McLean County Times

Town of Normal Historic Preservation Commission met July 9.

Here are the minutes provided by the commission:

Members Present:

Nancy Armstrong, Chris Niebur, Larry Schumacher, Anne Matter, Kathy Burgess, Justin Vickers

Members Absent:

Robert Porter

Others Present:

Associate Town Planner Tessa Ferraro, Office Associate Hannah Neal, Assistant Corporation Counsel Kevin Sheahan

Call to Order:

The meeting was called to order at 12:30 PM by Ms. Matter.

Approval of Minutes:

Mr. Niebur moved to approve the minutes from the previous meeting on June 11, 2024. Mr. Schumacher seconded.

Public Hearing:

a. CA-24-07-19: Window replacement, 313 W Virginia Ave

Ms. Burgess moved to approve the Certificate of Appropriateness. Mr. Schumacher seconded. Ms. Matter asked if the homeowner had any comments.

The homeowner stated that he bought the house a few years ago. When he bought the house, he had noticed that most of the windows had been replaced, except for the windows in the master suite. These windows are drafty and make it difficult to regulate the temperature upstairs. He is proposing to replace them with windows that are identical to the windows that have already been updated.

Ms. Matter pointed out that this property had been approved for previous projects and felt that the request was reasonable.

At this time, Ms. Matter called for a vote.

All in favor: 6

Opposed: 0

The Certificate of Appropriateness is approved.

b. BG-24-07-06: Bone grant for window replacement, 313 W Virginia Ave Mr. Vickers made a motion to approve, and Ms. Armstrong seconded.

Ms. Matter said that since the original window update at this address had been approved previously, and the homeowner intends to replicate the window style and material, she saw no reason to disapprove the Bone Grant.

Ms. Matter confirmed the maximum amount being reimbursed would be $6000.00 With no questions, Ms. Matter called for a vote.

All in favor: 6

Opposed: 0

The Bone Grant is approved.

c. CA-24-07-20: Restore brick walls and foundation, 701 Normal Ave

Ms. Armstrong made a motion to approve the Certificate of Appropriateness, and Mr. Vickers seconded.

Ms. Matter asked the homeowner if they had any comments on their project.

The homeowner explained that there were two parts to the project. There is significant bowing on the front facing wall, and there is a sidewall with some bowing as well. One of the walls also has a crack running down the middle. The contractor would recommend rebuilding instead of restoration. There is a layer of limestone that would be retained.

The second part of the project would be the portico on the left side of the driveway. The waste high brick wall is also bowing and has loose bricks. The contractor would like to jack the wall up, remove what they can save of the brick, and rebuild the portico.

Ms. Matter asked if the decking on the front stoop would be replaced after the remodel.

The homeowner said yes, the decking would be the same. He believes the contractor would jack it up and just remove the brick.

Mr. Schumacher said the decking seemed odd and asked the homeowner if it had always been there.

The homeowner said that he did not believe the decking was original to the house. He said his best guess would be that there was possibly previously an overhang.

Ms. Matter said that the decking was her only concern.

The homeowner asked if the commission had an issue with the material of the decking or if they had an issue with the decking being over the limestone.

Ms. Matter said it was a little of both, and that she wasn’t hesitant about the brick replacement, but also wanted to know if the area beneath the decking was filled in

The homeowner asked Ms. Matter if the Commission would like him to return and discuss the decking material further. Otherwise, he would plan on leaving the decking as is.

Ms. Matter asked how long the homeowner had been at the property.

The homeowner said he had been there for about 20 years. He added that there was a similar wall on the other side of the house, but it didn’t have a brick wall and wasn’t very stable, so he had it removed.

Mr. Niebur believes that it was probably something else originally, such as a planter or maybe part of a porch.

Ms. Matter asked if the homeowner actually used the decking.

The homeowner said that they’ll put furniture and plants on top of it during the summer, but since it is not enclosed, they don’t use it much.

Mr. Nieber wondered if the Town of Normal inspectors would have issues with replacing the deck if there wasn’t also railing installed.

Ms. Matter said that she was fine with approving the Certificate of Appropriateness but would like to request that the homeowner check what is underneath the decking before putting it back on. She said that she didn’t believe it to be an original feature of the house.

Ms. Ferraro asked if Ms. Matter wanted to add the deck replacement as a condition of approval. Ms. Matter said yes, but that it could be done through an expedited review.

With no further questions, Ms. Matter called for a vote to approve the certificate on the condition that the applicant reach out to Ms. Ferraro once the decking on the front stoop is removed.

All in favor: 6

Opposed: 0

The Certificate of Appropriateness is approved.

d. BG-24-07-07: Bone Grant for brick wall and foundation restoration, 701 Normal Ave

Ms. Burgess moved to approve the Bone Grant request and Mr. Schumacher seconded.

Ms. Matter felt that the Bone Grant was justified. She asked the homeowner about the two estimates he had provided and if there was a contractor he was leaning toward.

The homeowner said that was leaning toward Kastriot Maloku because they had done some other work in the neighborhood.

Ms. Burgess asked if this estimate might change, since they said they might try to reuse some of the brick.

The homeowner said yes, and that the other contractor said they would not use any of the existing brick, as it would be too time consuming. Kastriot Maloku estimated that they may need to throw 60% of the brick away.

Mr. Schumacher asked if the homeowner would be able to get a separate Bone Grant if he were to add a suitable railing to the home.

Ms. Matter said that he would need to apply for a Certificate of Appropriateness, but he would not qualify for another Bone Grant because the railing would be new.

With no further questions, Ms. Matter called for a vote.

All in favor: 6

Opposed: 0

The Bone Grant is approved.

e. CA-24-07-21: Exterior Renovation, 621 Normal Ave

Mr. Vickers moved to approve the Certificate of Appropriateness request and Mr. Schumacher seconded.

The homeowners opened by saying that they moved into the home in May of 2021. They wanted to live in a historic neighborhood, but they wanted a ranch style house. They were told by the seller that the house wasn’t historic. The interior of the house had been remodeled but they would like to create updates on the exterior. They feel their house is already an outlier in the neighborhood as most of the other houses were two stories. They think creating a mid-century modern exterior could help compensate for the scale of their home in comparison.

At this time, the contractor added that the angle of the left side of the house gets full sun. Putting a roof towards the picture window would block out some of that sun, which would add efficiency to the home.

The home was originally built with one bathroom and doing this exterior remodel would allow them space to add a half bathroom as well.

The homeowner said that by the time the construction is complete, it will have the appearance of a new home, but with a 1950’s style

Ms. Matter and the rest of commission liked the design and felt that it would be a long-lasting improvement for the neighborhood.

The homeowner added that the rest of the neighborhood was very supportive of the update. Ms. Matter called for a vote.

All in favor: 6

Opposed: 0

The Certificate of Appropriateness was approved.

Other Business:

Ms. Matter announced that this was her last meeting. She stated that it had been a pleasure working with everyone, and said that moving forward, Ms. Burgess would be taking over due to her appointment as vice-chair.

Ms. Burgess thanked Ms. Matter for her knowledge and her guidance.

Ms. Ferraro said that Ms. Matter would be missed and thanked her for her service to the Commission and the Town. Ms. Ferraro also found the minutes for Ms. Matters original meeting and reviewed them.

With no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 1:03pm.

https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/5027