Historic Commission

APPROVED Minutes of Wheaton Historic Commission April 21, 2015 Meeting at Wheaton City Hall, Wheaton, Ill. In attendance: Nancy Flannery (Chair), Trent Nichols (Vice Chair), Emelie Engling, Steph McGrath, Greg Morrison, and Barbara Dutton (Secretary). Absent: Tom Kay, Bob Shuster Guests: Students from a Wheaton North High School government class, Michelle Podkowa of the DuPage County Historical Museum, and community residents Mr. and Mrs. Hall. Public Comment: Michelle provided an update of Museum activities, including an effort to inventory some 30,000 objects in its collections. Also mentioned were objectives associated with digitization and oral history gathering. The meeting was called to order by Nancy at 7:11 p.m. Minutes of the March 2015 meeting were approved following a motion made by Trent and seconded by Steph. Old Business Preservation Week: Nancy said she wasn’t sure if recognition of the Masonic Temple as a bollard site would happen, so advised Commission members to assume that the May 19th date is tentative; she added that perhaps such an event might be arranged for June or July. She announced that the May meeting of the Chicago Suburban Preservation Alliance would be held at the DuPage History Museum, at which a slide show on Edward Dart- designed homes would be shown. Nancy will take care of refreshments for the event, and plans to have some handbills on hand about the David Maas lecture, which is is scheduled for May 13. Cantigny will again be offering free parking throughout the week to Wheaton residents. Barbara related that Nancy Allured with the Environmental Improvement Commission informed her that the map for the historical bicycle tour would not be available by Preservation Week, as the map has not yet been approved by the City Engineer. Nancy A. indicated that it could be four more months yet before approval is granted, and that the Engineer’s office is waiting for signage to be posted. Nancy F. wondered what local Scouts she has lined up to help with Preservation Week might now do. One idea was to help post “Pride in Preservation” signs. Mrs. Hall, guest, asked why homeowners aren’t tasked with doing so. It was explained to her that the idea had been discussed, but was determined to be problematic, for reasons including that homeowners might move away with or otherwise misplace signs. After considering whether Scouts might hand out lists of Preservation Week events, it was decided to deploy the helpers distribute a map showing where Dart homes are located. Trent asked if the Museum had identified the status of the roof, and was told it was uncertain if it could use slate, as funding was contingent upon a state grant. To support “Pride in Preservation” sign placement efforts, Nancy asked Greg about the BatchGeo account. Greg said it might have expired, but he could probably recreate the map or register. Tom’s number of property assignments is “fixed,” but the remainder will be divided among Commission members available to place/retrieve signs. Nancy will send the property list to Greg to create placement assignment maps. Steph reported on recent home history research events, which were busy and featured a variety of houses. She reported that no one expressed reluctance at doing their own research. Matt Seymour is available to speak at the Dart open house to be held on May 17. Trent moved to approve giving a $200 honorarium to Seymour; Steph seconded the motion, which carried by vote. Steph inquired about logistics for the open house. APPROVED Nancy will send Preservation Week information to Greg to forward to the City for posting on the website. Trent recommended provided information ample for potential press release efforts. It was also suggested to keep the City in the loop. Wheaton Register: With three new approved Register properties, Nancy brought up the need to define a process to notify homeowners about approvals, and provide a certificate and information about plaques. With an agreed-upon design for a certificate, she asked if Steph could provide a source for archival paper. Information on ordering plaques from “By the Sign” would be given to property owners. As the vendor does not offer as standard language to indicate a building was “moved,” but rather only options of “built,” “circa” or “established,” having a customized option would cost $500, so it was decided to dispense with that option. The feeling was that “established” is not appropriate, so “circa” or “built” indicating a date (year) was preferred. Plaques are priced at $90 plus shipping. The group agreed that the color should be standardized. Nancy presented a sample, which Trent remarked looked like plaques currently displayed in the community. A motion to accept the term “circa” and the favored color scheme for the plaques was made by Emelie and seconded by Greg, and passed by vote. Nancy will develop a sheet on vendor information, to accompany a letter to homeowners and a certificate for a packet for the City to send to homeowners. Bollards: Historic railroad station images were reviewed for the bollard on the subject that is in development. Steph thanked Michelle for providing them. To locate a photo of the 1970s downtown station, Steph will contact the West Chicago historical museum, and Barbara will pursue a potential source. Trent contacted the City about the Masonic Temple bollard, which does not sit properly. Receiving a response suggesting that the Commission is stuck with the installation as it is, Trent called Metal Art, the company that fabricated the mechanism to attach the sign to the bollard, to see about getting the name of a contractor that could correct it. Nancy reported that she received an e- mail from the Masons. She also said that three additional bollards were ordered, leaving $339 in the current Commission budget. New Business Nancy spoke about submitting a request under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain a set of copies of City records relative to documentation (e.g., approval criteria) supporting local landmark designations granted by the Wheaton History Center/Center for History. Nancy said that the City advised her that the Commission owns the records. Steph thought it would be useful to ask for printing cost expenditure (i.e., reasonable compensation) information, if the City wishes to do so. She also asked whether we would want records of property applications that were declined landmark status. Nancy will circulate for input a draft of the letter to the City (along with handouts she has in mind for the aforementioned Suburban Alliance meeting). Nancy also shared the nomination package she has assembled to have her house placed on the Wheaton Register of Historic Places. Commissioner Comments Trent commented Nancy for her work as the new Commission chair. Steph motioned to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Greg, the motion was approved by vote, and the meeting concluded at 9: 05 p.m.