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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8-7-24MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION FOR WASHINGTON COUNTY August 7, 2024 The Washington County Historic District Commission held its regular monthly meeting on Wednesday, August 7, 2024 at 7:00 p.m. in the Washington County Administrative Complex, 100 W Washington Street, Room 2001, Hagerstown, MD. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The Chairman called the meeting to order at 7:25 p.m. Commission members present were: Greg Smith, Chairman, Vernell Doyle, Ann Aldrich, Lloyd Yavener, Michael Lushbaugh and Brianna Candelaria. Staff members present were: Washington County Department of Planning & Zoning: Meghan Jenkins, GIS Coordinator and HDC Staff member and Debra Eckard, Office Manager. Also present were Tom Zoppi and Dr. Irene Zoppi and Laura Lane-Unsworth and Jeff Unsworth. MINUTES Motion and Vote: Mr. Yavener made a motion to approve the minutes of the July 3, 2024 meeting as presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Lushbaugh and unanimously approved. NEW BUSINESS Permit 2024-02591— 24807 Linden Avenue, Cascade Ms. Jenkins presented a permit application for a 560 sq. ft. one-story single-family dwelling on a crawl space located at 24807 Linden Avenue in the Pen Mar Rural Village. She noted this site does not contain existing historic resources and based on findings from historic aerial imagery and survey documentation, this site is unlikely to yield any archaeological resources related to the history of the rural village. The building's orientation and placement on the Liden Avenue frontage will be consistent with adjacent properties. Details on the exact exterior trim elements are not known; however, it is proposed to have asphalt shingles and log siding both of which will not detract from the rural village. The plans show flat arches for windows with minimal trim which are noted as common in the MIHP for this village. The variation in roof pitch proposed, while not found on a singular structure in the rural village, are found separately throughout the village. Many of the nearby structures are between 1,000 and 1,500 sq. ft. in size making this structure smaller in mass; however, the 40 ft. front width of the proposed structure is consistent with those nearby and will maintain a similar appearance from the street. Motion and Vote: Mr. Yavener made a motion to recommend approval of the permit based upon the details provided in the Staff Analysis and that the proposed construction is consistent with the County Design Guidelines for Historic Structures, Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation and Section 5D.5 Architectural Review as listed in the County's Zoning Ordinance. The motion was seconded by Ms. Candelaria and unanimously approved. GP-24-008 — 13215 Smithsbura Pike Ms. Jenkins presented a grading plan for property located at 13215 Smithsburg Pike. She explained that concrete along the house has separated from the pond wall thus allowing water into the basement. The applicants are planning to construct a 4 foot wide limestone wall where the house walls meet the pond; however, in the interim the existing concrete wall will be removed to abate the current issue and replace it with limestone mortar and lime creek curb. Staff is requesting approval authority of any permits that will be needed for the structural portion of the repairs for this particular project. Consensus: It was the consensus of the members to grant staff approval authority of permits associated with the construction of the concrete wall contingent upon meeting the scope of the project described on the grading plan. OLD BUSINESS Tax Credit Application Updates In the agenda packets, a copy of the original application for county tax credits was included as well as MHT's 3-part application. Staff has revised the County's application, which is now a 3-part application similar to MHT's. Ms. Jenkins began a brief review of the proposed application revisions. The purpose of Part I of the application will be to determine if the subject resource is located in a qualifying area and if it is eligible for tax credits. If the structure is located in the AO1. AO2, or RV zoning designation, it must be listed as a contributing structure. If the structure is in a MHT easement, the applicant must provide the easement document. If located in a municipality, the district must be specified. Part 2 of the application will provide a description of the proposed work including photographs and accompanying documentation of the project. Part 3 will include total costs, eligible expenses and photographs of the completed project. Meghan will prepare a draft of directions for the next meeting to be included with the application. Members were in favor of the 3-part application. Grant Program DRAFT Members were asked to review a draft of the proposed grant program. Because this will be a County grant, it will be limited to the unincorporated areas but will include properties in the following areas: HP overlay zones, AO1 and AO2 zoning districts, Rural Village zoning district, MHT permanent easements, or on the National Register of Historic Places. Grants will range from a minimum of $5,000 to a maximum of $50,000. The draft will be forwarded to the County Attorney's office for review. Discussion and Comments: Members asked if septic systems could be included as an eligible expense for the grant program. Ms. Jenkins will further investigate this issue. Consensus: Members agreed to have staff forward the draft grant program to the County Attorney's office. OTHER BUSINESS Correspondence — Smithsburg Reservoir House Ms. Nancy Hall has contacted staff trying to get direction on how to potentially get the Smithsburg Reservoir House, currently owned by the City of Hagerstown, into the hands of a non-profit organization and have the structure rehabilitated to prevent further deterioration. Members recommended the following: establishment of a citizens group to save the structure to be used as a community facility or discuss the future of the structure with the City's HDC. Correspondence — CLG Training Funds Available There are additional CLG training funds available. Staff is exploring the possibility of an additional training for members this year if funds are still available. Members must complete at least one training each year in order to maintain our CLG funding; however, if there is a training that is of interest to a member, they should reach out to staff for funding of the additional training. Staff Report • A written report of staff reviews for the past month was provided to members in the agenda packets. • Each member received a copy of the new Tax Credit brochure that was printed at the Hagerstown Community College. Several members took some of the brochures to distribute at various locations throughout the County. • Member re -appointments have been completed by the BOCC and a new member has been appointed to fill Ms. Doyle's upcoming vacancy. • The Comprehensive Plan update is moving forward with the Historic element being revised per MHT's comments. Staff anticipates the new draft to be available sometime in September. • The 250th Celebration website for the County is now live. The historic subcommittee continues to work on dates to add to the timeline for social media posts. • Ms. Doyle was presented a Certificate of Appreciation for her service on the HDC. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Yavener made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:30 pm. The motion was seconded by Ms. Aldrich and so ordered by the Chairman. Gr go Smi hairman