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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-ILPC-2010-06-08Approved by ILPC – 07/13/10 1 Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission Minutes – June 8, 2010 Present: Nancy Brcak Ed Finegan Susan Jones, Acting Chair David Kramer Ellen McCollister, Common Council Liaison Leslie Chatterton, Staff Megan Gilbert, Staff Acting Chair S. Jones called the meeting to order at 5:35 pm and read the legal notice for the public hearing. I. PUBLIC HEARING A. DeWitt Place, East Hill Historic District – proposal for roadwork including widening, repaving, and curbs Pam Johnston, property owner, Ray Schlather, attorney, and Richard Hautaniemi, project architect, were present to address the Commission regarding the proposal. Staff explained that the drawings provided by the applicant include a topographic map of the existing conditions, a site plan of the proposed changes, and a third diagram showing details of the project. The August 2008 approval of this project was distributed to Commission members via email. Tonight the Commission will review a revision to the originally approved proposal. The May 6, 2009 Fire Lane Agreement was executed without consultation with the ILPC. The agreement is a legal document that has been filed with the Tompkins County Clerk and can only be amended with the consent of the applicant and the Mayor. The City Attorney expressed his apology for not bringing this agreement to the ILPC, but there were many steps in the review of this agreement and, after the original ILPC approval, the agreement did not return to the Commission. R. Schlather gave a brief history of the property and the proposal. In the past, all of the properties on DeWitt Place were owned by different owners who agreed to a common right of way. Due to the numerous owners and an encroachment by a neighboring property owner, there had never been an opportunity to create a roadway with a fire lane. P. Johnston has acquired ownership of all of the DeWitt Place properties. The Ithaca Fire Department is concerned with establishing a fire lane that can serve all of the properties on DeWitt Place. The Commission approved a three-phase roadway project in August of 2008 that provided for a fire lane while maintaining the required parking. The Ithaca Fire Department, City Attorney, and the City Building Department worked with the property owner to arrive at the Fire Lane Agreement. The previous ILPC approval required the applicant to maintain the trees on the west side of the roadway but approved the widening of the roadway to 18’ (15’ right of way with 3’ for parking) and the repaving with asphalt. This approval did not include the installation of asphalt for striped parking spaces perpendicular to the roadway, but the Fire Lane Agreement includes this alteration. These changes (striping of the parking and fire lane signage) will make DeWitt Place a public right of way. ILPC Minutes June 8, 2010 -2- D. Kramer disclosed that his mother-in-law owns 109 and 113 Glen Place. He noted that portions of the DeWitt Place have a considerable existing grade and asked where storm water will drain. R. Hautaniemi responded that curbs will be installed on either side of DeWitt Place and a catch basin will channel runoff into the City’s storm water system. The proposal will actually approve drainage on the site. Staff noted that in August 2008, the Commission had wanted to keep the paving to the minimum required for the fire lane in order to preserve the character of DeWitt Place. Once work began on the Fire Lane Agreement, the approval of the ILPC was not included in the agreement, and the concern about the width of the paving was not included in the final agreement. R. Schlather responded that he did not believe it was anyone’s intention to not include the ILPC, but there were many different factors in the agreement and the ILPC was inadvertently left out. S. Jones asked if the paving would be wider than the originally approved 15’. R. Schlather and staff responded that the roadway will still be 15’ wide, but there will now be paved parking spaces that are located perpendicular to the roadway. This will be an additional 16 feet of paving for the parking. Staff explained that the parking has been there; the asphalt surface is the new addition. Staff asked Tom Nix about other options for surfacing. Gravel would have a better visual impact but would not have the advantage of improving the drainage. In terms of options for the ILPC, staff explained that the Commission can approve the addition of asphalt to the parking, can deny the proposal, or, if members do not feel the proposal meets there standards, they can let the proposal lie as is since the ILPC’s previous approval has been superseded by the Fire Lane Agreement. The Commission can vote to deny the application, but this will cause a legal issue since the agreement has already been finalized and filed. Acting Chair S. Jones asked if the grassy area between the roadway and the sidewalk will remain. P. Johnston said the grassy area will remain and the steps to the houses will be replaced in-kind. The project will also remove existing railroad ties to create a grassy slope from the houses to the sidewalk. N. Brcak asked if there was a way to distinguish the parking area from the fire lane. This would meet the requirements of the Fire Lane Agreement but would visually distinguish the historic lane from