Historic District Commission Meeting

HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION MINUTES OF April 4, 2022 The Historic District Commission of the City of Norman, Cleveland County, State of Oklahoma, met for the Regular Meeting on March 7, 2022 at 5:30 p.m. Notice and Agenda of the meeting were posted at 201 West Gray, Building A, the Norman Municipal Complex and at www.Normanok.gov twenty-four hours prior to the beginning of the meeting. Chair Emily Wilkins called the meeting to order at 5:31 p.m. Item No. 1, being: Roll Call. MEMBERS PRESENT: Taber Halford Emily Wilkins Barrett Williamson* Michael Zorba Mitch Baroff Aaron Brooks Shavonne Evans* MEMBERS ABSENT: Joan Koos Brent Swift A quorum was present. *Commissioner Shavonne Evans arrived at 5:34 PM. Commissioner Barrett Williamson arrived at 5:37 PM. STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Anaïs Starr, Planner II, Historic Preservation Officer Jeanne Snider, Assistant City Attorney Jessica Steele, Admin Tech III GUESTS: John Allen and Jan Davis, 434 College Ave Matthew and Zach Akin, 437 College Ave Loretta Bass and John Kmetz, 440 College Brandon Wright, 434 College Ave Steve Langford, 443 College Ave Chuck Anderson, 207 Chautauqua Historic District Commission April 4, 2022 Page 2 of 11 * Item No. 2, being: Approval of the minutes from the March 7, 2022 Meeting. Motion by Mitch Baroff for approval of the minutes from the March 7, 2022 regular meeting; Second by Taber Halford. The motion was passed unanimously with a vote of 5-0. Minutes from the previous meeting were approved and signed by Chair Emily Wilkins. (Shavonne Evans and Barrett Williamson were not present for this vote.) * Item No. 3, being: HD (22-14) Consideration of Certificate of Appropriateness for the installation of a swimming pool with associated concrete decking for property located at 437 College Avenue. Motion by Michael Zorba to approve Item No. 3 as submitted; Second by Mitch Baroff. Anaïs Starr presented the staff report: The house at 437 College Avenue is part of the Chautauqua Historic District. The original historic structure located on this property was demolished and replaced with this existing house prior to this section of College Avenue being added to the Chautauqua Historic District in August of 2018. The property owners are wishing to install a 92- square-foot spa pool, originally referred to as a “swimming pool” in the staff report, and the associated concrete decking. It will be located partially behind the house. Per Historic District Guidelines, the Historic Preservation Officer can review swimming pools that are located behind the house, but pools that extend into the side yard are to be reviewed by the Historic District Commission. The Commission would need to determine if the proposed spa pool, along with the decking, meets the Guidelines and is compatible with the Chautauqua Historic District. Matthew Akin, the property owner, discussed the project: Mr. Akin expressed gratitude to the Historic District staff for their help with this submission. He offered to answer any questions the Commission, staff or guests present might have. Public comments consisted of:  John Kmetz voiced his support of the proposed installation of a spa pool. He is concerned about the 65% max allowable coverage for impervious surfaces. Ms. Starr indicated that impervious surface calculation will be checked by city staff as part of the building permit application process. The site plan will need to provide for less than 65% impervious surface area coverage in order to be approved for construction. Historic District Commission April 4, 2022 Page 3 of 11  Mr. Akin asked Ms. Starr that if the maximum allowable impervious surface coverage is exceeded, would he be allowed to use pervious materials? Ms. Starr explained that this is allowed, as long as the city engineer approves the proposed materials and installation standards are adhered by.  Loretta Bass voiced her concern about the potential impervious surface area coverage issue. She does not want to see flooding or drainage issues for surrounding neighbors. Commission discussion consisted of:  Mitch Baroff voices support of the proposal, as this spa pool is planned to be located mostly behind the house. Should not be visible from the street.  Michael Zorba is also supportive.  Taber Halford is supportive of the proposal as submitted. He points out that this is not a large pool, should not be too much disturbance to surrounding neighbors.  Mr. Akin is amenable to working with city staff to meet City impervious surface requirements.  