City of St. Charles Historic Preservation Commission met March 4.
Here is the minutes provided by the commission:
Members Present: Kessler, Mann, Pretz, Norris, Malay, Smunt
Members Absent: Krahenbuhl
Also Present: Russell Colby, Assistant Director of Community & Economic Dev. \
Rachel Hitzemann, Planner
1. Call to order
Chairman Norris called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2. Roll call
Ms. Hitzemann called roll with six members present. There was a quorum.
3. Approval of Agenda
The order of items 6 and 7 were reversed.
4. Presentation of minutes of the February 19th, 2020 Workshop
A motion was made by Mr. Kessler and seconded by Ms. Malay with a unanimous voice vote to approve the minutes of the February 19th, 2020 workshop.
5. Presentation of the minutes of the February 19th, 2020 meeting
A motion was made by Ms. Malay and seconded by Dr. Smunt with a unanimous voice vote to approve the minutes of the February 19th, 2020 meeting.
6. Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) applications
a. 1 S. 6th Ave. (St. Charles Library)
The architect reviewed a few minor changes that have been made to the overall development.
Site Plan: Some of the landscaping has been changed in front of the church area. They will be keeping the large tree in front of sanctuary. They also added a sidewalk that the City requested, Historic Preservation Commission which required adding a large retention wall to make it ADA accessible. No further details on the retaining wall were available.
Exterior: The signage panel and the window above it that were centered on the expansive wall were slid towards the corner to make it more visible from the parking lot and entrance. They changed the window pattern slightly on the North elevation of the one-story portion and developed brick paneled areas that are reminiscent of what is on the taller portion of building.
The large stone panel across the top was removed because it seemed out of character with the rest of the building.
Ms. Malay preferred to see more details on the retaining wall before granting approval.
A motion was made by Ms. Malay and seconded by Mr. Pretz with a unanimous voice vote to approve the COA with the exception of the retaining wall.
7. Landmark Applications
a. 1 S. 6th Ave. (St. Charles Library)
Mr. Pretz presented the landmark application and background information posted in the meeting packet.
The Commissioners reviewed the criteria regarding the significance of the property. Dr. Smunt asked if there was a summary of the data to support the architectural significance. Mr. Pretz said he included articles that speak to those items. Dr. Smunt suggested changing the style to Classical Revival and noting the specific elements that support that style.
A motion was made by Ms. Malay and seconded by Dr. Smunt with a unanimous voice vote to recommend scheduling a public hearing for the landmark application.
8. Grant Applications
No items.
9. Other Commission Business
No items.
10. Preliminary Reviews-Open forum for questions or presentation of preliminary concepts to the Commission for feedback
a. 5 S 1st St. (ZaZa Trattoria)
Historic Preservation Commission
The architect reviewed the plans for proposed updates to the ZaZa building. The owner is proposing adding a restaurant and bar on the rooftop of the second floor of the building. The third floor would consist of private condo/residential use.
The Commissioners discussed various aspects of the design plan. Ms. Malay asked for drawings showing a view from Main Street. Mr. Pretz felt the support columns coming down from the third floor seemed too narrow and out of proportion with the rest of the building.
Dr. Smunt said it’s a good adaptation of some of the traditional and modern design already in the downtown area. Mr. Kessler liked the general concept.
11. Additional Business and Observations from Commissioners or Staff
a. Pottawattamie Survey Discussion
Ms. Hitzemann reached out to Allen and Peppa to find out how they handle amending the database that will be provided to the Commission. She was told there will be time to review it before the final submission. Any changes made after completion will be subject to an additional service. However, staff would be able to get an excel file and that they could amend themselves. She also asked how they would start the survey work and was told the research portion would start immediately, but the photo portion would depend on the weather.
Ms. Hitzemann presented examples of survey pages from MIA. She also checked with each firm’s references and was told each of them was on-time with their deliverables. The Commission discussed options for ensuring the chosen firm stays on track.
12. Meeting Announcements: Historic Preservation Commission meeting Wednesday, March 18th, 2020 at 7:00 P.M. in the Committee Room.
13. Public Comment
Dr. Smunt asked if the landmark map still needs to be updated. Ms. Hitzemann said they are going through the zoning map update and the landmark map will be updated along with that.
14. Adjournment
With no further business to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 8:35p.m.
https://www.stcharlesil.gov/sites/default/files/event/minutes/3-4-20%20HP%20Minutes.pdf
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