MINUTES
TOWN OF NORMAL HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
CONFERENCE ROOM C, CITY HALL
100 EAST PHOENIX AVENUE
NORMAL, ILLINOIS
REGULAR MEETING
October 12, 2004
7 p.m.
Members Present
Nancy Armstrong, Kathy Smith Whitman, Kathy Burgess, Bob Ward, Anne Matter
Members Absent
Bruce Warloe
Others Present
Lauren Kerestes, Associate Planner, Debbi Whitehouse, Office Associate, Mercy Davison, Town Planner, Tony Ferrara, Mary Campbell
Call to Order
Ms. Matter called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and noted a quorum was present.
Minutes
Ms. Smith Whitman moved, Ms. Armstrong seconded, to approve the minutes of the regular meeting on September 14, 2004 and the special meeting on September 23, 2004.
CA-04-10-30, 710 N School, Replacement 4 front and 5 side windows on house
Mr. Tony Ferrara, 710 N. School, was present to speak about the proposed work for his home at 710 N. School. Mr. Ferrara said he has received two bids for double hung replacement windows. Mr. Ferrara said he prefers the Marvin brand. Mr. Ferrara said he is not going to change the size or style of the windows, and that the cross members would be on the outside.
Ms. Smith-Whitman asked Mr. Ferrara if he has looked into just new storms. Mr. Ferrara said he felt they would not be as energy efficient as both new windows and storms.
Ms. Armstrong moved to approve the replacement windows with muntins on both the interior and exterior of the windows. Ms. Burgess seconded. Motion carried 5-0.
BG-04-10-06- 710 N. School, Replacement 4 front and 5 side windows on house.
Ms. Matter spoke saying this was just maintenance and not restoration and
should not be
approved.
Ms. Smith-Whitman moved to disapprove the Bone Grant. Mr. Ward seconded. Motion carried 5-0.
CA-040-10-31- 710 N. School, Replacement of siding on dormer windows
Mr. Ferrara would like to replace the existing 8” steel siding on his front two dormer windows with new 8” steel siding. The new siding would have the groove down the center that gives the appearance of 4” siding.
Ms. Matter asked if he had considered replacing with wood siding. Mr. Ferrara said Midstate Siding would be doing the windows and siding, and that he liked the look of the 4” beveled siding with wood grain texture.
It was noted that the siding area was very small, only on the sides of the two dormer windows on the front façade.
Ms. Smith-Whitman moved to approve the siding, Ms. Armstrong seconded. Motion carried 5-0.
BG-04-10-07, 710 N. School, Replacement of siding
Ms. Matter spoke saying again this is just maintenance and not restoration, so it should not be approved.
Ms. Smith-Whitman moved to disapprove, Mr. Ward seconded. Motion carried 5-0.
CA-04-09-29 404 W. Virginia, Replacement of windows and doors
Mrs. Mary Campbell, owner of 404 W. Virginia, Normal, spoke about the restoration that has been done on the home. Mrs. Campbell said the wood windows had been replaced with aluminum ones that are identical to the ones that were taken out. Mrs. Campbell said they also had replaced the front door with a Prairie style door by Mohr like the original wooden one. Mrs. Campbell said this work was done about a year ago. She also added that the sidelights next to the front door had been removed and a solid glass sheet window (one on each side of the door) was put in their place. Eventually, the original sidelights will be fitted behind the new window and will appear as if there was no architectural change. The purpose of adding the sheet window was to protect the original windows from element exposure. Mrs. Campbell spoke saying she was not really familiar with the permit system and did not mean to do anything wrong.
The commission approached the case as if the work had not already been done. Ms. Burgess said she would have not approved muntins on only the inside of glass, and would have recommended muntins on both the inside and outside. Ms. Smith-Whitman thought the new front door looked nice, that it was a good attempt at matching with the original.
Ms. Matter mentioned the difficulty of approving this work after the fact. Ms. Matter wanted this to be reflected in the minutes that the window and door replacements were inappropriately done without permits from the Town Inspections Department and a Certificate of Appropriateness.
Ms. Smith-Whitman spoke saying the Legal Department of the Town of Normal can prosecute and apply penalties up to $500.00 a day for such action.
Ms. Matter spoke saying that she appreciates Mrs. Campbell’s efforts to make the home look nice.
Ms. Armstrong asked Mrs. Campbell if she could check with Mohr about applying exterior and interior muntins to the window. Mr. Ward said it would not look right to only have a grill between the panes.
Mrs. Campbell spoke saying that it may interfere with opening the windows, but that she would contact Mohr to see if they could get muntins that snap in.
Ms. Burgess moved to approve windows with the condition that Mrs. Campbell consult with Mohr Door & Window about applying exterior and interior muntins to match with the grill between the panes. Mr. Ward seconded. Ms Smith-Whitman also spoke saying permit fee should be paid and the fee to double. Motion carried 5-0.
BG-04-09-05- 404 W. Virginia, Window and Door Replacements
Ms. Armstrong moved to disapprove this Bone Grant on the basis that the
work had been completed prior to filing the grant application and because
the work was maintenance and not preservation/ restoration, Ms. Burgess
seconded.
Motion carried 5-0.
Ms. Matter spoke to Mrs. Campbell just for the record, that the garage at 404 W. Virginia was approved (Certificate of Appropriateness) for cedar siding, not composition board. Mrs. Campbell said she could not find cedar board that was of good quality to replace it.
Ms. Burgess spoke about the ability of preparing a list of contractors that have a specialty in older homes that they could give out to future homeowners wanting to do restoration. Ms. Burgess proposed the idea of not approving Certificates of Appropriateness applications until people have demonstrated that they made a reasonable effort to research what it would take to restore rather than replace an exterior feature of their home.
Mr. Ward left at 8:15. pm.
Other Business:
Ms. Kerestes gave an update on 408 W. Virginia. She said she has sent them a letter on October 8, with a Certificate of Appropriateness and a building permit form in it. As of this date she has not heard from the owners of this property. Ms. Matter commented that Ms. Kerestes does not hear anything soon, she should resend the letter certified mail.
Ms. Kerestes said that at next month’s meeting the commission will start on Historic Preservation Code and Bone Grant updates. She said that she would go through the ordinance and come up with some proposals for changes that need to be made and the commissioners should also do the same.
Adjournment
There being no further business, Ms. Burgess moved that the meeting be adjourned at approximately 8:50 p.m. Ms. Armstrong seconded. The motion carried 4-0.
Respectfully submitted,
Debbi Whitehouse
Office Associate