became available - $2409 for virtual workshops $19,459 Total allocation Item No. 12, being: Miscellaneous comments of the Historic District Commission and city staff.  None * Item No. 13, being: Adjournment. The meeting adjourned at 10:29p.m. Passed and approved this _________ day of ______________________, 2020. Historic District Commission August 3, 2020 Page 9 of 4 __________________________ Russell Kaplan, Chair Historic District Commission