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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHeritage Preservation - 06/16/2014 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MONDAY,JUNE 16, 2014 7:00 P.M., CITY CENTER Prairie Rooms A & B COMMISSION MEMBERS: Ed Muehlberg (Chair), Cindy Cofer Evert (Vice Chair), Steve Olson, JoAnn McGuire, Pamela Spera, Mark Freiberg, Deb Paulson STAFF: Lori Creamer, Staff Liaison Heidi Wojahn, Recording Secretary GUEST: Emily Osthus - Community Development Intern I. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Vice Chair Cofer Evert called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. Commissioners Muehlberg and Freiberg were absent. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Cofer Evert added Items V. G. BYERLY'S UPDATE and VII. B. EDEN PRAIRIE HISTORICAL SOCIETY ANNUAL MEETING to the agenda. Creamer added Item V. H. LEGACY GRANT UPDATE to the agenda. MOTION: McGuire moved, seconded by Paulson, to approve the agenda as amended. Motion carried 5-0. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES McGuire stated "Authenticity" should be changed to "Appropriateness" in the second full paragraph on page 2. MOTION: Olson moved, seconded by Paulson, to approve the May 19, 2014 minutes as amended. Motion carried 3-0-2 with McGuire and Spera abstaining. IV. REPORTS OF COMMISSION AND STAFF A. UPDATE ON HISTORIC SITES - Creamer The Riley Jacques (RJ) barn and Dorenkemper House (DK) have been painted. Facilities is working on the wood siding at the Riley House. There are water issues in the crawl space underneath DK due to extensive rain. Plans are underway to prevent future problems and they are also running fans and a dehumidifier. Cofer Evert expressed concern for protecting the contents of the HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES June 16, 2014 Page 2 house. We need to be proactive in asking to have fans running. Paulson raised the issue of the potential for mold. Creamer will speak to Paul Sticha tomorrow and voice the HPC's concerns. McGuire inquired if painting requires a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA). Olson said maintenance work is okay. Creamer reported she met on-site with a consultant today regarding the interpretive plan. B. UPDATE ON STUDENT COMMISSION MEMBERS - Creamer Courtney Sweeney, Alexander Modeas, and Zeinab Hussen will be HPC student commissioners for the 2014-15 academic year. Cofer Evert asked about having student commissioners provide feedback on their experience at the end of the school year. Olson suggested putting it on the work plan to consider for next year. McGuire said the end of the school year is a busy time for students and they may not be able to fully reflect. Students also seem reticent to speak up in commission meetings. Cofer Evert recommended we ask them, as part of the evaluation, what could be done to make them feel more comfortable in terms of participating. Spera requested feedback be sought earlier in the year so it is useful. McGuire suggested moving student commissioners up on the agenda so it doesn't get too late for them to weigh in before having to leave. Discussion ensued about ways to get the students more involved. V. OLD BUSINESS A. 2013 CLG GRANT UPDATE—RILEY JACOUES FARMSTEAD INTERPRETIVE PANELS - Creamer Creamer thanked the commissioners for their hard work and tenacity on the RJ interpretive panels. The panels are in production. Paulson asked how Bluestem Heritage Group (BHG) perceived the feedback. Creamer said it went well. They appreciated it and agreed with the graphic design concerns. There was a disconnect with the previous commission meeting held at the Smith Douglas More House (SDM),but she has confirmed with BHG that the future panels will address the human element. Kathie Case has said she is happy with the final product. Cofer Evert stated she is pleased with and proud of the end product as well. Creamer said the panels will be ready within the next month. City staff will install them. The DK sign will be installed by the house and the orientation sign by the water fountain. The orientation panel is a stand-alone sign but will be near the future site of the kiosk and other four panels. B. 2014 CLG GRANT UPDATE—REQUESTS FOR PROPOSAL—Creamer The CLG Grant is for a kiosk with four signs to be placed at the RJ site. RFPs will be sent to BHG and the 106 Group. Cofer Evert asked if images of the two panels HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES June 16, 2014 Page 3 currently in production will be part of the RFP to set the tone. Creamer said she will be sure to include them. The grant starts July of this year and goes into next year. Creamer's next big project will be completing final paperwork for the grant for the first two panels. Cofer Evert asked where the landscape fits into things. Creamer said BHG will weave that into the interpretive plan. Creamer stated the interpretive plan committee is in the information gathering stage and recently met to discuss existing interpretive efforts, likely audience for the DK and Riley buildings, likely market competition, and the capacity and interest of the Eden Prairie Historical Society (EPHS) and the HPC. Nancy from BHG will be talking to Parks and Rec to discuss their interest and capacity for the site, as well. Creamer expects Paulson will be contacted to serve as an HPC rep on the committee. The next meeting is July 9 and research will begin soon. Cofer Evert inquired if the grant is just for the plan only or if it includes the completed work and asked if the plan was to recreate the original landscaping as was done at the Cummins Grill House. Creamer said it is just for the plan. She does not know plan details at this point. C. CITY CENTER HISTORICAL PHOTO PROJECT —Creamer The City Manager likes the historical photo display idea and has requested Cofer Evert present her vision at the October 21 Council workshop. Commissioners are welcome to attend. The hope is to garner financial support