Historic Preservation Commission

Tybee Island HISTORIC PESERVATION COMMISSON Meeting Minutes Date & Time: May 13, 2024, 6:00 pm Present: Holly Grell-Lawe (Chair), Cara Cole, Mary Anne Butler, Mike Goldberg, Cassidi Kendrick Absent: Marna Lewin Guest: Pete Gulbronson, City Engineer Observers: Pat Leiby (Tybee/MLK), Dawn Shay (Forever Tybee) Location: Burke Day Public Safety Building, Conference Building, 78 Van Horne Ave Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 6:01pm. A quorum was present. Approval of Minutes The minutes of the April 8, 2024 HPC meeting were unanimously approved upon motion by Cara Cole and seconded by Mary Anne Butler. Announcements Tybee/MLK Pat Leiby reported that she has retired from Tybee/MLK with completion of the dedication of the Black History Trail. Marna Lewin is taking over as the Tybee/MLK Liaison to HPC. (She is also a member of HPC.) Lazaretto Coalition Cassidi Kendrick read an update sent to her by Marna Lewin. The update stated “TybeeMLK and Governmental officials from Cape Coast Ghana engaged in a scared Unity Ceremony joining Cape Coast Ghana Door of No Return to Tybee Lazaretto - the relationship to history and culture to be nurtured and expanded for education commerce. The 2020 Tybee Race Equity Resolution states the City will produce a Comprehensive Historical Display of the Lazaretto - Questions: where - location/ what-Design. There is a Professor in Atlanta at Emory University, Dr Kwesi deGraft-Henson, specializes in Architectural landscape that has joined our team”. The Chair will follow up by reviewing the City’s 2020 Justice and Equality Resolution to determine what the City’s commitments are under that resolution. HPC Chair Holly Grell-Lawe informed the members of the good news that S.B. 496 passed the Georgia Senate on March 21, 2024 which extends and expands the State’s historic rehabilitation tax credit program. Originally, this tax credit program was going to sunset this year for residential properties and in 2027 for commercial properties. Under S.B. 496, the tax credits for both programs are extended through the end of 2029. The bill also expands the residential program to allow owners of locally designated historic properties that are certified by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to qualify for the income tax credits. Certification by DCA appears to involve the state certifying that the locally designated historic property would quality for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Pursuant to discussions at the HPC Planning Meeting in February 2024, Cara Cole will monitor the agendas for Planning Commission meetings and the Chair will monitor the agendas for City Council meetings for the purpose of identifying potential issues involving or impacting historic preservation. This is part of HPC’s move towards proactivity rather than reactivity on community and city issues and topics related to historic preservation. Cassidi Kendrick noted that all HPC members have been assigned city email accounts. She will follow up to ensure that all HPC members can access their city email and that a list of HPC city email addresses is provided to HPC members. New Business HPC Budget Request Review The HPC’s budget request for the coming fiscal year was developed after the HPC Planning Meeting in February by the Chair and Cassidi Kendrick. HPC has a line item within the Main Street budget. HPC has requested the same amount as last year, $15,250. The budget request includes funds for additional historical signage, membership dues to the state and national associations that HPC has joined, education and communication, travel, contract services, and special programs and events. The request has been reviewed with the City Manager and Finance Director at the department level. It has now moved into the city council workshop level of review. There have been two city council budget workshops so far. The city’s budget must be approved by the end of June. The amount that the city needs to have in its grant account in the event that the CLG Grant is awarded was also calculated by the Chair and Cassidi Kendrick and communicated to the appropriate city personnel. Maintenance of City Owned Historic Properties Pete Gulbronson, City Engineer, reported on the maintenance of City owned historic properties as follows: Shrine Club-The City does not own the Shrine Club and does not perform any maintenance on it. It is not clear who owns the Shrine Club. Tybee Island Museum-This spring the concrete cap on the battery where the museum is located started to separate from the building by approximately 12 inches. PW removed the sloped paving on the roof from the EV charging station to around the corner 40 feet. The material removed was a real dry mix about 5 inches thick. Whether the material was originally put there for waterproofing after the sand was removed from the battery cannot be confirmed. Pete 2 Gulbronson believes that the Tybee Island Historical Society (TIHS) owns that building. He does not know what TIHS will want to do, nor what the funding is to address it. All the other areas seem to be holding. The area is now being monitored. Island Arts Association Building (former fire station)-New roof installed in 2022. Electrical upgrades in 2023. Door on the east side replaced 2023. Door to attic replaced 2023. New HVAC system recently (2024). Planned projects in FY2025 include skirting around the building to protect the flexible duct work from critters, painting interior and exterior and lighting updates. Some lighting updates were done in 2022-2023. There was discussion of the replacement in kind of the HVAC system for budgetary reasons, rather than installing galvanized metal ducting. Guard House-Electrical updates in 2023. Lighting updates to new LED lights in 2024. Exterior, including porch, was painted in 2022. Interior painted in 2023. Installed ceiling fan in front room in 2024 (removed chandelier). Built new ADA ramp and eliminated elevator in 2023. Planned projects include upgrading the kitchen area with new countertops, cabinets, and appliances. Jaycee Park-Regrading the soccer field. New sports lights put in. Irrigation system has been installed (with shallow well). Waiting on Georgia Power to put in the meter. Expect sod to be laid next week. Part of asphalt trail that had been removed will be replaced. City