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Home My WebLink About01142021 Historic Preservation Minutes City of Seward,Alaska Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes January 14, 2021 CALL TO ORDER Volume 3,Page 260 The January 14,2021 regular meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission was called to order at 7:35 p.m. by Chair Cheryl Seese. OPENING CEREMONY Chair Cheryl Seese led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Cheryl Seese(via Zoom)presiding and Sue Ward(via Zoom) Mary Ann Benoit(via Zoom) Tanguy Libbrecht (via Zoom) Sherry Dale Furlong(via Zoom) Fred-Weelker•� comprising a quorum of the Commission; and Jackie Wilde, Community Development Director Karen Corrigan, Acting Deputy City Clerk Excused—None Absent—Woelkers Vacant—One CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING The City of Seward is currently experiencing a declared public health emergency due to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), so alternate methods for providing Citizen Comments were created. Unless otherwise noted, the following Citizen Comments were submitted in advance and read into the record by the City Clerk: Filbert Rabinowitz requested that Alva Wisdom be recognized by the commission for his sacrifice during the 1964 earthquake. Wisdom sacrificed his life clearing debris from the first tsunami wave that blocked an escape route;he died when the second tsunami wave hit.Rabinowitz felt that if buildings were being recognized that no longer existed, surely someone like Wisdom should receive a sign. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Ward/Libbrecht) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda City of Seward,Alaska Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes January 14,2021 Volume 3,Page 261 Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Approval of the December 10, 2020 Historic Preservation Commission Regular Meeting Minutes Approval of the December 28, 2020 Historic Preservation Commission Special Meeting Minutes SPECIAL ORDERS,PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS City Administration Report—None Chair Report. Cheryl Seese reported that the commission had a special meeting on December 28,2020 for determining the formatting of the signage. The commission met again at a special meeting on January 5, 2021 for Resolution 2021-001, related to the Jesse Lee property re- zoning, and believed it was a win for the commission. Seese pointed out the letters she sent to the Planning&Zoning Commission and to City Council referring to the Jesse Lee Property that were included in the packet. Certified Local Government Grants Reports - Planning & Advocacy Committee Report.Mary Ann Benoit reported that there were 68 letters sent out to historic property owners, and 23 owners said they were interested in participating in the sign/walking tour project.There were several properties on city property that Benoit discussed with Community Development on signage potential.Furlong created a list of properties with the history obtained to date.Benoit stated that Lee Poleske and the Seward Community Library&Museum agreed to be partners. Benoit created an initial scoring criterion for determining the order of properties to receive a sign.Benoit noted that the list of 25 properties was a preliminary list,and would be revamped at the later discussion point. Benoit would like to see the Seward Library&Museum and Benny Benson Memorial considered for the list. In response to Furlong,Benoit stated that there were three houses from"Millionaire's Row"(400 block of Third Avenue).Furlong pointed out that Millionaire's Row should not be counted as one property,since it may have three or more signs placed along the street. Historic Overlay District.Sue Ward reported that several citizens had contacted her about guidelines for remodeling buildings,but that the CLG Grant 20005 took precedence. Historic Preservation Facebook Page Report.Mary Ann Benoit reported that she added the photos and posts placed into the packet for citizens that might not have access to Facebook. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Items Not Completed From Previous Agenda City of Seward,Alaska Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes January 14, 2021 Volume 3,Page 262 Discuss and revise annual priority list for approval in 2021. Seese requested Ward work with her on presenting a priority list to the commission for the February 11, 2021 meeting,with no objection from the commission. Review, discuss, approve,and plan Annual Report to Council. Seese requested Ward work with her on presenting an annual report to the commission for the February 11, 2021 meeting,with no objection from the commission. NEW BUSINESS Other New Business Items Discuss possible education program January 25, 2021 available through Community Development: Topic— Researching Historic Houses. Community Development Director Jackie Wilde presented an opportunity from the American Planning Association about historical preservation planning and ordinance creation.This was a virtual conference on January 25, 2021. The presentation was free, through Wilde's accreditation,was one hour long,not recorded, and would not be available for viewing later.Ward and Benoit stated they would attend. Motion(Furlong/Ward) Commission members attend the Researching Historic Houses presentation from American Planning Association, through the Community Development membership. Motion Passed Unanimous Discuss and approve Ranking Criteria For Properties To Receive A CLG Grant 20005 Sign. Motion (Benoit/Furlong) Approve the criteria for scoring properties to receive a CLG Grant 20005 Sign as: Seven points for property on the National Registor of Historic Places; Six points for property on the Seward Historic Properties List; Five points for a property that should be on the Seward Historic Properties List, but was not due to an oversight, and other special considerations; Five points for a property built from 1905 to 1910; Five points for a property where the building or City of Seward,Alaska Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes January 14, 2021 Volume 3, Page 263 the person that lived there was significant in Seward's history; Four points for a property built from 1911 to 1920; Three points for a property built from 1921 to 1930; Three points for a property with an interesting history that people on the walking tour would like;Three points for a property with an exterior appearance that has reasonable historic integrity; Two points for a property built from 1931 to 1940; One point for a property built from 1941 to 1950. Motion Passed Unanimous Discuss, and approve Revised CLG Grant 20005 list of original 25 Properties. Motion (Benoit/Ward) All the properties on the original CLG Grant 20005 list of 25 properties,submitted in the grant application, should be reviewed and evaluated using the same scoring criteria as all other properties. Motion Passed Unanimous INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS —None CITIZEN COMMENTS —None BOARD AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Libbrecht stated he attended the council meeting on January 11,2021 and the commission's Resolution 2021-001 was presented. Thanked the commissioners for their work. Furlong said she was not averse to a memorial for Alva Wisdom, but was not in favor of having additional interpretative signs at the Benny Benson Memorial. Benoit said she appreciated hearing about Alva Wisdom's story and would plan to contact the citizen that submitted that story. Benoit hesitated to add signs for memorials to the CLG Grant 20005 list because the grant focused on historical properties,and the location discussed would be on private property. Benoit believed a central memorial informational location reference the 1964 earthquake should be created. City of Seward,Alaska Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes FI January 14, 2021 Volume 3,Page 264 Seese stated that a memorial plaque could be used on another grant specifically for the 1964 earthquake for all those that lost their lives, and appreciated Filbert's comment. Ward read quotes from the Seward Journal that mentioned the work of the commission. Seese requested a regular weekly work session be agreed upon for work on the CLG Grant 20005. Motion (Libbrecht/Benoit) Schedule weekly work sessions on Fridays at 11:00 a.m. for the purpose of discussing the CLG Grant 20005 Public Education Signage, starting January 22, 2021. Motion Passed Unanimous ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. en Corrigan Chery Seese Acting Deputy City Clerk Chair (City Seal) � of SEh e,,,, .fi. ` •• ,� , t ••• .•.� a• � • SEAL ' •• b . e