OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Janesville Historic Commission Meeting - April 21, 2026

Meeting Portal — Tuesday, April 21, 2026
BodyJanesville, Wisconsin
SessionMeeting Portal
DateTuesday, April 21, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 50:03

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Good evening and welcome to the historic commission meeting is 5 p.m.

0:05

Call the meeting to order.

0:07

Roll call, please, McKenzie.

0:09

Griffha?

0:10

Here.

0:11

Commerce?

0:12

Gall?

0:12

Here.

0:13

Conrad?

0:14

Here.

0:14

Hanson?

0:15

Here.

0:16

Terrell.

0:17

Here.

0:17

Six present.

0:18

You have a quorum.

0:19

Thank you.

0:20

Item number three on our agenda is comments from the public.

0:24

Did we receive any comments today?

0:26

We did not.

0:27

Thank you.

0:28

Moving on to item number four, approval of the minutes of the April 7th, 2026 regular meeting.

0:34

Is there a motion to accept the minutes as presented?

0:40

I will move to accept them as presented.

0:42

Is there a second?

0:46

I'll second.

0:48

Thank you.

0:49

Any discussion?

0:52

Hearing none, all those in favor of accepting the minutes of the meeting Tuesday, April 7th, 2026 is presented.

0:58

Please say aye.

0:59

Aye.

1:00

Opposed.

1:01

Hearing none, so moved.

1:03

Pass.

1:04

Pass.

1:04

Okay, sorry.

1:07

I wasn't here.

1:08

Yes.

1:09

Item number five, new business, the review of certificate of appropriateness 2026-01, 605 St.

1:17

Lawrence Avenue.

1:20

Turn it over to the two commissioners who did the visit.

1:27

Sure.

1:28

So the project submitted here for our review today is pretty straightforward as far as updates and restoration projects go.

1:41

We have some updates that are going to occur to a small portion of the main home and around the roof of the carriage house or garage.

1:56

And the homeowner and the contractor have done very good job in pursuing a uh like for like switch out whenever uh switch outs or updates are required, um, as well as just adding on some gutters that for some reason or another weren't added to a certain portion of the carriage house when some gutters were changed out in the past.

2:21

Um but colors will largely uh be the same.

2:26

Textures will be almost identical, even if the uh exact materials that are being replaced might not be there's uh there seems to be quite a level of detail and interest in making things look um almost exactly the way they are now, just a bit more sustainable for the future.

2:47

Um so I don't know if you have anything more to add there.

2:50

No doubt.

2:51

This is really straightforward.

2:52

I think the um that what the completed project should look identical to the um the current house presuming that the uh the contractor can follow through with the plan that he's made with the homeowner further questions or comments if not we have the motion there are three that you could um I will move to find that the proposed project meets the criteria for granting a certificate of appropriateness.

3:36

Is there a second?

3:37

I will second.

3:38

Any discussion?

3:41

I have a question.

3:42

Uh is there representative owner or contractor?

3:45

The owner of the order of the order.

3:47

Uh are you going to paint it or are you going to select a color that's pre embedded in it before you put it on?

3:56

I'm sorry, can I have you go over to a mic and introduce yourself, please?

4:01

Thank you.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Historic Preservation█████████████████████████████████████████████76%
Arts And Culture█████8%
Community Engagement██4%
Public Engagement██4%
Procedural██4%
Parks and Recreation█2%
Homelessness█2%
Summary of Proceedings

Janesville Historic Commission Meeting - April 21, 2026

The Janesville Historic Commission met on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, at 5:00 PM. Six members were present, constituting a quorum. The meeting covered approval of minutes, a certificate of appropriateness for a property, continued discussions on local historic preservation award nominations, Historic Preservation Month, the Tallman Arts Festival, and state historic preservation awards. The commission awarded two local preservation awards and made plans for upcoming events.

Consent Calendar

  • The minutes of the April 7, 2026 regular meeting were approved unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were received or read into the record.

