Good evening.

I'd like to call to order this special hearing of the City of Frederick Historic Preservation Commission for Thursday, November 21st, 2023.

The technical qualifications of the Commission and staff are on file with the City of Frederick and are made a part of each and every case before the Commission.

This Frederick City Historic Preservation Commission uses the guidelines adopted by the mayor and board of Alderman and the Secretary of the Interior Standards for Rehabilitation, published by the U.S.

Department of the Interior National Park Service, and these guidelines are made a part of each and every case.

All cases were duly advertised in the Frederick News Post in accordance with Section 301 of the Land Management Code.

Introductions this evening.

On my left, the audience's right is uh the HPC Administrative Assistant Shannon Piles.

Uh joining us via Zoom are Commissioners Blair Wilson and Eva Soller.

And then again, proceeding from my left, the audience is right.

Commissioner Paul Fitzgerald, myself, Commissioner Robert Van Rennes, Commissioner Ann Hart, Historic Preservation Planner Christina Martin Koskey, and Assistant City Attorney Michael Frye.

Anyone who has business before the commission this evening, please rise and be sworn in.

All applicants and authorized agents.

If so, answer I do.

I do.

Thank you.

It is the purpose of the Historic Preservation Commission to safeguard the historical and cultural heritage of the City of Frederick by preserving the sites structures or districts that reflect the elements of cultural, social, economic, political, archaeological, or architectural history, to stabilize and improve property values of such sites, structures or districts, to foster civic beauty, to strengthen the local economy, and to promote the preservation and appreciation of such sites structures and districts for the education and welfare of the residents of the City of Frederick.

In order to be eligible to vote on an application, a commissioner must have made the required site visit and attended any and all meetings at which such an application was discussed.

In the event that a commissioner is absent from any such meeting, the commissioner may satisfy the attendance requirement by reviewing the record of that meeting.

That being said, are there any commissioners with statements of eligibility?

Seeing none, uh, let's move on.

I see I don't see on the agenda any announcements this evening.

That's correct, yes.

All right.

Um, nor do we have any minutes to approve.

So we will actually move straight on to our one case this evening.

So um moving on to HPC 231200 ZMA 136 East South Street.

Ms.

Martin Koskey, take it away.

Thank you.

I want to uh enter the entire staff report and an associate attachments into the record.

This is the Historic Preservations Commission's application for a historic preservation overlay zoning map amendment for 136 East South Street.

The property is located within the 1894 subdivision of the former Winchester Brickyard.

The property features a single-family brick dwelling that was constructed sometime between 1897 and 1904.

Uh in response to a demolition review application, which provides the Historic Preservation Commission an opportunity to review the level of significance of the property and to determine uh if the site is individually eligible for a historic preservation overlay according to the criteria outlined in section 423 at the land management code.

The property is currently zoned for mixed use, and with the proposed zoning map amendment, the base zoning remains.

However, any exterior alterations, including demolition, will be reviewed and approved by the will require review and approval by the Historic Preservation Commission before any permitting could be obtained.

The National Park Service states that it's best to consider the entire eligible property when possible.

The property, the proposed boundary for this historic preservation overlay consists of the entire lot at 136 East South Street, which consists of approximately one tenth of an acre of land and two buildings.

The image that you see on the screen now illustrates the boundaries highlighted in green.

The building is located inside the Frederick National Register Historic District, a type of honorary distinction that is not tied to zoning or historic preservation commission review.

It offers no sort of protection from private investment that calls for its demolition or alteration.

At 136 East South Street, the garage and dwelling were reviewed as separate resources for the National Register District.

And that the recent eligibility form that was completed identifies the dwelling as a contributing resource.

However, the garage, which has been greatly altered, is a non-contributing resource.

One question that was brought up at the November hearing was why this area was excluded from the overlay in the first place.

And although I couldn't find any particular minutes or any writings to really specify, the zoning maps and national register maps provide really great clues.

And when the overlay was map was created in 77, it really borrowed significantly from the National Register boundaries, and it was excluded from the National Register boundary, and it was excluded from that 1977 boundary that the city created.

And since that was created, it never extended further east on South Street to include the Winchester Brickyard area.

For a zoning map amendment, the Board of Ottoman has approved has final approval to designate boundaries of sites and structures of historic, archaeological or architectural significance by establishing a historic preservation overlay zone.

Now, in this process, the Historic Preservation Commission and the Planning Commission are recommending bodies.

Each commission has their own standards of consideration, and for the Historic Preservation Commission, they are directed to only use the criteria for designation outlined in Section 423D of the Land Management Code, which states briefly that this the site structure or district is eligible for designation if it is at least 50 years of age, retains historic integrity, and holds historic significance.

In addition to that, because this was resulting from a demolition review application, it really has to meet the standards on an individual basis.

Now the areas of significance is outlined in the land management code.

However, the specific criteria that we'll be focusing on in this application is on whether or not the site exhibits significance and design or construction by embodying the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, including characteristics specifically associated or particularly associated with the city.

Now, the first step in identifying significance is to research and compile a historic context.

So as briefly as we can, we will begin this first step.

This section of East South Street is not part of the original downtown plat.

It is not represented in the earliest maps, including the 1953 Pitar map.

However, the 1858 bond map shows the area and documents the N Haller Brickyard situated in the general area of the subject property.