HomeMy WebLinkAboutHPC Minutes 04-16-2019 HASTINGS HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION Minutes of the Meeting of April 16, 2019
Held at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall I. Quorum: Martin, Toppin, Goderstad, Ragan-Scully, Sovik-Siemens, and Simacek Absent: Smith Staff: Justin Fortney, City Planner Chair Amy Martin called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
II. Minutes: March 19, 2019
Motion by Sovik-Siemens for approval, seconded by Simacek; motion approved 6-0. III. Information and Reports A. 120 2nd Street E – New awning and sign (item added 4-12-2019) Fortney presented the staff report and explained that the guidelines do not regulates building color, but they do for signs and awnings. He added that the zoning ordinance section pertaining to signs also provides the authority to regulate color, size, and placement of signs.
Chair Martin said that the Design Guidelines state that awnings cannot cover architectural details. She added that the building-wide awning covers all the door and window headers. Commissioner Toppin agreed and said the proposed awning changes the entire look of the building.
Martin asked the applicant if his client’s logo is blue. Rocco with Precision Sign Design said their logo is blue, but may consider going with black or a more historic blue. Commissioner Sovik-Siemens said the proposed sign is not consistent with other downtown signage and pointed out the stark difference between the proposed signage and the Busted Nut’s
sign to the west. Commissioner Goderstad said the sign and awning are not consistent with the downtown and the color is not historic.
Rocco said they could narrow the awning and sign from 60-inches down to 48-inches. Martin said that would help the over scale of the sign, but her biggest objection is the Guidelines state that awnings should be sized to fit the windows and storefronts behind them. She added that to her, that means that individual windows and doors should have individual awnings. She said she does not believe there are individual doors and windows downtown that have a continuous
awning across the building. She said a committee could be organized to confirm this. Commissioner Goderstad made a motion to table the application until the May meeting to allow the applicant time to confer with his client and offer a revised proposal that is in line with the guidelines. Motion failed for lack of a second.
Martin said a committee could be organized to confirm there are no full building awnings that cover individual windows and doors.
Motion by Martin to deny the awning and sign request as proposed based on the
following findings, seconded by Ragan-Scully; motion approved 6-0. The proposed sign and awning are incompatible with the building due to the small scale and proportions of the first floor versus the large scale of the sign and awning. - The awning size does not fit the window and door openings it covers.
- The color of the awning/ sign is incompatible with the building because the existing building color pallet is not compatible with blue and blue is a color that is not readily found downtown. - Design Guideline pg.39 8c. “Signs should be appropriately sized and complement the building exterior.”
- Design Guideline pg. 39 8g “Awnings should be sized to fit the windows and storefronts behind”. - Chapter 155.08(D)(8)(3) states “The style, colors, lettering, and materials of the sign should reflect the age of the building. Chapter 155.08(D)(8)(6) “Signage shall be permitted on canvas or treated cloth awnings where
they are compatible with the age of the building and character of Downtown.” The applicant thanked the Commission and said he would discuss alternate options with his client and come back soon with a different proposal taking into account the guidelines presented.
The Commissioners said they would form a committee to look at awnings downtown and determine if they have been installed, as the guidelines have been interpreted with individual windows having individual awnings. IV. Business
A. Century Home Plaque Discussion The Commission chose the Century Home plaques in black and gold for $100 each, plus $100 for the casting mold and directed staff to order two for the homes turning 100 this year. They adopted an application similar to Lake City’s for homeowners requesting plaques of their own.
The commission decided on the following wording as length allowed. HASTINGS, MINNESOTA, CENTURY, HOME, HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION Motion by Toppin for approval of the plaque application and criteria, seconded by Simacek; motion approved 6-0.
Motion by Goderstad for approval of the plaque design and wording, seconded by Toppin; motion approved 6-0.
B. Review the Preservation Award Nominees from the HPC Preservation
Award Committee Commissioners chose homes for the Preservation Awards to be presented at the May 20th City Council meeting.
V. Adjourn. Motion by Goderstad, second by Simacek to adjourn the meeting at 8:40pm; motion approved 6-0.
Respectfully Submitted Justin Fortney