Barrett Williamson is also supportive and does not foresee any issues with this spa pool location as proposed. There being no further discussion, a vote on the motion was taken with the following result: The motion was passed unanimously with a vote of 7-0. Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Item No. 4, being: HD (22-15) Consideration of Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition and reconstruction of an attached sunroom for property located at 434 College Avenue. Motion by Shavonne Evans to approve Item No. 4 as submitted; Second by Aaron Brooks. Anaïs Starr presented the staff report: This is a circa 1913 bungalow, Craftsman, contributing structure to the Chautauqua Historic District. Photos were presented to the Commission showing the sunroom in question from different perspectives. The applicants suffered extensive hail damage to the existing non-original sunroom addition located on the rear of the house in the October hail storm. They are seeking to rebuild the sunroom, but without the curved glass that comprised the ceiling and the side walls. The applicants’ contractor is proposing to utilize the footing of the existing sunroom to construct the new addition. The new addition will have a composite shingle roof, cement fiberboard, aluminum-clad wood windows of the same configuration as seen in the rest of the house. There will not be an expansion in roof height or the footprint; so this is a 192-square-foot addition that is 12x16. The applicant prefers to use cement fiberboard siding and aluminum-clad wood Historic District Commission April 4, 2022 Page 4 of 11 windows for the sunroom, but will consider wood siding and wood windows if necessary to meet the Preservation Guidelines. An aluminum storm door is proposed on the south side of the sunroom to provide egress into the rear yard. If the masonry stem wall will accommodate it, an interior door of fiberglass or wood was also proposed. Ms. Starr explained that the demolition of the non-original structure is compatible with the Guidelines; the design, size and scale meet the Preservation Guidelines. Ms. Starr stated that the Commission would need to decide on the alternative material change requested. The applicants wish to use cement fiberboard siding and aluminum- clad wood windows, which Ms. Starr pointed out that the Commission has approved for structures in the rear yard that are not visible from the front in the past. The Preservation Guidelines allow for aluminum-clad wood or fiberglass storm doors after review on a case-by-case basis. The Commission would need to decide if the proposed replacement addition and materials meet the Preservation Guidelines and whether it is compatible with the structure as well as the surrounding Historic District.  Mitch Baroff would like to see a wood storm door rather than aluminum.  Emily Wilkins asked what the floor material is; Jan Davis explained that it is a brick and sand floor. Jan Davis and John Allen, the owners/applicants, discussed the project:  Offered to answer any questions of staff or the Commission.  Mitch Baroff requested clarification regarding siding material. Brandon Wright, the applicants’ contractor, explained that the framing will allow for any type of interior storm door for the sunroom, as was questioned earlier. Mr. Wright explained that he plans to use a Smart Trim siding, overlapping material, which will be similar in appearance to the rest of the house. It will look as close as possible to the existing structure.  Barrett Williamson recommended the use of smooth siding; Brandon Wright, contractor, was agreeable to this suggestion; will plan to use smooth siding for the sunroom.  Brandon Wright discussed the plans for the proposed sunroom; siding is proposed for the interior of the sunroom, to match walls already existing.  Barrett Williamson clarified with the contractor the plans for attaching the roofing rafters to the original structure. Barrett recommended that the sunroom addition be installed in a way to preserve the outside trim, rather than covering it. This will be a more compatible design in his opinion and will help differentiate between old structure and new construction.  Barrett Williamson offered suggestion to include a window above the south-facing door, to align with the height of the adjacent windows. Jan Davis was amenable to this recommended option.  Taber Halford discussed the proposed door, and options available to the applicants. The property owner, Jan Davis, does not want to move or damage the cinderblocks.  