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Home My WebLink About1999-12-07 Bd Comm minutesMINUTES HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1999 CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBERS MEMBERS PRESENT: Richard Carlson, Frank Gersh, Mike Gunn, Sue Licht, Pam Michaud, Linda Shope MEMBERS ABSENT: Lars Anderson, Doris Malkmus, Marc Mills, Michaelanne Widness STAFF PRESENT: Scott Kugler OTHERS PRESENT: Joni Kinsey, Jim Enloe CALL TO ORDER: Vice-Chairperson Licht called the meeting to order at 5:33 p.m. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA: There was none. CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS REVIEWS: 325 Brown Street. Kugler distributed originals of the photographs in the packet. He said this project involves changing a kitchen window at the back of the house from a slider window to a double hung window that will more closely match the windows on the rest of the house. Kugler said there is another slider window and a door that were put in when a rear porch was enclosed. He said the proposal includes removal of those and replacement with French doors. Kinsey said she was available to answer any questions the Commission might have. Kugler noted the French doors shown in the packet do not have the transom up above as shown in the drawings. Kinsey said the doors would take up pretty much the same space as the window and door do now. Licht asked how large the double hung replacement window would be. Kinsey said it would not go much lower than the window is now because of an existing counter, but it would be higher. She said it would be lined up outside so that the trim and everything would be in the same proportion. Kugler asked if the 36 by 44 dimension is for the window to be installed. Kinsey said she had not yet found the right window. She said the dimensions on the other windows on the house are taller than the 44 inch dimension. Kinsey said the window will not be dramatically larger than the dimensions given, because that is all the space she has to put the window in. Gunn said, as a member of the review committee, he felt the replacement of the sliding windows would be an improvement. He said he did not have a problem with this. Gunn said a small concern is that there is not a lot of precedent for the double French doors on the home's exterior. He said the transom and trim is a plus for the project. Gersh said this is on the back of the building and not visible from the street. Kugler stated that the Commission has jurisdiction over anything exterior; it is a judgment call on the Commission's part as to how far the guidelines should be carried regarding the rear of the home. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 2 Carlson said since this replaces work done in the 1970s, it does not really matter to him that much what it looks like, especially since it is not visible from the street. He said historical material is not being removed to install the new items. Licht said this is a well-designed alternative to the back of the house. Gunn said the French doors were just noted as being unusual but were not considered a problem. Motion: Gersh moved to approve a certificate of appropriateness for the project at 325 Brown Street, as presented. Gunn seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. 1106 E. College Street. Kugler said this is an application for the construction of a new garage. He said there is an existing one-stall garage at the rear of the property, and the new garage, with dimensions of 18 feet by 30 feet, would be constructed three feet from that along the alley. Kugler referred to the elevations of the garage, saying the revised application calls for the use of hardi-plank siding instead of vinyl siding as in the original plan. Enloe said there have recently been traffic calming measures installed on College Street, necessitating the need for off-street parking for residents. He said he is proposing the new garage to meet his needs; he owns several cars from the 1950s and 60s that he is working on. Enloe said he keeps them stored Off-site but would like to build a space to enable to him to keep and work on his cars on his property. Enloe said he has spoken with members of the Commission, trying to find a reasonable compromise to meet his needs as well as the needs of the historic district. He said he designed the garage to be harmonious in appearance, although the garage would be back on the alley and would not be visible from the street. Shope asked how deep the property is. Enloe said the property is 158 feet deep by 40 feet wide. Shope asked if the ten-foot setback was from the edge of the alley or the center. Enloe said it is ten feet back from the edge of the alley. Licht referred to the Sanborn map showing where the other outbuildings in the area are located. Kugler said the map is from the 1960s and has not been recently updated. Shope asked how long Enloe has lived in the house, and Enloe responded he has lived there since 1996. Kugler said the review committee worked with the applicant on a number of issues. Licht said there are two basic issues: that of size and scale and the matter of the materials to be used. Regarding the size and scale, Licht said the lot is quite narrow and tight. She said Enloe has laid out his new garage exactly according to zoning regulations. Licht said the garage would not be any bigger than a normal two-car garage. She said there is another two-car garage two or three doors up facing the street. She added that there is also a large carriage house in the area. Licht said everyone in the area who has a small garage like Enloe's, almost without exception, has modified it in some way to accommodate more vehicles, so that there is quite an eclectic mix in the alley. She said there are lots of pluses and minuses to the project. Gersh said this is not 1910, and people do have more cars. He added, however, that no other property there has more than one garage, and this project would put two garages on the property. Gersh said the materials issues have been resolved since the vinyl siding is no longer being proposed. Gunn agreed that the primary concern in terms of materials was the use of vinyl, and that is no longer an issue. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 3 Gersh said the Iowa City Historic Preservation ordinance, Section 14-4C-2, states that any change or alteration of the exterior features of a landmark, or change or alteration of the appearance of a property within an historic or conservation district is something the Historic Preservation Commission has jurisdiction over. He said the Secretary of the Interior Standards (Guidelines for rehabilitating historic buildings) on pages 48 and 49 regarding "recommended" and "not recommended" practices, include in the non-recommended column: introducing new construction onto the building site which is visually incompatible in terms of size, scale, design, materials, color and texture or which destroys historic relationships on its site. Gersh said also not recommended is removing or radically changing those features of the district or neighborhood which are important in defining the overall historic character, so that as a result the character is diminished. He said those sections seem relevant in this case. Licht said number ten of the Standards states that new additions and adjacent or related new construction shall be undertaken in such a manner that if removed in the future, the essential form and integrity of the historic property and its environment would be unimpaired. She said the fact that this is a freestanding garage and could be completely removed at some point in time also has relevance here. Shope said standards one and two also apply. She said the first of the Secretary of the Interior Standards for rehabilitation states that the property shall be used for its historic purpose or be placed in a new use that requires minimal change to the defining characteristics of the building and its site and environment. Shope said the second standard states the historic character of a property shall be retained and preserved, and the removal of historic material or alterations of features and spaces that characterize a property shall be avoided. Licht said the section from the local guidelines regarding outbuildings states that garages and other outbuildings should be located in positions relative to the main building which are similar to the other garages and outbuildings in the historic district and to the extent such placement is possible under the zoning ordinance. She said it also states that double-wide garage door openings are discouraged if visible from the public right-of-way. Kugler said other sections call for outbuildings to be subordinate to and compatible with the main building, in this case the house. Shope said she was having a difficult time with the area in total, with the construction of the other homes and garages. She said the others are mainly single-car garages, and she felt that in the interests of preserving an historic area and its uniqueness, another double-wide garage would not fit in, even though down the block some larger garages were put in before this was an historic district. Shope said the Commission can only move forward, not back. Carlson said under the general guidelines, it states that compatibility and harmony will be measured as those actually relate to the historic structures, not non-contributing structures. He said that in a sense, the Commission should not be looking at the other garages there, the ones that are the same size as the proposed garage. Carlson said if this application were just for an additional garage the same size as the existing one, he would probably not have a problem with it. He said he is mostly concerned about the scale of the proposed garage, since it is more than twice as big as the existing garage and more than half as big as the house in footprint size. Carlson said the scale is what seems most out of character about this project. Enloe said the alternative is the demolition of the existing garage. Shope said Enloe would need the Commission's permission to do that also. Enloe said before the area became an historic district, he was assured he would have no problem with such a project and was told that the Commission had never denied an application. Kugler said that at the time of those Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 4 neighborhood meetings, to that point, the Commission had not denied any applications and had always worked with property owners to allow them to use their properties in a manner compatible with the district. He said former chair, Doug Russell, typically pointed out that the Commission would change over time and that no guarantees can be made ahead of time. Kugler said the procedures encourage attempts to work with the applicant to come up with a design that is compatible and meets the applicant's needs. He said he didn't recall any Commission member ever providing a guarantee about any project Gersh said the review committee discussed alternatives with Enloe, such as adding to the existing garage, constructing a smaller garage, or altering the proposed garage to make it more compatible, but Enloe felt that would not give him enough room. He said the issue remains as to whether or not there should be more than one garage. Licht said the big issue for her is the scale and mass of the building compared to the other buildings there. She said it takes a lot of room to house cars, so that when one looks at this as an isolated garage, it seems reasonable to have this size of garage. However, Licht said in relationship to the small garage on the site, the proposed garage seems out of proportion, although it doesn't seem out of proportion for what it does. Michaud asked if the building could be constructed to be like the coach house down the block. Licht said the carriage house is really the only other large outbuilding. She said there would still be two garages on the site, even if the new one were designed as a carriage house. Gersh stated that the two big garages on' the block are way up the block, not in the immediate vicinity. Shope asked how many cam the new garage would hold. Enloe said it would hold four small cars or two normal-sized care. Gunn said it would not be as wide as a standard two-car garage, although it would be longer than a standard two-car garage. Enloe said he had discussed attaching the new garage to the existing garage but was discouraged from doing so because that would modify the existing structure. He said an unattached garage has to be at least three feet from the existing structure, resulting in the very narrow garage. Gunn said at the initial visit to the site, he felt the large addition would be inappropriate on a garage with half the square footage and a different height and setback. Gersh said there were drawings of additions to the garage that would look reasonable, but they would only house three cam. Enloe said that would not work for him. He said he has waited his entire life to work on cars like this. Enloe said he is not a big developer. He said he owns the home and lives there and does not think this is an unreasonable request. Kugler pointed out that the historic designation does nothing in terms of the use of the property. He said the Commission should base its consideration on design issues, as it has been. Gunn said he has no doubt that the proposal is not compatible with the majority of the garages on the block. He said there is language in two or three places that would allow the Commission to deny the application. Gunn said, however, that all of the language is flexible enough to allow the construction to go forward, as well. He said it would be a harsh decision to deny being able to build anything on that spot. Gunn said while he agrees this is not compatible, he does not feel there is enough in place, e.g. a track record and a consensus from the neighborhood, to say this cannot be built here. He said he would not vote against this. Gemh said he is the representative from that district, and he has not heard anyone in the district speak against the proposed garage. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 5 Gunn said if the Commission had held guideline meetings that resulted in a neighborhood consensus and proposed a limit on the size, scale, and number of garages, and therefore had hard language to deny this, he would have a different opinion. He said he did not feel the Commission would be supporting the neighborhood covenant if the construction were denied altogether. Gunn said, however, that if the garage is permitted, it should be made compatible in materials and appearance. Licht said she had a similar opinion to Gunn's. She said her other fear is that if the garage is allowed, it sets a precedent so that then the Commission will have to come up with some really, good tight written guidelines between now and the next time someone proposes a garage that is out of scale. Kugler said the Commission may want to discuss details to improve the design, if Commission members were at all open to approval. Licht said the siding issue has been resolved. She said Enloe also agreed to increase the cornerboards on the proposed garage to match those on the existing garage. Licht said, regarding the double car garage door, that it is almost impossible to get two separate garage doom in an eighteen-foot dimension. Licht stated that the low pitch of the garage roof gave it a 1950's ranch house look. She said a steeper pitch might take some of that look away. Licht also suggested putting an architectural element in the peak that would look similar to what is on the existing garage. Licht said because the existing garage is narrow and tall, it appears to have a steeper pitch. Kugler said the proposal is for a 4:12 pitched roof. Enloe said he would be willing to go to a 6:12 pitch - the same as the existing garage. Commission members discussed placing a window or possibly a vent of a size and scale to fit the peak on each end of the garage. The consensus was to call for a window of approximately 12 inches by 12 inches, with appropriate trim, on each end. Gersh asked for opinions on the material of the garage door. Kugler said the Commission allowed double-wide doors with a flat finish in one instance on a house on Summit Street. He said there was a case on Bella Vista where the garage was right on the street in which the Commission required a wood paneled door with glass. Enloe said he was proposing a 16-foot wide steel overhead door with a square cut simple white frame, including raised panels. Licht said she would prefer to see a flat-paneled door with no raised or embossed panels. Motion: Michaud moved to approve a certificate of appropriateness for the proposed garage at 1106 East College Street subject to the following conditions: 1) the roof shall be of a 6:12 pitch, 2) there shall be a window of approximately 12 x 12 at each end of the garage in the peak, and 3) a flat-paneled garage door shall be used. Gunn seconded the motion. Enloe said he would be willing to make these changes if they were included as conditions for approval. Carlson said this project, as it stands with the conditions, would actually be acceptable to him. He said however, that he is very concerned about setting a precedent with this project, so that anyone can come along with an overscale garage meeting building codes and have it approved. Carlson said the guidelines as read say this kind of thing should not be permitted. He said he was concerned about setting a precedent and would be voting no on the motion. Kugler said the adoption of the new guidelines could address the issue more specifically. He said if this is approved, and until the guidelines are adopted, there will be a window in which Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 6 someone could make the argument that a garage of this size and scale has already been approved in an historic district. Licht said that the Commission has the opportunity to be much more specific in the guidelines. Kugler agreed, saying the Commission can write them, and the City Council can adopt them. Gunn estimated that it would be at least January before the guidelines come before the Commission for revision and approval. He said the guidelines then need to be taken to the neighborhoods for input, because each neighborhood would have its own specific set of guidelines. The motion carried on a vote of 3-2-1, with Carlson and Shope voting no, and Gersh abstaining. Kugler read from the Commission's by-laws that a majority of the votes cast at any meeting at which a quorum is present shall be decisive of any motion or election. He said he believes that the vote results in an approval of the motion, even though a quorum did not actually vote on the item. He said he would follow up with the City Attorney's office to be sure before preparing a certificate. Section 106 Reviews: Kugler said the Section 106 Reviews are for rehabilitation projects in which the City participates using federal funds. He said the Commission needs to determine whether the buildings are eligible for the National Register, and if so, the Commission is to look at the work plan to determine whether the Secretary Of the Interior Standards are being met. 418 N. Gilbert Street. Kugler said the survey of the area indicated that this property would be contributing to the proposed historic district in that area. He suggested the Commission should therefore determine the building to be eligible as part of the potential historic district. Licht said Marlys Svendsen's site inventory form indicates that this is a key structure. Licht said she reviewed all of the proposed work, and outside of installing new combination storms with the manufacture and style to be appropriate for the age of the house, everything else was essentially to remove damaged materials and repair and replace with a like kind. Gersh asked if the Commission should specify that the windows be of wood. Kugler said in the past, the Commission found aluminum windows to be acceptable, as long as they were a dark color. Licht pointed out that storm windows are not permanent and can be removed without damage. Kugler said the State Historical Society will review the plan and the Commission's determination of eligibility and subsequent comments and either concur or not. He said the question of storm windows has been raised in the past, and the response he has received from Ralph Christian is that it is really a local decision whether or not the Commission wants to take the step to require more historic material or a more historic look. Gunn suggested that the Commission at least make a recommendation for wood windows. Licht suggested approving the plans with the recommendation that they at least consider using wood storm windows. Kugler said when Steve Schornhorst was the staff person, he emphasized the limited budget for these projects and how in many cases, they are loans to low income individuals, rather than just grants of money. Motion: Gersh moved to find the property at 418 North Gilbert Street eligible for the National Register and to find the proposed work to be compatible with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards, with the recommendation that wood windows be considered. L|cht seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 7 917 Dearborn Street. Kugler said the Longfellow survey indicated this was not an individually eligible property and does not contribute to the conservation district that is proposed. Motion: Gersh moved to find the property at 917 Dearborn Street not eligible for the National Register. Gunn seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. 