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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHeritage Preservation - 09/15/2014APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2014 7:00 P.M., CITY CENTER Prairie Rooms A & B 8080 Mitchell Road COMMISSION MEMBERS: Ed Muehlberg (Chair), Cindy Cofer Evert (Vice Chair), Steve Olson, JoAnn McGuire, Pamela Spera, Mark Freiberg, Deb Paulson STAFF: Robert Vogel, Pathfinder CRM, LLC Lori Creamer, Staff Liaison Janet Jeremiah, Community Development Director Heidi Wojahn, Recording Secretary STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES: Zeinab Hussen, Alexander Modeas, Courtney Sweeney I. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Chair Muehlberg called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Paulson was absent. Spera arrived at 7:27 p.m. The new student commissioners were welcomed and introductions took place. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: Cofer Evert moved, seconded by Olson, to approve the agenda. Motion carried 5-0. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Olson noted a typo in the third sentence of Item IV.C. – “up” should read “us”. MOTION: Freiberg moved, seconded by McGuire, to approve the August 18, 2014 minutes as amended. Motion carried 5-0. IV. REPORTS OF COMMISSION AND STAFF A. HPC DIRECTION/UPDATE - Jeremiah Jeremiah explained how the HPC fits into the City’s departmental structure and that Creamer meets monthly with her, facilities and the city manager. She assured us we are being heard. The City is mindful of how HPC work plan items affect other City departments, and tries to coordinate accordingly. The commission has legislated responsibilities plus others we want to do. Resources may limit us but HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 15, 2014 Page 2 should not stop us from brainstorming. City philosophy is to set stretch goals, but not unrealistic ones. Jeremiah went on to explain how departmental work plans fit into the budget cycle. She is pleased the HPC members have been so committed and put much thought into the work plan, but it is okay if not every item gets checked off. We can prioritize the rest. There is an assumption of staff support. Commissioners are not expected to volunteer time outside of meetings other than keeping up with agenda items. McGuire asked if the work plan should be in priority order rather than quarterly. Jeremiah said quarterly is not necessary but can serve as a means of prioritizing. We might want to monitor deadlines. McGuire noted the lack of specificity in some items and asked Jeremiah for her perception. Jeremiah said we can anticipate items are staff-supported. Our audience is the staff and council, but we should not need to worry too much about the work plan. Cofer Evert said her observation, having participated previously as a new commissioner, was things moved slowly and not much progress was being made. The HPC took a more assertive and involved role going forward. Many initiatives required work outside of meeting time. Jeremiah reiterated there is not an expectation for us to do extra work, but there are not necessarily limitations either. The work plan does not need to involve everyone doing work outside of meetings. We are expected to review materials and be prepared to serve in an advisory role at meetings. McGuire asked if the extra time commissioners put in is appreciated or not preferred. She would perhaps like to help out with grant writing but not at the expense of putting the City in an awkward position. Spera arrived at 7:27 pm. Jeremiah said she could not answer with certainty, but she will follow up. It goes above and beyond expectations and those are services the City would normally contract out. She views the heritage plaque program as going above and beyond but she also thinks it is great. We just need to keep the amount of work in mind when developing the work plan going forward. Muehlberg noted parts of the work plan seem reactionary. Council-directed items sometimes require extra work. The educational component is a gray area and is wide open. It is unclear how much time to devote to that. Olson asked how the HPC’s work plan fits into the departmental work plan. Jeremiah said it gets integrated and is referenced but is not as specific. Only meaningful measures are included. We do not need to include measures in our work plan – consensus and prioritization are important. Her recommendation is to focus on new initiatives rather than regular items when meeting with Council. HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 15, 2014 Page 3 McGuire asked what Jeremiah thought was the HPC’s biggest contribution and what she would most like to see. Jeremiah said she felt the long-range planning efforts, reuse of properties, and the integration of the different pieces at Riley Jacques have all been significant. She also looks to the group for site alteration permits and items relating to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). V. OLD BUSINESS A. WORK PLAN REVIEW Creamer referenced sample work plans from other cities. Vogel said as much as HPCs are alike, every municipality is different thus work plans should not be modeled after one another. He reviewed the framework and benchmarks for the Edina and Newport HPCs. Eden Prairie’s reads more like a scorecard. It is essential policymakers be informed and for us to know what they are thinking. An annual joint meeting is a good idea. Another method is to have a council member serve on the commission. Work plans need to be tailored to our needs. Muehlberg noted our work plan has served as more of a checklist to spread out the workload over the year. Olson said, in the past, we deferred to the HPC’s consultant without knowing resources in terms of how many hours were available to us. Vogel explained we are the policymakers and need to think in terms of policy rather than practice. It is not our job to worry about the monetary aspect. The HPC sets the policies and goals; the City’s job is to figure out how and when to make it work. Olson said regardless, when creating the work plan it would be good to have a realistic idea of how many Best Management Practices (BMP) documents are financially feasible in a year, for example. Cofer Evert pointed out most new commissioners are unsure when it comes to knowing what their abilities, expectations, and limitations are. In recent years, the HPC has followed the