Kane County Reporter

City of St. Charles Historic Preservation Commission Met July 21.

Here is the agenda provided by the Commission:

Members Present: Pretz, Kessler, Malay, Norris, Dickerson, Smunt, Rice

Members Absent:

Also Present: Rachel Hitzemann, Planner

1. Call to order

Chairman Malay called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

2. Roll call

Ms. Hitzemann called roll with 7 members present. There was a quorum.

3. Approval of Agenda

Item 11.a- 214 s 13th Ave. was added to the agenda.

A motion was made by Mr. Norris and seconded by Mr. Kessler with a unanimous voice vote to approve the agenda.

4. Presentation of the minutes of the July 7th, 2021 meeting

Mr. Kessler noted that Dr. Smunt was not present at the last meeting and so he did not make a comment on 112 S 3rd St. He also said that he objected to the Special Use and COA for 12 S. First St.

A motion was made by Mr. Kessler and seconded by Ms. Dickerson with a unanimous voice vote to approve the revised minutes of the July 7th, 2021 meeting. Dr. Smunt and Ms. Rice abstained.

6. Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) applications

a. 112 S 3rd St.

The applicant proposed to replace the current wood windows and wood scale siding with vinyl windows and siding. At the previous meeting, the Commission tabled the item until a site visit could be conducted.

The Commission performed a site visit before the meeting. Commission members who attended the visit said that building was not in such disrepair that all the siding would need to be removed. They said that they prefer that the wood shingles remain. The applicant proposed a compromise to use LP shingles instead of vinyl on the top portion of the building (the cedar scale portion), but would still like to use vinyl siding on the bottom half and vinyl windows. Mr. Kessler felt like the shingles were restorable in every way, but said he was willing to compromise. The Commission as a whole felt comfortable with the compromise and noted that there were grant funds available if the owner was willing to pursue the compromise. The owner said he would like to table the item to consider his options.

A motion was made by Mr. Norris and seconded by Ms. Rice with a unanimous voice vote to table the COA until a site visit could be conducted.

b. 314 Walnut St.

Proposed is to install a chair lift off of the front porch. The chair lift will block the front window a little, but the street view of the porch will remain unchanged. The lift will extend out to the driveway between the two Tri-City Health buildings. The Commissioners expressed approval of the plan.

A motion was made by Mr. Norris and seconded by Mr. Kessler with a unanimous voice vote to approve the COA as presented.

c. 7 S. 2nd Ave.

Proposed is a marquee sign and projecting sign for the new theater. The sign design is a thin rectangle that protrudes from the building. Mr. Norris asked that the width of the sign be reduced to not cover any of the architectural details of the building, including the door arches. The applicants said that they were happy to make changes to the width.

Mr. Kessler recommended that the applicant use a semi-circle marquee instead of a rectangular sign. The applicants said they liked the idea and would look into it. The Commissioners had no issues with the projecting sign,

A motion was made by Mr. Norris and seconded by Ms. Rice with a unanimous voice vote to table the item until the applicant can revise the sign drawings.

d. 102 N 5th Ave.

Proposed is to replace the siding, windows and doors of the addition with the same material and style as the existing structure.

A motion was made Dr. Smunt and seconded by Ms. Rice with a unanimous voice vote to approve the COA as presented.

7. Grant Applications

None.

8. Landmark Applications

None.

9. Other Commission Business

a. Architectural Surveys for Approval

A motion was made by Mr. Kessler and seconded by Ms. Rice with a unanimous voice vote to approve the revised surveys.

b. Architectural Surveys for Review

The Commission reviewed the surveys and suggested changes.

10. Preliminary Reviews-Open forum for questions or presentation of preliminary concepts to the Commission for feedback

11. Additional Business and Observations from Commissioners or Staff

a. 214 13th Ave.

Mr. Kessler discussed how this building has severely deteriorated since the intended project has not moved forward. Ms. Hitzemann informed the Commission that the City is aware of the condition of the building and is likely going to be taking legal action against the property owner. The Commission decided to write a letter to City Council to support legal action being taken.

12. Meeting Announcements: Historic Preservation Commission meeting August 4th, 2021 at 7:00 P.M.

13. Public Comment

14. Adjournment

With no further business to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 8:11 p.m.