625 4th Avenue. Kugler said the Commission has surveyed this area, although the house was researched about a year ago when a permit was applied for to do some emergency work on the roof. He said no new information regarding the property has come to light since that time. Motion: Gunn moved to find the property at 625 4t~ Avenue not eligible for the National Register. Gersh seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. Discussion of Appeals Issue Kugler said he has not yet received a memo from Anderson regarding the Commission's decision not to pursue expanding the appeals issue. He said there is therefore nothing to discuss at this time. Update on Montgomery-Butler House Planning Kugler said the PSF grant application for this has been filed on behalf of the Commission. He added that the TEA-21 funding deadline is in three to four weeks and should be discussed in the near future. Reschedule Regular November Meeting Because of the Veterans' Day holiday on November 11, the November meeting was rescheduled to November 8. Schedule Annual Planning Session Kugler said it was important for all Commission members to be at the Annual Planning Session, which would last approximately two hours. The session was tentatively scheduled for November 22 from 5:30 to 7:30, with a backup date of November 16. Consideration of Minutes from the August 12. August 31. and September 9. meetings August 12 Motion: Shope moved to approve the minutes of the August 12 Historic Preservation Commission meeting, as written. Gersh seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes October 14, 1999 Page 8 August 31 Motion: L|cht moved to approve the minutes of the August 31 Historic Preservation Commission meeting, as written. Gersh seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. September 9 On page two, in the second sentence on the page, the end of the sentence should read, "window had to be done from the outside". On page two, regarding the vote on the motion, the statement should read, "Shope and Carlson against." Motion: Carlson moved to approve the minutes of the September 9 Historic Preservation Commission meeting, as amended. Gunn seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. Commission Information/Discussion: Commission Time Licht said she would like to have an opportunity at some future meeting to make a presentation on the restoration of existing window sashes. She said she would discuss the use of existing windows in terms of both weatherization and economic incentive. FY99 Annual Report Kugler said the Commission's Annual Report was included in this month's packet of material. Access to History: Design Review and the Americans with Disabfiities Act. November 8. 1999, Des Moines. Iowa Kugler said this is a free seminar regarding ADA issues and historic preservation design issues. He asked anyone interested in attending the seminar to let him know. Kugler said Lowell and Paula Brandt recently submitted an application regarding the railing they wanted to put on their property. He said the Brandts have now changed their plans and would like to remove the spindles from the railing as it goes down the steps. Licht said she would like them to at least resubmit a drawing of how the new railing would look. Kugler suggested that Commission review would be necessary to amend the certificate of appropriateness since the Commission as a whole approved the original railing. He said he would find out if the application can wait until the November 8 meeting or if a special meeting will need to be called. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 7:24 p.m. ppdadm/min/hpcl 0-14-99.doc MINUTES IOWA CITY HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MONDAY NOVEMBER 8, 1999, 5:30 PM SENIOR CENTER CLASSROOM PRELIMINARY Subject to Approval MEMBERS PRESENT: Lars Anderson, Frank Gersh, Richard Carlson, Michaelanne Widness, Sue Licht, Mike Gunn, Marc Mills, Doris Malkmus, Pam Michaud, Linda Shope MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Scott Kugler OTHERS PRESENT: Pam Ehrhardt, Ann Freerks, Lowell Brandt CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Anderson called the meeting to order at 5:29 p.m. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA Pam Ehrhardt began by stating that there are a number of things happening in the Governor Street area that concern residents. There was a historic survey done in the neighborhood and one of the recommendations that came out of the survey was that Governor Street should be a conservation district. She has inquired with the Department of Planning and Community Development about the possibility of down-zoning the area. Ehrhardt went on to say that she understands that the Commission is currently working on changes to its ordinance and guidelines; however, residents are concerned about the future use of buildings and possible demolition of homes. The residents would like to inquire about the possibility of expediting the process to make the area a conservation district. Ann Freerks said that the neighborhood is at a critical point now. There was discussion a few years ago about making the area a conservation district. She noted that she feels it is important to pursue this as quickly as possible now. There are many elderly people in the neighborhood and when those properties come up for sale the neighbors would like to have some structure in place to promote the homes for single family or to keep the structures intact. The integrity of the neighborhood is of concern as she sees it changing very quickly if something is not done soon. Freerks then offered assistance from the neighborhood to pursue conservation district designation, Malkmus asked Kugler to outline what it would take to have this designation. Kugler stated that the ordinance requires that the Commission prepare a report that would describe the neighborhood; what makes it worthy of preservation. A public hearing would have to be held and the Commission would have to make the decision as to whether or not to nominate the district. It will then go to the Planning and Zoning Commission for review and finally to the City Council for a vote. Gunn then asked if there is an ordinance that specifies a percentage of agreement for the designation. Kugler said there is no percentage, but at least six members of the neighborhood have to propose the conservation district, or the Commission on its own initiative can make the proposal. There is no owner-consent requirement. Widness then commented that as she saw it the designation that is being requested would not offer the kind of protection that is being asked for. This does not preclude sales from owner- occupied to rental property. Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission Minutes November 8, 1999 Page 2 Ehrhardt then explained that the neighborhood is not asking for this; rather they would like to have more of a design review. There needs to be some kind of design review that will offer continuity to the neighborhood. Gersch then noted over a year ago guidelines were put together that were to be presented to the neighborhood. This project never was completed and maybe they do not need to meet with the 'neighborhood. Ehrhardt then noted that last spring she was sent as a planning and zoning Commissioner to an annual planning meeting in Seattle. One of seminars she went to was a session on conservation in historic districts to preserve neighborhoods. The strongest thing that she got out of it was that there really needs to be cooperation between the city and the neighborhood. It was the neighborhood that made the designation of character that they wanted to preserve. There are many things that the neighborhood could be doing to help achieve the designation. Their neighborhood wants to take on this project with the city's guidance. Freerks then commented that the Longfellow Neighborhood has a good track record in getting things done when they need to be. They are anxious to work on this project. She reiterated that they are at a critical point. The area is kind of a buffer zone and once things go in the other direction there will not be a rebound. She believes this is an important time to take action. Anderson said that having the neighborhood support makes it more feasible. There is a finite amount of time and their support is important. Malkmus inquired if it would maybe be beneficial to have someone from the Commission work with members of the neighborhood to see what needs to be done for the planning meeting. This would help determine what really needs to be done in terms of work to complete the project. Gunn then asked for clarification of the area being discussed. Freerks said that it includes Governor Street between Burlington and the railread tracks. This would be an opportunity to use the guidelines and attempt to get the designation. It was agreed that Freerks would get the proposed guidelines from Kugler and proceed in setting up a meeting. Malkmus suggested that a Commission member should meet with the neighborhood. Michaud said that there was some concern about the interpretation of the guidelines. She then offered to meet with the neighborhood and work towards getting a start before the planning meeting on November 22, 1999. CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS REVIEW 824 N. Gilbert-Request for amendment to approve certificate. Anderson noted that this is a request to amend a previous approval. Kugler said the Commission may remember the approval for the request for the replacement of the steps and a rail on this property. The rail was to be located along the south side of the steps leading from the top of the hill down to the sidewalk. The owner, Lowell Brandt, has now indicated that they would like to change the plans. They now would like to move the rail to the other side of the steps as it fits better with the way things have worked out on the site. The original plan was to construct a rail similar to that on the porch, with spindles. Now they would like to keep the posts and top rail the same, but the vertical spindles will be eliminated. Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission Minutes November 8, 1999 Page 3 Brandt said he appreciated the original approval; however once the steps were laid it became apparent that something simpler would be more appropriate. This gets away from some of the angles in the steps. Michaud noted that it was suggested that a pipe rail be used and asked why the owner decided against this. Brandt said that they visually had a problem with the concept of using a pipe rail. Brandt said they were willing to deal with the maintenance of wood. Carlson then said that he believed that a pipe railing would be more appropriate with concrete steps. Brantit then said now that the concrete is poured some damage would be done to the structure of it since it was a not allowed for originally, They do not want to drill holes in the concrete to save the integrity of the concrete. Anderson said that the first proposal was much busier and complicated than what is now being requested. It is a move toward what the Commission initially suggested and a more elaborate rail was originally approved. To go to the other direction now in his mind would be inappropriate. MOTION: Widness moved to approve the amended certificate of appropriateness as submitted for 824 N. Gilbert Street. Gersh seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 9-0. SECTION 106 REVIEWS 1907 G. Street- Kugler began by stating that with the Section 106 reviews the Commission's first job is to determine whether the property is eligible for the National Register, and if so, the Commission should look at the work plan to determine if it meets the Secretary of the Interior's Standards. He went on to say that with 1907 G Street; the staff has no information indicating that it is eligible. A survey has not been completed there, but there is no historical information available indicating that is eligible. Kugler indicated that he believes it was built in the 1940's. Motion: Malkmus moved that the Commission find that the property is not eligible for the National Register. Mills seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 9-0. 418 E. Benton Street- Kugler stated that this home was built in the 1920s. He said that at one time local consultant Jan Nash had raised some concerns when the city was looking at changing the configuration of Gilbert Street and perhaps creating a one-way couplet in this area. She noted that there were a number of homes that were originally occupied by African Americans and that there may be some significance associated with this issue. Malkmus then inquired if it was appropriate to vote that the historical significance is not known, but the proposed alternations do meet the guidelines. Kugler said that staff does not plan to conduct additional research, but the letter could state something regarding the potential historical significance. He went on to say that in the submission to the State it could be said for the purposes of this project that it will not be considered eligible, and then add a disclaimer that until additional research is done it could not be said with certainty if it is eligible. Motion: Carlson moved that the Commission find that for the purposes of this project it is not being considered to be eligible for the National Register, but that additional research may prove otherwise, at some point in the future. It was seconded by Shope. The motion carried on a vote of 9-0. Motion: Malkmus moved that the work that has been proposed in conformance with the Secretary of the Interior's standards even if this building is not eligible. It was seconded by Carlson. The vote carried on a vote of 9-0. Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission Minutes November 8, 1999 Page 4 DISCUSSION OF UPCOMING GRANT APPLICATION DEADLINES Kugler began by saying the CLG and HRDP grant program deadlines are coming up. The CLG is in December and the HRDP in January. He indicated that the Commission is late in getting started and he noted the items in his memo to the Commission. This included a National Register nomination for the Longfellow Historic District and additional survey work in Manville Heights, Iowa Avenue and Kirkwood Avenue or elsewhere. It has'been recommended that a survey be completed for fraternities and sororities. The other possibility is if the Montgomery- Butler House professional services grant is not funded through the National Trust it could be reapplied for as well. He went on to say that one change to the HRDP program is that if a community is funded for an HRDP grant, they are then restricted from filing an application for the following two years. He went on to say that in FY 98 and 99, although grant applications were filed, they were not funded. Therefore, they can file this year. If they do file and are successful they will need to understand that for the next two years this program will not be available. Malkmus inquired if any grant applications that have been filed and rejected for CLG and HRDP and need to be reviewed and then re-submitted. She also asked if both these grants would require totally new applications. Licht joined the meeting at 6:15PM. Kugler said last year's HRDP application to hire someone to review the ordinance and prepare amendments for certain items was not funded. Anderson noted that the deadline is December 15. He suggested the issue be postponed until the November 22 planning meeting. DISCUSSION OF APPEALS ISSUE Anderson stated that two meetings ago he was asked to write a memo to the City Council and he has it prepared now. Widness commented on the item that stated "nationwide we were able to identify several communities granting other property owners besides the applicant with right of appeal." She then wondered if this represented a small percentage of people. Anderson explained that his understanding that it is not unusual in the more established programs such as Savannah that have advanced to a highly sophisticated ordinance, Widness thought this type of language would give greater clarification. Carlson asked what other cities' preservation Commission have to say about it. He would like some feedback on this. Anderson said he did not contact communities directly to determine this. Malkmus inquired about the statement saying "we were not able to identify any other Iowa community that extended the right to appeal beyond the occupant." She said she remembered that there were some communities that have this; however Kerry McGrath stated that she did not know of any communities who did have it. Therefore, the information appeared to be very ambiguous. Anderson noted that it was apparent that some of those communities did not fully understand the question. There appears to be few, if any, Iowa communities that allow for an appeal by neighbors. Malkmus said she thought the letter was very organized and well written. It was agreed to make the minor adjustments of language and send it to the City Council. Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission Minutes November 8, 1999 Page 5 REMINDER- NOVEMBER 22 ANNUAL PLANNING SESSION CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES FROM OCTOBER 14, 1999, MEETING Shope moved to approve the minutes with minor amendments and corrections. Carlson seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 10-0. COMMISSION INFORMATION/DISCUSSION Malkmus said that there was a meeting with the Parks and Recreation Commission to discuss the plans to apply for grant money for the Butler-Montgomery House. The money that will be applied for will be the TEA-21 grants that are being considered for the next three years. This money will be used to extend a trail to the park below the hill. A comfort station will also be installed. The plan calls to keep the driveway where it is currently. No landscaping will be involved. The Parks and Recreation Commission gave their support for this project. Widness said that she had spoken with a member of City Council regarding the Englert Theatre. She was asked to ask the Commission to inquire if something could be done and once the downtown survey is completed will there be any power in the ordinance to prevent what will happen to the Englert from happening. Anderson stated that he understands that what is proposed with the Englert has nothing to do with the exterior. Kugler stated that as the ordinance currently reads, even if permits were needed for the interior there is no review -- even if the building were designated as a landmark. Anderson further commented that as long as nothing is done to the outside the Commission would have no say or review to the issue. Anderson then stated that the Commission has not pursued the designation of the building in the past. Gersh then said that the theatre has already been divided into two movie theatres and there is not a lot of history left on the inside of the building. Widness went on to say she also spoke to Mayor Lehman regarding this issue and he suggested that the Commission write a letter to the prospective owner. Widness said that Mayor Lehman suggested that the letter be written to the effect that the owner would be reminded of the importance of the building to the history of downtown Iowa City and to gently prod him to do the least amount of damage that he could possibly do. Anderson then said he was not clear as to the present situation, but he does understand that the present tenants in the upper floors have been asked to leave. Malkmus commented that she is concerned with the theatre area of the building. Widness then Said the Robert Hamel of the Iowa City Community Theatre called and he was very concerned about the theatre part and staging area. He indicated that if these areas were altered substantially then no theatre group would be able to use the facility. Malkmus suggested that the Commission second this sentiment by sending a letter. Anderson then suggested that an open letter in the newspaper be sent to the perspective owner stating that the Commission is concerned about the potential change in the character of the building. Licht then said she believed that this would put more pressure on the new owner to do the right thing. The group agreed this letter would be a good idea. Widness said that she would draft a letter for publication. She said she felt this letter could act as a catalyst for others to write letters. This would possibly keep the issue in the forefront. It was agreed that the letter would be sent to the Iowa City Gazette and the Press Citizen. The draft of the letter will be discussed at the planning meeting. Iowa City Historic Preservation Commission Minutes November 8, 1999 Page 6 EMAIL FROM KERRY MCGRATH Kugler noted that McGrath contacted the Commission regarding a design review training oppodunity. Non/Winter is a well-known consultant who will be in the area doing some work. This may be an opportunity for a program. Kugler then said that Oskaloosa has indicated that they would like to hire him, but would need a partner to sponsor a program. It was decided that Anderson would get clarification of the exact request and report back to the Commission. ADJOURNMENT Michaud moved to adjourn and Malkmus seconded the motion. The meeting adjourned at 6:40PM. Submitted by Le Ann Dunne-Tyson ppdadm/min/hpcI 1-8-99.doc MINUTES HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1999 CIVIC CENTER LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM MEMBERS PRESENT: Dan Coleman, Lucia-Mia Page, Jayne Moraski, Kathleen Renquist, Bob Elliott, Denita Gadson, Rick House MEMBERS ABSENT: Bill Stewart, Gretchen Schmuch STAFF PRESENT: Maggie Grosvenor, Steve Long, Steve Nasby, Le Ann Dunne OTHERS PRESENT: Sarah Purcell CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Moraski called the meeting to order at 6:30 P.M. CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES Meeting minutes from September 16, 1999, were reviewed. Moraski requested a change to the minutes. She noted that she voted against the Swenson extension. This will change the approval for the extension to a vote of 5-3. Elliott moved to approve the minutes as amended with Coleman seconding the motion. The motion was approved by a vote of 6-0. REVIEW OF 2000-2005 CITY STEPS DOCUMENT Nasby began by stating that two sections of the CITY STEPS document has been distributed to the Commission in September. Section two contains demographics and the 1996 census was used to update as many of the statistics as possible. Section three is the housing needs section. Some of the 1990 census data had to be kept and updates to the section were done by using the information from the Maxfield Study and Cook Appraisals Rental Study. In response to a question, Nasby said that a draft needs to be to the public by November 5, 1999. At this time it will go to the public for a 30-day public comment period. Nasby asked the Commission to review the document and contact staff with any changes or suggestions that they may have. He went on to say that the Priorities and Strategies Committee has met twice to review and update section four (strategies) and are making any necessary changes. Suggestions for changes made in the document were based on the CITY STEPS public meetings. MONITORING REPORTS Salvation Army- Moraski noted that Capt. Deon Oliver was out of town so there is no report. Community Mental Health Center- Schmuch was not at the meeting to report. City of Iowa City-First Home Program- Coleman reported that there have been five households who have received assistance and $15K has been spent out of the $30K allocated. The lenders are using the State IHAP grant funds when they can; rather than the City funds. Of the five households assisted; two were assisted in 1998 and three were assisted in 1999. The average home purchase price was $79,900. Three households were female head of households with all five being Caucasian. One was low income and four were moderate-income families. Mayor's Youth Employment Program- Elliott began by saying that he met with Diane Haggerry, the Executive Director, This past year the program had requested $25K and was given $15.4K for a job-training program. At the present time they are working with 15 persons who are 16 years of age and older. They do not have a cut-off age. She said it was difficult to say what they Housing & Community Development Comm. Minutes October 21, 1999 Page 2 were not able to do due to the reduction of funds, but it does mean that there is reduced time in actually working with their clientele who need substantial handholding. Elliott said Haggerry pointed out that one of the problems that she has seen take place over time is the people who come to them have an increasing number of young people who have multiple barriers to have successful job searches. It does take more time to serve this type of client. Elliott added that Haggerty also noted that there would be less funding from the State and Federal sources in the future. She said that the lack of funds from the State is not a reduction in funds; rather that the State will be making allocations on the basis of population as opposed to need. Elliott said that he and Haggerty discussed duplication of services. Haggerry agreed that there could be some additional assistance available in a more efficient and cost effective operation if some of the duplications could be eliminated. Elliott said he would follow-up on this issue, OLD BUSINESS Successful Living- Kopatich sent a letter to HCDC withdrawing the application. Nasby explained that Kopatich could not obtain a satisfactory purchase arrangement. They had been working with the current owner on lease arrangements; however the seller had gone ahead and finalized some lease arrangements that were not up to Kopatich's expectations. This locked the property in and Kopatich was not comfortable with making the purchase. She thanked the Commission and apologized for putting them through the work that they had done on this project, Swenson and Associates Project- Nasby began by saying that a letter was faxed to him on October 20. He noted that the first deadline set by HCDC was September 30, 1999, which required two homebuyers to have signed purchase agreements and financing in place. This was not met as one household did not sign up which meant Swenson did not meet the deadline. In response, Nasby and the City Attorney have sent letters to Swenson. Nasby said that the contract can be terminated for convenience. The City is in the process of getting financial information from the bank on the first home and doing a title search on the other two properties. Disposition of the two lots will be made once the titles are clear. If everything goes well the City should be in possession of these lots sometime in the next 30 days. Nasby inquired what the Commission would like to do with the lots. He said that there are three entities currently doing home ownership pregrams using CDBG or HOME funds. They are Iowa City Housing Authority, Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship and Habitat for Humanity. These three have received funding before and have expressed interest in working with the two lots. Elliott inquired about the need in the community. He said his church has funding for a Habitat project and there have not been any takers. Long said Habitat has different guidelines for homeowners. It has a lower income guideline and as an example in the Swenson project someone had to quality for a $90K loan. Nasby explained that with the Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship Landlease the non-profit owns the land and leases it to the homeowner. The Housing Authority sells the whole property and carries a silent second mortgage on the property. The target population is the same for both entities and the subsidy is approximately equal. Elliott inquired about the possibility of using manufactured housing to continue what the Swenson Project started. Nasby said that was a possibility. Nasby said that with these two lots the properties could be given to one or more of the three groups and they would put up the homes without additional funding. Moraski inquired about the groups doing an application. Nasby said that it could be something with guidelines setout by the Housing & Community Development Comm. Minutes October 21, 1999 Page 3 Commission as opposed to a formal application process since these groups have done projects in the past. It was agreed that applications would be requested and then discussed at the next meeting. Moraski inquired about the North District Planning Presentation. Nasby said that there will be public meetings on November 10th and 17th. NEW BUSINESS, Formation of Subcommittee for Ranking Criteria and Application Review- Nasby stated that applications are scheduled to be available in mid-December so the subcommittee may want to meet in earlier November for recommendations. The final recommendations could then be considered at the regular November HCDC meeting, finalized and forwarded to the Council. Coleman suggested that perhaps the waters could be tested to see if there are any changes that are needed. Elliott said that he thought the only concern that he remembers is that Coleman was concerned about confidentiality of individual scores last year. Coleman confirmed this and thanked Elliott for remembering the issue. Moraski suggested that confidentiality be discussed at the next meeting. Renquist suggested that a sub-committee did not need to be formed if the Commission was comfortable with the existing ranking sheet. The members agreed that there was no need to form a sub-committee and to discuss the confidentiality issue at the next meeting. Annual Housing and Community Development Report- Nasby said that the report for the Commission was in the annual booklet that was published with accomplishments and plans for all commissions and committees for the City. Nasby said that there was an open house for the Salvation Army, however the timing was not good for the Commission since the notice was received on October 1 and the open house was over on the 15th of the month. Long said he attended and the facility was very nice. A new kitchen is being installed with $40K in new kitchen equipment paid for by CDBG Funds. Moraski also had a memo inviting the Commission to visit at any time. Grosvenor from the Iowa City Housing Authority was present. She spoke of the conversion of certificates in the Section 8 Program. This will be a two-year process with certificate conversion to vouchers. Grosvenor explained that certificates were bound by fair market rents. This meant that landlords would have rent restrictions in regard to what they could charge. The vouchers had the subsidy based on a payment standard subsidy. It was a two-step calculations process. Now the programs are gone in regard to the calculation process. Now there is a housing voucher choice. Now the restriction comes from tenant's income. Every tenant must pay 30% of their income; with a cap at 40% of their income. This comes out the Quality Housing Work Responsibility Act that was passed in 1998. This requires the tenant to meet the income requirements. Everyone has two review phases to comply. Grosvenor said she is working on landlord education at this point. Page joined meeting- 7:10PM ADJOURNMENT Elliott moved to adjourn the meeting and Renquist seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned by unanimous consent at 7:15 P.M. ppdcdbg/min/hcdc10-21-99.doc COUNCIL (LISA SINGLE SIDED) MINUTES IOWA CITY BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1999 - 5 P.M. CIVIC CENTER- COUNCIL CHAMBERS MEMBERS PRESENT: Susan Bender, Lowell Brandt, T. J. Brandt, Kate Corcoran, Michael Paul MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Melody Rockwell, Dennis Mitchell, LeAnn Dunne-Tyson OTHERS PRESENT: Pastor Jong Koo Lee, IIkyu Yoon, Ken Polsley CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Bender called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: All members were present for roll call, CONSIDERATION OF THE OCTOBER 13, 1999. BOARD MINUTES: Motion: T.J. Brantit moved to approve the October 13, 1999, minutes of the Board of Adjustment, as printed. Paul seconded. The motion carried on a vote of 5-0. SPECIAL EXCEPTION ITEMS EXC99-0021. Public hearing on an application submitted by the All Nations Baptist Church for a special exception to permit the expansion of a religious institution, that is, the construction of a fellowship and education addition to the main church building, for property located in a Low Density Single-Family Residential (RS-5) zone at 1715 Mormon Trek Boulevard. Rockwell noted that All Nations Baptist Church had been before the Board in the past to request the establishment of the initial church building and a temporary addition. She said the church had also requested additional time for the temporary addition to remain in place. The Board allowed the temporary modular building to remain on-site until March 1, 2000. Rockwell explained that the church had indicated the modular addition would be removed at the time a permanent addition was constructed. She said the church requested more time to raise the funds to construct a permanent addition. She said the church has now raised the funds, and is requesting approval of a special exception to allow it to build a two-story structure to house a fellowship and education wing. Rockwell said the church meets the minimum lot area and access requirements for religious institutions in the RS-5 Zone. She said the initial application showed that the building addition would be set too close to the Highway 218 right-of-way. She said the setback requirement is two feet for every foot of height of the building. Rockwell said the building is 24 feet in height and the setback was proposed to be 42 feet, not 48 feet. She said the revised plan shows the addition being reconfigured to be a little wider and to extend less towards Highway 218 so that it would be set back approximately 50 feet. She said the building would wrap around the original building slightly, but extend more to the northwest instead of toward the west. Iowa City Board of Adjustment Minutes November 3, 1999 Page 2 Rockwell said in evaluating the appropriateness of the religious institution expansion in relationship to the residential properties around it, staff noted that this building would have enormous setbacks from property lines and any adjacent residential properties. She said the church has contributed to the welfare of the community and neighborhood by allowing the church to be used as a center for neighborhood and city meetings, a polling place, a day care center, a pre-school and for youth outreach wor. k. She said staff recommends the installation of landscaping to soften the appearance of the building. She noted that although traffic may be increased in the area, it would not pose a problem for the adjoining segment of Mormon Trek Boulevard. Rockwell stated that staff recommends approval of the special exception to permit the expansion of a religious institution, that is, the construction of a fellowship and education addition to the main church building, for property located in the RS-5 zone at 1715 Mormon Trek Boulevard, subject to the exterior of the building addition being similar in style, color and materials as the existing structure and a landscaping plan approved by city staff being planted and maintained on the site. Public Hearing opened. Pastor Lee spoke stating that the All Nations Baptist Church was built about eight years ago. He said it started as a small Korean congregation and now has grown into an international church with members from seven or eight countries. He noted that the church has helped evangelize the cities of Iowa City and Coralville. He said the church has been doing its best to make contributions to the community by allowing the church to be used as a voting station, for neighborhood meetings, and also operating a daycare for a reasonable rate. He said in view of the growth of the church membership and its programs, the facility needs to be expanded. He said in July 2000, the church would be hosting a huge youth rally. He said it is the church's hope to finish the building addition by that time. He asked the Board to grant the exception. Ilkyu Yoon, a deacon at the church, said he joined the church about four years ago when moving to the Cedar Rapids area for a job. He commented that this church has allowed him to grow in faith and now he is the director of the college group. He said he realizes that the education offered by the church is so important, especially for the college students. Yoon also noted that many students come to Iowa City before the school terms starts and can not find affordable housing. He said the church has offered these students a place to stay. He said the church also offers language courses for ethnic groups as well. He said for these reasons, the educational building addition is necessary for the work to continue. Ken Polsiey, a church member, said he and his family joined the church about two years ago. He said when he joined, there were about a half dozen people