Hall-Open for business. Gave HPC members a tour of the renovation about a year ago. Kept as many of the historical elements as possible. Raised the ceiling up when uncovered the original ceiling. Kept the pillars and swinging doors to auditorium. Refinished the hardwood floors. Maintained the brick wall by other exit (was the vault area). Documented the mural in the children’s library and parts of the mural in the main hallway. City hall has all new electrical, plumbing and HVAC. Carpeting was installed in the offices in the auditorium for sound- dampening purposes. No carpet was installed in front offices (hardwood floors refinished). Pete Gulbronson will check on whether the architect for city hall renovation has supplied TIHS with the renovation documentation. Memorial Park-Large open-air pavilion had new roof in 2022 and painted in 2023, along with some electrical upgrades (outlets and fans) and new lights in 2022-2023 and replaced part of the concrete floor. Picnic shelters maintenance and field maintenance has been minimal. Screened pavilion is not historical. Old School Building and Cafeteria-Old school has had some lighting updates (LED) in 2023. Electrical upgrades in 2024. New hallway flooring in 2022. Demolition of office in workout room for YMCA new e-gym in 2024. New HVAC unit at YMCA in 2024. Lighting and electrical upgrades in cafeteria in 2023. Repaired roof on walkway between the two buildings in 2023. Fire Station-Electrical updates in 2023 and 2024 including fire bay. Lighting updates to LEDs in fire bay and fire station in 2022 and 2023. Improvements in kitchen area. Added bunk rooms for additional staff. Installed to new showers for additional staff. New fire station is still being debated. Phase 1 of safe shelter is on hold by new City Council which wants to direct the money to a new fire station to improve living conditions. FEMA grant has been paused. Size of shelter kept going up but FEMA funds did not. If building a new fire station, it is no longer FEMA money. Current price tab for shelter project is $2.5 million. FEMA grant was $800K. In response to question about important needs for 2025, Mr. Gulbronson indicated exterior and interior painting of Tybee Arts Association Building, as well as skirting around the building and window reglazing. For reglazing of windows, Mike Goldberg volunteered to perform that work; 3 Pete Gulbronson will let PW know that. Mr. Gulbronson noted that budgets for 2025 are tight and City Council is asking to cut budgets for 2025. Mike Goldberg asked if pricing for galvanized ducting could be obtained. Mr. Gulbronson will obtain a quote and provide it to Cassidi for input at a future HPC meeting. When asked by Mike Goldberg if he could hold off on the skirting, Mr. Gulbronson noted that it was a down the road item anyway, painting is the priority for the Arts Building. Cassidi Kendrick noted she is looking into replacing the picnic tables in small pavilions at Memorial Park, perhaps for late 2025. Mr. Gulbronson will check on the type of roof on the Guard House which was replaced 2-3 years ago he thinks. Ongoing Business Proposed Central Island National Historic District The Chair reported that she and HPC Advisor Sarah Jones had a call with Bob Ciucevich on April 15, 2024 to review the comments from the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) on the Central Tybee Island Residential National Historic District application. Our application was based on three areas of significance: Community Planning and Development, Architecture and Recreation/Entertainment. SHPO comments indicate that the case for significance under Community Planning and Development and Architecture was made; however, they did not agree with the case for significance under Recreation/Entertainment. Bob Ciucevich disagrees. It was noted that changes in personnel at SHPO affect the types of comments received, as well as recent changes in National Park Service guidance on preparing significance statements. The strategy developed as a result of the call with Bob Ciucevich is to rearrange/reorganize the information into SHPO’s preferred format (no new information is needed; all the information is already within the application document), focusing on the Community Planning and Development and Architecture areas of significance and to retain the information on the significance area of Recreation/Entertainment but to address it within the developmental history section of the application document. We may also include in the Architecture section, mention of the use of the lower levels of the Raised Tybee Cottages for servants and domestics (particularly before completion of the Tybee Road). The conversation with Bob Ciucevich also reviewed SHPO comments that some 2018 SHPO comments had not been addressed. A review of the application package confirmed that the comments had been addressed within the application package, but not in the sections of the application package where SHPO would now prefer the information. The feedback from SHPO confirms that we have defensible boundaries for the district and that we have clearly established two area of significance for the district, so we can move forward. Bob Ciucevich expects to have the revised package ready to resubmit in 3-4 months, namely by the end of the summer. After SHPO’s review and approval, the application package must go to the State’s National Register Review Board which only meets twice a year in Spring and Fall. We now expect that it will be Spring 2025 before the application is reviewed by the State Board. Historic Preservation Month HPC Open House Arrangements and logistics for the HPC Open House on May 18, 2024 at the Archives Library at the Lighthouse property were discussed and finalized. 4 Permit Reviews There were no current permit reviews. The Chair did update the members on 2 2nd Street property (application for demolition permit). Cassidi Kendrick emailed the new property owner the names and contact information for those persons potentially interested in moving the upper cottage prior to demolition. She also emailed those persons the name and contact information of the new owner of 2 2nd Street. No further information is known. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 7:23 pm with unanimous approval upon motion by Mike Goldberg and seconded by Mary Anne Butler. 5