Historical Commission

SALEM HISTORICAL COMMISSION MINUTES April 2, 2025 A meeting of the Salem Historical Commission was held on April 2, 2025 at 6:00PM via Zoom Virtual Meeting. Present were Patti Kelleher, Vijay Joyce, Milo Martinez, Robert Peterson, Mark Meche, Margarida Raka-Goncalves, Rebecca English, Brendan Murray. Absent: Emily Gonzalez, Kelly Tyler- Lewis. 0 Washington Square - Salem Common – continuation City of Salem applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for bandstand improvements including window replacement. Ms. Kelleher requested a continuation to the next meeting. VOTE: Ms. Raka-Goncalves motioned to continue this application to the next meeting on April 16, 2025. Ms. English seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 0 Washington Square - Salem Common – continuation City of Salem applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for new ramp for bandstand. Ms. Kelleher requested a continuation to the next meeting. VOTE: Ms. Raka-Goncalves motioned to continue the bandstand and ramp to the next meeting on April 16, 2025. Ms. English seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. Salem Willows Park City requested review and comment on updated Inventory Form for the Salem Willows Park, Cultural Resources Report, and Completion Memorandum from the Public Archeology Lab completed for the Salem Willows, Phase II, park renovation project. Ms. Kelleher noted that HSI had provided comments to the City and encouraged members to provide feedback. Commission members had no comments except to commend the project for considering archaeological resources. They noted the excellent presentation provided by the Plummer Home on the archaeological survey work at that property. Ms. Kelleher proposed drafting a letter of support with no comment for review by Chair Joyce. 1 Hamilton Street – continuation Achraf Toussirt and Kate Perez applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness to install heat pump/condenser. Ms. Kelleher recommended denying the application without prejudice given the applicants’ lack of attendance and responsiveness.  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 2 of 8 No public comment. VOTE: Mr. Meche motioned to deny the application without prejudice. Ms. Raka-Goncalves seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 8 Chestnut Street–continuation Liam Mahoney applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for a new fence. Mr. Mahoney and Eamon Travers were present. Ms. Kelleher and Ms. Raka-Goncalves conducted a site visit to examine presented paint colors. Four colors were presented as appropriate for property with Old Salem Gray identified by applicants as most preferable. A mockup was shown of the proposed fence. Mr. Meche expressed approval for the Old Salem Gray, as did Ms. Raka-Goncalves. Mr. Travers noted the intent of framing the back building with the new fence, which Chair Joyce appreciated. Mr. Martinez was dubious of approving two differently colored fences on one property. Mr. Martinez said that the fences should all be consistent on one property. Mr. Mahoney was open to Mr. Martinez’s recommendations for consistency in fence style and paint color. Mr. Mahoney said that the trim color was the same on the front and rear buildings, in response to Chair Joyce’s question. Mr. Meche clarified that the fence at the sidewalk would remain white, whereas the new fence would be Old Salem Gray. Ms. English and Ms. Raka-Goncalves supported the Old Salem Gray, as did Mr. Peterson and Mr. Murray. No public comment. VOTE: Mr. Meche motioned to approve the new fence in Old Salem Gray. Ms. Raka-Gonvalces seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez (no), English, Peterson, Meche, Murray, Joyce (no) were in favor and the motion so carried. 44 Derby Street – continuation Adam Liebowitz and Kate Lerner applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for entry stair improvements. Brendan Murray recused from discussion Mr. Liebowitz noted that the initial application was to install two windows, but one of the openings was too small to work with. Mr. Liebowitz proposed filling that window in with brick. Chair Joyce said that that would be permissible. Mr. Liebowitz said that new brick would remain exposed and not be parged, in response to Mr. Martinez’s question. Mr. Liebowitz proposed adding a brick staircase where bricks already existed at entry (but were covered with concrete upon falling into disrepair). Chair Joyce said that the guidelines did not identify brick as a historical material for entryways to old homes. Ms. Kelleher said that a change in condition was being proposed (exposed brick from brick and concrete), so that this could not be treated as an in-kind repair. Mr. Peterson noted that most of the steps in the neighborhood