HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-11-29-CPC-min final
Minutes of the Community Preservation Committee
Thursday, November 29, 2012, 2:00 pm
Parker Room
Town Offices Building
Present:
Board Members:
Wendy Manz,Chair; Joel Adler, Norman Cohen, Marilyn Fenollosa, Vice
Chair; Jeanne Krieger, Leo McSweeney, Sandra Shaw and Dick Wolk.
Administrative Assistant
: Nathalie Rice
Also in attendance were David Kanter of the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) and
Town resident, Robert Pressman.
The meeting was called to order at 2:06 pm. by Ms. Manz.
1.Approval of the Minutes –
A vote was taken (6-0) to approve theminutes from
the meetings of November 1, 2012 and November 8, 2012. (Mr. McSweeney was
not yet in attendance.)
2.Announcements
a.)Resignation of Ms. Weiss
- Ms. Manz announced to the Committee that she
had received a resignation notice from Betsey Weiss. Ms. Manz said she was
saddened by this news, and had asked Ms. Weiss to reconsider. Ms.Weiss
preferred not to reconsider, and therefore a new representative to the CPC
will be appointed by the Housing Partnership. Members of the Committee
noted Ms. Weiss’ resignation with regret, and stressed her instrumental role
in the passage of the CPA and in championing affordable housing for the
Town and the Housing Partnership. All agreed Ms. Weiss’ contributions will
be greatly missed, and expressed their appreciation and gratitude for all she
has done.
b.)Upcoming Workshop
– Ms. Manz noted the upcoming Community
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Preservation Coalition Workshop on Saturday, December 1 at the
Chelmsford Center for the Arts. Ms. Manz will attend, as well as Sandra
Shaw and David. Kanter of the CEC.
c.)33 Marrett Road –
Ms. Manz reported that she had been updated by Town
Manager, Carl Valente, regarding the progress on the evaluation of the
Scottish Rite/Mason’s property for Town purposes. She said the Cecil Group
is in the process of evaluating the property, and an appraisal is underway. She
said a decision must be made whether to move forward with an acquisition
by February, 2013. Mr. Adler noted that the CPC would need to consider the
acquisition carefully, since it might limit CPA funds for other projects.
Members agreed that acquisition of the 33 Marrett Road property would
require bonding.
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d.)Letter to Selectmen regarding Land Acquisitions -
Ms. Manz reported that
the CPC’s letter regarding land acquisitions had been delivered to the
Selectmen.
e.)CPC Website –
Ms. Rice reported that the FY14 CPA applications are now
on the CPS website. This group of 21 project applications will be forwarded
Town Counsel for review.
3.Needs Assessment Report
– Ms. Manz noted that the Needs Assessment Report
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would need to be updated for the upcoming hearing on December 19. Ms. Rice
reported that she had distributed the Conservation and Recreation sections to Ms.
Mullins and Ms. Simmons respectively. Ms. Manz will edit the Housing section,
while Ms. Fenollosa will review the Historic Preservation section. Ms. Rice
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requested that drafts be back to the CPC office by Tuesday, December 4, if
possible.
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4.Future Meetings
– Ms. Manz noted that the CPC will meet on December 6, and
will have at least one appointment regarding the amendments to the Cary
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Memorial Upgrades project. A second meeting is planned for the 13 of
December, and the Public Hearing for the Needs Assessment Report is scheduled
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for December 19 at 7:00 pm.
5.Moon Hill National Register Nomination Funds
– The CPC met with Six
Moon Hill Neighborhood Association board member David Goldfinger, regarding
the Association’s request for $6,000 in CPA funding. Mr. Goldfinger explained
that Six Moon Hill neighborhood had been found eligible for listing on the
National Register of Historic Places by the Massachusetts Historical Commission,
and the Association had been in contact with the Historical Commission to
determine how best to accomplish this listing. The listing would be an addition to
the recently listed Mid Century Modern Houses of Lexington Multi-Property
Submission (MPS), which was funded by a CPC grant and resulted in the listing
of the Peacock Farm Neighborhood National Register District. The MPS
establishes requirements to enable future nominations to the National Register for
any individual properties or historic districts that fit the context and guidelines.
