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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1992-09-02 Historic MINASHLAND HISTORIC COMMISSION Minutes September 2, 1992 CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Jim Lewis at 7:40 p.m. Members present were Jim Lewis, Terry Skibby, Le Hook, Jean MacKenzie, Dana Johnson, Jane Dancer, Keith Chambers and Steve Ennis. Also present were Assistant Planner Kristen Cochran, Secretary Sonja Akerman and Council Liaison Susan Reid. Deane Bradshaw was absent. APPROVAL OF MINUTES MacKenzie clarified on page 7, Goal 3 should be statue, not fountain. Hook moved and Johnson seconded to approve the Minutes of the August 5, 1992 meeting as corrected. The motion was unanimously passed. GUEST Kay Atwood discussed the benefits and possibility of conducting research on the Ashland Cemetery and preparing a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. She stated to be register eligible, the cemetery must have maintained its original character. The quality of mortuary art is also taken into consideration. She proposed doing an initial presentation to Elizabeth Potter of SHPO to find out the feasibility of acceptance. She emphasized it is not enough to have prominent city figures buried there. She would also need to clarify it is THE Ashland Cemetery. The Hargadine Cemetery also needs to be taken into account. The City has recognized the National Register before, in the Community Center and Reeder Reservoir. Cemeteries are considered to be new ground and are cultural landscape art relics. Reid wondered about the budget and if the Hargadine Cemetery could be incorporated in the nomination with the Ashland Cemetery. Atwood will investigate this. Atwood said there is no direct financial benefit, but listing on the National Register is a prerequisite and avenue to grants. She stressed it is a valuable first step, not a guarantee. She then submitted a copy of the grant the City of Jacksonville obtained for restoration of its cemetery. It serves as a work plan she explained. MacKenzie questioned Atwood about the possibility of Siskiyou Boulevard obtaining National Register status. Atwood answered it would be a major project to undertake. Lewis commented more vandalism is taking place, and some of the marble headstones are losing definition. Consequently, he is in favor of proceeding with this project. Atwood agreed this would be a step toward preserving the cemetery. She also said it would be helpful to solicit volunteers to photograph all the headstones and match them to the records. She will submit a proposal to the Commission for the eligibility proposal. The members all agreed this is a worthwhile beginning, and will support Atwood throughout the process. STAFF REPORTS PA 92-088 Site Review First and "A" Streets Ashland Community Food Store Cochran explained a food store is a permitted use in an E-1 zone. The applicants will be using an existing parking area and adding 12 spaces on the street. Staff is happy with the design and thinks it will be an attractive structure with nice landscaping. A concern is traffic that will be generated. A study has recently been completed and the current traffic is well below capacity. One neighbor had suggested making all of First Street one way (it is currently one way only between Lithia Way and "B" Street). Cochran clarified this will be addressed by the Traffic Safety Commission, which will be coming up with a plan for the area. She then reviewed Staff's recommendations and conditions. Parking and truck traffic was discussed. ACFS owns half the existing parking lot by Valley of the Rogue Bank. The Commission agreed it is important to keep the access open between the parking lots. Johnson questioned the impact of parking on the existing houses on First Street. Cochran answered that side of the street will remain the same with parallel parking, while the other side will be widened to allow for head-in parking. When questioned by Lisa Blatte (from the audience) about the lighting, Joyce Ward (architect for the project) answered a Portland firm will be addressing it. Hook said the need for views of the streetscape has been discussed and would like to see one of this area drawn to scale. Ennis said he is a little disturbed by the scale since it most directly relates to the smaller houses across the street. When asked about the metal roof, Joyce Ward clarified the entire roof will be metal and that the wood trellises provide softness. (Reid left at this time.) Ashland Historic Commission Minutes September 2, 1992 Page 2 Hook moved to recommend approval of the application with the conditions as stated by Staff. Skibby seconded the motion. A discussion on traffic ensued. It was agreed the Historic Commission would like the Traffic Safety Commission to seriously consider making First Street one way from Lithia Way to "A" Street. This would help preserve the residential character of "B" Street in that area. Hook amended the motion to include the Traffic Safety Commission examine the possibility of making First Street one way from "B" Street to "A" Street also. Skibby seconded the amended motion. The motion passed with all voting aye except Ennis. PA 92-101 Conditional Use Permit 223 Fifth Street Cooper/Silverman Cochran explained the applicants propose to remodel the existing house to accommodate two office spaces downstairs, with two office spaces and a one bedroom apartment upstairs. Two off-street parking spaces will be provided on the property and credit will be given for two on-street spaces. Concerns have arisen regarding traffic and loss of residential housing in the Historic District. The applicants will be required to improve the off-street parking area and install a sidewalk on the Fifth Street side. Lewis questioned the size of the off-street parking areas and observed there was no turn- around area. Lisa Cooper, applicant, said the cars would back out onto Fifth Street, and that they wanted to leave as much yard area as possible, so would be paving the minimum amount since only two spaces are needed. Dancer questioned how far the Railroad District was going toward business and losing its residential character. Lewis said each application had to be taken by its own merits. Cooper explained she and Nola