were solid slabs of stone and proposed an alternative to incorporate a stone or cast stone tread along with the brick (instead of granite). Chair Joyce clarified that the vertical parts of stairs  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 3 of 8 would be brick with the steps as stone. Mr. Liebowitz showed images of such stairs through Murray Masonry’s website. Mr. Peterson said that such stairs would be more durable than all-brick. Mr. Liebowitz was open to the options discussed, i.e. vertical brick with cast stone atop. Ms. English expressed favor for this option. Mr. Liebowitz identified waterstruck narrow flashed brick as the planned option. Public comment: Brendan Murray said that the option under discussion would be suitable, and said that tread stone was bluestone, and had been installed at 8 Mall Street. Mr. Murray pointed out that brick structures which have been parged indicates that they have been repaired (i.e. they would not have been parged originally). VOTE: Mr. Peterson motioned to approve the stairs with brick with bluestone treads and also bricking in the rear window. Mr. Martinez seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried (Murray recused). 17 Canal Street – continuation Canal Area LLC applied for a Waiver of the Demolition Delay to demolish a building older than 50 years. David Sherborne, Kevin Steele, and Ken McClure (of DeNunzio Group) were present. Mr. Sherborne presented a slideshow indicating the site location and provided a recap of previous meeting. Project timeline status was shown with a calendar of meetings with various City boards. A site walk was also completed with the SHC. Mr. Sherborne gave an overview of feedback received, such as design of building facade and contextual materials. Industrial contexts were discussed relative to Eagle Iron Foundry, brick color, less contrasting materials, reference projects (such as Halstead Salem Station Apartments). Signage was also discussed (i.e. historical significance of existing “Sammy’s” neon sign) and whether to incorporate signage into facade treatment including compliant placement. In terms of the site, Mr. Sherborne discussed placement and screening of transformer, feasibility of accessible sidewalk along the north side of Pond St., and incorporation of public art. Contextual photographs of existing buildings/projects were shown in discussion of brick corbelling along roofline and breaking up of paneling on the Eagle Iron Foundry building. Halstead Salem Station, 231 Washington, and Brix Condominiums were also shown. Mr. Sherborne also showed a drawing of the footprint of the intended hotel, indicating where curb cuts would occur and where parking and amenities would exist. Initial drawings were shown, as well as new drawings attempting to incorporate feedback received. No major footprint changes were planned. Color and material palette were the largest change. A lower base of masonry (in a lighter gray) featured. The entrance way to the hotel was still accentuated in dark charcoal and glass elements (whereas the rest of the building was more traditional). Mr. Sherborne noted that the new drawings were “hot off the press” (and had not yet been seen by the other commissions or boards) and welcomed additional feedback. Chair Joyce asked why the brick was not brought down to the first floor. Mr. Sherborne felt that some type of differentiating material was needed to accentuate the base. Mr. McClure said that Brix was considered as a precedent. Chair Joyce pointed out that newer (and sometimes brand new) buildings were being used as precedents. Mr. Meche said that Brix was not and did not pretend to be a historic building  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 4 of 8 and felt that the building under discussion was trying to be new and historic, but failing at both. Chair Joyce said that in Demo Delay applications, the Commission ought to consider how new structures were being planned, in response to Mr. Murray’s question. Mr. Meche said that this site/parcel was not subject to the rigorous review of a typical B5 building and thus could be built five stories up. Mr. Peterson advised against constraining the design to “industrial,” but encouraged making the most of it for this particular location given its placement. Mr. Peterson proposed placing historic materials in the lobby of the hotel to preserve the site’s (and City’s) history. Chair Joyce spoke to the treatment of the brick in existing building, in response to Ms. English’s question as to what details were addressed in previous meeting. Mr. Sherborne questioned if the SHC would reserve judgment on the Demo Delay until the final iteration of the project made it to the DRB. Chair Joyce wanted to see the result(s) of DRB prior to reaching a decision, given that past renderings had