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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHeritage Preservation - 11/15/2004 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MONDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2004 7:00 P.M. J.R. Cummins House 13600 Pioneer Trail COMMISSION MEMBERS Betsy Adams, Chairperson; Jennie Brown, Vice Chairperson; Bob Amell, Deborah Barkley, Molly Gilbertson, Elise Kist STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES Ben Costello, Katie Kunitz, Trevor Diddell COMMISSION STAFF John Gertz, Historic Preservation Specialist; Peggy Rasmussen, Recorder I. ROLL CALL Adams called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Commissioner Brown was absent. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA A discussion of the letter to the HPC from Scott Neal about the City Council Workshop on the Cummins-Grill House was added under Reports of Commission and Staff. MOTION: Kist moved, seconded by Gilbertson, to approve the agenda as published and amended. Motion carried 5-0. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES —OCTOBER 18, 2004 Kist made a correction to the motion on page 3, which should read " Kist moved, seconded by Brown, that . . . ` MOTION: Barkley moved, seconded by Kist, to approve the minutes of the Heritage Preservation Commission meeting held on October 18, 2004, as published and amended. Motion carried 4-0-1, with Gilbertson abstaining due to her absence from the meeting. IV. REPORTS OF COMMISSION AND STAFF A. Council Workshop on Future of Cummins-Grill House Gertz reported that the City Council held a workshop on November 9 to discuss the future of the Cummins-Grill House, but Council members rather quickly focused on adaptive reuse of the house. Gertz, Lambert, and others connected with the property also attended the workshop. Gertz said he expects that the Council will direct staff to prepare an RFP to send out and see what kind of HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES November 15, 2004 Page 2 adaptive reuse plans come back to the City. The HPC should let the Council know where the Commission stands on adaptive reuse, and define some ways the house could be used without compromising its local or federal designation as an historic site. Adams said the letter City Manager Scott Neal mailed to the Commissioners indicates that the Council is moving ahead with the idea of adaptive reuse. The HPC's contribution would be to develop some guidelines to help staff evaluate the kinds of proposals they receive for use of the house and to be clear about the Commission's expectations. With regard to the LAWCON funds, which restricts the property to recreational uses, Gertz explained that the City would have to obtain permission to exchange the historic part of this property for another park-like property it would purchase. That would have to be approved by the National Park Service and the grant administrator who oversees the LAWCON account. V. OLD BUSINESS A. Burial Mound Restoration at Hennepin Village Gertz explained that the burial mound in question is on the boundary of the Hennepin Village property and City-owned Prairie Bluffs Conservation Area. Eventually the mound site and overlook will be deeded to the City. There is supposed to be a 25-foot no-impact zone from the edge of any burial mound, but the buffer was never indicated on the construction map. Gertz believes there was a communication problem with the person constructing the trail. As a result, a steep cut was made next to the mound, and an edge of the mound was exposed. To correct the problem, the state archaeologist, Mark Dudzik, decided to establish a retaining wall two feet north of the trail. It would be approximately three feet high, with the area between the wall and the exposed surface in-filled with soil and eventually restored and re-seeded. MOTION: Kist moved, seconded by Barkley, that the Heritage Preservation Commission recommends that the City adopt a policy that ensures a minimum 20- foot buffer from the base/perimeter of any earthwork/mound or early burial site. Motion carried 5-0. B. Cemeteries Registration Gertz said he has not received any feedback from the Parks Department about the treatment plans prepared by Robert Vogel. He hopes to have updated information for the next HPC meeting. Robert Vogel has moved to Spring Grove, Minnesota, but he is still retained by Edina as preservation planner. HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES November 15, 2004 Page 3 C. Riley-Jacques Barn Update Gertz reported that the City manager just returned the signed Certificate of Substantial Completion. Gertz said he would go through the punch list to see if everything on the list has been taken care of. He expects the final inspection to be completed by the end of the week, after which the City can send out the Certificate of Occupancy. The Parks Department will soon begin to program and book events for the 2005 season. D. Funding for Historic Properties Adams asked Gertz what is expected to happen with the recommendations the HPC made at their last meeting to fund the maintenance and repair work on the Cummins-Grill house and the Riley-Jacques farmhouse, as a result of the Council Workshop. Gertz replied that it was brought up briefly at the workshop. He believes the City is still planning to go ahead and utilize those funds that are in the 2005 budget for the two buildings; $82,200 for the Riley-Jacques farmhouse and $72,400 for the Cummins house. He told the Council at the workshop that those maintenance items need to be done. Gertz took the Commissioners on a tour of the house's first floor and to see the maintenance and repair work needed on the exterior. The entire west porch is to be reconstructed. Along the north side of the house, the first 4 feet of the brick chimney needs to be rebuilt. Tuck-pointing of all the brick on the house is needed. Wood soffits and fascia should be patched and repaired in several locations. The concrete roof on the icebox needs to be replaced and concrete parging removed. On the south side, the wood shingle roof on the bay window needs to be replaced to match the existing roof. The shake siding is to be removed and replaced with the original raised panel sections, if they exist. If not, they can be reconstructed. The porch on the south side has been reconstructed. Gertz said adaptive reuse should not be allowed to compromise the house's National Register status. That designation covers the whole site, including the peony garden and the trees along the driveway. The architectural design elements must remain. Original items must be kept, as well as character-defining elements, such as the doors. Two of the outbuildings should remain; another one is in such bad condition it could probably not be saved. VI. NEW BUSINESS VII. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Gilbertson moved, seconded by Barkley, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 5-0. Adams adjourned the meeting at 8:20 p.m.