HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION
MARCH 1, 2017
Alexa Silver, Chair, called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. In attendance were Commission members Ted Gallo, Barbara Jorgenson, Nancy McGuire and Alice Ritchie, Jennifer Mulligan (Town Clerk) and guests.
Ms. Silver stated that the Chestertown Historic District Commission takes its authority from Chapter 93 of the Code of the Town of Chestertown and operates under the Historic District Design Guidelines that were adopted by the Mayor and Council of Chestertown on October 7, 2002 and revised March 7, 2012.
Ms. Silver asked if there were any additions or corrections to the minutes of the meetings of February 1, 2017. Ms. Jorgenson moved to approve the minutes of February 1, 2017 as submitted, was seconded by Mr. Gallo and carried unanimously.
The Consent Agenda was as follows:
- BP2017-13 – Noreen Lagoy, 106 S. College Avenue – Fence;
- BP2017-14 – Holly Brower, 212 N. Mill Street – Exterior Renovation (Rear Porch);
- BP2017-15 – Meghan Efland, 300 E. Campus Avenue – Heat Pump Placement;
- BP2017-16 – David Arnold, 412 High Street – Shed;
- BP2017-19 – Eric Fitch, 517 Cannon Street – Fence.
Ms. Silver asked to remove BP2017-13 from the agenda to clarify material selections.
Ms. Jorgenson moved to approve the following applications as she was familiar with the properties and they were in keeping with the Design Guidelines;
- BP2017-14 – Holly Brower at 212 N. Mill Street for exterior renovations to the rear porch (III.8: Porches);
- BP2017-15 – Meghan Efland at 300 E. Campus Avenue for heat pump placement (III.12.1 Heating and Cooling equipment not be visible from street);
- BP2017-16 – David Arnold at 412 High Street for a shed (III.10: Accessory or Auxiliary Buildings (vinyl windows, plywood siding, metal roof))
- BP2017-19 – Eric Fitch at 517 Cannon Street for fencing (V.5: Fences)
The motion was seconded by Mr. Gallo and carried unanimously.
The next item on the agenda was BP2017-13 from Noreen Lagoy at 106 S. College Avenue for a fence. Ms. Lagoy was present for the application. Ms. Silver read the application into the record. Ms. Silver said that wood is preferred over vinyl in the Historic District. Ms. Lagoy stated that the entire house is vinyl and the handicap ramp was approved for vinyl railing. Ms. McGuire stated that vinyl railings were permitted at this property because they existed prior to the application before the Commission. She said that a vinyl fence looks much different than a vinyl railing. Ms. Silver stated that although this building was non-contributing, vinyl fencing is discouraged in the Historic District.
Ms. Jorgenson moved to approve BP2017-13 for a wooden fence that will be painted, as it was in keeping with the Historic District Commission Guidelines (V.5 Fences), was seconded by Mr. Gallo and carried unanimously.
The next item on the agenda was BP2017-11 from Washington College for exterior renovations to the Custom House located at 101 South Water Street. Mr. Reid Raudenbush and Ms. Valerie RiChard of Washington College were present for the application. Ms. Silver read the application into the record.
Ms. RiChard stated that the exterior walls of the Custom House were bowing and turnbuckles are required to pull the building together on the High Street side of the building. There will be 8 plates installed on the exterior. A structural engineer’s report was part of the application. Mr. Raudenbush stated that the application has been submitted concurrently to the Maryland Historical Trust. Mr. Raudenbush stated that the turnbuckles had been used on some other buildings in Town and he provided photographs of several examples.
Ms. Maguire moved to approve the repairs described in BP2017-11 for the installation of 8 plates and turnbuckles on the High Street side of the Custom House as they were necessary and appropriate and in keeping with the Historic District Design Guidelines, III.2.4 Masonry Repair, was seconded by Mr. Gallo and carried unanimously.
The next item on the agenda was BP2017-17 from Samantha Holloman for an addition at 100 South Water Street. Ms. Holloman was present for the application, along with her architect, Bob Moreland, of Lumberg Builders. Ms. Silver read the application into the record.
Ms. Holloman stated that she did not intend to change the front elevation or side elevation (adjacent to 102 S. Water). The changes would be on the driveway side of the house, to the rear of the original block.
Ms. Holloman stated that the largest change was a second floor addition to the rear screen porch where a master closet and bath is planned. Smaller changes on the first floor in the middle section of the building on the driveway side included a doorway and window to allow the interior floor to be raised to match the existing floor height. Windows would be added in the rear.
Ms. Holloman stated that she would like to lift the mudroom roof up so the ceiling was the same height as the main room and use a metal roof rather than shingles. The same gutter style will be repeated. One window will be removed and an additional step will be added to the side entry.
Mr. de Mooy asked if the owner knew the dates of the additions. Ms. Holloman stated that she was uncertain of the dates, but guessed that they were late 1940s or early 1950s additions.
Mr. de Mooy stated that new construction should be offset by adjusting the scale downward from the main structure and that was what is being proposed.
Mr. Moreland presented the Commission with samples of the metal roofing for the side entry, roofing to match the existing on the rear second story addition, red cedar shingle siding, cedar trim, cut sheets of the Anderson “A” Series double hung 2-over-2 windows and Anderson French doors. The brick foundation will be reworked and match the rest of the foundation.
Ms. Ritchie moved to approve BP2017-17 for an addition and exterior renovations to 100 S. Water Street as described in the application as it is in keeping with Design Guidelines IV.6: New Additions with the use of Anderson “A” series windows as proposed, noting that the work will be subservient to the original house, was seconded by Mr. Gallo and carried unanimously.
A late item to the agenda was BP2017-20 for an auxiliary building at the Chestertown Volunteer Fire Department located at 211 Maple Avenue. Mr. de Mooy stated that the fire department needed a place to store their boat, tanker and other equipment and were seeking permission for a custom-built metal pole building. He said that they were proposing white walls with a red roof and wainscoting. Mr. de Mooy stated that he thought the only thing that would be visible from Horsey Lane is the cupola as the tree line is substantial. He said that the house facing Philosopher’s Terrace will be demolished at some point.
Mr. Gallo asked the height of the building. Mr. de Mooy stated that the building was single story and proposed height of the building was 16’ with a 4’ roof, so 20’ plus the cupola. There would be 4 bays.
Ms. Maguire stated that she was concerned that the building was going to overpower the houses along Queen Street and the view from their yards. Mr. de Mooy stated that Mr. Mike Scott was performing the storm water management for the site and said that there will be trees planted on the site to help minimize the visual impact.
Mr. Gallo moved to approve BP2017-20 for a custom-built metal auxiliary building as described in the application as it was in keeping with the Historic District Design Guidelines III.10: Accessory or Auxiliary Buildings, noting that this site was non-contributing to the Historic District, was seconded by Ms. Ritchie and carried unanimously.
Mr. de Mooy stated that he applied for a $1,000.00 CLG grant for education for the Commission and asked the members to think about what classes they would be interested in taking.
Ms. Silver stated that plans would now be PDF’d to the Commission rather than paper copies. Notations will be made if there were larger plans or extra documentation that could not be sent virtually. Mr. de Mooy stated that the County puts plans on their website and that was something that he was looking forward to doing in the future.
There being no further business, Ms. Jorgenson moved to adjourn the meeting at 5:45 p.m., was seconded by Mr. Gallo and carried unanimously.
Submitted by: Approved by:
Jennifer Mulligan Alexa Silver
Town Clerk Chair