been shown (in other applications) which did not end up getting built. Mr. Meche, Ms. Kelleher, and Mr. Martinez discussed the logistics of voting (or not voting) on both parts of the Demo Delay. Public comment: Helen Sides questioned the Commission’s jurisdiction in determining whether the DDO would be granted contingent based on their approval of future designs. Ms. Sides said that the Commission existed to determine the significance of the existing building, and whether it was significant enough to preserve it. Ms. Sides said that this was an overreach on the SHC’s part. Ms. Kelleher responded that part of the intent of the DDO was to attempt to preserve a building that was found historically significant, which could entail saving an entire building, elements of a building, or incorporating some of that building’s history into a new development. Ms. Sides said that attempts to save facades would continue to occur, and that historic commissions were putting undue pressure on developers. Jeff Cohen, 12 Hancock Street, Ward 5 Councilor, said that the development team had a community meeting when they did not have to, and were incredibly sensitive to the boards, the public, etc. Mr. Cohen agreed with Ms. Sides and took issue with Chair Joyce’s comments on the Commission’s role in evaluating future design proposals. Mr. Cohen said that the DDO was not intended to result in the SHC having the final say on a project but was rather meant to be the beginning of a process. Mr. Meche responded to say that the SHC needed to entrust the DRB that the new building would be an appropriate building visually, compositionally, and ideally with nods to its history. Mr. Murray said that the purview of the SHC was to determine historic significance of existing building, but keep in mind that whatever decisions we make become part of the history of Salem, particularly in terms of whether a new construction will keep historic fabric intact. Mr. Martinez wanted to see a grander building as well as feedback from other boards (such as the Planning Board). Mr. McClure requested to continue the second part of the DDO. Mr. Sherborne pointed  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 5 of 8 out that meetings with the Planning Board and DRB were slated to occur on April 17 and April 23, respectively. VOTE: Mr. Martinez motioned to find the parcel at 17 Canal Street historically significant. Mr. Meche seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Murray, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. VOTE: Mr. Martinez motioned to find the building preferably preserved. Mr. Meche seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English (no), Peterson (no), Meche (no), Murray (no), Joyce were in favor and the motion did not carry (3-4). 10 Broad Street – continuation Brett McCarty applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for exterior wall vent, after the fact. Ms. Kelleher reported that the City Solicitor said a conditional Certificate could be approved whereby the altered location of a vent replacement would be tied to a building record with work to occur at a set future date/timeframe. Ms. Kelleher wanted to ensure that a record of this would be flagged in the permitting system. Ms. McCarty questioned if other housework could be completed prior to moving the vent. No public comment. VOTE: Mr. Meche motioned to grant a window of time for the applicant to become compliant with the location of vent for five years, with compliance to be triggered when roof repair or replacement was next undertaken. Ms. English seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 377 Essex Street – continuation Deegan Partners LLC applied for a Certificate of Hardship to alter chimney (after the fact). Helen Sides, 35 Broad Street, was present with owner Maureen McCarthy. Ms. Sides said that investigating rebuilding some of the chimney was being pursued. Ms. Sides said that more masons would be consulted to pursue replacing brick, though not likely to be the same height as existed previously. Ms. McCarthy clarified that the remaining chimney structure could not support additional weight and thus had been stabilized and capped. Ms. McCarthy clarified that the chimney would not be completely taken down and rebuilt. Ms. McCarthy expressed personal commitment to maintaining all of her homes as beautifully as possible. Mr. Meche said that replacing brick was not as challenging as the applicant had alleged. Mr. Meche questioned which building commissioner or inspector was onsite. Ms. Kelleher’s understanding was that Inspector Greg Salamida went after the chimney was down, and was unsure if Commissioner Stavroula Orfanos also went to the site. Public comment:  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 6 of 8 John Hermanski, neighbor with Bob