consultant’s lead with direction, support, and approval. Vogel noted the environment is always in flux but there are certain core functions all HPCs must do all the time. Jeremiah emphasized format is not as important as content. First we need to do what is legally required, and then we can add what we want to do. The City will let us know if we need to cut back from a resources standpoint. Muehlberg expressed the HPC’s frustration in learning last month the work plan was missing key items since we had been working under the guidance of the previous consultant from Pathfinder for several years. VI. NEW BUSINESS A. EDUCATION/TRAINING – Vogel Vogel discussed the history of local government, the different types of municipalities in existence, and legislation as it applies to historic preservation. Minnesota cities can only do what state legislature allows them to do, and state law authors do not seem to differentiate between types of cities in terms of historic preservation. For example, when a national designation is being HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 15, 2014 Page 4 considered in Eden Prairie, the Mayor and HPC Chair are asked if they want to veto it, but they do not have authority to do so under State Law whereas they might in a different type of municipality. Minnesota Statute 471.193 enables municipalities to create historic preservation programs and dictates the make-up of the commission. City ordinances are organized in the City Code. The section of City Code dealing with historic preservation defines our basic duties and responsibilities and the tools necessary to carry them out. It serves as an outline of what we can do to shape government operations as far as preservation is concerned. The HPC’s charter summary extrapolates from City Code what our duties are. We must keep an inventory of heritage preservation resources, be the sole evaluator of which ones are and are not worth preserving, and be solely responsible for initiating protection of those deemed worthy. We are the only ones who can initiate the designation process of local landmarks, but we cannot designate and Council cannot nominate. We cannot wait for state and federal historic preservation agencies. It is up to us to act before it is too late. The first core function of our role in government is to identify or survey what is out there. The ordinance contains criteria for the second function, evaluation, and what makes something worthy of preservation. The third function is to start the registration process. Another is treatment – the care and feeding of historic properties. The last is education. All must be done at the same time in order to get results. To do otherwise is inefficient or sets us up for failure. Heritage preservation plays an important role in comp plans which are legally- enforceable documents. A comp plan is a road map for how the city is expected to grow or shrink and gives decision makers the opportunity to lay out their vision of how they want their community to be. Eden Prairie’s comp plan, although generic, emphasizes two highly important factors in historic preservation planning: the use of historic contexts which is the framework historic preservation; and inventory maintenance. It is impossible to do our job without the items listed in the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Archaeology and Historic Preservation. There are other standards, but these are best management practices. If we follow them, we will get to a good place. In terms of treatment, resources should be allocated based on the level of threat or danger. Commissioners, staff, and elected officials all need to know how preservation program works, and that is where education come in. Creamer noted Vogel’s involvement in identification ties back to available resources and mentioned the survey work already completed. Vogel discussed alternative means for creating an initial list. The out-of-date inventory from the Minnesota Historical Society includes over 300 structures and 100 archaeology sites, some of which may no longer exist. The last properties were added in the past couple of years. The City is not the sole contributor. Some properties were entered by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. We need to determine what has been looked at and how it was evaluated and make it publicly accessible. HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 15, 2014 Page 5 We need to put the list of designated properties on the website and then determine which of the others are worthy of being added before they disappear. We are always creating new history. The most challenging part of historic preservation is to stay ahead of it. It is implicit we are in the business of preserving everybody’s heritage and cannot deem one more or less important than another. We must look at the big picture all the time and be thinking closer to the present. We cannot only consider significance and worth of preservation of resources 50 years and older. We also have a lot of Native American cultural resources to protect. Freiberg said updating the list sounds like a major project for 2015. His understanding is we need to be more assertive. Vogel said he needs to help us be better-equipped. We could benefit from using a determination of eligibility system similar to what is used at the federal level. SHPO officers have a means for protecting eligible properties in the way of federal construction projects. We need the local equivalent on a city level as well as a voluntary regulation program. When people learn their property has historical value, they generally find their own way to protect and preserve it. Compliance is essentially just as effective without regulation as it is with, but it occurs at a fraction of the cost. International building code allows us to be flexible with some parts of the building code as long as they don’t directly affect public safety. If we do not have to make residents jump through hoops, they are more likely to voluntarily do what is necessary. It is a nice way for the HPC to encourage preservation without having to review permits and issue certificates of appropriateness. Commercial properties typically require regulation. Designating the ten properties already identified and evaluated as eligible will take time and money so Vogel needs to find out how to protect them in the interim. Cofer Evert asked if the Consolidated School is on the list. Vogel confirmed