Committee Minutes
Grand Forks Historic Preservation Commission
1405 First Avenue North
Grand Forks, ND 58203
701-772-8756
Meeting Minutes
April 24, 2007
7:00 p.m.
City Hall
Present: Marsha Gunderson, Chair, Chuck Flemmer, Gordon Iseminger, Ted Jelliff, Melinda Leach, Cory Lien, Dale Sickels, Sandy Slater, Dave Vorland
Others: Clark and Melinda Gebhard; Pete Haga, GF Mayor’s Office; Joanne Brundin, Leon Comeau, Jerry Reuter, St. Vincent de Paul; Meredith Richards, Office of Urban Development; Kevin Severson, Red River Valley Community Action; Peg O’Leary
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.; a quorum was present.
Motion:
to approve the minutes of the April 10, 2007 meeting. (Sickels, Jelliff)
Motion carries.
85 4th Avenue South
– Clark and Melinda Gebhard
This house has a historic covenant. The owners propose replacing the wood shingle roof with Owens Corning asphalt 25-30 year guaranteed shingles in driftwood or teak color to simulate the existing wood. They will also paint the upper story in a tone similar to the existing paint and repair the wood shakes as needed. They plan to keep a two-tone color scheme on the house. They passed around shingle samples and paint chips. Jelliff noted that the house originally had a small porch (not the existing one), and that the bay window in the front used to be two double-hung windows.
Motion:
to approve reshingling and painting/repairing as described in discussion. (Jelliff, Iseminger)
Motion carries.
UND 125th Anniversary
– Pete Haga
Haga provided background on the upcoming anniversary celebration at UND. He outlined a proposal for the city and the commission to work together on a project that would illustrate the role of city founders in locating UND at Grand Forks. Commissioners agreed that it is an excellent opportunity to show the interrelationships that contributed to the establishment and continued prosperity of both the university and the town. A sub-committee of Slater, Vorland, and Haga will further develop the proposal and report back.
St. Vincent de Paul, 620 8th Avenue South
Richards explained that the organization has received a Community Development Block Grant to place a garage on land adjacent to their thrift shop facility. They own the land and the two houses (614 and 616 8th Ave. S.) that are located at the front of the proposed garage site. Comeau said a variance for one large building, with a firewall on the property line, has been granted. The building peak will be 20-21’ high and will be visible from vantage points along the street but will not tower over the adjacent homes. It will be steel sided in a neutral color (e.g. white, gray, or taupe). The area is a block west of the Near Southside Historic District.
Motion:
to concur that no historic properties are affected by the proposed building behind 614 and 616 8th Ave. S. (Jelliff, Slater)
Discussion: It was noted that they will be within the required hardscape coverage area and will structure drainage so that neighbors are not affected by runoff.
Motion carries.
Red River Valley Community Action
– Kevin Severson
518 N. 14th St., built 1928 – The owner proposes to use a federally subsidized loan to raise the house and rebuild/raise the foundation. Severson said the poured foundation is badly cracked and in need of replacement. The house will be 2’ higher after the work is completed. It was noted that adjacent homes have basements and are 18” to 2’ higher than this one currently is. The owner will also put in basement windows, including an egress window on the east side and one on the north side.
Motion:
to concur with a determination of no adverse effect resulting from the proposed work at 518 N. 14th Street. (Slater, Jelliff)
Motion carries.
Grand Forks Office of Urban Development
– Meredith Richards
Richards provided background on previous infill projects in Grand Forks. The completion of the dike releases approximately 80 more lots for development. The lots are in various areas of town, including a concentration in the Walnut Place neighborhood. OUD staff will propose that Council authorize an RFP process similar to past procedures to make the lots available to the public. Review criteria will vary with lot location and program goals but will always include architectural compatibility. In the past, review committees were made up of the council member from the affected district, a neighborhood resident, an architect, and a member of the HPC. This process was successful when used for individual lots throughout town and for the block of homes that replaced the Almonte Nursing Home on Almonte Ave. Richards is scheduled to present the proposal to a Council working session on May 2; formal action on the disposition of the lots will take place at a later meeting of City Council.
Motion:
to support the proposal for use of a Request for Proposals process in the disposition of the remaining city-owned residential lots in Grand Forks. (Iseminger, Jelliff)
Motion carries.
Griggs Award
– Sandy Slater
Slater said that, after visiting with various members of the Commission, there is a consensus to present the award posthumously to Curt Siewert in recognition of his continued support of preservation causes throughout his years of service to Grand Forks and especially for the countless times when he personally intervened to save pieces of our collective history.