Mr. Goldfinger explained that the MHC found that the Six Moon Hill Historic
District met the National Register criteria for listing at the local, state and
possibly national levels. He said the Board of The Six Moon Hill Neighborhood
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Association voted at its September 17 meeting to approve $2,000 to support
completion of the nomination. He said they sought $6,000 in CPA funds to
augment this amount to cover the costs of documenting and submitting the
associated paperwork for the 29 homes involved, and to hire a qualified
professional to help them in this process. He reported “enormous community
support” for the project.
Ms. Fenollosa, the Historical Commission representative, explained that the
Town would benefitt significantly from the National Register nomination of the
homes in the Moon Hill neighborhood. She noted that Moon Hill is featured in
architecture books, and that local architecture graduate schools regularly tour the
neighborhood to view the influence of the Modernist Movement, and the works of
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architects such as Walter Gropius. She said the Historical Commission
“wholeheartedly” supported the project and noted its benefit to the entire Town
by bringing national recognition to this important part of Lexington’s history. In
response to a question from Mr. Wolk, Ms. Fenollosa explained that the
registration would not impose any restrictions or regulatory limitations on the
properties involved, unless federal or state funds were used to undertake a project
in the neighborhood, such as road construction. She said the registration had no
effect on individual properties, and that it was an “honorary” designation. In
response to a question from Mr. Cohen, she replied that the homes in the Moon
Hill neighborhood were already on the Cultural Resources Inventory. Mr.
McSweeney asked if there would be any effect on the market value of the homes
involved. Ms. Fenollosa replied that their values might increase, due to the more
widely recognized and valued historic nature of the neighborhood.
6.Merriam Hill Preservation –
Warren Manhard, a resident of Stetson Road, met
with the CPC to request $3,000 in CPA funding for the identification of homes in
the Merriam Hill Neighborhood for possible inclusion on the Historical
Commission’s Comprehensive Cultural Resources Survey (the Inventory). Bebe
Fallick, the Town Meeting precinct liaison to the Merriam Hill Neighborhood
Association was also in attendance. Mr. Manhard explained that there are 469
homes in the Merriam Hill Neighborhood, of which 165 are already on the
Inventory. He said the Board of Directors had voted to apply for CPA funds and
to devote $500 of Association funds toward the project. The purpose of the CPA
funding would be to hire a consultant to assess the remaining 304 houses, and
ultimately to complete the paperwork in order to list up to fifteen of the most
historically and/or architecturally significant homes on the Inventory. Mr.
Manhard outlined the boundaries of the Merriam Hill Neighborhood, and said the
impetus for the Neighborhood’s application had been the demolition of a 1902
home at 31 Somerset Road and the threat to a home at 95 Meriam Street, designed
by nationally renowned architect Charles Platt. He said the Neighborhood was
concerned that other historically significant homes might be at risk.
Ms. Fenollosa commented that the Merriam Hill Neighborhood is historically
significant at the local level, and in fact is noted on tourist maps. She said the
Historical Commission believes the homes on Merriam Hill should be
documented and that the historically significant houses should be added to the
Inventory. Ms. Fallick spoke to the issue of the Demolition Delay By-Law, noting
that she had been one of the original authors of the By-Law. The additional
homes expected to be added to the Inventory would be subject to the Demolition
Delay By-Law.
