Russellville Historic District Commission

RUSSELLVILLE HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION MINUTES Council Chamber City Hall – Thursday, March 23, 2023 5:00PM Commissioners Present: Betsy McGuire, Chair Leo Cantu, Vice-Chair Judy Galloway, Secretary Suzanne Alford Steve Newby Beverly Hooten Polly Hardin Kelly Jones Commissioners Absent: Greg Barborek City Council Liaison Absent: Emily Young Staff Absent: Victoria Marchant - Historic Preservation Officer and Planner 1 Advisors Present: Sara Jondahl - City Planner, Danielle Housenick - MSR Director Liaisons Absent: Trey Smith - City Attorney, T. Kirt Sloan - Fire Chief, Richard Setian - Deputy Building Official Call to Order, Roll Call & Welcome The March 23, 2023 meeting was called to order at 5:02pm, the role was called and a quorum was established. Dr. Kelly Jones, Associate History Professor at Arkansas Tech, was welcomed as the new commission member. Approval of Minutes: Ms. McGuire asked if everyone had read the minutes of the January 26, 2023 meeting. Ms. Alford made the motion to accept the minutes as written and Ms. Hooten made the second. The minutes were approved by a voice vote. Agenda: The first item on the agenda was review of a preliminary COA requested by the City of Russellville for consideration of six Level 2 wall chargers to be placed in the City Right-of-Way on the west side of the 200 block of N. Denver Avenue as part of the DIG Russellville Project. Early preliminary approval was needed so that the chargers could be purchased and be on site when it becomes time for installation. The application and the HPO's recommendation indicated "When an official application is submitted staff will recommend approval as a result of the findings…" in Section 10.1 Accessibility and 10.18 Mechanical Equipment and Utilities. The official COA application will come before the commission closer to the time of installation. Dennis Overman, representative from the DIG Project was in attendance to answer questions. Ms. Jondahl presented the request in the absence of HPO Marchant. Commissioners were provided with a spec sheet on Eaton Green Motion EV Wall Chargers and a color diagram showing parking, landscaping, streetscape appearance, etc. of the area on N. Denver Avenue where the chargers will be located. The parking spaces will be dedicated to EV's only and hopefully will draw people who need a charge to come to the downtown and dine while their vehicles charge. After quite a bit of discussion and questioning, Ms. Hooten made the motion to grant preliminary approval of the request and Mr. Newby made the second. The motion passed by a voice vote. RUSSELLVILLE HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION Meeting March 23, 2023 Page 2 The next agenda item was election of officers for upcoming year. Mr. Newby made to motion to re-elect the current slate of officers, Ms. McGuire - President, Mr. Cantu - Vice-President, Ms. Galloway - Secretary. Ms. Hooten seconded the motion and it passed by a voice vote. Unfinished Business: Ms. McGuire reported on the Latimore Tourist Home. Phase 1B, includes site prep for utilities and the move of the house from its temporary location to the permanent site on the east side of S. Houston Avenue, facing James School Park. The anticipated move of the house to its permanent site is April and Phase 1b should be completed by October 2023. Phase 2 will involve consultation with design professionals and the restoration of the house. Ms. Jondahl reported that the City applied and received a CLG Grant to fund the completion of the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places for the Old Town Neighborhood Historic District. The City has been awarded $10,100. The next step will involves selection of the appropriate party to complete these nominations. The City will keep the HDC informed and the commission hopes to have a part in selection of the appropriate party. Ms. McGuire informed the commission that Timothy O'Donnell, associate editor of Preservation Magazine, a publication of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, has asked for information on the Latimore. In his initial email he requested a high resolution photo of the home so Ms. McGuire provided a couple of Steve Newby's photos from moving day and a link to the video by Hans Stiritz. Mr. O'Donnell emailed her and asked if he could call. Ms. McGuire had the opportunity to speak with him earlier in the week and has contacted Randy Hendrix, president of the Friends of the Latimore Board, to let him know that Mr. O'Donnell had asked for his contact information and would be reaching out to him. Ms. McGuire also forwarded him the contact information for the full board of directors in case he would like to hear additional perspectives regarding the effort to bring the Latimore back to life. It is very exciting that Preservation Magazine has gotten wind of the project. New Business: Ms. Jondahl told the commission that the only staff approval since the last meeting was for window graphics requested by Emily Young for Brainstorm Agency at 317 West "B" Street. May is National Preservation Month and the RHDC will host an Ice Cream Social at the Russellville Train Depot on May 11th from 6-8PM. Commissioners are encouraged to attend the event. Ms. McGuire let commissioners know that Dick Cohoon's Memorial Service will take place at Shinn Funeral Home at 2PM April 6th with a gathering of friends and family at the Russellville Depot hosted by Main Street Russellville. Main Street Director, Ms. Housenick, reminded the commission of the solar eclipse that will occur April 8, 2024. Russellville is expecting 100,000 viewers to come to the area. Russellville is listed as number nine in places to be for the event. Main Street Russellville and the Russellville Tourism and Visitor’s Center are beginning the countdown to the 2024 total solar eclipse by hosting an event entitled “Music and Moon Pies” at 2PM Saturday, April 8, at Depot Park in Russellville Downtown. The festivities will be highlighted by an attempt to establish a new state record for most Moon Pies eaten. There will also be live music from Goodluck Slim and Thunder Mountain. Adjournment: Mr. Newby made the motion to adjourn at 6:03PM and Ms. Hooten made the second. The motion was approved by a voice vote. Betsy McGuire - Chair Date