Levesque. Mr. Levesque said that the chimney was down within an hour of a lift arriving onsite. Mr. Levesque also alleged that the property owners had a bluestone cap ready to go, suggesting pre-planning of chimney removal. Dan Graham, 0 N Pine St, asked if the new planned height of a partially rebuilt chimney was known, which Ms. Sides said would be determined through upcoming inspections. Chair Joyce questioned what manner of inspections would be undertaken by masons. Various members expressed interest in attending any inspections and discussions onsite. VOTE: Ms. English motioned to continue the application to May 21, 2025 meeting. Mr. Martinez seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Murray (recused), Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 360 Essex Street Stuart Family Realty Trust applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for solar panels. Application materials: ● Application: 3/3/2025 ● Slideshow/photographs Emily and Rob Stuart were present, as was Helen Carbonara (of Trinity Solar). Ms. Carbonara said that 13.5 kilowatt panels (33 total, no batteries) would be installed and would add six inches to the height of the roof. The color of the roof was identified as Dynasty Granite Black, and the panels would also be black. Ms. Carbonara said there would be an inverter (dimensions being 21.06” h, 14.6” w, and 7.3” d) and a disconnect (15” h, 7.5” w, 4.75 d). The current meter was inside the home and would remain. Ms. Kelleher showed an aerial view of planned panel placements. Ms. Kelleher noted that one of the arrays would be visible from Monroe Street. Placement of the electrical service was also identified. Mr. Meche expressed interest in seeing the property in-person to judge visibility of the roof. Mr. Martinez wanted to see the disconnect boxes in-person. No public comment. VOTE: Mr. Meche motioned to continue the application to next meeting and arrange a site visit. Ms. Raka-Goncalves seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Murray, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 19 Broad Street Kyle Watson and Amanda Lowder applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for front door paint color. Application materials: ● Application: 3/6/2025 ● Slideshow/photographs  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 7 of 8 Mr. Watson noted that Classic Burgundy was planned for front door as part of repainting house. Chair Joyce recused himself as an abutter. Ms. Raka-Goncalves and Ms. Kelleher observed the paint color in person and noted that the paint would be similar to the example but would not be as glossy. Ms. Kelleher said that gloss was typical but high gloss was not. Benjamin Moore HC 182 was identified as the paint color. Members expressed approval of the planned door color. No public comment. VOTE: Mr. Martinez motioned to approve application as submitted with gloss finish specified. Mr. Meche seconded the motion. Roll Call: Meche, Petersen, Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, Murray, English were in favor and the motion so carried. 120 Federal Street Meg Twohey applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness to install condenser and screening. Ms. Kelleher said that there was a clerical error with the abutters’ notices. The owner was notified and this item was continued. VOTE: Ms. Raka-Goncalves motioned to continue the application to the next meeting on April 16. Mr. Peterson seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 122 Federal Street Meg Twohey applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for copper gutters and downspout replacement. Ms. Kelleher said that there was a clerical error with the abutters’ notices. The owner was notified and this item was continued. VOTE: Mr. Peterson motioned to continue the application to the next meeting on April 16. Ms. Raka- Goncalves. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. 80 Federal Street The Peabody Essex Museum applied for a Certificate of Appropriateness for roofing and balustrade replacement.  Historical Commission meeting minutes April 2, 2025 Page 8 of 8 The applicant was not present. VOTE: Mr. Meche motioned to continue the application to April 16 meeting. Ms. Raka-Goncalves seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Murray, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. Other Business Minutes VOTE: Mr. Martinez motioned to accept February 19, 2025 minutes. Ms. English seconded the motion. Roll Call: Raka-Goncalves, Martinez, English, Peterson, Meche, Murray, Joyce were in favor and the motion so carried. Adjournment VOTE: Mr. Martinez motioned to adjourn. Ms. English seconded the motion. All were in favor and the motion so carried. The meeting adjourned at 8:57 PM. Respectfully submitted, Dan Graham, Historical Commission Clerk