Historic Preservation Commission

TUMWATER HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF HYBRID MEETING November 16, 2023 Page 1 CONVENE: 6:30 p.m. PRESENT: Chair David Shipley and Commissioners Dave Nicandri, Alex Rossiter, Renee Radcliff Sinclair, Marnie Slakey, and Don Trosper. Staff: Parks and Recreation Director Chuck Denney, Communications Manager Ann Cook, Parks and Facilities Manager Stan Osborn, Don Carney, Capital Projects Manager, and Volunteer Coordinator Brianna Feller. CHANGES TO Two additional items were added to the agenda. AGENDA: APPROVAL OF Action was delayed due to the lack of meeting minutes. MINUTES: 7/20/23 & 9/21/23 - DELAYED: PUBLIC COMMENT: There were no public comments. VISIT TO FORMER Chair Shipley presented a proposal resulting from his visit to the site of CHAMBERS the Starbucks restaurant located at the corner of Yelm Highway and PRAIRIE GRANGE Henderson Boulevard formerly known as the Chambers Prairie Grange. (STARBUCKS): The former owner of the grange property, Tom Schrader, invited him to visit the building, specifically the basement of the restored building. Chair Shipley described the building’s renovation utilizing existing wood and materials to convert the building to a Starbucks restaurant with a drive through window. The basement is approximately the same size as the main floor and was not restored as part of the renovation project. Mr. Schrader had wanted the basement restored as a meeting room, but the Starbucks Corporation did not support the suggestion, which resulted in the basement serving as a storage room for the building’s historic materials. Chair Shipley reported he was able to take many photographs of the materials in the basement. One item of interest is a chart listing all grange grandmasters from 1908 to approximately 1978-88 when the grange closed. Mr. Briggs, owner of the former Briggs Nursery, served as the second grandmaster. Other materials included assorted books, financial records, and minutes of grange meetings. He plans to revisit the basement to research some of the materials to learn more about the grange and its history. Based on possible support from the Starbucks Corporation, he plans to submit a proposal for placement of the original grange sign within the restaurant. The original sign was installed in front of the building along Yelm Highway. Mr. Schrader had shared that he first viewed the sign outside the building and discovered later that the sign had disappeared. After further investigation, he learned TUMWATER HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF HYBRID MEETING November 16, 2023 Page 2 that the sign had been delivered to an antique dealer. Mr. Schroeder found it necessary to purchase the sign in order to preserve it. A new sign could be placed under the original sign visible to patrons in the building and protected from vandalism and weather. He plans to develop a proposal with some illustrations based on historical records. Additionally, he would like to include information on the Farm property, which is now the site of the Farm neighborhood. Some historical stories indicated that a bull on the farm killed two people. Additionally, across the street from the grange was the Hayes School. Although he has been unable to identify the exact location of the school, he plans to research the location. He was able to review some information on a reunion of all the classes held at the school. Roger Easton, a long-time historian, who has since died, had shared some time ago that he attended the school. He plans to incorporate information about the Chambers Prairie Grange, the farm, and the school within the signage proposal. In response to questions about the current owner of the grange property, Director Denney reported Tom Schrader was the previous owner and the developer for the Starbucks project. Following completion of the project, Mr. Schrader sold the property; however, Mr. Schrader was hired to manage the building. Commissioner Slakey advised that the original farmhouse still exists and is occupied within the Farm neighborhood. Director Denney advised of options for signage for the site to include one sign with photographs of the area. Resources are available within the department to assist in designing the signs. The Commission’s budget in 2023 is $10,000 and $10,000 in 2024. OLD BREWHOUSE Manager Cook presented the application for a Certificate of TOWER PHASE 2 Appropriateness for seismic improvements of the Old Brewhouse. She SEISMIC introduced Don Carney, Capital Projects Manager, and Jim Cary with IMPROVEMENTS: Cardinal Architecture. CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS Phase 2 of the project began in 2022 and encountered some delays APPLICATION: because of the pandemic, archeology, and historic preservation issues. The application includes a letter of concurrence from the Department of Archeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP). Mr. Cary reported Phase 2 of the project is limited to seismic improvements to the building. The