Silverman are CPAs and are currently renting office space. The reason they bought the house was because they need more space and felt it was a good compromise to have the mixed use. They will only rent out one or two of the offices, as they need two or three themselves. They plan to have minimal impact on the area, as a CPA business does not generate a lot of traffic. They like the house the way it is and can put in an apartment without much structural change. It will look the same outside, and can be converted back to residential use. Two-thirds of the upstairs space will be used for the one bedroom apartment. Ennis questioned the type of heating system and wondered where the compressor unit would be placed. Cooper was unsure. Ashland Historic Commission Minutes September 2, 1992 Page 3 Lewis stated he would like to see the sidewalk placed as it is across the street on Fifth, with a parkway between the curb and the sidewalk. Chambers said he has mixed feelings about the commercial use versus residential use. He referred to the letter and map received from Laura Perloff, who has concerns about the parking situation. Ennis expressed his frustration with the loss of a good size house and stated it would be the first commercial use on that block. He also has concerns about the livability and traffic increase in the area. When questioned about the possibility of a duplex, Cochran stated there is not enough square footage on the lot. Lewis said he has a problem if the lot is not large enough for a duplex, how can it be large enough for four offices and an apartment. Cooper stated the nice stairway would have to be walled off if the apartment utilized the entire upstairs. She said they were not looking to rent out all the spaces. Lewis remarked four office spaces can generate a lot of traffic, and it seems as though this is maximizing the property. Ennis said it is feasible for three or four people to work out of one office, and there are only four spaces provided. Chambers stated the Commission has become more and more concerned about the loss of rental housing in the Historic District and would like the public to have a chance to state concerns. Cooper declared they had gone through the pre-application process and they were not aware of problems. Lisa Blatte said she lives only a couple blocks from the Historic District is very concerned with the amount of traffic and amount of parking spaces provided. She often walks down "B" Street and she recently counted the number of single family units left between Water Street and Fifth Street -- there are very few. The Railroad District has been one of the few remaining affordable housing areas in close proximity to downtown. Also, in looking at the site, it seems as though the off-street parking will be located less than ten feet from the neighbor's bedroom window, and doesn't like the fact that this is introducing traffic into the backyard, which happens to be directly off "B" Street. When she questioned Cooper about number of people in the office spaces, Cooper said there would be one for each office, plus a receptionist. Blatte continued there should be a minimum of five spaces required. Hook stated he also had a problem with the number of parking spaces required. Four spaces is not enough for four offices and a residence and customers. Skibby felt the amount of office space overpowers the residential, and it should be called up for a public hearing Ashland Historic Commission Minutes September 2, 1992 Page 4 in order to get public input. MacKenzie said she was sorry the applicants were caught in the middle of these concerns, but felt they need to be addressed. Johnson questioned why the applicants were requesting four office spaces if not that many were needed for their own use, then suggested they only apply for two on the main floor and use the entire space upstairs for residential use. Cooper said they would have to rethink their plans. Cochran commented the impact would be less with two offices. She also informed the Commission parking is calculated off the square footage, not the number of offices. Chambers said the quality of what's left in the residential area is important. (Dancer left at this point.) After discussing this application, the Commission agreed traffic, parking spaces, and the loss of rental housing are the main concerns. Therefore, Ennis moved to recommend the Hearings Board call this up for a public hearing. Hook seconded the motion and it was unanimously approved. BUILDING PERMITS Permits reviewed by members of the Historic Commission and issued during the month of August follow: 586 "C" Street 30 Water Street 487 Rock Street 228 "B" Street 180 N. First Street 41 N. Main Street 501 Allison Street 44 Lithia Way 87 Fourth Street Beth Giesler Lloyd Haines Rick Landt John Ferguson John Ferguson Dave Lewis Daniel Greenblatt Puck's Doughnuts Rogue Valley Unitarian Church Repair Deck Remodel Roof & Struc. Repair Interior Remodel Satellite Dish Foundation Sign Sign REVIEW BOARD Following is the schedule (until the next meeting) for the Review Board, which meets every Thursday from 3:00 to 3:30 p.m. in the Planning Department: September 3 September 10 September 17 September 24 October 1 Lewis, Skibby, MacKenzie and Dancer Skibby, MacKenzie, Hook and Lewis Hook, MacKenzie, Johnson, Chambers and Skibby MacKenzie, Johnson, Chambers and Skibby Ennis, Skibby, Lewis and Dancer Ashland Historic Commission Minutes September 2, 1992 Page 5 (Chambers moved and MacKenzie seconded to extend the meeting beyond 10:30. The motion passed unanimously.) OLD BUSINESS Rental Housing in the Historic District Ennis explained that at the Joint Study Session with the Planning Commission on August 25th, Staff requested a copy of criteria with which the Commission is concerned. The criteria submitted by Ennis was then discussed. Chambers and Ennis will submit the final draft before the September 29th Joint Study Session. Mark Antony A copy of the letter from James Hamrick (SHPO) was briefly discussed regarding the marquee at the Mark Antony. NEW BUSINESS Skibby requested the Applegate Trail be put on the next agenda. ADJOURNMENT It was the unanimous decision of the Commission to adjourn the meeting at 11:00 p.m. Ashland Historic Commission Minutes September 2, 1992 Page 6