Barrett Williamson explained that painting the cinderblocks may help deter moisture migration. Jan Davis was interested in this suggestion. Commission comments and discussion consisted of: Historic District Commission April 4, 2022 Page 5 of 11  Emily Wilkins obtained verbal consent from the applicants, allowing for amendments to their proposal as submitted.  Aaron Brooks explained that he does not want to “overbake” the proposal with matters of taste; is supportive of the proposal as submitted. No public comments were made. Motion amended by Barrett Williamson to allow for the following options: 1. Painted concrete masonry to match existing painted masonry. 2. Reconfigure south wall to include a transom window above the door, to align with adjacent windows. 3. Alternate materials allowed for siding; smooth finish required. Second by Aaron Brooks. There being no further discussion, a vote on the motion was taken with the following result: The motion was passed unanimously as amended with a vote of 7-0. Ms. Starr noted that there is a 10-day waiting period until the COA will be issued. * Item No. 5, being: Staff report on active Certificates of Appropriateness and Administrative Bypass issued since March 7, 2022 and consideration of approval, rejection, amendment and/or postponement of six-month extension requests for expiring COAs. Progress of Active COAs:  904 Miller Avenue – possible interest by new buyer, who may elect to demolish the structure.  518 Chautauqua – Work is nearing completion.  620 Miller – Work has started, but shutters have not been reinstalled.  518 S. Lahoma – Demolition of non-original addition is complete. Greenhouse has been removed. Work has not started on new addition.  549 S. Lahoma – Pending litigation. Windows in question have been replaced.  503 Tulsa – Building permit issued and work has started.  506 S. Lahoma – Work has not started; building permit has been submitted.  428 Chautauqua – Building permit issued; work nearing completion.  904 Classen – Work has not started.  514 Miller – Building permit issued; siding has been removed. Evidence of work on interior and wood repairs to exterior siding.  521 Miller – No building permit yet, work has not started. Historic District Commission April 4, 2022 Page 6 of 11  627 E Boyd – Building permit issued; work has not started.  800 Miller – Roof has been replaced.  508 Macy – Work has not started. Staff approved the replacement window; applicant has ordered the windows.  418 Macy – Work has not started. Applicant has had problems locating smooth siding. Anaïs gave some contact information to the applicant with possible locations to find smooth siding. Administrative Bypasses Issued:  406 College Ave—Removal of siding to reveal original historic wood siding. Six-month extension requests: None. * Item No. 6, being: Discussion of progress report regarding the FY 2021-2022 CLG Grant Projects. Anaïs Starr presented the following updates:  National Alliance for Preservation located in Ohio in July this year. Ms. Starr stated that she had not received any interest from the Commissioners in attending the Conference this year.  Scanning of Historic District files has begun. Ms. Starr stated that Admin Tech, Jessica Steele, is working to scan the Historic District COA files. Staff hopes to scan the Historic Survey information as well.  Barrett would like to see a digital form with fillable fields available. Staff will look into making this happen. * Item No. 7, being: Miscellaneous Comments of HD Commission and City Staff.  Anaïs Starr discussed potential to offer a Historic Preservation Award named in honor of the prior Historic Preservation Officer, Susan Atkinson, who recently passed away unexpectedly. Ms. Starr stated that Susan had really grown the Historic Preservation we have in Norman and made it what it is today. This proposal will require a resolution that City Council must approve. Specific criteria will need to be outlined and approved. Commission expressed support of this proposal.  Susan Atkinson’s history with the Historic District and the City of Norman discussed. Her memorial is slated for April 25, 3-5 pm at the Yale Theater in Oklahoma City.  Anaïs explained her hopes to recognize Historic Preservation for the month of May in the future.  Possible Centennial Awards was proposed, which would be a way to recognize historic structures or properties as they turn 100. Historic District Commission April 4, 2022 Page 7 of 11 * Item No. 8, being: Adjournment. The meeting adjourned at 6: 33 p.m. Passed and approved this 2nd day of May 2022. Emily Wilkins (May 4, 2022 12:00 CDT) Emily Wilkins, Chair Historic District Commission