construction permit application with documentation was submitted to the City in October. The Commission’s approval of the Certificate of Appropriateness is an element of the permit application. TUMWATER HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF HYBRID MEETING November 16, 2023 Page 3 Mr. Cary shared current and historic photographs of the building. Historic documentation available to the team was utilized for the project. Documentation included foundation drawings and other historic drawings produced in Milwaukee. The original foundation drawings anticipated a different type of foundation on substantial soils or bedrock. Communications reflected in letters in the early 1900s describing the building location indicated the owners anticipated a much stronger setting for the building. Other historic photographs were used by the team to review additional details. The Phase 1 project involved masonry work with the historic photographs used to help guide the project. Mr. Cary shared photographs of the building when the project first began in 2014 as part of a study for the Craft Brewery District project. The photos were taken using a drone and reflect the deterioration of existing brick on the exterior of the building. A temporary roof structure was installed to help prevent infiltration of water until the masonry restoration project was completed in 2019. Mutual Materials provided new bricks with brick color matching existing brick. Another series of photographs depicted the project’s structural engineer and Mr. Cary in the crawl space beneath the building. The City pumped 12 feet of water from the crawl space enabling inspection of the foundation structure. The structure was found to be in good shape; however, the inspections revealed that despite the original drawings of spread footings, the foundation is supported by numerous timber piles. It is likely the owner did not anticipate groundwater problems and dug a hole for the foundation. Because of the inability of the construction crew to lower the water level, some piles were drilled to locate the depth of bedrock, which is located 12 feet below the anticipated footings. Subsequently, it appears a new plan was developed using over 500 timber piles with metal straps connecting the piles and capped with spread footings constructed on top to hold the heavy masonry building. Part of the construction project for Phase 2 includes pumping water from the crawl space and removing up to 24 inches of mud with construction occurring in the crawl space to support all steel and concrete in the building for seismic improvements. Mr. Cary shared current construction drawings for the project. The structural foundation plan is the plan for the crawl space. The project includes installation of micro piles of steel pipes driven with machinery down through existing concrete to the depth of the bedrock filled with concrete and capped. The piles will be tied into the existing foundation and to new foundation grade beams installed as part of the project. The project will protect the building from gravity loads and lateral loads to ensure stability of the building during seismic activity. TUMWATER HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF HYBRID MEETING November 16, 2023 Page 4 Level 1 improvements include new concrete walls on the east and west sides of the floor. Upper floors include infilling of some large openings that were originally part of the brewery process. The spaces will be filled with concrete and reinforced steel to provide a stronger diaphragm at each level. At Level 2, concrete transitions to a steel frame up to the top of the tower to transfer the loads from the top of the tower to the new foundation. New drawings were prepared of the existing structure and the structure with the improvements to show the seismic reinforcements. Other drawings depict interior elevations with the improvements. Mr. Cary said the scope of the project is included in the construction permit documents provided to the City of approximately 400 pages of structural calculations with diagrams. Because of the heaviness of the building, seismic forces occur higher with the top of the building moving during a seismic event. Previous phases of the project reflected that a majority of the damage to the building was at the higher levels. Chair Shipley asked whether concrete and the steel beams would be visible from the interior. Mr. Cary affirmed the visibility within the interior. Additionally, steel beams would cross windows. The team reviewed patterns that would help minimize the size of the steel crossings; however, because of the level of forces, steel crossings increase in size exponentially to accommodate the increase in forces. At some point, the amount of structure added to a building begins to overwhelm the building’s capability to withstand forces. Eventually, it is necessary to reinforce the base, which speaks to the proposal as a balance between the competing needs of the building. Chair Shipley asked about the timeline