Ms. Kreiger commented that three hundred houses represented a large block of
homes, and questioned whether other owners in the Neighborhood were
unanimous in having their properties studied. Mr. Manhard said that the owners
of all of the 304 houses had not been yet been contacted, since no determination
had been made as to the buildings’ eligibility for inclusion on the Inventory and
notification was therefore premature. Ms. Kreiger asked if the owners would have
a choice of being placed on the Inventory, to which Ms. Fenollosa stated that they
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would have a “voice”. Mr. Cohen noted that there had been many complaints
registered at the Selectmen’s Office from homeowners who, having been listed on
the Inventory, were unable to sell their properties to developers who would
demolish and rebuild on the site. Ms. Fenollosa noted that all homeowners have
received notice that their properties have been placed on the Inventory, and if they
submit appropriate evidence as to the properties’ loss of architectural or historical
integrity, can have them removed from the listing by vote of the Historical
Commission.
Mr. Wolk asked Ms. Fenollosa about the Historical Commission’s criteria to
which she replied that the structure has to have architectural or historical
significance, and/or historic setting, style or materials. She said the purpose of the
Inventory was primarily to have a record of historically and architecturally
significant houses in Lexington and only secondarily to trigger the Demolition
Delay By-Law. She said the Demolition Delay By-Law was not the reason for
listing on the Inventory. Mr. Cohen commented that the proposed list of homes
to evaluate seemed very broad, to which Mr. Manhard replied that the evaluation
of properties had to start somewhere, and it was deemed best to consider the all
the houses in the neighborhood so as to not miss any important buildings such as
the one on Somerset Street that was demolished. Ultimately, however, the project
would result in the eventual listing of only up to 15 houses.
7.LexHAB – Set-Aside Funds
–Bill Kennedy, co-Chair of LexHAB met with the
CPC to request $450,000 in FY14 CPA Set-Aside funds for the purchase and
renovation of homes for affordable housing. He said that LexHAB had not used
its FY13 CPA monies ($450,000), since no worthy properties had yet been
identified. He stated that LexHAB is now renovating a property on Fairview
Road, but is doing so with its own reserve funds. Mr. Kennedy respectfully
requested FY14 funds, explaining that LexHAB anticipated being involved in the
construction of affordable housing on the Leary property and eventually on the
Busa property. Should LexHAB not find a house in the upcoming year, he
indicated that they would put the combined years’ funds toward one of the two
Town initiatives. He also indicated that LexHAB would be funding the
demolition of the Leary home, estimated to cost $40,000. (This would remove it
as a capital project from the CPC’s list of applications.) Mr. Kanter asked Mr.
Kennedy about the LexHAB funds held for the purchase of units at Katahdin
Woods, to which Mr. Kennedy replied that LexHAB was holding $2,000,000 for
that eventuality. Mr. Kennedy will send Mr. Kanter the legal opinion on the
Katahdin Woods issue.
8.Pocket Park Design in Lexington Center
– Melisa Tintocalis, the Economic
Development Director for the Town, presented this request for $20,000 in design
funds. The funds would be used to design two “pocket parks”; one for the
discontinued driveway beside the Bank of America at 1761 Massachusetts
Avenue, and one for the narrow walk-through adjacent to Michelson’s shoe store
at 1710 and 1720 Massachusetts Avenue. The official name of the walk-through
beside the Bank of America for the purposes of the application is “Grain Mill
Alley”, so-called for its access to a grain mill which once stood to the north. Ms.
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Tintocalis showed a series of slides of the locations and several examples of
pocket parks. Though a initial rendering of Grain Mill Alley has been prepared,
Ms. Tintocalis said the design of the parks would be a collaborative design
process, with public meetings and input.
Mr. McSweeney questioned whether the two strips of land involved were
privately held or Town-owned. Ms. Tintocalis replied that they were privately
held, though she believed there may be an easement on the smaller walk-through
by Michelson’s. In response to a second question, she said she had not yet
approached the land owners to request easements, or for any contribution toward
the parks. Ms. Tintocalis explained that the projects had not appeared as part of
the recent Streetscape study as they involved land use beyond the street frontage.
