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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-01-13; Historic Preservation Commission; MinutesITEM 2 _- MINUTES MEETING OF: DATE OF MEETING: January 13,2003 TIME OF MEETING: 5:30 PM PLACE OF MEETING: H I STO RI C PRES E RVAT I 0 N C 0 M M IS S IO N City Council Conference Room 1250 Carlsbad Village Drive CALL TO ORDER: Chair Ladouceur called the meeting to order at 540 PM. ROLL CALL: Present: Absent: - Commissioners Christiansen, Ladouceur, Muth, and Trejo Commissioner Jones Also Present Were: Assistant Library Director, Geoff Armour Council Member Ramona Finnila APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The minutes of the meeting held November 18, 2002 were postponed due to the minutes being unavailable. UPDATES ON CURRENT PROJECTS: Removal of Heritage Tree by Railroad Assistant Library Director Geoff Armour reported on the project for the removal of the Heritage Tree currently in the railroad right-of-way. The project has been approved by North County Transit District and the City and turned over to the Parks maintenance staff. However, due to recent high winds the Parks maintenance staff are in the process of removing a number of downed trees throughout the City. As a result, the staff is overwhelmed at present and the project is put on hold. rc Assistant Library Director Armour also met with the Carlsbad Historical Society to discuss storing the pieces of the tree once it is cut down. The Historical Society agreed ' HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION Minutes of SeDtember 9. 2002 Page 2 to allow as many pieces of the tree as would fit to be stored in the Magee Barn on a temporary basis. City Arborist Fred Burnell has also offered an area at the Parks maintenance staff building located on Pi0 Pico. The exact number of pieces and their sizes has yet to be determined. c Council Member Finnila asked if there was any information regarding the actual status of the tree. Assistant Library Director Armour reported that the tree is dead. Council Member Finnila responded that all of the downed trees in Hosp Grove, some of which are dead, some which are infested with parasites and other diseases, are being removed by the City staff but are not being allowed to be used for anything for fear of transmitting the disease to another location. Before this tree can be cut up and used for the purpose that the Commission had in mind, the arborist will need to determine that there are no parasites or diseases in the tree. Recommendations for Plaques Assistant Library Director Armour had the proposed wording for three of the 11x17 bronze plaques. The proposed locations are the Carlsbad Theater, the Gaus House, and the Ramirez House in the barrio. Assistant Library Director Armour reported he had discussed the plaque for the Carlsbad Theater with the theater owner, Tom McMahon, who has agreed to allow the plaque to be mounted on the front face of the building so it would be accessible to all the pedestrians on the sidewalk. Mr. McMahon has asked to be consulted on the final wording of that plaque, and the Assistant Library Director will meet with him and bring back the proposed inscription for final approval by this Commission. - Commissioner Trejo requested that the reference to the barrio be changed on the proposed plaques from Barrio Carlos to Barrio Carlsbad, which is the official name of the area. Assistant Library Director Armour had discussed an appropriate place for a plaque at Gaus House with Commissioner Trejo, who owns Gaus House. There is no location as suitable on the Ramirez House, and Assistant Library Director Armour intends to contact Julio Ramirez, the current owner of the building, to discuss the installation of a plaque there. The commissioners then discussed the content of the plaques. Chair Sue Ladouceur suggested they try to add some additional history. Council Member Finnila asked that we add the date of original construction to the plaque. Assistant Library Director Armour noted he could consult the library copy of the Cultural Resources Inventory for more information on those buildings. For the next meeting, Assistant Library Director Armour will have finalized the proposed wording for all three plaques and will have met with Mr. Ramirez to discuss placement on that property. ’ HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION Page 3 Minutes of September 9,2002 Recommendation for Purchase and Location of Mission Bell Assistant Library Director Armour reported that he had been in contact with the foundry that has the original casting for the bell. A bell could be purchased for $1200, which includes the shepherd’s crook that holds the bell in place. He had discussed possible locations with the Carlsbad Historical Society Board, and they had come up with four. Those were Maxton Brown Park, Magee Park, the original location at the corner of State Street and Elm, or the fountain at the corner of State and Grand. There was some discussion on the pros and cons of each location. It was noted that Maxton Brown Park is not a widely used park and is at the northern-most entrance of town, outside the general area of the walking tour. At Magee Park the suggested location was the grassy area facing Carlsbad Boulevard, but that is not the original route where the bells were. The original location for the bell, which was discovered in a photograph of the corner of State Street and Elm, is private property and would present several difficulties in getting permission to put the bell there. The fourth option but first choice of the Carlsbad Historical Society was to place the bell at the site of the fountain on the corner of State and Grand. Assistant Library Director Armour had already discussed this with Debbie Fountain and Lori Rosenstein at Housing