it is. We have to look at where threats are most likely to come from and consider historic preservation as a partnership between the City and property owner. We must make it easier for owners to comply. Older is not always better in historic preservation. The heritage of people moving into established communities is just as important as that of the pioneers. We have 11,000 years of Native American history but all our designated sites are from the past 150 years. We need to make sure we are providing a service for everyone – not just people in old houses and history buffs. We should assume all 60,000 residents are interested in what we can do and preserve a little bit of everybody’s past. In order to accomplish this, the list should constantly be in front of us. Cofer Evert asked how to proceed. Vogel said he will first give us a list of sites already rezoned for historic preservation, and then provide those for which the historic site designation process was started but never finished. The comp plan, ordinance, and charter statement all talk about the importance of historic contexts. He will break it down for us in outline format by the next meeting. Plotting the HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 15, 2014 Page 6 sites on a map will make the gaps apparent. He will also offer his professional judgment on prioritizing. It is more important, however, to lay out a strategy for how to protect other types of sites, such as Native American sites. Olson asked if individual historic resources identify which context they point to or refer from. Vogel said they do per ordinance. He was unable to find a roster of contexts already prepared. Cofer Evert asked the age of the reports. Vogel referred to information collected in the 1990s. Unfortunately little information is digital. Pathfinder needs to find a way to present survey results to the HPC in a meaningful way. Discussion followed about considerations for national registration of the Smith Douglas More House. Vogel said we will need to weigh the advantages. He can let us know cost, and we can determine the worth. He can also tell us if it is professionally or financially feasible. Vogel stated a couple parts of the mission seem out of place. We will need credentialed people to do some of the core functions for us, but there are plenty of other duties for the HPC. We are also in the unique situation of having knowledge about the location of culturally sensitive sites which we must keep confidential. B. COMMUNITY GARDENS AT RILEY-JACQUES FARMSTEAD - Creamer Parks staff is requesting feedback from the Commission on the relocation of 60 Community Garden plots to the former riding area adjacent to the Riley Jacques Barn. There are 100+ lots currently located on land owned by the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) that need to be moved as the City’s land lease for 2015 will not be renewed due to rezoning. The other 40+ will be located elsewhere. Cofer Evert stated concerns over the large size and aesthetics. The view and the walkway to the Dorenkemper House (DK) need to be kept open. The current proposal leaves only a narrow path. Shifting several lots to the other side might alleviate this. The gardens currently located next to Super America are messy and unattractive. Being in the heart of the farmstead on the banks of a lake, this would deter from the beauty of the site. We also need to consider the interpretive plan and panels and barn rentals. Some sort of screen or attractive fencing would be needed to shield it. Freiberg stated he doesn’t want DK obstructed at all. Muehlberg said it ties in with the agricultural theme, but it is an issue if we are trying to attract people to the site. It cuts down on open space for events and loses its usefulness and appeal. Discussion ensued about the topography of the site and the ability to reorient the gardens. Commissioners agreed it was difficult to ascertain based on the map provided. Jeremiah said there would need to be a means to supply water to the plots. Her concern is the historical significance of the riding area. Vogel said it is HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES September 15, 2014 Page 7 pretty beat up and he is doubtful anything remains, but he will provide a memo on that. He does not think the visual impact on the historical building would be significant. The fence could also be considered a visual intrusion. Spera referenced the gardens at Pioneer Park and agreed a fence might detract. Olson said he does not want to miss an opportunity for partnership with interpretation. Vogel said we could consider breaking the plots into smaller parts, making them non-linear and moving those outwards. That would reduce the visual impact while fitting in better with the historic farmstead and DK. It would not require much extra maintenance. We should look at a two-dimensional image, old photos, and plat maps before deciding. A site visit is also in order. Cofer Evert said tall grasses could be an alternative screen option. Muehlberg said he felt it was important to finish the interpretive plan prior to making a decision. Creamer will forward the HPC’s feedback. VII. FYI ITEMS A. CITY-WIDE OPEN HOUSE - Creamer The HPC will not have its own booth at the city-wide open house on Saturday, October 11, 11 a.m.–2 p.m. The HPC can have related materials available at the Community Development table. Creamer suggested historic plaque program brochures. Cofer Evert said she would like to also see one version of each type of sign and information on the Eden Prairie Historical Society and its museum. B. FALL HARVEST Parks and Recreation and EPHS are co-hosting a fall harvest event on Saturday, October 4, 2-5 p.m. Commissioners are asked to distribute flyers. DK will be open for tours and people are welcome to dress in period-appropriate clothing. VIII. FUTURE MEETINGS/EVENTS The next HPC meeting will be Monday, October 20, 2014, 7 p.m. at City Center, Prairie Rooms A & B. Creamer announced Bluestem Heritage Group will be in attendance to provide an update on the interpretive plan and new panels. Commissioners should give some thought to items for the work plan. Creamer, Freiberg and McGuire are attending the Annual Statewide Historic Preservation Conference later this week. XI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Freiberg moved, seconded by McGuire, to adjourn. Motion carried 6-0. Chair Muehlberg adjourned the meeting at 9:27 p.m.