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4.1. DRAFT HPC MINUTES 07-25-2019Meeting of the Heritage Preservation Commission Held at the Elk River City Hall April 18, 2019 Members Present: Vice-Chair Joshua Fox, Chair Debra Mortensen (6:11 p.m.), Tony Mauren, and Lance Lindberg Members Absent: None Others Present: Planning Manager Zack Carlton; Council Liaison Jennifer Wagner 1.Call Meeting to Order Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the meeting of the Heritage Preservation Commission was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Chair Fox. 2.Pledge of Allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 3.Consider April 18, 2019, Agenda Moved by Commissioner Mauren and seconded by Commissioner Lindberg to approve the April 18, 2019, agenda. Motion carried 3-0. 4.Minutes of January 17, 2019, meeting Moved by Commissioner Lindberg and seconded by Commissioner Mauren to approve the January 17, 2019, HPC meeting minutes. Motion carried 3-0. 5.1 Election of Chair Mr. Carlton stated Ms. Mortensen indicated via email that should like to continue as chair. Moved by Commissioner Mauren and seconded by Commissioner Lindberg to appoint Debra Mortensen as the Chair of the Heritage Preservation Commission. Motion carried 3-0. Heritage Preservation Commission Meeting Elk River City Hall April 18, 2019 5.2 Election of Vice-Chair Commissioner Lindberg stated he would like to nominate Vice-Chair Fox to continue as vice-chair of the Heritage Preservation Commission. Moved by Commissioner Lindberg and seconded by Commissioner Mauren to re-appoint Joshua Fox as Vice-Chair of the Heritage Preservation Commission. Motion carried 3-0. 6.1 Jackson Street Water Tower Mr. Carlton stated he’s had near-weekly discussions with representatives from the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS) to finalize construction documents and specifications along with bidding details for the Jackson Street water tower project. He stated he’ll receive those finalized documents in the near future and will then apply for the large grant; mandatory pre-application is due in July and the final application due in September. Mr. Carlton stated Elk River Municipal Utilities (ERMU) is still working on land and tower ownership documents. ERMU will provide matching funds of $90,000 and start a long-term maintenance fund. Mr. Carlton discussed the MHS questions regarding the rust jacking on the tower plates and the concrete filled pillars; MHS wanted that evaluated and investigated prior to the grant. However, the consultant indicated it best to inspect these areas at the time the tower was repaired, which would provide the most up-to-date data with the repairing company making the necessary investigation and repairs at that time. The MHS was fine with that outcome and information regarding these needed repairs would be included in the specs. Mr. Carlton indicated because of this information, the cushion needed to be increased up to 20% for grant matching funds. Mr. Carlton also discussed preparation of a new story for publishing on the city website when the grant is submitted. 6.2 Discuss Website Articles Vice-Chair Fox submitted an article on the topic of Hungarian immigration in northern Elk River and Livonia Township. He stated this is the first in a series of three articles and explained the article contents. He stated the second story would be written for the July commission meeting and would outline the settlement of Hungarian families and their culture in Elk River. Mr. Carlton indicated if there were any changes to the submitted article to please respond to him within the next week. He stated he’ll then send out a clean copy to all and publish on the website May 3. Heritage Preservation Commission Meeting Elk River City Hall April 18, 2019 Councilmember Wagner suggested a press release be written with the article and sent to the Elk River Star News and other media outlets. Chair Mortensen arrived to the meeting (6:04 p.m.) Vice-Chair Fox turned the meeting over to Chair Mortensen. 6.3 Oral Histories Mr. Carlton discussed the need to review the list of names for oral history interviews. Chair Mortensen stated she has six hours of tape from Stan Wheaton and has turned that over to the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS). Commissioner Lindberg asked for information regarding how to conduct an oral interview, such as a written outline or list of questions to ask. He indicated he will update the list Mr. Carlton distributed with those who have passed away. Chair Mortensen stated there is a release form for the interviewees to sign. She provided some background on her previous interviews and explained some folks are easier to interview than others. Mr. Carlton indicated more individuals could be added to the interview list and the list would be distributed with each meeting packet. He stated he will gather information on interview themes and questions as well as a training presentation on how to conduct an oral interview and email the packet of information to the commissioners. Commissioner Mauren stated Marie at the Sherburne History Center said the MHS has a standard list of questions which will also be distributed to the commission. 6.4 Cemetery Tour Ms. Mortensen distributed and read aloud her draft ideas for tours of various local cemeteries. She indicated the city has two historic cemeteries: Houlton and Vernon. She stated they both have interesting people buried in them and provided advertisement ideas for multiple tours. She suggested the tour last at least one hour and could include actors reenacting a person buried there and people narrating their notable stories of the buried dead’s past life. She outlined flyer information to include a catchy tour name (Tales of the Tombstone), cemetery protocol, what the public could bring (flashlights or lantern tours, etc.), where to meet/park, if a fee is charged (to be donated to the cemetery for future tombstone repairs and maintenance). Ms. Mortensen stated after choosing who’s tale to tell, she’ll do further research to write the narratives. Mr. Carlton suggested focusing simply on one cemetery for a tour in October or November of 2019 and use tour attendees or commission members acting as guides to read the narratives. He suggested gathering a list of 18-20 names of deceased to Heritage Preservation Commission Meeting Elk River City Hall April 18, 2019 begin researching and set up for a walking tour to last about 60 minutes. He also liked the idea of charging tour participants a small fee to be used for future tomb upkeep. Commissioner Mauren asked if permission to tour the cemeteries from the cemetery owners should be granted before getting too far ahead of themselves. Mr. Carlton stated he would send the property owner information to Chair Mortensen for her to get their permission to hold tours. Chair Mortensen asked if the July meeting could be rescheduled due to a family trip. It was the consensus of the commission to reschedule the July 18, 2019, HPC meeting to July 25, 2019. Councilmember Wagner suggested to the commission one way to promote the HPC was to utilize the Facebook page “Growing Up in Elk River, MN” as a platform to promote upcoming walking and cemetery tours. She stated the page is well-used with a lot of members sharing memories and having conversations. She also suggested the commission host a “Remember When”-type social to increase awareness to this commission, and suggested holding an event at a restaurant like Olde Main Eatery, at city hall, or the American Legion. She noted it would be a neat way to bring awareness to this commission and the work they do preserving local history. She noted the events could have great turnouts and yet be very informal. The commission also discussed other ideas for get-togethers to promote the history of Elk River and its settlers. 7. Adjournment There being no further business, Chair Mortensen adjourned the meeting of the Elk River Heritage Preservation Commission at 6:46 p.m. Tina Allard City Clerk Debra Mortensen Heritage Preservation Commission Chair