Motion:
to confirm Curt Siewert as the recipient of the 2007 Alexander Griggs Award for enhancing and maintaining the historical heritage of the city of Grand Forks. (Jelliff, Iseminger)
Motion carries unanimously.
Chair Report
– Marsha Gunderson
Downtown Design and Review Board – Gunderson related some generalized discussion about the siding on the Elite Brownstones, which had been approved by both DDRB and HPC. DDRB is also reviewing outdoor seating requests from restaurants and bars in the downtown area, as well as advertising on umbrellas for that outdoor seating.
County Historical Society – HPC has provided a letter of support for a grant request by GFCHS for funding to repair the original Grand Forks log cabin post office.
PND Conference – The conference is May 4-6 in Minot.
Rolene Schliesman Letter – Gunderson announced that Schliesman, SHSND architectural historian during and following the flood, had been invited to the flood anniversary activities. She was unable to attend but sent a letter to the mayor describing the activities of commissioners during that time. Gunderson read the letter into the minutes. (Attached.)
Lustron House – One wall is in place!
Coordinator Report
– Peg O’Leary
Regrant Status – The Hook and Ladder Co. contract will be signed later this week. The conference call on the Dinnie Apartment contract was successful and O’Leary is completing the contract for review by the City Attorney’s office and the State Historical Society.
City Maps – Oversized maps of the city, showing the housing developments, are available for $8. Some members have expressed a desire for their own map to facilitate their work on the commission. Members will pay for their own maps. O’Leary will order them.
802 Belmont Road – The owners of this house have received a grant from the State Historical Society to assist in the removal of lead-based paint.
19th Annual Governor’s Conference on ND History – Please save the dates: Nov. 2-3, 2007, Bismarck.
Commission Appointments – Gunderson, Jelliff, Lien, Paul and Sickels should confirm with O’Leary whether or not they wish to apply for reappointment to the Commission. Their terms are up in May. There is also one vacant seat to be filled.
Donated Time Sheets – Members completed and signed donated time sheets for Jan. - Feb., 2007.
Kiwanis Club – O’Leary spoke at the noon meeting of Kiwanis Club on Monday, April 16.
The Kegs – Pictures of the Kegs, taken as the bamboo was being removed from the exterior, were passed around.
Alexander Griggs – An historian in Portland, OR, is researching a biography of Griggs and has contacted us for information. O’Leary provided some basics and referred him to the Chester Fritz Library for more data.
Motion:
to adjourn. (Sickels, Flemmer)
Motion carries.
Meeting adjourned. 9:15 p.m.
The next regular meeting will be at 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, May 8, 2007, in room A101, City Hall.
Respectfully submitted,
Peg O’Leary
Coordinator
Attached email letter from Rolene Schliesman, April 2007:
Schliesman, Rolene wrote:
Dear Lois,
Please thank Mayor Michael Brown for the personal invitation to the
Flood Commemoration dinner and ceremony. Unfortunately, I cannot
attend but I am honored to be invited.
Please share with Mayor Brown and the good people of Grand Forks that
I personally witnessed the undaunted dedication of the Grand Forks
Historic Preservation Commission and Coordinators throughout much of
the flood's aftermath. The commissioners met within just two weeks
of the crest of the flood - every place personal to them was flooded
- yet they volunteered thousands of hours in the coming weeks,
months, and years to save Grand Forks' heritage. On Christmas Eve
day 1997, they found out the Corps of Engineers' devastating news
that 100 of Grand Forks' precious historic homes were to be
demolished for a new levy. Yet they battled for each and every one
of them, making plans for those buildings' retention, relocations,
and recordations. They saved the little metal house - one of only
seventeen "Lustrons" in all of North Dakota. When a report said that
the pivoting bridge was causing an additional 12" of flooding, they
called in experts to ferret out those errors. They watched the
successfully rehabilitated St Michael's Hospital and Nurses'
Residence (Riverside Manor) placed on the demolition list but came to
its rescue again by negotiating modifications to the levy. And these
were just a few of the hundreds of battles they fought on behalf of
the community. They put Grand Forks' long-term preservation ahead of
their own concerns, and so deserve spectacular recognition and deep
appreciation.
Rolene Schliesman
Rolene R Schliesman
DSHPO and CLG Coordinator
PO Box 201202
1410 E 8th Ave
Helena, MT 59620-1202
406.444.7742 (direct)
rschliesman@mt.gov