in the non-Korean portion of the congregation and now there are about sixty members. He said his wife is a music minister and one of the big problems is finding space for practicing music for the worship. He said that there is a real need for additional space. Polsley said this church has benefited his children greatly and he supports the expansion. Rockwell then asked for clarification from Pastor Lee in regard to the building layout. Pastor Lee said that aesthetically it would be better to go west with the design. L. Brantit said that the Board would not be in the position today to reduce the setback for this design. Reverend Lee said that they would like a decision at this meeting and will meet the design requirements based on the decision of the Board at this meeting. Public hearing closed. Iowa City Board of Adjustment Minutes November 3, 1999 Page 3 MOTION: L Brandt moved to approve EXC99-0021, a special exception to expand a religious institution use, that is, to allow the construction of a two-story worship and education addition on the northwest side of the existing All Nations Baptist Church building for property located in a RS-5 zone at 1715 Mormon Trek Boulevard, subject to 1) the exterior of the building addition being similar in color, style and materials to the existing structure and 2) a landscaping plan approved by city staff being planted and maintained on the site. In addition, this special exception is approved with the understanding that it apl~lies to a more westerly or more northwesterly extension of the structure than shown on the application, if approved by City staff. Corcoran seconded the motion. FINDINGS OF FACT L. Brandt said that he sat on the Board dudng the previous two special exceptions that were considered for the temporary addition. He said he recollected there was considerable discussion for plans for a more permanent structure and he is pleased to see the church come before the Board able to request the permanent addition. He said the impact of the addition would be rather minimal because of the location of the property and location of the building adjacent to two major thoroughfares. He noted that one of the things that makes this somewhat easier is that there was foresight in the original purchase of the property that allows plenty of room for expansion. He said the church has provided well for the parking and planned a good ingress/egress for the site. He said he does not see any problems with the church meeting the standards for granting a special exception and he supports the special exception with the conditions as stated in the Board's motion. T.J. Brandt noted that he too would vote in favor of the exception knowing the role the church plays for the community and the number of people it serves. He felt that in the interests of justice, it would serve the church and the community well to expand the facility and continue to meet and serve the needs of churchgoers and neighbors. He commended the church for its efforts in getting to this point and reiterated that he supports the exception. Corcoran said she would vote in favor of the motion as the church appears to have been a very helpful member of the community on the west side. She noted that the standards appear to be met and the landscaping will soften the appearance. She said she will vote in favor of the motion. Paul said he will vote in favor of the motion for the reasons previously mentioned. He said he echoes the comments that were made about the purchase of property, which is strategically located for such a facility and allows for its future growth. He said the proposed expansion will not have a negative impact on the neighbors or the traffic in the area. He said he will vote in favor of the motion. Bender commented that she will vote in favor for many of the reasons stated. She said she would have to admit that she is a neighbor and when the church was first being built that she had some concerns about traffic congestion. She said she has not seen traffic as a problem and has been at the church for community meetings. Bender said as has been stated, the church has been an asset to the community, particularly in its educational outreach for children and youth. She said all of the standards and regulations in Article L have been met. She said she will also vote in favor of the motion. The motion was approved 5-0. Iowa City Board of Adjustment Minutes November 3, 1999 Page 4 OTHER BUSINESS Rockwell stated that December 8, 1999, is the date for the brewell Board of Adjustment luncheon for Susan Bender. She said the luncheon will be held at Givannis at noon. ADJOURNMENT: Corcoran ~oved to adjourn with the second by T.J. Brandt. The meeting adjourned at 5:35 p.m. Susan Bender, Board Chairperson Minutes submitted by LeAnn Tyson Melody Rockwell, Board Secretary ppdadm/min/boal 1-3-99,d0c SIGN IN SHEET 4. 6. 9. _72. 1£ 16. 19. IOWA CITY BOARD OF ADJLIS'?'MEItlT MEET2'NG WEDNESDAYs. NOVENBER ~ 1999 - 5 Civic Center Council Chambers Name Address IOWA CITY BOARD OF APPEALS ....... MONDAY, JUNE 7, 1999 - 4:30 P.M. SITE VISIT AT 403 SOUTH LUCAS STREET AND MEET AT LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM CITY CIVIC CENTER MEMBERS PRESENT: Anna Buss, Robert Carlson, Tim Fehr, Gary Haman, Wayne Maas, John Roffman, Tom Werderitsch MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFFPRESENT: Tim Hennes, Gary Klinefelter, Roger Jensen, Dennis Mitchell OTHERS PRESENT: Casey Cook, Cal Fuoss, John Loomis BOARD INSPECTION OF 403 S. LUCAS ST.: The Board members performed a site inspection of the third floor bedroom. Owner Cal Fuoss, Sr. Housing Inspector Gary Klinefelter, Sr. Building Inspector Tim Hennes and Asst. City Attorney Dennis Mitchell also attended. CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Carlson called the meeting or order at 4:55 p.m. CONSIDERATION OF THE MINUTES OF THE MARCH 1, 1999, MEETING: MOTION: Buss moved to approve the March 1, 1999, meeting minutes as submitted. Roffman seconded the motion. The motion carried by a vote of 7-0. HEAR AN APPEAL OF NOTICE OF HOUSING CODE VIOLATION (403 S. LUCAS ST.): Carlson noted that is the property that the Board just visited. Klinefelter said he tried to be fairly thorough in the chronology, summary and recommendations. Roffman said #2 of the staff recommendations said that the escape/rescue window should be installed, but then Klinefelter said the door could be become the escape/rescue point and the window would not be needed. Klinefelter said he thought they could consider that to all be one room if the wall section is removed, so they could use the door to the west in lieu of an escape/rescue window. He said the habitable area would be the east end and the west end would become the hallway. Maas said he was concerned about not putting an escape/rescue window in because of the hallway length. He said if a fire would start in the back of the room a person would not be able to get from the habitable room to the outside stairway. Buss said if a fire would zoom up the stairs the person would be completely out of luck. Klinefelter said there is a hard-wired smoke detector at the top of the stairs. He said they are asking for an additional one to be installed in the sleeping area. Carlson asked why this space was directed to be vacated in 1986, vacated and now has become reoccupied, and they are now being asked to approve that this space be rehabitable. Klinefelter said yes, with some modification. Carlson asked if the building was converted from a single family house back to a duplex in 1987. Klinefelter said there was a building permit and Certificate of Structural Compliance issued for that, but they did not have any record of inspections. He said there is still an outstanding issue of utility separation for electricity, but that is under the jurisdiction of the Iowa Utilities Board. Klinefelter said the whole thing was kind of an embarrassing affair because a lot of mistakes were made. Iowa City Board ~ Appeals Minutes June 7,1999 Page 2 Werderitsch said that inspections were recorded from 1996-99 on the licensing, but no observations of the attic being used as a separate sleeping room was made. He asked if he could infer from that that an inspection was not made upstairs or that the attic was not being used at those times. Klinefelter said he thought they could infer that the assumption was made by the inspector that that area was nonconforming habitable space. He said no one had done any research to go back and find out what had transpired previous to that. He said there is no record of any appeal, but it probably wouldn't have taken much work to research that. He said he would make the assumption that it was being used, observed by previous inspectors and they thought that an appeal or variance had been granted. Werderitsch asked what triggered the investigation. Klinefelter said the lack of utility split for the two dwelling units caused them to start researching the file. He said there are a lot of entries and microfilm, but there are also a lot of gaps in the file. Carlson asked if they knew when the permit was issued to change the structure from single- family to duplex, and asked if there was enough information there to see if at that time it was intended for the third floor to be habitable space. Klinefelter said they do not know that. He said there is a set of floor plans in the file from the previous building permit, and there are no drawn plans of the attic space on those plans. Buss said she thought the Board came to a conclusion about how wide interior stairs going up to habitable space had to be. Hennes said they took the approach that if the building had another conforming set of stairs on the outside leading to the habitable space they would be okay. Klinefelter said that they measured the existing window to see if it would be possible to remove the double-hung window and install a casement to meet escape and rescue, and it was only 4.8 square feet, so they can't use the existing opening for an escape/rescue window and would need to make some modifications to do so. Werderitsch asked if a Certificate of Occupancy was ever granted. Klinefelter said no. Carlson said the Board discussed the interior stairs issue, and they established that the interior stairs had to be a certain width between two habitable floors even if there was a conforming exterior set of stairs. Maas asked if the second floor and the attic were the same residence. Hennes said yes. Klinefelter said the building code previously allowed interior stairways serving a dwelling unit to be 30-inches wide. Buss said she was under the impression that if a building owner had a space like this it had to be locked and the tenants could not have access to it. Klinefelter said if they came down to obtain a building permit for this property today they would end up with something that is much different than what is currently up there, if at all. Buss said the interior stairs leading to the attic are 26.5 inches wide. Jensen said he missed the site visit. He said they would obviously like to see everything conform to the most modern building code so the closer the Board could get it to conforming to the code they happier they would be. Buss asked how quickly a firefighter could get up 26.5- inch wide stairs with all their equipment on. Jensen said it would be tough to do. Buss asked if they removed the wall would they still meet the height requirements that figure up overall. Hennes if the rest of the room is considered, the passage to that access is part of the room and they would not. Klinefelter said not without major roof modifications. Carlson asked when the attic was first reoccupied. Fuoss said he just received the brief chronology earlier that afternoon. He said there was never any agreement as to this unit not being occupied, and he said what lies before the Board is what the department has tolerated over the years. He said in the last 14 years that he has owned the property he has followed the advisement, recommendations and translations of the policies of the City based on the people in the Housing Inspection Department. He said he has been reinspected, supervised and micro- analyzed ever since he purchased the house. He said he bought the house in 1983 when he was a sophomore at the University of Iowa, and soon met an inspector named Dave Malone. He said when Klinefelter inspected the house in January, he said that the file on the house was Iowa City Board of Appeals Minutes June 7, 1999 Page 3 very thin, and he didn't understand how that could be when he was inspected about every two weeks. He said everything that is in front of the Board is what has been acceptable for the Housing Inspection Department. He said he was issued rental and building permits in 1987, and there was never any agreement as to anyone not occupying that east room on the third floor. He said inspectors that came through the house advised him that room was conforming based upon the ceiling height and the size being between 70 and 110 square feet. He said they said the two windows in that room were enough to suffice based on the room's square footage. He said every time the property was inspected it happened during January or February, and since he rents to college students they would have been occupying that space during those months. He said he has never covered anything up from the City and does not intend to do so now. He said the property stands as he purchased it in 1983 with the exceptions of having to follow a number of City recommendations. He said this property went though the HUD rehab program because he could not afford the City's recommendations and created a lien on the property for 10 years at the expense of about $16,000, along with that $3,000 staircase. He said when this happened he argued with the City to allow him to put a ladder out the east window on the third floor because he noticed them on other similar properties around the City and he thought it would be less expensive than a treated outdoor staircase. He said he lost the argument and had to construct the staircase. He said every time an inspector went into that east room on the third floor there was a bed in it, the closet was occupied, and the ceiling height has not changed as the bottom of the tie rafters is 6'8". He said in the chronology there were some inspections in 1983 credited to a Richard Norton and he was not aware of those so he could not speak for those. Carlson asked when in 1983 did Fuoss purchase the house. Fuoss said in July or August. Roffman noted than an emergency order was issued in 1985 not to use the third floor and the issue went to court. Fuoss said the staircase was not built in 1985. He said the third floor had always been occupied until then, and the door out to the west of the house and the staircase was built in 1986. He said he remembered that that problem centered around egress issues, but once the door was in everything was fine. Carlson asked if the building was ever used as a single-family dwelling. Fuoss said when he first purchased the house in 1983 it was used as single-family, and his first rental permit was issued as a single-family. He said in 1985 the inspectors started insisting that the property be split as a duplex. He said his first argument was to let it go as a rooming house because his understanding of the codes at the time was that it allowed you have to have seven or eight people in the house. He said a couple inspectors indicated that would not be allowable as far as a rooming house, so it was converted to a duplex. He said all the major changes were implemented then and the parking areas were installed. He said additional requirements were a new boiler unit, electrical service and adding a second kitchen on the second floor. He said Klinefelter told him that he would now have a better chance of having the property as a rooming house. Klinefelter said that would remove the utility issue. He said there is no paper trail of any inspections to the house. He said since the staircase was a rehab project they applied for a building permit, but there was not good communication between building and rehab at the time. He said obviously no one ever addressed if there was legal habitable space in the attic. He said Fuoss was probably told that if the exiting was there that everything was fine. He said there was a building permit issued for the construction of the exterior stairs alone. Maas asked why a permit would be issued for the stairway if it was not considered habitable space. He said that made him think that somebody along the line told Fuoss that he could occupy it, otherwise they wouldn't require the stairway. Buss asked what can of worms would this open when the Board has refused to allow bigger spaces than this. Werderitsch asked how Fuoss felt about the five issues that staff has recommended. Fuoss said he would like to have his $16,000 back and then he would consider it. Werderitsch said Fuoss had to understand that the codes changed and decisions vary over the period of five years, so what was right then may not be right now and that is not necessarily a local decision. Fuoss said Iowa City Board of Appeals Minutes June 7, 1999 Page 4 those are some of the issues that they have to live with, but he feels that this is a grandfather issue due to the fact that he followed the advice of the department and the inspectors during the entire process. He said to raise rafter ties to seven feet would be a very costly issue. He said the window measured 2.33 by 2.5, which would be 5.82 square feet, so a casement window would work for an escape/rescue window. He said he could go to the expense of installing a casement window, but he would also have to deal with the steel ladder that he originally intended on doing 14 years ago. Werderitsch said the ladder was not necessary, the window just has to be accessible for the fire department. Fuoss said Klinefelter did the rental inspections in 1990 and 1993 and this was never an issue in his reports. He said creating an opening in the west wall of the east room, which is just north of chimney, does not seem to be any more sensible than what the two doors are right now. He said the chimney is a permanent fixture, and the removal of the wall would gain two feet. He said the doors going from one half of the attic to the second half of the attic are wider than two feet. He proposed to remove the doors if they want to make that one room. He said in prior inspections, tenants had put locks on those doors and it was noted that there could not be locks on those doors so there could be access to the installed egress. He said there is already a hard- wired smoke detector with back-up batteries, which was one of the City requirements when he went through the conversion process. He proposed to leave the room stand as it is and leave the rafter ties as they are. He said being 6'1" and living in the property for two or three years, he never had to duck in that room and was not concerned about getting out of it. Buss said she is in the property management business and she is very adamant about siding with the landlords in most cases, but she has a problem with this space. She said a fire is going to breakout and a tenant is going to die up there. She said other appeals have come before the Board that were not this small and they were rejected or required to make changes. She said 'what was then' had no bearing on those issues because this is now. She said she would have serious problems renting that attic to someone because there is no electricity when the fire breaks out, they are confused and don't know which way to go and if they can't get