McHenry Times

City of Crystal Lake Historic Preservation Commission met Nov. 2.

Here are the minutes provided by the commission:

1) Call to Order

L. Solak called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

2) Roll Call/Attendance

The following Commission members were present, Ana Freund, Judi Halter, Nancy Haskins, Diana Kenney, Bob Kosin, Brittany Niequist, Lisa Solak, and, Bob Wyman. City Planner, Elizabeth Maxwell, was present for staff. Vicki Kosin was in the audience.

3) Public Comment

None.

4) Approval of Minutes of the October 5, 2023 Regular Meeting

B. Niequist make a motion to approve the minutes. B. Wyman seconded the motion. On voice vote all voted aye. Motion passed.

5) PUBLIC HEARING – McCormick Memorial Park – 427 Virginia Street B. Kosin of 856 Bennington and B. Wyman of 135 College Street were the petitioners and presented the information. L. Solak opened the public hearing. They described the park site being a bit over two acres and bounded by four street. They discussed the history and showed the photos.

There was no one in the audience who wished to speak. L. Solak closed the public hearing and turned it over to the Commission. The Commission went through the Findings of Fact and found that the request meet the standards to be considered for landmark status. D. Kenney said that they did a great job presenting all the information.

D. Kenney made a motion to approve the landmark request. B. Niequist seconded the motion. On voice vote all members voted aye with B. Kosin and B. Wyman abstaining. Motion passed 6-0.

B. Wyman stated that he would like to order a plaque for McCormick Park that has a QR code you can scan.

6) Hill Farm Park Barn Demolition

Staff pulled up the 2016 Feasibility Study the Park District had completed. B. Niequist read through the study and contacted the man who put it together. It does not say that the barn needs to be demolished. It says that the original frame work is in good condition. The barn withstood the Palm Sunday tornado. There has not been a lot of maintenance done over the past several years, which has caused the barn to fall into further disrepair. There would be significant cost to repair the structure. There would also be significant cost to demolish the structure. They would rather the Park District find the money to repair rather than remove the barn. B. Wyman said the

barn was gifted to the Park District in 1972 along with $100,000 for maintenance. Where did that money go? Also, the farmers on the property are being charged, what is that money used for?

D. Kenney went through the history of the barn. It was used for storage, at one time the Jaycees used it, and it has had a lot of water damage. She has been inside the barn and it did not feel safe inside.

A. Freund wondered about the timing. The Feasibility Study was done in 2016, why do they want to demolish it now. What happened over the past several years? B. Niequist said agriculture is disappearing in this area and that is an important part of Crystal Lake’s history. We do not need another tot lot. D. Kenney suggests going to the Park District board meeting and speaking to them about the concerns. They looked at the website and found that the Park District Committee of the Whole was meeting at the same time as this meeting and the barn was being discussed at that meeting. They hoped to attend the next board meeting to voice their concerns.

7) Trolley Tour 2024

The Commission wanted to publicly thank Kurt Pierson for indexing the trolley tour information. It was a great undertaking and will be immensely helpful for the future.

B. Niequist created a route and list of properties. She took a lot from the former 2011 Moved and Removed tour and added a few additional properties. She plotted everything on a map and had to get rid of the outliers. She went through the draft route, which starts Downtown heading down Woodstock then Williams to Paddock, looping around the other streets. She said there is about 25 houses on the tour.

D. Kenney noted she has photos of the three houses moved for the Library expansion. She said these are the same houses that were previously done. She would hope there would be new properties, they need fresh houses. Everyone can review the route and houses. B. Niequist will send the info to staff who will send it out to everyone.

8) Member Inquiries and Reports

N. Haskins asked about the “Remembering Those Who Served” cemetery book and if it can be saved in a more permanent location rather than her dropbox. D. Kenney said she only had a few cemetery books left. They could do a second run. They can take some additional after pictures to add to the book. The Commission requested this be placed on the December agenda for discussion.

B. Kosin asked about the consultant and design ideas for the Depot Park. Staff shared some information about the process and working with the consultant to program the space for more activities. Staff will provide additional information to the Commission.

9) Adjournment

There being no further business, D. Kenney made a motion to adjourn the meeting. J. Halter seconded the motion. On voice vote, all members voted aye. The meeting adjourned at 8:27 p.m.

https://www.crystallake.org/home/showpublisheddocument/22862/638379936525170000