The Historic District Commission continues to seek ways to educate the public about the need to apply to the commission before performing exterior work on a house. Periodically, the HDC receives a belated application for work already completed, and local residents often say they were unaware of the HDC requirements.
The HDC held a workshop on this topic before the March 19 meeting, and the subject came up again at the April 2 HDC meeting. Cassie Dishman, director of Planning and Community Development, said the city already had brochures printed to explain the proper procedures. The HDC will have to print more of those brochures to have enough for a mass mailing. Commissioners have discussed the best methods for addressing those brochures to reach property owners and tenants.
In other business:
- At 159 Spring St., Michael and Melissa Brooks needed to add two parking spaces for their tourist lodging. They asked to add a concrete pad 20×23 ft., along with a retaining wall. The commissioners had no problem with the parking pad, but they did have reservations about a concrete retaining wall.
The retaining wall would not be visible from Spring, but would be seen from Cushing Street, and would stand approximately eight ft. tall. Commissioners discussed the stonework in that neighborhood, and added a condition to the application requiring a rock facing on the retaining wall. With that change in place, all approved the application.
- Contractor Penny Pemberton represented owner Kathryn Seymore with an application to repair front porch decking at 39 Benton St. Commissioners initially objected to using composite decking, but Dishman said composite decking had been approved in the past, and while city guidelines remain strict on using wood for railings, composite decking is not specifically prohibited. All approved the request.
- Contractor Chris Crider represented owner Sue Krauss with an application asking to remove a screened porch and replace it with an addition 20 feet square at 21 Clay St. The commissioners discussed the arrangement of windows, and had no objection to the proposed project.
- Tracy Carter, at 14 Nut St., explained to the HDC that her roof already had two layers of asphalt shingles and she would have to remove them before adding a new layer. She asked to replace the shingles with a standing-seam metal roof. Although an adjacent property has a metal roof, commissioners expressed a clear preference for replacing the shingles. Carter also asked to replace board and batten siding with composite wood, but she also listed an alternative, with cedar shakes, and commissioners chose the shakes.
- Main Street Eureka Springs will sponsor a free three-day workshop on floor refinishing at The Aud from April 11-13.
- The next meeting may include a discussion on a process to verify that projects approved by the HDC are completed in accordance with their certificates of appropriateness.
* The HDC will next meet at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16. Level III applications were due April 3, and Level II applications were due April 9.
- The commission still has a vacancy.