out the front windows they will be in trouble. She said if they could get out of the front windows she would feel a little bit better, but the walkway would not be considered even if the doors were taken out. She said if the space was open and there were windows on the end she might think twice about it, but as it sits now she had a problem with it. Werderitsch said he did not agree with the two feet because you have to go all the way around the closet and through, and that is more like a 10' run. He said taking that out (the wall) and the window are the most important issues as a minimum to him. Maas said he thought the closet should be removed if Fuoss wants to get closer to the required ceiling height. Fuoss asked if the closest was counted as living square footage. Hennes said they originally considered that, but when looking at the exiting pattern of the room he could see where they could want to remove it and put it in the nonhabitable space. Werderitsch said he thought the most expensive issue would be the window, and if a casement could fit in there it would save money. Buss said before the Board would not have allowed this because of the steps. Fuoss said that it was allowed 14 years ago, and while he knows that the Board is trying to right a wrong, he had to live on the advisement of what was told to him a number of years ago and now he has to live on this Board's advisement today. He said he was not pleased with the contradicting stories. Buss said nobody is, but it is a basic fact of that space being a fire hazard. Fuoss said the space was never locked to prevent an inspection. Buss said she didn't ask if it was locked to prevent an inspection. She said that sometimes the City has a policy that if there is a space like this that is nonconforming and the rest of the property is being rented out, it is acceptable, for a rental permit, for the door to that space to be locked so the tenants do not have access to it. Fuoss Iowa City Board of Appeals Minutes June 7,1999 Page 5 said had that been the case he would not have put a door on the west side of the house or construct the staircase. Carlson said one reason they want the ceiling up higher is to give the smoke a place to go, but rafter ties do not inhibit the movement of smoke. He said in a basement they allow ducts down to 6'8", so the rafter ties being at 6'8" does not bother him. He said a person near that height would probably not rent that property. He said he understood that the rafter ties should probably be at 7', but he was more interested in getting an egress window and a connection through that space so there is access to that west door. He said he had a problem with doing it, period, and that it probably shouldn't have been allowed to be occupied, but it is rather obvious that Fuoss was helped to the conclusion that that space could be occupied. Mitchell said it may seem incredibly unfair, but if a permit is not legal issued at the time it is issued it can be revoked later, and that does happen from time to time. Fuoss said he thought that spoke of the staff downstairs at that time, and said the permits were signed at the time. Klinefelter said they are trying to take a situation that is not very good and that has a bad history, and offer some reasonable safety provisions for continued use. He said the only thing about the rafter ties was if they were raised up it would make the space genuinely legal and habitable. He said he didn't think this was any different than in some places where they have granted variances for sub-standard ceiling height. He said it might not be as important as the other issues, but they have tried to reach some compromise to provide reasonable safety provisions for the use of the attic. Werderitsch asked if the Board was to agree with the recommendations, with the exception of #1, and Fuoss carried them out, would this house be as safe as it could be. Carlson said he can't do that because Council could rewrite the housing code tomorrow and change the standards. Werderitsch said he understood that, and asked if Fuoss would run into any more problems given today's standards. Klinefelter said if he makes changes that the Board agrees upon it will be well documented and show a good history of the changes made, and he could not see why anyone would want to raise this issue again. Roffman said that part of the ceiling is waferboard and the rafter ties are wood. He asked if that had to be fire-protected in a duplex. Hennes said he thought that would be classified as a type V-N building, which would not be rated, so not necessarily. Klinefelter said the permit was issued under the 1985 Building Code, and it was not until the 1988 UBC that they required a one-hour separation between dwelling units. Carlson asked if the rest of the issues on the violation list had been resolved. Klinefelter said the laundry equipment is stored down in the basement and is not hooked up. He said other than just a few minor things the list has been taken care of. MOTION: Werderitsch moved to grant the appeal for the Housing Code Violation at 430 S. Lucas Street, subject to the property owner completing items 2-5 of the staff recommendations to get the space back into habitable condition with the thought that the rafter ties being at 6'8", being that they are existing and that it is allowable headroom in a stair and duct. Buss asked if this meant that the property owner would have to install an escape/rescue window in the front and completely open up the space from front to back. Hennes said yes. Buss seconded the motion. Buss said she thought that the Board would be opening up a major can of worms because this is not a dead issue. She said the Board has voted on this before, and fought it over and over. She said they have fought the issues of the staircase not being wide enough, the rise to run not being correct, the height only being a couple of inches off, and a twisting indoor staircase that could not be corrected and the building had a staircase outside to get to the second floor. She Iowa City Board of Appeals Minutes June 7, 1999 Page 6 said she thought this would come back to haunt everybody. Carlson said he agreed. Buss said she has always voted with the landlord, but she has a problem with this one. Werderitsch asked what the alternative was if this motion failed. Carlson said the third floor could not be occupied. Buss said there would have to be a lock on the door to prevent the space from being used. She said there are a lot of houses in the City that have spaces with higher ceilings, more clearance, wider stairs that have to have that lock on the door. Mitchell asked Hennes that if Fuoss did the things on the list, would the property be in compliance. Hennes said staff felt this was a reasonable solution to the property in this particular case, but he did not know the Board's history with similar cases. He said to the letter of the code, this would not be compliant. Buss asked if Fuoss came today and said that he wanted to make the third floor space habitable and he was willing to install the outside stairway and the front window, but he wanted to leave the rest of it the way it was, would he be allowed a permit. Hennes said no. Mitchell asked if these were things that he could get a modification for. Hennes said no. Carlson said the interior stairs are overly narrow, too steep and have winders at the bottom. He said they have moved people out of space far better than that. He said he had a problem with this whole case because staff helped him get where he is, but that doesn't mean that it is safe or right. Hennes called the roll. Werderitsch, Maas, Haman, Buss, Fehr, Roffman and Carlson all voted no. The motion failed on a vote of 0-7. Carlson said the space is not safe to be habitable. The outside stairs do not overcome the problem of the inside stairs, even though they meet the housing code for an exit. He apologized to Fuoss and said that maintaining the space would not make it right despite what staff had previously done. Fuoss asked if complying with all of staff's recommendations would change the vote. Carlson said no. Fuoss said he wished he would have known that decision 14 years ago. Carlson said if this Board had been there 14 years ago, he would have gotten basically the same answer. Fuoss said he relied on the professionalism of staff and took, followed and adhered to their advice and didn't question it. Carlson said the Board does not feel the space is safe to be inhabited, even with the modifications suggested by staff. Fuoss asked if the other issues to make this a duplex had been addressed, such as parking. Klinefelter said the parking is not an issue. He said there is still a violation with the Iowa Utilities Board, but that is not this Board's purview. He said when the utility issue is resolved and the attic is vacated and dealt with in a way that it is not accessible to the tenants, a rental permit would be issued. Fuoss asked what his time frame to comply with the attic issue was. Buss asked when his leases ran out. Fuoss said August. Buss said that is 45 days. Klinefelter said that would be reasonable for staff in most situations. The Board decided to give Fuoss until August 1 to comply with the attic issue. Maas asked if Fuoss could find a way to modify the interior stairwell to 36 inches wide and 8 and 9 on the rise to run. Hennes said it would also take some roof modifications because they would then have to ask for 50% required headroom in the attic. HEAR A REQUEST FOR A MODIFICATION OF SECTION 1003.3.3.4 QF THE UBC (115 S. LUCAS ST.): Loomis said the space complies with the 50% rule over five feet and the stairs are conforming, except that he has to alter them to turn them up. He showed the plan for the modifications. Buss asked if there was a landing there. Loomis said yes. He is centering it with the dormer. He said he can get 6'6" for 16 inches and then it slopes down to about 5'8" with a 12-12 pitch. Buss Iowa City Board of Appeals Minutes June 7, 1999 Page 7 asked about the windows. Loomis said he put in an egress window at the landing, and he thought the landlord was going to put a fire escape out there. Hennes said it was his understanding that there would be an egress window up on the third floor level without going to the stairs and the landing. Loomis said he has not put them in yet on the front and he could do that above the front porch of the house. Roffman asked what the ceiling height was within the dotted line. Loomis said 8'6". Buss asked if the space was meant to be used as a bedroom. Loomis said yes. (Roffman left at 6:04 p.m.) Hennes said it would follow rooming house regulations. Members discussed the required ceiling height and the plans. Loomis said the stairs are 34 1/8" or 34 ~A" wide and there is plenty of space with the altered stairs. He said he had to alter the steps below to conform to the winding staircase rules. Werderitsch asked if there was a headroom problem coming down the stairs. Loomis said he did not measure that. He said a person would have room, but within a foot from the wall it would get pretty tight. He said that point is over 6'4" and goes up immediately at the outside edge. Carlson said he saw less of a problem with day to day use, but when a firefighter has a helmet and a.backpack on it might be more of a problem. Jensen said he did not like it, but he did not see any alternatives. Werderitsch asked if the valley rafters were cut down. Loomis said he had to lower the ceiling because he could not get enough insulation in there. Hennes asked if Loomis could maintain the required height without the insulation. Loomis said he did not think so. Buss said there are a lot of old houses that have had this problem, but this is not as bad as what they have had before, so she did not have any problem with it. Loomis said he would put an egress window on the front over the porch as well as on the landing with the fire escape. Buss said as long as there was an egress window over the porch she did not-have a problem with it. MOTION: Buss moved to approve the modification, subject to an egress window being installed in the front of the house over the porch and incorporation of the drawings. The additional egress window would be a modification to the UBC that would allow the Board to approve an exception for the width of the headroom over the stairs. Haman seconded the motion. Hennes called the roll. Fehr, Carlson, Buss, Maas, Werderitsch and Haman voted yes. The motion carried by a vote of 6-0. HEAR A REQUEST FOR A MODIFICATION OF SECTION 310.6.1 & 2 OF THE UBC (1 OAK PARK COURT): Loomis said there was a correction for the appeal form because there is currently an office and apartment there and they would like to improve the conditions by removing the kitchen, remodeling the bathroom and upgrading the insulation. He said the ducting is currently at 6'6"with the trim and wrap on it, not the 6'8" as listed on the appeal form. He said from the concrete floor to the tile ceiling is 7'¼". He said he applied for a 6'10 1/2" ceiling, but he was not sure that would happen. He said they want to insulate the floor with a 1 ~/2" system and that would reduce that amount. He said their two requests are a 6'10 ~" ceiling and the ducting at 6'6". Werderitsch asked if the duct work could be modified. Loomis said he had not talked to the heating contractor so he did not know what he could do, but said he seldom sees trunk lines that are much less than six inches. He said they are going to reduce the amount, and he could talk to the heating contractor. Haman said when they raise the floor it will be more around 6'4". Loomis said he thought it would still be around 6'6" because he could change the trimming. He Iowa City Board of Appeals Minutes June 7, 1999 Page 8 said the carpet currently down there reduces the ceiling height to 6'11 1/2" and the insulated floor would definitely lower the ceiling. Cook said one of the reasons they are remodeling the basement is because it is a damp, moldy place. He said it was an apartment when the house was built in 1952 and it remained one until about 1991 when they took it over and let the duplex status end. He said they are pressing this because his wife has a terrible mold allergy, so they want to get as much carpet out of the house as possible and put in insulated tiling. He said they have lived at the property for 14 years. Loomis said there is a 3'6" by 6' ¼" egress door. He said there is another exit to get to the house, but none of the windows are egress windows. Buss said she did not have a problem with approving this. Carlson said the Board has allowed shorter ceilings. Cook said they would like to see the ducts kept as high as possible. MOTION: Carlson moved to accept this as reasonable accommodation being that the floor has adequate egress directly to the exterior plus egress to the upper floors and egress windows, that the exception be granted to the ceiling height requirement with the understanding that the ducts will be up tight to the joists to minimize the lack of height at that location. Buss seconded the motion. Hennes called the roll. Fehr, Carlson, Maas, Buss, Haman and Werderitsch voted yes. The motion carried by a vote of 6-0. OTHER BUSINESS: There was none. ADJOURNMENT: MOTION: Maas moved to adjourned the meeting. Werderitsch seconded the motion. The motion carried by a vote of 6-0, and the meeting was adjourned at 6:30 p.m. Minutes submitted by Traci Wagner. MINUTES IOWA CITY PUBLIC ART ADVISORY COMMITTEE THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 1999, 3:30 PM IOWA CITY LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM PRELIMINARY Subject to Approval MEMBERS PRESENT: Nancy Purington, Rick Fosse, Gary Nagle, Emily Vermillion, Sandra Hudson MEMBERS ABSENT: Deb Galbraith, Terry Trueblood STAFF PRESENT: Karin Franklin, Joyce Carroll OTHERS PRESENT: Kevin Hanick, Larry Eckholt, Charles Read, Ann Reinhardt CALL TO ORDER: Franklin served as chair pending the election of officers. The meeting was called to order at 3:45 P.M. She welcomed Vermillion and Hudson as new additions to the committee. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA: None CONSIDERATION OF THE MINUTES OF THE OCTOBER 14 MEETING: Fosse moved to approve the minutes of October 14 with a second made by Purington. The minutes were approved by unanimous consent. ELECTION OF OFFICERS Franklin explained that new officers 'would need to be elected with the resignation of Kevin Hanick and Lesley Wright. The first position'open was the chair and Fosse nominated Purington with Nagle seconding the motion. Purington was elected by unanimous consent as chair of the committee. The second position was for the vice-chair with Galbraith being nominated by Nagle and Fosse seconding the motion. Galbraith was elected as vice-chair by unanimous consent. Purington took over as chair of the meeting. ARTS IOWA CITY PROPOSAL Larry Eckholt and Charles Read were presented as members of the board for Arts Iowa City. Due to Pudngton's association with Arts Iowa City she recused herself from this portion of the meeting. Nagle asked for further explanation of the $15K requested by Ads Iowa City that would be used for operating costs. Eckholt explained that the issue had grown out of the ceramics exhibition that took place in the City Plaza level of the location at 129 E. Washington. This location is a prime location in downtown Iowa City. He explained that the attendance at this event was astonishing. There is no comparison to the attendance at the normal location of Arts Iowa City in the lower level of the Jefferson Building. He said this exhibit was the catalyst that spurred the Arts Iowa City group to begin looking at the City Plaza location as a more permanent location; however there is a much higher rental cost that is set at $4330/month for 4,000 sq. feet of space. Eckholt went on to explain that the bulk of the request would allow the group to afford to pay rent in a prime location in downtown as well as a higher utility cost. There is minimal staff with mostly volunteers serving the organization. Arts Iowa City is now pursuing funding sources for these expenses. Eckholt said that they are now asking for a one-time allocation of $15K that would go towards a $60K budget to keep the space. They would like to see a commitment made for three years. Read then explained that Godfather's Pizza is currently leasing, but not using the space. It is through Purington's effort that they were able to get the space for two months initially and now they are Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes November 4, 1999 Page 2 looking for a longer time period. He went on to say that the lease that Godfather's has runs through until July, 2002. This is why the three-year period is being sought. Read also noted that the City Council granted $15K with the City Council asking that Arts Iowa City come to this committee. Read said that he felt the Council saw that it is a good project and met the downtown policy strategy. The city does support other arts projects such as Jazz Fest and Riverside Theatre. Read noted that Purington has been able to get an additional .two months of free rent until January 1, 2000. This then leaves two and one-half years that funding will have to be obtained. Therefore, the $15K request will be part of the immediate solution. Eckholt said that the owner is under pressure from Godfather's Pizza to rent the space, He indicated things are happening very fast downtown in relationship to property. Nagle then confirmed with Franklin that there are funds. Franklin then explained that when Arts Iowa City approached the Council the request was for a three-year