Historic District Commission Meeting Minutes
Regular Meeting
Monday, June 6, 2016
Place |
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Memorial Town Hall, 52 Lyme Street, Old Lyme, CT |
Present |
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REGULAR: John Pfeiffer (Chairman), Barbara Traskos, Dini Mallory Alternate: Cynthia Taylor |
Absent |
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John Forbis, Jim Bechtel, Jeff Cooley |
Guests |
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Ellis Jewett, Kevin Cole |
Agenda |
9:00 |
Call to order, Quorum call, Approval of minutes, Communications |
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9:05 |
Public Open Forum |
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9:15 |
Plaque Program Update: 206 Mile Creek Road, 209 Mile Creek Road, 6 Ferry Road, 10 Ferry Road, 110 Lyme Street, Old Lyme Beach Club |
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9:30 |
Public Hearing: 55 Lyme Street – remove exterior basement hatchway and window |
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10:00 |
Secretary’s Report |
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10:15 |
Any other new or old business to come before the Commission (HD handbook reprint, 4 Ferry Road Porch) |
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10:30 |
Adjournment |
A quorum being present, the meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Chairman John Pfeiffer. Mr. Pfeiffer authorized Cynthia Taylor to vote. Barbara Traskos made a motion, seconded by Cynthia Taylor, to approve the May minutes. John Pfeiffer, Barbara Traskos, Cynthia Taylor, and Dini Mallory voted in favor, motion passed.
1. Communications: Bob McCracken informed the HDC that the porch repair on the house at 4 Ferry Road has been completed and that the plantings have been installed around the fence enclosure behind 5 Lyme Street.
2. Public Open Forum: no participation
3. Public Hearing: 55 Lyme Street Old Lyme Historical Society: Ellis Jewett submitted a CofA application to remove the existing bulkhead door to the right of the building’s entrance, and the basement window to the left. The basement bulkhead door is no longer needed as a fire exit. The openings left by the removals of the bulkhead door and basement window will be filled in with cement blocks and covered with stucco to match the existing foundation. Plantings will be installed in front of the foundation.
Cynthia Taylor made a motion, seconded by Barbara Traskos, to approve the CofA application for one year. John Pfeiffer, Barbara Traskos, Dini Mallory, and Cynthia Taylor voted in favor, motion passed.
Ellis Jewett and Kevin Cole reported that the new, secure, climate-controlled archives storage room has been finished. The society plans to complete a reading room next to the archives room, install a handicapped access lift and replace the furnace.
4. Plaque Program Update: Martha Hansen
206 Mile Creek Road: Research has been started on the neighboring property to help clarify the history of #206.
209 Mile Creek Road: Martha Hansen and Patricia Shippee did some research at the CT State Library.
6 Ferry Road: Julie Quinn is working on the research.
10 Lyme Street Village Shops: Woodward Griswold built the original building in 1929, it was an IGA grocery store. Contact Lee and Michele Mergy to see if they would like a plaque for the building (Martha Hansen).
10 Ferry Road: Martha Hansen met with David and Susan Rahr at Town Hall and helped them get started on the research.
110 Lyme Street: John Noyes has been contacted about a plaque for his house at 110 Lyme Street, he is working on the research.
32 Lyme Street: Cindy Taylor is interested in a plaque. The HDC has some information about when the house was built.
The Old Lyme Beach Club plaque has been ordered.
5. Secretary’s Report:
a) Martha Hansen is preparing a grant application to secure funds to help pay for updating the Historic District Handbook.
6. Any Other New or Old Business:
a) The commission is considering a plan to list a number of Old Lyme’s historic properties on the National Register. To be considered eligible, a property must meet the~National Register Criteria for Evaluation.~This involves examining the property’s age, integrity, and significance. The property must be at least 50 years old and still look much the way it did in the past. It should also be associated with people, events, activities, or developments that were important in the past, or have significant architectural history, landscape history, or engineering achievements, or the potential to yield information through archeological investigation.
Sound View and other beach areas may qualify for historic designation and corresponding funds for preservation. Dini Mallory will do a “windshield survey” of historic properties in town and report at the September meeting.
b) Amtrak Train update: The latest news for Alternative 1 is that, instead of a bridge, a tunnel will be built under the Connecticut River between Old Saybrook and Old Lyme. A final decision will be made late this summer. There is also a plan to improve the route through Hartford and Springfield.
A update on the FRA plan and Alternative 1 will be discussed at the HDC’s September 12th meeting. Daniel MacKay, Executive Director of the CT Trust for Historic Preservation, and Greg Stroud, of SECoast, will be invited to attend.
7. Adjournment:
Dini Mallory made a motion, seconded by Barbara Traskos, to adjourn the meeting at 10:00 am. All present voted in favor, motion passed.
Martha Hansen
Recording Secretary
NOTICE: Messages to or from the Town of Old Lyme domain are subject to the Freedom of Information statutes and regulations.
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