Discussion Items

  • Certificate of Appropriateness 2026-01 (605 Saint Lawrence Ave.): The property owner, Aaron Mare, presented plans to replace certain materials on the main house and carriage house roof with like-for-like materials, matching existing colors and textures. The project involves adding gutters to a portion of the carriage house. Commission members found the project straightforward and consistent with preservation criteria. The owner confirmed materials would be primed, then painted to match. A motion to find the project meets criteria for a certificate of appropriateness passed unanimously.
  • Local Historic Preservation Award Nominations: Two nominations were considered:
    • 403 North Pearl Street: A residential property within the Look West Historic District where vinyl siding was removed and the original wood was painted. The owners plan to restore missing decorative trim. The project is ongoing.
    • North Side Brewery Excavation Site: An archaeological and restoration project uncovering a historic brewery along the Ice Age Trail. Lead volunteer Robert Beer presented a detailed overview of progress, including reconstructed walls, plans for a park-like picnic area, replica boiler, and future tunnel restoration. The project has transformed a previously blighted area into a community asset. Commission members discussed the philosophy of awarding in-progress projects. They agreed that the award recognizes progress and intent, and that future sub-projects could also be eligible. A motion to award both nominations passed unanimously.
  • Historic Preservation Month: The commission discussed a proclamation for May. Due to staff priorities, a resolution from the City Council cannot be obtained this year, but a proclamation signed by the city manager will be issued. Nick will attend the May 5 meeting to read the proclamation. Social media engagement and a press release are planned.
  • Tallman Arts Festival: Registration with the festival is being coordinated. The commission discussed improving their table display with materials about award winners, and possibly acquiring a tablecloth or tent. Follow-up with the historical society for seating coordination is pending.
  • State Historic Preservation Award Programs: The commission learned that they have won two state awards. Commissioner Mitchell and McKenzie are requested to attend the award ceremony on Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Sturgeon Bay. The awards may be used to enhance the Tallman Arts Festival booth and Historic Preservation Month activities. McKenzie noted that the Rotary Gardens in Janesville previously won a similar award.

Key Outcomes

  • Unanimously approved motion to grant Certificate of Appropriateness 2026-01 for 605 Saint Lawrence Ave.
  • Unanimously approved motion to award local historic preservation awards to both 403 North Pearl Street and the North Side Brewery Excavation Site.
  • Confirmed that a Historic Preservation Month proclamation will be signed by the city manager and read at the May 5 meeting.
  • Commission will proceed with registering for the Tallman Arts Festival and enhancing table materials.
  • Commissioners Mitchell and McKenzie will attend the state award ceremony on April 23.
  • The meeting adjourned following recognition of outgoing Commissioner Randall for six years of service. The next regular meeting is set for Tuesday, May 5, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening and welcome to the historic commission meeting is 5 p.m. Call the meeting to order. Roll call, please, McKenzie. Griffha? Here. Commerce? Gall? Here. Conrad? Here. Hanson? Here. Terrell. Here. Six present. You have a quorum. Thank you. Item number three on our agenda is comments from the public. Did we receive any comments today? We did not. Thank you. Moving on to item number four, approval of the minutes of the April 7th, 2026 regular meeting. Is there a motion to accept the minutes as presented? I will move to accept them as presented. Is there a second? I'll second. Thank you. Any discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor of accepting the minutes of the meeting Tuesday, April 7th, 2026 is presented. Please say aye. Aye. Opposed. Hearing none, so moved. Pass. Pass. Okay, sorry. I wasn't here. Yes. Item number five, new business, the review of certificate of appropriateness 2026-01, 605 St. Lawrence Avenue. Turn it over to the two commissioners who did the visit. Sure. So the project submitted here for our review today is pretty straightforward as far as updates and restoration projects go. We have some updates that are going to occur to a small portion of the main home and around the roof of the carriage house or garage. And the homeowner and the contractor have done very good job in pursuing a uh like for like switch out whenever uh switch outs or updates are required, um, as well as just adding on some gutters that for some reason or another weren't added to a certain portion of the carriage house when some gutters were changed out in the past. Um but colors will largely uh be the same. Textures will be almost identical, even if the uh exact materials that are being replaced might not be there's uh there seems to be quite a level of detail and interest in making things look um almost exactly the way they are now, just a bit more sustainable for the future. Um so I don't know if you have anything more to add there. No doubt. This is really straightforward.

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