commitment of $30K per year. The Council was not willing to make that commitment. The discussion lead to a $15K allocation to assure that Arts Iowa City could stay in the space for at least three more months. Within that time the expectation would be that the group would come back to Council with a business plan as to how to keep the entity going. Franklin then explained that during the Council discussion it was suggested that all of the funding come from the Public Art source. The .City Manager suggested that $15K come from the general fund and during this time Arts Iowa City 'Would come back to the Council with the financial plan. She went on to say that if the Committee decides it is appropriate for an additional $15K to come from the $100K a year allocation to the Public Art function then that would go back as a recommendation to City Council. At that point the City Coundl may either go forward with the $15K or they may not approve it, as they have the final approval. They may request the business plan before giving the approval. Franklin suggested there will need to be some detail given to the City Council in regard to the financial situation of the organization. Vermillion inquired as to how the additional $30K would be obtained to meet the $60K revenue expectation. Eckholt indicated that there would be more fund raising going on. There already has been support shown to obtain these funds. He went on to say with one half a year funding in place it will be easier to obtain the additional $30K. Vermillion then said that she felt $30K was achievable in this time period. She inquired as to the building owner's commitment to leasing the building to Arts Iowa City. Read explained that they can not sign a three-year lease until it is determined where the funds will come from and determine the exact cost. Vermillion then said she does not see how the request could be turned down. She said she walked by the building noting what a great opportunity it would be to have a gallery in the space. She went on to say that it is very important for downtown to grow aesthetically and culturally. We need to clue into the uniqueness of the downtown area. Eckholt said he is a big downtown advocate. He commented that he works at the library and has seen a lot of growth in businesses such as Fired Up Iowa City that promotes creativity. Soon to open will be a new business called the Art Mission. He said that when adding Arts Iowa City to the current mix, a unique environment is created. Read then pointed out that we all are aware of the number of businesses closing up in the recent past. There are a good number of people driving past Iowa City to go to the Amanas. He said the way to draw people is to have a cultural district and Arts Iowa City will be an important part of this. Hudson then commented that 'she is very excited about the idea; however she was concerned about the authority of this committee to authorize the funds. She noted that in the resolution creating the Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes November 4, 1999 Page 3 Committee the authority had been broad enough to cover this area. She went on to say she has concerns with the way the rules and bylaws were drafted. Franklin then said that Hudson was making a good point. She said she felt that is was important that the Committee make the decision based upon the mission statement and objectives. According to the objectives there is a particular statement that says, "to contribute to the art education of the citizen's of Iowa City." Franklin said she felt the Committee needed to find a place within the objectives if the Committee intended to make an affirmative decision on this. It is very easy to say that one is concerned about downtown, but this group needs to maintain focus on the mission or objectives of the Committee. Vermillion then commented that coming from a gallery background there is always the educational component of any gallery. She felt that this gallery is very public and visible in the heart of downtown. It truly serves an educational component in and of itself and that Arts Iowa City will need to fulfill its mission in educating the public. It is one thing to put out the objects for objects' sake, but through their marketing, teaching and lectures this would serve as a reason for approval. Vermillion then noted a portion of Arts Iowa City bylaws. It read that it is to serve as a center for the arts and to sponsor such art activities as educational programming, exhibitions, performances and events in the Iowa City and Johnson County area and to serve as a resource center for artists seeking information for organizations, institutions or businesses wanting to involve artists in their activities. Nagle then asked if items in the gallery are for sale. Franklin stated that a portion of any sale does go to Arts Iowa City, but it is a non-profit organization. This was a very important point as far as the City Council was concerned. One thing that staff and Council struggled with was to distinguish it from other gallery space. The difference is that Arts Iowa City is a non-profit organization as opposed to a for profit business. Nagle then inquired if this could be questioned with funding going to an organization that would be in competition with other businesses. Read then explained that the business people feel that this enhances the area. Businesses feel that this enhances their opportunities. Franklin also explained that the educational component was another aspect that was discussed by the Council. Eckholt noted that not all items in the gallery are for sale. It does vary from show to show. The space being considered does allow for a gift shop that would allow local artists who do not have representatives, or artists just getting into the business to have an outlet. Hudson then said she agreed with all of this; however she wanted to be assured that the by-laws allow for positive action on this. She suggested the by-laws could be amended. Franklin suggested the authority wasgiven to oversee expenditures in the by-laws and then by using the mission statement and objectives as the guide, specific expenditure decisions could be made. It could be agreed that the Committee had the authority to recommend this expenditure. Franklin then re-iterated that the Council does make the final decision. Vermillion then asked when it would go before the Council. Franklin said the minutes will go to the Council on November 23rd. Whether they chose at that point to authorize the $15K to Arts Iowa City is a question because the Council may want to see the business plan before any additional allocation is made. Franklin said the Council wanted to hear the Committee's recommendation on use of the public art funds. Nagle then inquired about the effect of an allocation on the budget. Franklin indicated that for the current fiscal year there will be no impact. Money was carried over and at the start of the new year the fund totaled $152K. Since then approximately $26K has been expended. The upcoming projects include the sculpture call responses that will come in in December. The sculptures will probably not be paid for until the spring. The Literary Walk will be a future expense in upcoming years. Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes November 4, 1999 Page 4 Nagle then went on to say that he thinks the project is a good idea, however he has a concern with the city subsidizing a not for profit organization that is subsidizing for-profit artists. Franklin then said this was done with Jazz Fest and other events. Nagle then asked if this organization is set up the same as other galleries. He wondered if this gallery perhaps pulls business away from other businesses. Eckholt commented that this has been discussed. In typical galleries .at least fifty percent is taken and in this gallery thirty percent will probably be the amount the gallery will be taking. Nagle then said this is his exact concern in that the city may be subsidizing an entity that would take away from other businesses downtown. Read then said Arts Fest is purely for profit and it is subsidized. Franklin then commented that there are not a lot of outlets for artists in Iowa City. She does not see this happening in this case. She noted the Council often looks at this issue in relationship to the private sector in projects they subsidize. She went on to say that this concern is often overcome when a public benefit is derived from the event or activity such as Jazz Fest and Arts Fest. Eckholt then went on to say that this is not where the gallery makes their money. On a good year the gallery makes about $400 by work sold of local artists. Read then said he had a one-man show at the gallery last year with ten or twelve photographs in it and he did not sell any of them. Sales of displays are unusual. Hudson said that she was satisfied this issue does fall within the resolution. She did not see a strong area within the by-laws, but there is an opportunity in the language that allows for such a project. Nagle then asked what percentage of the budget would be used for educational purposes. Vermillion noted it is very difficult to separate the educational component from the exhibition component. Eckholt then said in his mind to display is to educate. This makes education at the top of the organization's activities. Fosse commented from his perspective that there is the technical means to make the commitment. He then suggested that the approval be contingent upon approval of the business plan. The committee agreed that this needed to be done to satisfy the Council's request. Eckholt said the business plan will likely be in place by the end of the year. Having the commitment from the committee will make putting the plan together more feasible. Vermillion then made the motion as follows: This committee allocate $15K for the use of Ads Iowa City for FY2000. Funding is conditional upon the business plan's approval by the City Council. Hudson seconded the motion. The motion was approved by unanimous consent. Purington re-joined the meeting. DISCUSSION OF IOWA AVENUE LITERARY WALK Kevin Hanick, speaking as a member of the public, presented an idea of a bronze plaque that was used at a home in Johnson County. It was a rendition from Canterbury Tales. He also presented some examples of opening paragraphs from novels by Iowa authors. One was a book called State's Evidence by Steven Greenleaf of Centerville. Another one was Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella and Curtis Harnack's book called The Work of an Ancient Hand. He also presented a poem by Amy Clampitt called What the Light Was Like. At some point types of work will be discussed and these are simply ideas he suggested. Ann Reinhart of Brian Clark and Associates presented to the committee a booklet of additional examples and ideas for the project. She reviewed the booklet with the two best examples being in the U.K. The first one is called The Fish Trail and did not limit the medium in the streets, with text in the Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes November 4, 1999 Page 5 streets, stamped bricks, etching in concrete, etc. This has the same theme throughout, but has multiple types of work. The following pages showed varied types of work using different medium. Ann also is working on another example that was done is Scotland that carried the theme throughout an entire town. She is hoping to obtain some images to present in the future. Franklin indicated that a concept needs to be ,decided by the committee so that when construction plans are completed, proper material is planned for in the initial construction. Portions of the pavement could be removed later to accommodate the inlay art pieces. Franklin also suggested that the project start between Linn and Dubuque Streets in the 200 block, rather than starting in the 300 block. The 300 block will be constructed next summer. Choosing the 200 block will take some time pressure off; however the committee does need to come up with a concept. Purington suggested that the committee look through the document that Reinhart presented and that a timeline be established. The committee agreed to start the project in the 200 block of Iowa Avenue. Fosse indicated that the refined concept will need to be completed by 10/1/00 and the objects will need to be made by 2001. The committee decided to identify for the next meeting a list of possibilities for the sub-committee that will identify the literary artists to possibly use in the walk. In addition, twenty-five pavement artists will be identified for the next meeting. OTHER BUSINESS Franklin posed the question of international artists being considered for cells. She has had an inquiry from artists in Italy and Canada. Purington commented that boundaries have been a consideration in past calls. Expense was a consideration. Fosse said that a set per diem is used for travel expense and he felt the committee had nothing to lose in opening up a call. Hudson felt that there could be an exciting concept that could originate internationally and that the fabrication could be done in the States. Vermillion pointed out that the feet that walk the streets of Iowa City are from all around the wodd. If Iowa City is going to establish itself as a cultural center then the committee may want to consider opening the door. The committee agreed to not limit submissions and perhaps limit the boundaries for certain projects in the future. The next meeting was set for December 2, 1999. ADJOURNMENT Fosse moved to adjourn the meeting with Purington seconding the motion. The meeting adjourned at 5:20PM. ppddir/min/artl 1-4-99.doc SPECIAL MEETING - BOARD OF TRUSTEES IOWA CITY PUBLIC LIBRARY OCTOBER 20, 1999 2~;n FLOOR CONFERENCE ROOM MEMBERS PRESENT: Winston Barclay, Linda Dellsperger, Mary McMurray, Shaner Magalhfies, Mark Martin, Lisa Parker, Linda Prybil, Jim Swaim, STAFF PRESENT: Maeve Clark, Susan Craig, Larry Eckholt. Martha Lubaroff, Heidi Lauritzen, Liz Nichols, Debb Green Martin called the meeting to order at 5:10 pm OLD BUSINESS: FYO1 Budget Development The purpose of this special meeting is to review FY01 budget request for the second time and approve before it is submitted to the City. Craig clarified her cover memo. She answered questions about the Personnel estimates. She asked for more in the overtime line to accomodate our part time permanent people. This includes budgeting for overtime for the new Maintenance staff. Substantial increases in supplies have to do with collection maintenance, computer supplies and new programming goals. Services. Craig used the City's projection for building maintenance since it is possible we will need to spend substantial money to repair building. Other increased items remained as they were at the September meeting. OCLC increases, copier rental and maintenance, and costs for new customer service initiatives. Parker moved approval of the budget. Barclay seconded. There was no discussion. Motion carried unanimously. Building Project A discussion took place about the upcoming joint meeting with Council. Trustees discussed the criteria developed at the first meeting with the architect by the staff, building committee, City staff and Council representatives. Of the nine plans that currently exist, the architects will have put together enough information to allow evaluation by the 15th. The goal is to select one or two plans and eliminate the rest. Martin feels that City Council members will want to look at them all and understand why certain plans should be eliminted, even if it is obvious. Architects suggested we develop some sort of objective scale so that they could do an initial assessment of all the plans. Several criterion will be ranked that will be shared with the Council members. The Board agreed that parking is an important criteria. Martin remembered that in their previous meeting with architects adequate area, parking and functional arrangement were ranked high. He does not see that these will change significantly. City staff felt that impact on the Pedestrian Mall would be a significant criteria for them. Parking might not be a high priority for the Board, however continuing to stress the need for parking options like read and park programs was a high priority. Impact on interim library operations would be a criterion that would affect the City greatly since the public would be dissatisfied with closing the library. Reconfiguring this current building regardless of how would be impossible to do without affecting service - some options would require closing. The plan for expanding west to the Lenoch & Cilek building is now back on the drawing board. That plan would not include additional parking. The attraction of that expansion means that some private enterprise would be included. Our highest priority is 80,000 square feet, with some adaptability and expandability. Parking and impact on interim operations are important to the success of the project. The consensus of the Board is that either destroying or selling this current building could be a difficult idea to put forth. The Board went on record as having indicated their support for the criteria developed by the Building Committee and wished them well. Adjoumment at 6:00 pm. McMurray/Swaim MINUTES IOWA CITY PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING OCTOBER 28, 1999 MEETING ROOM A THURSDAY, - 5:00 PM Members Present: Winston Barclay, Linda Dellsperger, Mary McMurray, Mark Martin, Jim Swaim, Lisa Parker, Linda Prybil, Shaner, Magalhfies, Jesse Singerman Staff Present: Maeve Clark, Barbara Black, Susan Craig, Larry Eckholt, Debb Green, Heidi Lauritzen, Liz Nichols CALL TO ORDER: President Martin called the meeting to order at 5:00 pm APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Move approval of regular meeting of September 23, 1999. Magalh~es/Parker UNFINISHED BUSINESS Building Project: Martin reported on a recent meeting of the Building Committee. He reported that some preliminary information on cost was received from the architects. Construction costs were not startlingly different between proposals. He then reported on a meeting earlier in the week with the architects, some City staff and the Mayor where these preliminary costs were presented. An estimated cost on relocation was also developed. Craig quickly reviewed the various plans for trustees. Retaining and using this current building does mean completely gutting and redoing structurally the entire building. Essentially the building would be gone except for a shell. Architects state it would be easier and less expensive to tear the building down and rebuild. Martin explained that the standards for library buildings have changed requiring this extensive level of remodeling. At the meeting, a great deal of time was spent on the evaluation chart that library staff worked on for functional arrangement. The importance factors were worked on by the group, which included the Mayor, City manager and City planners, who met during the aRemoon following the morning meeting between the architects and library managers. There is some question as to the process and how and by whom it will be handled at the joint meeting. Architects will present first, describing all the components, costs, etcs. They will explain the evaluation process. Architects will complete a chart that rates the proposals on a point scale based on the criteria developed. The City staff assigned points based on economics, aesthetic impact on plaza, parking and impact on the downtown. Architects will come up with the finished numbers. It would be safe to say that, as a Board, we wouldn't want to move