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	Grand Forks Historic Preservation Commission 1405 First Avenue North P. O. Box 13876 Grand Forks, ND 58208-3876 701-772-8756 Meeting Minutes July 10, 2007 7:15 p.m. City Hall Present: Marsha Gunderson, Chair, Caprice Benoit, Chuck Flemmer, Gordon Iseminger, Melinda Leach, Cory Lien, Gerad Paul, Sandy Slater Others: Kevin Severson, Red River Valley Community Action; Brian Carlson, JLG Architects; Peg O’Leary The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.; a quorum was present. Caprice Benoit was welcomed to her first meeting as a Commission member. Motion: to approve the minutes of the June 12, 2007 meeting, changing “house” to “houses” on page one. (Slater, Sickels) Motion carries. Red River Valley Community Action – Kevin Severson 710 S. 18th Street – The owner proposes to use a federally subsidized loan to remove existing wood shake siding and install double-four vinyl siding, metal fascia and soffit; replace 13 windows with vinyl double-hung windows matching existing 2/2 style; wrap existing window trim sills with metal; install metal hand railings to front and side entries; and perform assorted interior work. Two bedroom windows on the north façade will have to be enlarged to meet code for egress windows. Discussion focused on the original siding and windows. The wood shakes on this house are cracked and rough in some areas; the windows are deteriorated but not rotten. It was noted that many homes in the neighborhood have been resided. Members expressed concern that a potential historic district can be eroded by piecemeal work to its various components in the years just prior to eligibility. Motion: to concur with a determination of no historic properties affected by the work proposed at 710 S. 18th St. (Flemmer, Leach) Motion carries. 1406 6th Ave. N. – Pulled by RRVCA. YWCA, 121 N. 5th Street – Brian Carlson The YWCA was completed in 1951 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing building in the Downtown Grand Forks Historic District. The owner/developer is seeking federal Historic Tax Credits and Renaissance Zone tax credits. The Commission is reviewing the project to provide input for the state review. Twenty-five units are proposed, including loft apartments in the old gym and pool areas, one- and two-bedroom apartments, and efficiency apartments. The likely renter demographic will be college students and young professionals. Carlson said the large, open spaces have allowed them to work within the existing floor plan. They will be keeping the terrazzo floors and the plaster walls, and will be partitioning the space to create the apartments. Much of the tile work around the pool can be retained and the gym and pool areas will be loft apartments, utilizing the high ceilings. The building has experienced few exterior changes over time, except for the construction of the telephone building to the south, which obliterated much of the south façade of the YWCA. Conversion to apartments will necessitate cutting two new windows into the north façade; these will mirror the size and style of the windows on the same façade at the NE corner. It will also be necessary to change out the glass block windows for operable windows to provide egress for the efficiency apartments. Discussions with Tom Linn, the State Historical Society of North Dakota (SHSND) historical architect, have indicated that the new windows may have to mimic the appearance of glass block in order to qualify for historic tax credits. It was noted that the efficiency apartments will have only one window; if it has to be fake glass block, the apartments may be difficult to rent. Six units (eight windows) are affected by the glass block situation. New windows will also be cut into the west (alley) and south elevations to provide egress and light for apartments that run along the south wall that partially butts up against the telephone building. Several other items were addressed: the engraved YWCA sign over the front entrance will remain in place; parking is being reserved in a nearby parking ramp for tenants; the building is in good condition, having only minor water damage on the upper floor from leaks in the roof. Flemmer said he did not think the new windows would hurt the integrity of the building but he was concerned that simulated glass block would make it hard to rent the apartments where that is the only view to the outside. It was noted that this is an important building in downtown and it’s important to keep it in play. Several previous revitalizations have failed. The side street that goes past this façade carries much less traffic than when the YWCA was built because it now terminates at the intersection on the corner of the building. Motion: to recommend that the proposed changes present no adverse effect for this listed building or for the district and, to encourage continued use of the building, to further recommend that operable clear glass windows be allowed as replacement for the existing glass block windows. (Flemmer, Sandy) Discussion: Carlson said the