and Redevelopment, who both felt that putting it there would be a fairly easy matter. It would of course require Council approval. Every effort would be made to put the bell out of the public right-of-way in an uncluttered location. There was some discussion among the commissioners on the pros and cons for each location. In general they seemed to agree that the Carlsbad Historical Society recommendation of placing the bell by the fountain was agreeable. However, there was no formal motion or vote. ,- The commissioners also discussed but did not vote on the sign that would be at the base of the bell. The mission bells in Oceanside mark how many miles it is to Mission San Luis Rey. Assistant Library Director Armour suggested that the marker for the bell in Carlsbad simply be an explanation of the purpose of the original bells that were placed along the original Highway 101, also known as the early “El Camino Real.” CARLSBAD HISTORICAL SOCIETY ACTIVITIES: Magee House and Magee Barn Projects Assistant Library Director Armour asked Commissioner Christiansen if he would bring the commission up to date on the status of the Magee Barn project. Commissioner Christiansen said that he had spoken with the contractor, who expects the job to be done within three weeks. He had some difficulty in locating appropriate door hardware, but otherwise the job is going along as predicted. - Assistant Library Director Armour reported on future plans of the Carlsbad Historical Society to host the annual program and meeting at the Carlsbad Theater in October. ’ HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION Page 4 Minutes of September 9,2002 I The Theater is too large for most of the programs planned by the Society, but the annual meeting could be held there since it draws a larger crowd. A February 16‘h lecture on California Pottery is planned, either at the Magee House or Heritage Hall. Assistant Library Director Armour reported that the new membership directory will be available soon. Current membership stands at 118 individual members, 21 organizational members and at present only 16 volunteers. He commented that the need for volunteers is very great, because the number of volunteers determines the number of hours that Magee House can be kept open to the public. Assistant Library Director Armour also reported the continuous work on the Carlsbad Historical Society’s strategic plan. The members of the Board had met with the Mayor with regard to soliciting City support for some of the programs. Commissioner Ladouceur suggested that some of the programs be advertised in the Arts Newsletter. Commissioner Trejo suggested that a schedule of planned programs be displayed in Magee House to inform those who visit the museum of up-coming programs. HISTORICAL PRESERVATION WORKSHOP: Assistant Library Director Armour reported that at the request of Commissioner Jones, he had information on a workshop to be held in Santa Ana. The City would pick up the fee for any of the Commissioners who would like to attend. - ISSUE INVOLVING ST. MICHAEL’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH: Assistant Library Director Armour had attached a copy of the newspaper article regarding the possibility of St. Michael’s church moving to a different location on Carlsbad Village Drive near the fire station. This was for information only. Several members of the congregation and the vestry had approached him who were not in favor of the move, and who wondered if there were something the Historic Preservation Commission could do to make it a historic site so that it could not be moved. The congregation is voting and should know by the end of January whether they will decide to sell the current property and move to the new location across from the Cole Library on Carlsbad Village Drive, and build a new church. Council Member Finnila reported to the Commission that the Carlsbad City Council is in no way involved in this decision; it is strictly up to the members of the church. The church owns two parcels in the coastal Commission area. The church is a legal non- conforming use structure. If they move, the new tenants of the building will have to conform to current rules of the redevelopment area. There was discussion about the pros and cons of the move. The congregation appears to be somewhat split. Those who have been members of the church for a long time would like to see it remain there, those who are newer members would like to see a - ' HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION Page 5 Minutes of September 9, 2002 - larger, newer facility. The developer has assured them that if the church is moved that they will move the chapel, which is the historic building, keeping it intact. The chapel is not currently sitting on its original site, having already been moved once. There is no issue with regard to the Historic Preservation Commission as Assistant Library Director Armour and Council Member Finnila reported. It is a strictly a decision of the church and the City of Carlsbad has no say it in whatsoever. ANNOUNCEMENTS: Assistant Library Director Armour called the Commissioners' attention to the letter from Shelley Caron asking for letters to be sent to CALTRANS objecting to the Rancho del Or0 overpass and the preservation of the Marron Adobe. Also Commissioner Finnila reported that she had heard that the City of Oceanside is planning a Super Wal-Mart to go in close to the Marron Adobe, near the quarry. PUBLIC COMMENTS: No public was in attendance. ITEMS FOR NEXT AGENDA: Finalize vote on how many plaques, and their inscriptions. Vote to purchase the Mission Bell. Vote on final location for the Mission Bell. Update on the Heritage Tree removal. - ADJOURNMENT: By proper motion, the meeting was adjourned at 6:25 PM. Respectfully sgmitted,, Adminis'trative Secretary