out of this building for 18 months. Board has stressed adequate parking, functionality, etc. There was some consideration given to discussing the evaluation process to date more thoroughly at this meeting; others felt we needed more information from the architects and could review it on the 15th prior to the City Council joint meeting. A 4:00 meeting on the 15th was suggested. Martin felt strongly that we be in agreement for the meeting on the 15th. Singerman is concerned that two hours prior to the Council meeting may not give us enough time to come to this type of conclusion. Martin felt that with the architect's assessment, which would not be available until the 15th, it should be an easier decision to arrive at before the joint meeting. As a compromise, Martin proposed that the Building Committee meet earlier to look at the final evaluations and prepare a presentation for the rest of the Board that might simplify the process. The Committee will meet at 2:15 pm on Saturday, November 13. Craig will contact the architects and find out how soon they can get us additional information in order to facilitate this plan. If it appears that the material is much too complex, a special meeting will be called at a different time, otherwise a special Board meeting will be held at 4:00 on October 15. Park 'n Read Craig neglected including a bus pass request in the proposal for the Board in terms of parking. She asked for approval to include bus passes. Swaim moved that we amend the Park' n read approval to include bus passes. Seconded by Dellsperger. Unanimous NEW BUSINESS None STAFF REPORTS New Web Page: The Board adjourned to Meeting Room D to have a hands-on demonstration of the new web page. Craig asked members to use the page every chance they get and report corrections or make suggestions. Community Reading Month and other programming. The celebrity booktalk lunch kicked off the series with a record tumout of nearly 200 people yesterday. Three more are scheduled on November 3, 10 and 17th. A visiting childrens author was hosted. "What makes it great", a series in partnership with Hancher kicked off with a program featuring conductor and music director of the National Symphony Orchestra, Leonard Slatkin. The Library Channel has expanded its automated hours. Logsden read excerpts from a letter received from a jail patron who is reading "Harry Potter". Return of Library materials: As a follow-up to a patron's dissatisfaction with the policy regarding the return of library materials, Lauritzen wrote a memo for the packet outlining Circulation's policy for handling returns. There has been a change since we have the new III system. The check in receipt addresses the needs of a small number of borrowers; it is not necessary to publicize the feature unless people ask for it. Lauritzen was complimented for her memo. Development Office Report was included in packet. Mark your calendars for Book Gala on November 7 at Prairie Lights. A question regarding the financial statement for the BookEnd was raised. For the first quarter they cleared $3-4,000. Hope to clear about $20,000 this year. Changes in Friends Foundation Bylaws have been finalized and approved. Iowa Library Association. Craig reported on the conference attended by several staffmembers recently in Dubuque. Next year it is in Ames. Trustees are invited. Innovative Interfaces meeting for public librarians. Craig attended and felt it was informative to meet with other directors of public libraries to discuss various issues with the III system. Internet filtering legislation. Letter from Gina Milsap, current chair of Government Affairs Committee. Included in Board packet Inservice Day. Updated program was distributed at meeting. Trustees were encouraged to attend. Nichols feels that this may be the strongest series of programs we've had. Difficult to choose which ones they want to attend. All Board members are invited. First ever Late Night at the Library. Black reported on this ovemight at the library for teens. Ended up with forty 7th graders signing up. Media specialists in the junior high buildings encouraged students. They were introduced to the building and staff, informed about library services and encouraged to read. Tours and demonstrations of the catalog were offered as well as treasure hunt, games, dance and of course, pizza. Black stated that this never could have been carried out without tremendous support and participation from staff. Approximately 100 hours in volunteer time from staff were given. PRESIDENT'S REPORT Given in old business as part of the building report. FINANCIAL REPORTS Expenses in good shape for this time of year. Receipts are down a little, particularly in fines and fees. Craig said that good public service results in less fines. In particular, the remote book drops and the ability to renew from home computers have helped patrons reduce their fines. Receipts in Enterprise fund are up. Gifts & Bequests Report Circulation by Type and Format. Prim circulation is going down. Nonprint is going up. Balance makes us pretty even. Output Statistics were distributed at meeting. Meeting room use is up. DISBURSEMENTS Review VISA expenditures for September 1999. Approve disbursements for September, 1999 McMurray/Parker SET AGENDA ORDER FOR NOVEMBER MEETING Special meeting on November 15, followed by joint meeting with Council. Meeting in November will be the week before Thanksgiving. Martin will need to leave early. ADJOURNMENT: 6:45 pm Minutes recorded Martha Lubaroff MINUTES PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION NOVEMBER 18, 1999 - 7:30 P.M. SENIOR CENTER CLASSROOM MEMBERS PRESENT: Ann Bovbjerg, Benjamin Chait, Pam Ehrhardt, Dick Gibson, Marilyn Schintler, Dean Shannon, Lea Supple MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Sarah Holecek, Scott Kugler, Bob Miklo, Melody Rockwell OTHERS PRESENT: Bill Happel, Gary Watts, Larry Schnittjer, Steve Kohl, George Dane RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: Recommended approval, by a vote of 5-1 with Ehrhardt voting no, of REZ99-0012, an application submitted by Southpointe Padners to rezone 2.72 acres from Low Density Single- Family Residential (RS-5) to Sensitive Areas Overlay-Low Density Residential (OSA-5) zone and approval of a preliminary Sensitive Areas Development Plan for property located at the north side of Rohret Road west of Highway 218. Recommended approval, by a vote of 7-0, of REZ99-0011, an application submitted by Arlington L.C. to rezone 13.26 acres from Low Density Multi-Family Residential (RM-12) and Medium Density Single Family Residential (RS-8) to Planned Development Housing Overlay (OPDH-12)-11.79 acres and (OPDH~8) 1.47 acres and approval of a preliminary OPDH plan for Windsor Ridge, Part 15, a proposed 98-unit residential development located north of Court Street at its eastern terminus. Recommended approval, by a vote of 7-0, of SUB99-0008, a preliminary plat of South Pointe Addition, Part Seven, an 8.08-acre, 25-1ot residential subdivision with two outlots located at the west terminus of Langenberg Avenue and Hemingway Lane, subject to approval of a grading plan prior to Council consideration of the plat. Recommended approval, by a vote of 7-0, of SUB99-0024, a final plat of Westcott Heights Part Two, a 24.99-acre, four-lot residential subdivision located in Johnson County at the west end of Westcott Drive NE and Rose Bluff Circle NE, subject to the approval of legal papers prior to Council consideration of the plat. CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Supple called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA: There was none. ANNOUNCEMENT OF VACANCIES ON CITY BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS: Supple invited those at the meeting to serve on a board or commission for the City of Iowa City. She said it is an opportunity to have input into the City and learn how the City works and progresses. Supple said the input would be invaluable, and she hoped those at the meeting would consider serving in this way. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 2 REZONING ITEMS: REZ99-0012. Public discussion of an application submitted by Southpointe Partners to rezone 2.72 acres from Low Density Single-Family Residential (RS-5) to Sensitive Areas Oveday-Low Density Residential (OSA-5) zone for property located at the north side of Rohret Road west of Highway 218. (45-day limitation period waived to November 18, 1999) Rockwell referred .'.o correspondence in the Commission's packet from neighboring property owners who are objecting to this rezoning and planned development. She said the Commission is reviewing a revised plan submitted two weeks previously. The revised plan shows that trees would not be planted within the critical slopes, but the plan is otherwise the same as was presented before. Rockwell said the applicant has also submitted a letter explaining that his experience with this type of unit over time has shown that it does not attract families with children. Holecek said she wished to state for the record that at the previous formal meeting of the Commission, one of the neighboring property owners stated that she made a protest of her property assessment to the Board of Review, based on the proposed rezoning on an adjacent property by the Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship. Holecek said she spoke with the tax assessor, who informed her that the basis for the reduction in the tax assessment was that the assessor had carried the property as having a fully finished basement, when in actuality it was not fully finished. Holecek said based on that error, a correction was made to the assessed value. She said the basis upon which an assessment can be protested is statutorily laid out, and it would not be a basis to use speculative grounds to say what a possible rezoning to an adjacent property would do this to the property. Holecek said what would have to happen would be to document after a rezoning was approved and a project built that there was a reduction in property values of other comparable properties in the area. Public discussion: Bill Happel. 2355 Willowbrooke Lane, said he was available to answer any questions. Schintler said she looked at the property and noted on the plan that garages are shown on the back. Happel said the garages would be the same as at Willowbrooke Point. He said the three- bedroom units will have the double garage to the front and double garage to the side, and the two single garages will go to the two bedroom units. Happel said people really want to have a double garage. He said he felt this plan would provide that, and even though not all the garages would be attached, every home would have two stalls in garages. Happel added that the garages would also act as a noise buffer between the residential units and Highway 218. Bovbjerg said the plan notes state that there is a nominal building height at 32 feet, plus or minus. She said she was concerned about hovering buildings in an area where houses are probably 25 to 30 feet high. Happel said these are two-story buildings. He said he did not know what the height of the building was. Bovbjerg asked if the 35-foot maximum height for a building would be enforced here. Rockwell confirmed this. She said the applicant has not asked for a waiver for building height. Bovbjerg said unnecessarily tall, hovering buildings, especially with other less tall buildings around, can be disturbing. Happel said Willowbrooke Point has residential single-family houses on two sides. He said single-family homes would only be on one side of the Duck Creek Condominiums. Happel said ten years ago when he brought the Willowbrooke Point Condominiums plan to Iowa City, the neighbors in that area objected, with as many people for it as against, even though people usually do not come to speak out for a project. He said he has lived at the Willowbrooke Pointe Condominiums for ten years, and many of the neighbors who complained initially have now told him that it is a nice addition and they are satisfied with that addition to their neighborhood. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 3 Happel said traffic counts show that there are many fewer trips per day in and out of the neighborhood for families without children. He said this development will really not be compatible for families with children, and he really expects few, if any, children to live in this development. Ehrhardt said one of the arguments against this was the lack of a transition between RS-5 and these four-plexes, which would not be allowed in the RS-8 zone, let along the RS-5 zone. She said one compromise would be to have a duplex on the north, instead of the four-plex, so that the transition would be more gradual. Ehrhardt asked Happel if he would consider that. Happel said he would be against that; he said one reason is that you do not want to have different types of units within a development. Public discussion closed. MOTION: Shannon moved to recommend approval of REZ99-0012, an application submitted by Southpointe Partners to rezone 2.72 acres from Low Density Single-Family Residential (RS-5) to Sensitive Areas Overlay-Low Density Residential (OSA-5) zone and approval of a preliminary Sensitive Areas Development Plan for property located at the north side of Rohret Road west of Highway 218. Chait seconded the motion. Bovbjerg commended the designers of this development for working with the hill and said she hoped all the dirt that can be left is left and that nothing washes down the hill. She wished the applicant well and said this could be a good example of tucking in some "plexes." Ehrhardt said one problem she had with the Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship concept was the transition between zones. She said she could see that type of development in a brand new neighborhood; however, in an established RS-5 neighborhood, this is putting in a development, even though this is a planned development, that is jumping one entire zone, because four° plexes are not allowed in RS-8 zone, which would be the next higher zone. Ehrhardt said she would like to see the north four-plex be a duplex to provide more transition between the single- family RS-5 zone and an area that is actually RM-12. She said she liked the design of these buildings in that they look much more like houses than in the previous application, but would not vote in favor of this application because of the lack of transition. Schintler said she would rather have seen the area left RS-5, but she felt because of the shape of the property and other constraints, this property would keep coming back to the Commission until something is approved. She said she really liked the design of this and would be voting in favor. Supple said she preferred this design to what was before the Commission the first time. She said these buildings are less "in your face." Supple said in the previous design there was a wall of townhouses along Rohret Road that seemed very uninviting. She said this plan overcomes that objection a little more and is a little less of an invasion of the privacy of the neighbors directly to the north. Supple said these are still massive buildings, and she is concerned about that, but the appearance from the streets will be satisfactory. She said they are designed to look like single-family homes, and so she finds this application acceptable and will vote in favor. The motion carried on a vote of 5-1. with Ehrhardt voting no. REZ99-0011. Public discussion of an application submitted by Arlington L.C. to rezone 13.26 acres from Low Density Multi-Family Residential (RM-12) and Medium Density Single Family Residential (RS-8) to Planned Development Housing Overlay (OPDH-12)-11.79 acres and (OPDH-8) 1.47 acres and approval of preliminary OPDH plan for Windsor Ridge, Part 15, a Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 4 proposed 98-unit residential development located north of Court Street at its eastern terminus. (45-day limitation period expires November 18, 1999) Kugler said this was deferred at the Commission's last meeting, and since then additional information has been submitted, including a couple of revisions to the development plan and some missing elevations. He said the application has now been amended to include the proposed outlot as part of the application. Kugler said the outlot area would be zoned PDH-8, although it would not have a density assigned to it. He said the rezoning just makes, it part of this application and ensures that the open space will be there as the property develops. Regarding the revisions to the development plan, Kugler said all of the errors have now been corrected, and the plan is ready to be voted on. He said there has been a change since the informal meeting, at which there was discussion about the trail and whether it should be extended to Court Street at this time or whether there should be an escrow for its construction in order to build it when the property to the west comes in for development. Kugler said the application has been amended so that the building in the southwest corner has been reduced from a six-unit to a four-unit building. He said that would free up enough space along the west edge of the property to get the grade established and also to extend the trail along the sanitary sewer easement and on down to Court Street. Kugler said the applicant has indicated he will extend the trail as the property develops, rather than deal with an escrow. Regarding building elevations, Kugler showed rear and side elevations for the larger of the 12- unit buildings at the two corners. He said the elevations show that the building materials to be used on the front will be carried around all four sides of the building. Kugler showed elevations for the four-plex townhouses proposed along the east side of Camden Road and the building at the southwest corner that will now be of the same design, and elevations for the six-unit building. He said staff feels the four-unit building will fit nicely along Camden Road as a transition to the lower density area to the north. Kugler said the plan for the six-unit building was revised to show an offset in the building to address what was previously a long, uninterrupted roof plane. He said half of the building is set back an additional five feet to break up the longer roof plane. Kugler said staff feels this is a successful way to handle that issue. Kugler said staff recommends approval of this application with no conditions. He added that staff has been assured by the applicant that the 35-foot building height limitation of the RM-12 zone would be met; therefore no waiver is needed. Kugler said that measurement would be at the lowest point, in this case the rear elevation. Bovbjerg asked about the grade of the two big buildings along Court Street relative to the sidewalk. Kugler said the building height would be higher at the rear of the building. Kugler pointed out that the windows on the front elevation are closer to the ground than in the back. He said the side elevation shows the change of grade from front to back. Kugler said that permits the first floor of the building to be accessible without requiring outside ramps or a lift. He said the building height is measured from the lowest point around the building to the midpoint of the roof between the eaveline and the ridgeline. Kugler said the applicant has assured staff that the midpoint will be less than 35 feet above grade. He said since that requirement is not being waived as part of the rezoning process, the applicant would have to demonstrate at the time of requesting the building permit that the height requirement is being met, or a building permit cannot be issued. Bovbjerg said it appears that the ground slopes down from the road into the parcel. Kugler said as you move back from Camden Road in each direction, the ground does slope down. Bovbjerg asked about the grade from Court Street into the parcel of land. Kugler said Larry Schnittjer may be able to give better details about the proposed grades. