HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-09-1993 HPC Minutes CITY OF S~t~,TOGA
HERITAGE PRESERVATION COIqLMISSION
MINUTES
DATE: Tuesday, March 9, 1993, 9 a.m.
PLACE: Warner Hutton House
TYPE: Regular Meeting
ROUTINE ORGANIZATION
A. Roll Call
Presents Davis, Fine, Koepernik, Peck, Feeperi, SaDin
Absent: ansnes
Guests= Ray Sinsley, Jack Brown, Frank Dutro, Roger Griffin
Staff: Secretary White, Planner Dias, Director Curtis
B. Approval of Minutes of 2/9/93
The minutes were approved as submitted M/S Fine/Peepari
C. Posting the Agenda
Pursuant to Government Code $4954.2 the agenda was posted at city
Hall on Friday, 3/5/93.
D. Oral and Written Communications
Ray Sinsley addressed the Commission pertaining to problems he was
experiencing in trying to move the adobe wall adjacent to Casa
Tierra. He found that the portion of the wall that had been
constructed with cement was difficult to dismantle and, as a
result, most of the adobe bricks were broken and rendered unusable.
He also indicated that he had a certified adobe expert, Gil
Sanchez, examine the wall and give his opinion as to the prospects
of saving bricks. A letter was submitted from Gil Sanchez, FAIA
regarding this examination along with a plan for a proposed
alternative that involved a combination of a reconstructed wall and
a good neighbor fence.
II. OLD BUSINESS
1. Heritage Preservation Incentive Program and other items for
the March 23 joint meeting with the City Council (Continued
from February 9, 1993).
The Commission discussed the various ideas that had been proposed
when the program was originally prepared. The focus of the
discussion concerned fee waivers and reduction, streamlining the
approval process and direct City involvement, such as using City
funds to acquire or rehabilitate historic resources. Staff
indicated that details of these topics would need to be discussed
at the upcoming joint meeting with the City Council.
The Commission also requested other items to be discussed at the
joint meeting:
a. Signage to mark the entrance to the Heritage Lane portion
of Saratoga avenue. Discussion to include construction and
funding.
b. Discussion of separate accounting mechanisms for the
proceeds from the Heritage Inventory book. These proceeds
would aid in funding future Heritage Preservation projects
such as the creation of an informational brochure and the
reprinting of the Heritage book. Discussion should also
resolve the question of the location of the funds raised from
the historic house tours.
2. Distribution of the Heritage Inventory Book and a
discussion of pricing and availability.
The book was distributed and well received by the Commission. The
Commission discussed pricing and asked staff to research the price
of comparable publications in the area and to find out about
reprinting costs. The Commission felt that the various historical
museum bookstores should be contacted to see if they would sell the
book.
3. Review and discussion of revised Heritage Inventory
notification letter (Continued from February 9, 1993).
Commissioner Davis accepted the remarks of the Commission and
agreed to prepare another draft for review at the next meeting.
4. Discussion of signage on the Heritage Lane portion of
Saratoga Avenue (Continued from February 9, 1993).
Commissioner Sabin provided photos of various signs in San Jose and
Saratoga for means of comparison. He also distributed a cost
breakdown of the San Jose signs. Given the current budget crisis,
the CommiSsion felt that this matter should be discussed with the
City Council to determine what funding, if any, was available.
III. NEN BUSINESS
1. Proposed reconstruction of a portion of the MaClay Cottage,
20900 Big Basin Way.
The CommiSSiOn approved of the proposed remodel of a section of the
home but requested staff to verify that the proposed materials
where compatible to the original house.
2. Proposed second story addition to an existing one story
building located at 20369 Park Place.
The Commission expressed concern over how this addition would alter
the nature of the home and that once completed the home would
probsJ~ly not meet the inventory criteria. Despite this concern, the
general consensus of the Commission was that the design was
sympathetic to the existing house and that the retention of the one
car garage was the best solution, given the size of the rear yard
and the fact that this arrangement was common to homes of this era.
ITEMB INITIATED BY THE COMMISSION
1. Frank Duffs and Roger Griffin introduced themselves as
aDplicants for the soon to be vacant seat on the Commission. They
gave brief stmuaaries of their experiences and indicated why they
wanted to be on the Commission.
2. Planning Director Curtis joined the meeting to take part in a
discussion of the adobe wall matter brought up by Ray Sinsley under
oral communications. Director Curtis explained that staff had been
made aware of this problem sometime earlier and that they had been
working with Mr. Sinslsy to come to some solution. One possibility
that had been discussed with Mr. Binsley was to dismantle the
appropriate sections of the wall and rebuild a lower wall, in the
approve4 location, with the bricks that are usable. The relocated
wall sections could be stepped down, starting at the front curved
section, thus preserving the historic appearance of the wall from
the street.
The Commission asked if the owner of Casa Tierra had been advised
of this option. The director indicated that Daryl Boyle had been
advised and agreed to a wall that was no lower than eleven brick
courses high as opposed to the fourteen course height of the
existing wall. The Director indicated that some new bricks may have
to be imported to complete this plan. These new bricks could be
incorporated into the base of the wall, which would be screened by
the future vegetation. The Commission was unanimous in its
agreement that this was a logical and reasonable option and asked
the Director to pursue this course of action with Mr. Slnsley.
V. ADJOU~NT
The meeting was adjourned at 11:05 a.m. to Tuesday April 13, 1993
at 9 a.m.
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