to complete the project. Mr. Cary said the project would require a minimum of eight months. Commissioner Nicandri inquired about the possibility of a top floor window being converted to a door to provide access or an elevated viewing platform. Mr. Cary affirmed the possibility. Another series of drawings includes a building code review in terms of future uses within the building. Based on technical aspects discussed with the City’s Building Official, it is likely a method has been identified to increase accessibility within the building. A viewing platform would require guardrails, which might change the building’s exterior. Such a change would require a separate Certificate of Appropriateness. Phase 3 of the project includes windows, doors, internal design, identification of occupant uses, and placement of stairs and elevators. TUMWATER HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF HYBRID MEETING November 16, 2023 Page 5 Commissioner Trosper mentioned the importance of preserving the tiles on the first-floor walls. Mr. Cary affirmed that the tiles would be salvaged to the extent possible. As Phase 2 was limited to seismic improvements, it was important to ensure that the scope of the project did not impede future uses in the building requiring some understanding as to the how the building would be used. Mr. Cary shared some drawings of potential occupancy options in the building. A potential use is likely public access or assembly uses, which is an occupancy category included in the Building Code. The Building Code dictates the amount of square footage per person, which establishes the building’s occupant load. The occupant load defines the number of stairs, exits, and public facilities within the building. The team considered the minimum occupancy and factored two exits from each floor, public restrooms, and an elevator. Based on those facilities, the space was filled with no space available for other uses. The team considered eliminating vertical circulation within the building with only one stairway remaining in the building and moving the elevator and the second stairway to the exterior of the building built from a steel structure connected on the east side of another existing and restored building to open up floor space for uses. Chair Shipley pointed out that the City’s ownership is limited to the Old Brewhouse (Tower) and 12 feet of property surrounding the building. MOTION: Commissioner Slakey moved, seconded by Commissioner Nicandri, to approve the Certificate of Appropriateness for the Historic Brewery Tower Renovation Project Phase 2 Seismic Improvements. Commissioner Rossiter commented that the internal structure is an elegant plan. He thanked Mr. Cary for presenting the proposal in such detail. He is looking forward to Phase 3 to design the interior. MOTION: The motion carried unanimously. Manager Cook advised members on the next steps. Staff has secured some estimates for the construction for review with the Council in early 2024. In spring 2024, the Discovery Channel is airing a program on abandoned places featuring the brewtower. Concurrently, the City will relaunch the capital fundraising campaign for the brewtower. OTHER BUSINESS: Commissioner Slakey requested an update on the status of the wallpaper selections for the Brewmaster’s House. Manager Osborn advised that the contract is pending approval by the Council. NEXT MEETING The next meeting is scheduled on January 18, 2023. TUMWATER HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF HYBRID MEETING November 16, 2023 Page 6 DATE: Commissioner Trosper suggested reformatting the meeting as a retreat to discuss future projects and promotion of tourism. Director Denney noted a possible miscommunication with Councilmember Schneider who had planned to attend the meeting. Councilmember Schneider is requesting the Commission consider an allocation of approximately $1,000 for a project at the Pioneer Cemetery. One large fir tree was recently removed from the cemetery after inspection by an arborist deemed the tree to be in poor health and posing a danger of falling on nearby headstones. Additional work was also completed on another adjacent tree. Councilmember Schneider is working with the Tree Board and local arborists to plant a Butternut tree cutting from a tree on the Bush family homestead. The tree is approximately six feet tall and Councilmember Schneider would like to plant the tree near the space of the former fir tree next to the Bush headstone and create a plaque with information about the importance of the butternut tree to the Bush family. Following some discussion of the proposal, the Commission agreed to defer a decision until the Commission has an opportunity to review the plan and design of the plaque. ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Slakey moved, seconded by Commissioner Rossiter, to adjourn the meeting at 7:28 p.m. The motion carried unanimously. Prepared by Valerie L. Gow, Recording Secretary/President Puget Sound Meeting Services, psmsoly@earthlink.net