from Council. Sticha has indicated he is on board with doing the necessary prep work on the walls. Creamer spoke with Communications regarding branding, as well. She took a picture of a warming house bearing the wheatgrass background and will forward the photo to Cofer Evert. If supported, this could be worked into the next budget year. Cofer Evert stated she needs a small budget to get professional mock-ups done for the presentation. Creamer said this should not be a problem. D. HISTORIC PLAQUE PROGRAM UPDATE —Cofer Evert Minimal feedback was received from commissioners on the draft letter and questionnaire. The next step is to meet with Creamer to update the form and then it can be mailed to those on the Excel list identified as having historic properties. E. STATE HISTORIC BRIDGE PROJECT —Olson Olson has not received a reply to the email he sent to the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). He will follow up to see if the matter has been dismissed or just wasn't on their radar. The study will be finishing up in September. Olson asked about the test cleaning that was to be done on existing interpretive panels. Creamer will check on the status. Cofer Evert requested this be done in time to be reported on at the next meeting. HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES June 16, 2014 Page 4 Spera inquired if anyone knew the status of the broken path near the Jean Harris Bridge at Purgatory Creek Park. The land around the bridge eroded and was built back up but it did not sustain. Creamer said she will investigate this and report back via email. F. WORK PLAN REVIEW Although Creamer put completed work plan items in red print, McGuire noted the minutes called for check boxes. Creamer said she will add them. Cofer Evert reminded commissioners the Consolidated School and SDM are both local and national registry-eligible. Now is good time to add them to the work plan for discussion. Olson said it is an expensive process but would meet the requirements for a legacy grant. He is wondering how we would take care of the necessary documentation and paperwork. Creamer explained the records are on- site at City Center. She just needs to locate them. She has already started the process of going through files in the vacated cubicle in her department offices. Records will be scanned for future reference. She is giving duplicates of some items to Kathie Case so EPHS has copies. Olson said he would like to see firsthand what the files contain. Creamer said they are already fairly organized but will work with Olson to set something up. She doesn't have a long timetable. Designers are coming in to look at the space as it will be redone soon. Creamer said for the Consolidated School, the starting point is to find out what it takes to get it nominated and then meet with district representatives and relay what that means in terms of ramifications for them. The new consultant should accompany her. Cofer Evert noted John Gertz had indicated much of the legwork is already done. It is just a matter of gathering the necessary items. Creamer said she plans to meet with the consultant tomorrow to go over the work plan and get him up to speed. Then she can solicit feedback on how to move forward. Olson volunteered to help with the process of looking at records and finding out what we have before going to the district. Cofer Evert said she would like to attend the meeting with the district. A decision was made to put research and discussion regarding placing the Consolidated School and/or SDM on the local and/or national register as a third quarter item on the work plan. G. BYERLY'S UPDATE —Cofer Evert Cofer Evert heard from the Director of Marketing for Byerly's stating they are not yet at the point in the store design process to make a determination about decor; however they will keep her contact information and consider her ideas. Cofer Evert sent a thank-you in reply and will keep in touch on a monthly basis. H. LEGACY GRANT UPDATE —Creamer This item was addressed out of order under Item V.B. 2014 CLG GRANT UPDATE REQUESTS FOR PROPOSAL. HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES June 16, 2014 Page 5 VI. NEW BUSINESS A. SMITH DOUGLAS MORE FENCE & HOSTA GARDEN PROPOSAL There have been issues with a neighbor throwing garbage and limbs onto the property at SDM. To make things more aesthetically pleasing, the Minnesota Hosta Society would like to install another fence and more hostas at its expense. Creamer circulated a map showing placement of the existing and proposed fences and hostas. It is part of the historical site and will not disrupt or affect the site, and the proposed fence will be consistent with the existing fence. Commissioners were in agreement they were comfortable with the decision to move forward and determined it to be a nice addition to the property. VII. FYI ITEMS A. FORUM 2014 CONFERENCE—PHILADELPHIA, PA - Creamer No scholarships are available for this conference. B. EPHS ANNUAL MEETING—Cofer Evert EPHS will hold its annual meeting this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Ron Case and Mona Hanson will do an armchair tour of Eden Prairie history. Commissioners are encouraged to attend. VIII. FUTURE MEETINGS/EVENTS The next HPC meeting will be a joint meeting with the Parks and Recreation Commission on Monday, July 21, 2014, 7 p.m. at Glen Lake Children's Camp, 6350 Indian Chief Road. Creamer said to meet in the building as the new owners will be doing a presentation. Parks and Rec holds the lease for the camp which is coming due. This will be a meeting discussion item. The owner's intent is to renew with a 20-year lease. Camp facilities has a Best Management Practices book. Creamer will bring extras. She noted her conversations to date have been promising so she expects they are building a good working relationship. XI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Olson moved, seconded by McGuire, to adjourn. Motion carried 5-0. Vice Chair Cofer Evert adjourned the meeting at 8:28 p.m.