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 5 (Gibson arrived at the meeting at 8:00 p.m.) Ehrhardt pointed out that windows were added to the garages on the side elevation of Building A. Kugler said they were added and would help to break up the long plane of the garage walls. Supple asked if the trail would then be totally on this property. Kugler confirmed this and said there is a note on the plan indicating that the d~veloper will install the trail and this will occur as the property develops. Public discussion: Gary Watts. 4988 Lower West Branch Road, said he definitely is a proponent of trails and firmly believes in them. He said there are over three miles of trails in Windsor Ridge, and he did not want to leave development of the trail up to adjacent property owners or leave it to an escrow or line of credit. Watts said he felt it was important enough to remove a couple of units. Watts agreed that the former roofline design for the six-plex was long and extended and felt that breaking that up and moving three of the units back five feet resulted in a better design. Watts said he has worked eight to nine months on this plan and had a good working relationship with staff. He said this has a nice streetscape. Watts said the corner twelve-plexes have been turned at an angle and are designed as larger buildings with screened-in porches. He said the four-plexes with the garages to the rear also look very good. Watts showed on the map an area where the greenway/common space was expanded, because it gives a buffer from residents to the west looking out the fronts of their homes into the backs of other units. He said that provides for a better project with more open space in-between the buildings. Bovbjerg asked a question regarding the grade, and Watts responded that the pads of the twelve-plexes are fairly level. Watts said looking at the existing slope now shows that the ground really goes up. He said in order to do the twelve-plexes, the area will have to be graded. Watts said the four-plex would be adjacent to the trail, where a retaining wall will be constructed. Bovbjerg asked how high the grade is relative to the street. Watts estimated it was four to five feet higher than the street. Bovbjerg asked if that was the natural grade. Watts said he would still have to move some dirt to get it to that level. Bovbjerg asked if the current grade would then be made higher. Watts said it would not be made higher than the current grade. Kugler said in the revised plan, the retaining wall has been removed along the west side, as it would not be needed. He said that whether or not a small retaining wall will be needed to create a level area for the trail will be dealt with at the time of the construction plans, but at this point, it would not appear to be needed. Watts said there would still need to be a level pad for the actual four-plex. Supple said it would be level with itself, but asked how it would relate to the street. She asked if she were standing on the street, if she would look up at, down at, or straight at the main entry door of the main floor of the four-plex. Larry Schnittjer. 1917 South Gilbert Street, said there are four entry doors on the four-plex. He said the easterly one will be 18 inches to two feet above curb level, which is the design standard for most residential structures. Schnittjer stated that the westerly one would be three to four feet above the curb, because Court Street is going uphill at that point. With regard to the big twelve- plexes, Schnittjer said the grade would slope up toward the unit in front and slope back to the lower level in the back. He estimated that the northerly corners will be in the ground three feet or so, because of the way the ground has to be shaped to make drainage and other factors work. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 6 Supple asked how this development would compare with Mormon Trek Village. Watts said that Windsor Ridge would be a little more upscale. He said there is more open space to the north where the ranch units are. Watts said there are a couple of buildings in this development similar to what is in Mormon Trek Village, but some brick and stucco elements were added and some columns were changed. He said the rest are all new designs. Watts said he feels the streetscape in Windsor Ridge is also a little nicer. Public ~iscussion closed. MOTION: Schintler moved to recommend approval of REZ99-0011, an application submitted by Arlington L.C. to rezone 13.26 acres from Low Density Multi-Family Residential (RM-12) and Medium Density Single Family Residential (RS-8) to Planned Development Housing Overlay (OPDH-12)-11.79 acres and (OPDH-8) 1.47 acres and approval of preliminary OPDH plan for Windsor Ridge, Part 15, a proposed 98-unit residential development located north of Court Street at its eastern terminus. Gibson seconded the motion. Ehrhardt said she was very pleased that the trail issue has been resolved. She said she had a lot of reservations about having such a large chunk of RM-12 when the initial concept plan was submitted; however this planned development does contain a lot of variety. Ehrhardt said she still would like to see more open space here, but if this is what RM-12 is, she would be voting for it. She appreciated the applicant working with staff and incorporating their suggestions. Bovbjerg said she has groused about the density in the past, and she would still like to pluck one of each of these types of buildings out. She appreciated the six-plex being reduced to a four-plex and thought it seemed a very reasonable and easy thing to do. Bovbjerg said she would like to see this development be less dense, but appreciated the thoughtfulness to the streetscape and felt it would be okay. Schintler said she would vote in favor of this application. She said she also was glad Watts changed the six-plex to a four-plex to make the trail feasible. Supple said she appreciated Watts being responsive to concerns. She said although she still had some concerns about the massiveness, she would be voting yes. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. DEVELOPMENT ITEMS: SUB99-0008. Discussion of an application submitted by South Pointe Partners for a preliminary plat of South Pointe Addition, Part Seven, an 8.08-acre, 25-1ot residential subdivision with two outlots located at the west terminus of Langenberg Avenue and Hemingway Lane. (45-day limitation period expires November 25) Kugler said this is a request to replat portions of Parts Two and Three of the South Pointe Additions, which were platted several years ago, but the streets and lots were never developed. He said the current request refers to the portions of Parts Two and Three that are located west of Russell Street and previously contained 37 single-family lots along the extension of Hemingway Lane and Langenberg Avenue. Kugler said the revised plan includes 25 single- family lots of essentially the same size and scale as the lots that are being removed. Kugler said the stormwater management basins that were previously located at the rear of the lots along the south end of Langenberg Avenue and the lots between Hemingway and Langenberg are shown on the new plat as being removed and being replaced by one larger basin, which will be located on a separate lot, Outlot A. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 7 Kugler said the preliminary plat is in conformance with the City subdivision regulations, and staff recommends the plat be approved, subject to the submittal and approval of a grading plan prior to City Council consideration of the plat. He said both Langenberg Avenue and Russell Drive would be developed as collector streets, as included in the original plat. Kugler said the stormwater management basin would be a wet bottom basin. He said water coming off-site will flow into the basin along the west property line, and water that falls within the subdivision will be directed through a storm sewer system into the basin. Kugler said there will be an outflow through both an underground pipe and an overland swale through the extension of Langenberg Avenue, under Langenberg, and then off the site to an existing drainageway. In terms of the Sensitive Areas Ordinance, Kugler said grading that has occurred in the past has basically removed any sensitive features that may have been on this property at one time. He said staff feels the Sensitive Areas Ordinance no longer applies. Kugler added that grading occurred here prior to the adoption of that ordinance. With regard to neighborhood open space, Kugler said those obligations were satisfied when the original subdivision was platted. He said there will be no requirements associated with this plat. Bovbjerg asked if Outlot A, the wet bottom basin, would contain any playable or walkable area or would be any more than just a visual open space. Kugler said until the grading plan is reviewed, the exact contours will not be known, but the basin has not been designed as a play area. Kugler said a dry bottom basin can often double as a play area, but that would not likely occur here. Bovbjerg said she appreciated the applicant's reworking this and being sensitive to drainage concerns. Public discussion: Steve Kohli. 3129 Dubuque Street NE, said he was available to answer any questions regarding this subdivision. Public discussion closed. MOTION: Ehrhardt moved to recommend approval of SUB99-0008, a preliminary plat of South Pointe Addition, Part Seven, an 8.08-acre, 25-1ot residential subdivision with two outlots located at the west terminus of Langenberg Avenue and Hemingway Lane, subject to approval of a grading plan prior to Council consideration of the plat. Shannon seconded the motion. Supple said she appreciated the developer's diligence. She said the Commission has seen several plats for this property, and the developer has found a really good one. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. SUB99-0024. Discussion of an application submitted by Jim Anderson and Tom Bender for a final plat of Westcott Heights Part Two, a 24.99-acre, bur-lot residential subdivision located at the west end of Westcott Drive NE and Rose Bluff Circle NE. (45-day limitation period expires December 5, 1999) Kugler stated that the preliminary plat for this property was approved earlier this year for four large lots at the end of an existing subdivision. He said the plat is in conformance with the City's subdivision regulations, and staff recommends approval subject to the approval of legal papers prior to City Council consideration of the plat. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 8 Kugler said Rose Bluff Circle currently ends with a temporary cul-de-sac. He said that cul-de- sac will be removed, the street will be extended, and a permanent cul-de-sac will be constructed to serve Lots One, Two, and Three. Kugler said Westcott Drive was also platted with a temporary turnaround. He said with this plat, that temporary turnaround will become permanent and serve as access to Lot Four. Public discussion: There was none. Public discussion closed. MOTION: Ehrhardt moved to recommend approval of SUB99-0024, a final plat of Westcott Heights Part Two, a 24.99-acre, four-lot residential subdivision located at the west end of Westcott Drive NE and Rose Bluff Circle NE, subject to the approval of legal papers before City Council consideration of the plat. Shannon seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ITEM: Discussion of a public hearing on an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan to adopt and incorporate the South Central District Plan for property generally located east of Highway 218, south of Highway 1 and west of the Iowa River. (Gibson left the meeting at 8:19 because of a conflict of allegiance with regard to this item.) Rockwell provided the Commission with a letter from George Knorr discussing his views on the extension of the trails. Rockwell said staff does not feel the trail along Highway 218 would be incompatible with Knorr's plans for a buffer on his property. Rockwell said the Commission has just received the EarthTech report concerning the proposed alignment for the arterial street on the Dane and Willjams' properties. She said the EarthTech consultant evaluated two more southerly routes. Rockwell said Jeff Davidson's memo notes that the route N-1.1, which is shown at about the middle of the hill, would cost about $175,000 more to build than the originally proposed N~I alignment. Rockwell said the more southerly alignment at the bottom of the hill has social and environmental costs that staff feels would be unacceptable. She said it would displace some housing and would be in a potential wetland area and a drainage area. Rockwell stated it would also bring the road close to the housing that is aligned along the west side of Dane Road. She said staff continues to recommend the original N-1 alignment. Rockwell said because the Commission has just received the report, staff would recommend that the public hearing be continued to the December 2 meeting, She added that the future land use scenario map should be ready for review at the Commission's December 2 meeting. Ehrhardt asked if the argument against moving the arterial down to the middle of the hill is financial. Rockwell confirmed this and said it would also run closer to the Williams' home. She showed the home on the map. Ehrhardt said the Commission was told that the markers erected by George Dane on his property for the Commission's tour were not accurate. Rockwell said, according to the EarthTech survey done by Bob Lentz, the markers should have been about 100 feet further to the south, down the hill. Rockwell said it was her understanding that Dane had marked the north edge of the proposed road, so that the north edge would actually be 100 feet farther to the south. Ehrhardt said it would then be more at a level with Dane Road. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 9 Rockwell said there would be grading done in either case, but her understanding was that moving the road south would require more grading and would therefore be more expensive. Shannon asked if the N-1.1 alternative would cost more, but would miss both houses. Rockwell confirmed that the N-1.1 alternative would cost more, and said both the N-1 alignment as well as the N-1.1 alignment would miss the Dane and Williams residences, but the N-1.1 road would come closer to the Williams' residence. Bovbjerg said alternative N-1.2 seems unnecessarily destructive of the mobile home park. Bovbjerg said there is a sweeping line that comes down between Dane Road and the alternative. She said that would be a connector of Lower Dane Road and Upper Dane Road for the people who live there. She asked if Upper Dane Road would be closed off. Rockwell said when the airport runway is extended, the clear zone will interrupt Dane Road, and that portion will be closed. She said there will be a temporary connecting road from Mormon Trek Boulevard to Dane Road that will be built at County standards. Rockwell said the arterial street will eventually be built, and will generally follow the N-1 alignment to provide access between Highway 1 and Dane Road. Ehrhardt said the summary of property owner input includes a comment from Tom Williams that he believed the road serving his property would be positive in the long run. She asked if N-1 would serve his property. Rockwell said N-1 would go across his property. Public discussion: George Dane. 4120 Dane Road, thanked Rockwell for keeping him apprised of developments regarding the proposed artedal road and providing him with a copy of EarthTech's evaluation when it became available. He said he studied the report and made some sketches and was pleased with what he saw. Dane said the map for this evaluation is to a larger scale than in the original EarthTech report, and he found the original alignment for N-1 was further down the hill from what he discerned from the earlier report. Dane said the latest evaluation makes two alternative proposals: N-1.1 and N-1.2. He said N- 1.2 is a route south of Williams' lane and buildings and across the north part of the Lake Ridge housing area. Dane concurred with EarthTech that it would not be a good route. Dane said route N-1.1 is further down the hill, and this pleases him. He said N-1.1 pretty well addressed the problems he foresaw with the original N-1. Dane said he repositioned the flags placed earlier and located them on the west fence where N-1.1 would cross Dane Road. He said that pleased him further, because N-1.1 is a little over half way down the hill, about 400 feet south of the fence. Dane said he is not especially thrilled about having any road cross the hill, but realizes roads have to go somewhere, and others have been inconvenienced for better and safer roads in Iowa City. He said the alternate road N-1.1 is therefore acceptable to him. Dane pointed out that if there were a way to move N-1.1 another 100 feet further south down the hill, it would then avoid some of the steeper slope and be easier and cheaper to build. Dane said, if prior to construction of the road, Tom and Karen Williams are finished with their building site, the Commission might to revisit the routing. Dane said it might then be possible to move even further south to take advantage of the existing County road right-of-way and have a direct route east to South Riverside Drive. Dane said he appreciated the Commission listening to his concerns, visiting his farm to see things firsthand, and having an open mind to his suggestions. He said it is reassuring to find the system and procedures work. Dane said he now has a better understanding of the tremendous amount of time Commission members give to the City. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes November 18, 1999 Page 10 Bovbjerg asked if the Commission members could revisit the site to see where the markers have been placed. Dane said he would be happy for the Commission to visit. He said he placed the markers where he was told the arterial would cross Dane Road and assumed that was the center line. Public discussion closed. MOTION: Bovbjerg moved to continue the public hearing on the South Central District Plan to the December 2, 1999 meeting of the Planning and Zoning Commission. Ehrhardt seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. Supple said the next formal meeting of the Commission would be held in the Civic Center. CONSIDRATION OF THE NOVEMBER 4. 1999 PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES: MOTION: Bovbjerg moved to approve the minutes of the November 4, 1999 meeting, as amended at the informal meeting. Ehrhardt seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 6-0. OTHER: Ehrhardt said she attended the first North District planning session and felt it was well done and very organized. Supple said she received an invitation to a tribute to Karen Kubby and would provide the information to anyone interested in attending. Ehrhardt said she could not attend the informal meeting on November 30. Bovbjerg said she also could not attend that meeting. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m. Dean Shannon, Secretary Minutes submitted by Anne Schulte ppdadm/min/p&zl 1-18-99.doc