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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-08-17 Historic District Commission Minutes Town of Reading K=C c I V E Li 9 X Meeting Minutes 'Ql"1N CLERK Board - Committee - Commission - Council: 2021 jkN 13 AM 1 54 Historic District Commission Date: 2020-08-17 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Location: Address: Session: Purpose: Meeting Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Everett Blodgett Virginia Adams Ilene Bornstein Pino D'Orazio Amelia Freedman Carl Mittnight Greg Maganzini Priscilla Poehler Members - Not Present: Others Present: Julie Mercier - Community Development Director, Stephen O'Shea, Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Amanda Beatrice Topics of Discussion: Julie Mercier,Town Staff, introduced herself and briefly described how the meeting would work using the Zoom features. 257 West Street Mr. Blodgett started the meeting with 257 West Street and asked Stephen O'Shea to talk about his project. Mr. O'Shea stated that his garage doors were falling apart and attracting wildlife. Mr. Mittnight asked the applicant if the new doors were identical. Mr. O'Shea sated the difference was just the glass panels at the top of the door. Ms. Adams asked how large the doors were and the applicant stated that it is a three-car garage. Ms. Bornstein stated she did not see any objections. Mr. Blodgett asked the applicant what the material of the doors were. Mr. O'Shea stated that it said they are steel. Page 1 1 Mr. Blodgett asked the Board Members if they had any issues with having/not having a Public Hearing. Ms. Adams suggested that they go through the list of steps or a vote.They briefly went through the steps. Ms. Adams believe it was an insubstantial change and a Public Hearing could be waived and Mr. Blodgett agreed. On a Motion made by Ms. Bornstein, seconded by Ms.Adams,to waive the Public Hearing and issue a Certificate of Appropriateness for 257 West Street garage doors after abutters have been notified. Vote 5-0-0 200 West Street Mr. Feinberg,the owner, explained that they have a young daughter and she is starting to walk/run and having a fence would help improve safety. Mr. Blodgett stated he had mentioned that they had spoken on the phone and that the Commission would prefer no plastic material be used and that they do have a concern with height. Ms. Bornstein believed that this would fall under the HDC jurisdiction based on Section 7.3.9.1. Mr. Blodgett was concerned with the vinyl fencing. Mr. Feinberg stated that their preference based on the look, quality, maintenance and price was to go with the vinyl fence. He believed that the style that they chose would not be an issue. Ms. Adams offered an alternative to have the fence set further back and not to the front of the yard. Mr. Feinberg expressed that West Street is a busy street and adding the fence would make it more of a neighborhood and not a tunnel. Mr. Blodgett pointed out that vinyl fencing molds over time and that they are more prone to breaking. Ms. Adams pointed out that the guidelines references fences across the front yard. Mr. Maganzini stated that he agreed with Mr. Blodgett about using a natural wood. Mr. Feinberg stated he was willing to go with a wood fence. Mr. D'Orazio asked how much fencing would be installed. Mr. Feinberg stated is was within the application. Ms. Adams asked if there could be stipulations to the fence; until the children are 12 years of age, the fence be set back 5-6 feet from the side walk possibly using shrubs. Page 1 2 Mr. Feinberg sated those were good suggestions. Setting the fence back is something that he was open to and that his front yard is not that big. He also stated removing the fence would be more difficult for him and that a wood fence would be beneficial to himself and his neighbors when it comes to selling the property. Mr. Maganzini asked if the back yard was fenced in. Mr. Feinberg stated yes, his portion of the fence is in good condition but part of the fence is owned by a neighbor and may need to be replaced. Mr. Maganzini also asked if there would be a gate. Mr. Feinberg said yes just one gate. Ms. Adams stated she is still reluctant of voting in favor. Ms. Bornstein asked if the tree would be included. Mr. Feinberg stated he was looking to maintain the tree. He also stated he would be getting a survey done to make sure the trees are on his property. Mr. Blodgett and Mr. Maganzini had a brief conversation about section 7.3.9.1. On a Motion made by Ms. Bornstein, seconded by Mr. Maganzini,to waive the Public Hearing and issue a Certificate of Appropriateness for 200 West Street fencing, after abutters have been notified. Vote 4-0-1 (Maganzini, Poehler, Bornstein, Blodgett;Adams Abstained) 246 West Street Mr. Blodgett informed the Board that 246 West Street sent an application in for a window replacement. He stated that he took a look at the site and the window is located at the back of the house and not visible from the street. There is no action needed and he would be writing a Certificate of Non-Applicability for this application for the repairs to be made in-kind. 95 Howard Street Mr. Hayes stated that they wanted to add a shed approximately 10' x 18' in size, with composite wood siding right next to their existing shed to their property that would match the main house. He also stated that it is under 200 square feet and would not need a building permit per the Building Department. Mr. Maganzini asked about the shrubbery. Mr. Hayes stated that the shrubs will be removed. Ms.Adams asked who owned the fence and Mr. Hayes stated that it was his fence. Ms. Adams asked if they would be able to change the style of the shed or add shrubbery. Mr. Maganzini agreed with Ms. Adams,though the Historic District has no authority over shrubbery. Ms.Adams asked if the shed would be used for entertainment purposes or just fully enclosed for storage. Mr. Hayes stated it had a double door and would mainly be used for his tools and other outdoor items. Page 1 3 On a Motion made by Ms. Adams, seconded by Mr. Maganzini,to waive the Public Hearing and issue a Certificate of Appropriateness for 95 Howard Street shed,after abutters have been notified. Vote 5-0-0 Mr. Blodgett opened the meeting up to old and new business. Mr. Blodgett stated there was some concern about 186 Summer Ave property deteriorating. Ann Godwin from 189 Summer Ave stated that she believed that 186 Summer Ave is vacant and that the only thing she noticed is that the lawn gets cut. One of her major concerns is a potential invasion to the neighborhood of termites, as they used to have issues in the past but it is no longer an issue for her.There is also a concern of other wild life on the property. She stated that it is becoming a detriment to the neighborhood. She asked what are they doing to move forward at this property and if a walkthrough could be done. Ms. Freedman stated that this property was brought up the Historical Commission Meeting the previous week and that Jonathan Barnes was looking into it and that the Historic District should get in-contact with Mr. Barnes and coordinate with him. Mr. Blodgett stated that the walkthrough is because of the preservation restriction and not because of the bylaws. He also said that the Historical Commission was going to have a walk through and the Historic District was going to join and then the COVID-19 pandemic began. There are many issues with this property and there are not many answers at the moment. Ms. Adams stated that both the Historical and Historic District Commission have this property on their Agendas. Ms. Mercier stated that she would look into the issue with 186 Summer Ave. The Board had a brief discussion about 116 Summer Ave. Mr. Blodgett stated that come November, he would be looking to step down from Chairman and encouraged someone from the Board to step up. Adjournment On a motion made by Ms. Poehler and seconded by Ms. Bornstein to adjourn the meeting about 8:20 PM. Page 14