glass block replacement windows would be casements, to replicate the square appearance of the existing openings. Paul pointed out that the top line of these windows is on a different level from the existing double-hung windows and casements might look more appropriate than double-hungs for the size and placement of these openings. Carlson noted that they will be building up the floor inside to reach the appropriate height beneath the windows to meet egress requirements. Motion carries unanimously. UND 125th Anniversary – The UND committee meets on July 18th. The HPC sub-committee expects to take no further action until the Mayor’s office uncovers a funding source for the project. Chair Report – Marsha Gunderson Commission Appointments – Gunderson noted that Ted Jelliff, Cory Lien, Gerad Paul, Dale Sickels and Marsha Gunderson have been reappointed by the Mayor and confirmed by City Council. Ms. Caprice Benoit has been newly appointed to a two-year term. Downtown Design and Review Board (DDRB) – Gunderson said the guidelines are being reviewed because there is more activity downtown and situations have arisen that are not covered in the guidelines. The last meeting was a walking tour of downtown. Coordinator Report – Peg O’Leary UND Nomination Proposals – O’Leary provided background: two proposals were received; both meet minimum requirements; both proposers have been endorsed by Mary Kate Ryan as having previously completed acceptable work for the SHSND. O’Leary noted that two companies contacted HPC to explain why they would not be submitting a proposal; both felt they could not do a competent job within the budget provided. O’Leary said she had received an email from Vorland supporting the Dennis proposal primarily on the basis of proximity. Slater said she had read both proposals and felt the Dennis proposal addressed every item in the RFP while the SWCA-Phoenix proposal seemed boilerplate; Leach agreed. Flemmer noted the more extensive campus background in the Dennis proposal. Motion: to award the UND Historic District nomination contract to M.L. Dennis Consulting. (Iseminger, Leach) Motion carries unanimously. Regrant Status - Hook and Ladder Co., 215 S. 4th St. – Everything is completed and the owner has received payment. The only thing remaining is to request our reimbursement from the SHSND. - The Dinnie Apartment contract has been signed and the covenant has been signed and filed with the County. To date, no work has begun. Riverside Nomination Revisions – Martens has completed the narrative revisions and is working on the maps. National Trust for Historic Preservation National Conference – Since the conference is in Minneapolis/St. Paul, this is a rare opportunity for more members to attend. Gunderson and Benoit indicated that they want to attend; Slater and Flemmer indicated that they would like to attend but need to further check their schedules. Members indicated that they felt O’Leary should attend, too, if possible. Early bird registrations are due by the end of July. Lustron House – O’Leary read the letter sent as directed at the June 12, 2007, meeting. See attached. There has been activity in response to the letter: the site has been cleaned up and two faculty members from NDSU came up to assess the situation. State Preservation Grants – SHSND has determined it can’t continue to do a mass mailing to every owner of a Register property in the state. They issued a press release regarding the availability of state-wide preservation grants and our office contacted local owners who have previously expressed interest in these grants. Welcome Letter – We have prepared a letter to send to new owners of historic buildings. See attached. This letter is specific to owners in the Near Southside District; others can be developed for Downtown and Riverside. We will try to send one to new owners as we are aware of properties changing hands. O’Leary asked for the assistance of members in notifying her of sales of which they are aware. Paul suggested that the County Records office might be able to flag listed properties and notify HPC if they change hands; O’Leary will check into it. Donated Time Reports – Members completed time reports for March - May, 2007. HPC Letterhead – O’Leary passed around a sample of what the letterhead might look like if we changed to using an image of the Griggs statue instead of the old house currently on the stationery. She recommended no change to the existing letterhead and members agreed. Other Business Preservation Grants – It was noted that a local property had lost its preservation grant from SHSND because work did not comply with federal regulations for rehabilitation work. 701 S. 5th Street – Exterior work on this home is going very well. Members were encouraged to drive by. 625 Belmont Road – The DeRemer house is for sale. Motion: to adjourn. (Flemmer, Slater) Motion carries. Meeting adjourned. 9:15 p.m. The next regular meeting will be at 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, August 14, 2007, room A101, City Hall. Respectfully submitted, Peg O’Leary Coordinator