the wider paved area. P. Johnston suggested a solid yellow line between the two. N. Brcak responded that she was thinking of a different type of paving product for the parking area than the asphalt for the roadway. R. Schlather suggest a colored vertical line that would be more subtle than the standard yellow. It was then noted that the Fire Lane Agreement specifies yellow striping, but the Fire Department may be amendable to a different color. ILPC Minutes June 8, 2010 -3- N. Brcak asked if the proposed number of parking spaces is the same number of existing spaces, and P. Johnston responded that it was. N. Brcak responded that one way to visually distinguish the roadway from the parking would be to eliminate a few parking spaces by creating a “bump-out” of green space. P. Johnston stated that this would not be visible from Buffalo Street or surrounding areas; one would need to be on DeWitt Place to see the bump-outs. R. Schlather responded that it would be difficult to remove parking spaces; there will be no net gain of parking spaces, and some of the existing “cheating” will be eliminated by the curbs. R. Hautaniemi suggested painting a “T” at the end of the striping of the parking spaces instead of a solid vertical line. The Commission agreed to this option. Public Hearing On a motion by D. Kramer, seconded by N. Brcak, Acting Chair S. Jones opened the public hearing. There being no one to address the Commission, the public hearing was closed on a motion by N. Brcak, seconded by D. Kramer. N. Brcak stated that she believes the parties made a good faith effort to reach an agreement but she is concerned that once again the different groups within the City are not on the same page. Because of this and the fact that the blanket paving is not in keeping with the historic character of the area, she would not want to vote to approve the project. A vote in favor would indicate the Commission’s approval of the aesthetics of the proposal. She would prefer the middle ground of taking no action. She noted that she appreciates the applicant’s willingness and efforts to make the area visually attractive, even if it is not in keeping with the historic character. Acting Chair S. Jones agreed. The Fire Lane Agreement established what is acceptable and it would be too complex to implement anything that disagreed with that. D. Kramer agreed to take no action. On any other street, this would be a major upgrade and improvement. This particular street is very unique and contains the only monument to Simeon DeWitt. He is not happy that it is going to be lost behind cars with no attention drawn to the monument. P. Johnston responded that there is a sign on E. Buffalo Street indicating the location of the sign. He would like some attention drawn to the monument. E. Finegan also agreed to take no action. He would like to see a white “T” at the end of the parking spaces to delineate the fire lane. He is also concerned about drainage over time. He would also like to see attention drawn to the monument and suggested adding more green space around the monument so that it is not surrounded by parking. R. Schlater suggested moving the monument a little further west if the parking spaces can be maintained. The Commission agreed. P. Johnston further added that if possible they would move it slightly south and then west (around the tree) so that it would be easier for people to walk around and view the monument. ILPC Minutes June 8, 2010 -4- The Commission decided to take no action on the proposal. It was agreed that (1) the parking spaces shall be striped with a “T” on the end to distinguish the parking area from the fire lane; and (2) if possible, the monument will be moved to the west to allow more visibility. II. PLEASURE OF THE CHAIR A. Administrative Matters None B. Communications Staff reported that the City has submitted an application for a grant to study the Henry St. John neighborhood for possible historic designation. Common Council Liaison E. McColliser reported that the draft Environmental Impact Statement is now available for review. It contains a substantial section regarding historic resources. Members of the ILPC are welcome to comment on the dEIS as an individual or as a member of the ILPC. Individual comments can be made at any time, but a comment by the ILPC should be coordinated among members. The public hearing will be held on June 29, 2010, and the public comment period ends July 16, 2010. On June 16, 2010, the Planning & Economic Development Committee of Common Council will hold a public hearing on a proposal to re-zone the 900-block of E. State Street as part of a larger proposal to create a R-3aa zone. Staff reported that Mary Tomlan and John Schroeder have asked the Commission to consider local designation of the Delano home/former nurses’ quarters. Staff also stated that the Commission’s review of the project will likely be coordinated with the site plan review. C. Public Comment on Matters of Interest None III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – December 10, 2009; May 11, 2010 On a motion by N. Brcak, seconded by D. Kramer, the minutes from the December 10, 2009 and May 11, 2010 meetings were approved with corrections. IV. NEW BUSINESS None V. OLD BUSINESS None VI. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 6:54 p.m. by Acting Chair S. Jones. Respectfully Submitted, Leslie A. Chatterton, Secretary Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission