Historic District Commission

NORWICH HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION Minutes of the September 18, 2024 Regular Meeting Hybrid via ZOOM & Room 319, City Hall 100 Broadway, Norwich, CT 5:30PM Members Present: Timothy Dowhan (Chairman) Nancy O’Neil (ZOOM) Gregory Farlow (ZOOM) Members Absent: Greg Johnson, Dayne Rugh and Regan Miner. Guests: Charles Frick Timothy Dowhan reviewed the rules of a virtual meeting and clearly notified participants that the meeting would be recorded. I. Public Meeting The public meeting was convened at 5:30 pm. The order of COA presentations and discussions are at the discretion of the commission to accommodate all participants. ● COA 558 - 30 Huntington Lane (Charles Frick) - Alteration/Replacement, Non-Residential Building, Perimeter Charles Frick stated the COA submitted is for work to the barn structure on his property that was built in the 1800’s and has drainage issues due to the back of the structure being abutted by dirt. Charles Frick stated he plan is to fix the inside of the barn that is half concrete, half dirt. Charles Frick stated he wished to dig down to the foundation and install sister walls on the back side of the barn to fix the drainage and be able to use the barn structure, as well as preserve it. Charles Frick stated he would need to dig down behind the barn and to the left side of the barn. Charles Frick stated he would then pour the sister wall, install drainage and fill the dirt back up. Charles Frick stated he was aware there was a question of what would be done to the corner of the barn that was not covered by dirt. Charles Frick stated he spoke to his contractor and that piece would remain as it is. Charles Frick stated they would need to put drainage underground out to the front lawn to prevent as much water as possible from seeping through the dirt. Timothy Dowhan stated there was concern if the foundation of the sister wall from the corner in the rear right of the property. Timothy Dowhan asked if the foundation would be below grade. Charles Frick stated the sister walls would not be visible and the dirt would be graded so that it was not pushing against the brick foundation. Nancy O’Neil noted that it looked as though almost all of the work would not be visible from the public right of way, so only a small portion of the work was in consideration of appropriateness. Timothy Dowhan agreed and noted that even the grading would occur behind the barn. II. Regular Meeting The regular meeting was convened at 5:45 PM. A. Action on COA’s ● COA 558 - 30 Huntington Lane (Charles Frick) - Alteration/Replacement, Non-Residential Building, Perimeter Nancy O’Neil made a motion to approve the COA as submitted and presented. Gregory Farlow seconded. All voted in favor. The motion passed unanimously. B. Minutes of the Wednesday August 21, 2024 Regular Meeting ● Gregory Farlow made a motion to approve the August 21, 2024 regular meeting minutes. Timothy Dowhan seconded. Gregory Farlow and Timothy Dowhan voted in favor. Nancy O’Neil abstained. The motion passed. C. Chairman Report ● Timothy Dowhan discussed COA inquiries received by email. Timothy Dowhan stated he noticed some siding work occurring in the district but he did not believe building permits were required for the work and per the Historic District Guidelines he felt the work would likely be considered routine maintenance and therefore not require a COA. Timothy Dowhan noted that the 2025 meeting schedule needed to be submitted and confirmed with those in attendance that the 5:30PM time on the third Wednesday of each month still worked well. Discussion ensued regarding in-person attendance. D. Old Business ● None. E. New Business ● None. F. Next Meeting Date ● Scheduled for Wednesday October 16, 2024 G. Adjournment ● Gregory Farlow made a motion to adjourn the regular meeting at 6:11 PM. Nancy O’neil seconded. Nancy O’Neil, Gregory Farlow and Timothy Dowhan voted in favor. The motion passed unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Katherine Rose Recording Secretary