Mr. Kanter of the CEC noted that the ratio between the D&E estimate and the
construction costs seemed askew at $20,000:$30,000. He also asked if the CPC
funding could be leveraged; perhaps seeking grants or financial support from the
landowners or other store owners. Ms. Fenollosa noted that the “Historic” box
had been checked on the application, but questioned how much of the project was
truly historic. Ms. Tintocalis said she initially had thought the project might fall
under Historic Resources, since it was located in a Historic District, but after
talking to Stuart Saginor of the Community Preservation Coalition, she felt the
project was better suited as an open space project.
Ms. Tintocalis’s application originally included a third pocket park east of Panera
Bread, but this has since been removed from consideration. Ms. Tintocalis will
submit an amended project application, with lowered costs, and an accurate
indication of the project as an open space project.
9.Archives and Records Management and Conservation –
Town Clerk Donna
Hooper, and Archivist, Nasrin Rohani met with the CPC to request $20,000 in
CPA funds to continue an ongoing project to preserve historic Town documents.
(Previous CPA funds appropriated for this project have been $150,000 annually
for each of the past five years.) Ms. Hooper noted that as part of this project, 110
volumes of records have been conserved and preserved; 225 volumes have been
digitized; 60 volumes have been microfilmed; many collections have been
catalogued for access and retrieval, and the hardware used for the process has
been upgraded. Work undertaken in year 5 with FY13 funds, will include
conservation, preservation and digitization of historic Board of Appeals, Board of
Health, Planning Board, Board of Selectmen and voter registration records.
In FY14, (year 6), Ms. Hooper explained that the currently requested $20,000 in
CPA funding would be used for conservation, preservation and digitization of
newer Town documents. She said anticipated a time when she would be caught up
with this work, and the task might become part of her operating budget. She did
not anticipate this happening for a few years, however.
10.Buckman Tavern Restoration Plan
– Susan Bennett of the Historical Society
met with the CPC to request $650,000 in CPA funding for the restoration of the
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interior of the Buckman Tavern. She explained that there were four components
to the proposed work; (1) accessibility upgrades, (2) fire suppression work, (3)
historic fabric restoration, and (4) repairs to the infrastructure (wiring, plumbing,
etc.). She noted that the only external change to the building would be the
expansion of the cupola, which would house the ADA lift needed for access to the
second floor. She said renovations to the paths around the Tavern would be
coordinated with Davie Pinsonneault, Director of Operations for the DPW, since
he would be renovating the paths on the green and its environs. She reviewed the
budget and plans with the CPC, and noted that the Historic Districts Commission
had reviewed and informally expressed support for the project.
Mr. Kanter asked Ms. Bennett whether she had resolved the issues the Historical
Society had had regarding procurement practices, and she responded that they had
been resolved to the satisfaction of the Society and the Town. Ms. Manz asked
Ms. Bennett whether the Buckman Tavern project would be the last large house
renovation conducted by the Society. Ms. Bennett replied that it would be the last
project under the Society’s current stewardship, but that she anticipated the
Society’s involvement in future projects such as the interior renovations to the
Stone Building and potentially the preservation of Mid-Century Modern homes.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:30 pm.
The following documents were available or presented at the meeting:
1.Town of Lexington Community Preservation Plan: A Needs Assessment. February
2012.
2.Additional Information submitted by Steve Keane, undated, for Greeley Village Door
Replacement Project.
3.CPA Project Applications List, FY14, dated 11/27/12.
4.Project Summary Applications Form from the Historical Society for Buckman Tavern
– Restoration and Renovation, Oct. 31, 2012.
5.Summary Change to the Community Preservation Act, Community Preservation
Coalition, July, 2012.
6.Project Summary Application Form from Merriam Hill Association for Merriam Hill
Preservation Project, 10/15/12.
7.Map of Moon Hill Area, 2004 Moon Hill Almanac, undated.
8.Merriam Hill Association Handouts, Homes included and not included in the Cultural
Resources Inventory (by Decade Built, Address, and Year Built), November 2012.
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9.Lexington Center Pocket Park Design, Community Preservation Meeting Slide
Preservation. Undated.
Respectfully submitted,
Nathalie Rice
Administrative Assistant
Community Preservation Committee
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