*noted attachments will be added after approval of the draft by the ARB Minutes Architectural Review Board FXBG March 10, 2025 City of Fredericksburg Community Planning & Building Council Chambers You may view and listen to the Architectural Review Board meeting in its entirety here. The time of each presentation is in brackets below [00:00:00]. Members Present Members Absent Staff Helen P. Ross (Chair) D.D. Lecky Kate Schwartz Kelly Penick (Vice Chair) Karen Irvin Samantha Payze James Jarrell IV Caroline Hieber Andi Smith Miller Blackburn Chair Ross called the Architectural Review Board meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. OPENING REMARKS Chair Ross determined that a quorum of five members was present, and asked if public notice requirements had been met. Ms. Schwartz stated that they had. APPROVAL OF AGENDA [00:03:28] The agenda was amended adding item 12B, review of the letter for the Fall Hill Avenue Medical Historic District National Register nomination. Dr. Smith motioned to approve the amended agenda, Ms. Penick seconded and the motion carried 5-0. ANNOUNCEMENTS & REPORTS None. APPROVAL OF MINUTES [00:04:14] Ms. Penick motioned to approve the minutes from the February 10, 2025 meeting. Dr. Smith seconded and the motion carried 5-0. Ms. Penick motioned to approve the minutes from the February 24, 2025 supplementary meeting. Dr. Smith seconded and the motion carried 5-0. DISCLOSURE OF EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS None. DISCLOSURE OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST Ms. Penick disclosed a conflict of interest regarding item COA2502-0099 at 922 Caroline Street. She submitted the form to Ms. Schwartz prior to the meeting and will not participate in the discussion or the motion. CONSENT AGENDA [00:07:041 A. COA 2412-0090 = 411 Lafayette Boulevard - Sign Installation B. COA 2502-0100 - 1216 Caroline Street - Storm Window Installation There were no public comments on the consent agenda. Dr. Smith made a motion to approve the consent agenda as submitted. Ms. Penick seconded. The motion carried 5-0. PUBLIC HEARING [00:08:58] New Applications A. COA 2501-0094 - 1106 Princess Anne Street - Fence Installation The applicant was present. There were no public comments. Mr. Blackburn agreed with staff's S recommendation. Dr. Smith clarified that the construction type for the gate would not be sag. Ms. Penick added that one of the conditions for the application should be that the material the caps will be made of should comply with the guidelines. Mr. Jarrell and Ms. Ross had nothing further to add. Dr. Smith moved to approve the application with the conditions that no element of the fence, including posts/caps, is taller than four feet, the finished side will face out, and the caps will be made of material approved by the Board's design guidelines. Ms. Penick seconded the motion and the motion passed 5-0. B. COA 2501-0093 - 314 William Street - Cole Berlin requests to construct a second story addition over this commercial building's flat roof. The applicant was not present. Ms. Peckler, 1410 Prince Edward Street, speaking on behalf of the Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. (HFFI) commented on the drainage system and appreciated the alterations to the design SO that it complies with the ARB guidelines (see attached). Mr. Blackburn and Dr. Smith agreed that this application looks better than the previous ones and that the major issues have been resolved. Ms. Penick and Mr. Jarrell discussed the drainage concerns. They said they can approve this application but the applicant may have to come back for gutter installation. Ms. Ross liked the retention of the façade and the second floor fitting with the streetscape. Ms. Penick motioned to approve the application in accordance with the revised drawings dated March 5, 2025. Mr. Jarrell seconded the motion and the motion passed 5-0. 2 New Applications C. COA 2501-0097 - 1407 Caroline Street - Paul Janney requests approval of the site planning, scale, and massing of a new 1.5-story residence on this vacant lot. Ms. Peckler (HFFI) agreed with staff's recommendation and suggested additional drawings that would be helpful to evaluate the proposal (see attached). Mr. Blackburn appreciated the design approach and agreed with staff recommendation. Mr. Blackburn also discussed the setback of the left wing of the house, commenting on how to make it secondary to the main building. Dr. Smith appreciated what the applicant did with the massing and placement of the garage and said that it generally looked compatible. Dr. Smith recommended that the applicant bring a 3D rendering of the streetscape to better understand the building dimensions and fit into the context of the street. Ms. Penick noticed a discrepancy in the front porch stairs and discussed it with the applicant. She also clarified the grading of the site. The Board discussed with the applicant and the architect about the false dormers on the roof and clarified the setbacks and the need for a rendering to better visualize setbacks. Mr. Jarrell discussed with the applicant and the architect the functionality of the dormers. Chair Ross discussed with staff and the applicant the archaeological aspect and commented that it was unusual to have a dependency look like an addition intentionally. She said she can support the site planning, scale, and massing as presented. Mr. Jarrell motioned to approve the application as submitted. Mr. Blackburn seconded the motion and the motion passed 5-0. D. COA 2502-0098 - 1212 Prince Edward Street - Emily Dudenhefer requests to replace the existing steel shingle roof on this single-family residence with a standing seam metal roof. Jay Holloway, Habalis Construction, spoke on behalf of the property owner and explained the cost difference and how it was prohibitive as well as the condition of the existing roofing. Ms. Peckler, 1410 Prince Edward Street, commented on the durability and quality oft the materials and the higher expense of the shingles versus the standing seam metal. Mr. Blackburn asked about the color of the intended roofing. Dr. Smith said that standing seam metal is an appropriate and sensitive roofing replacement. Ift the original is not repairable, then the change in material is appropriate. 3 Ms. Penick discussed with Mr. Holloway the documentation of the roof, specifically the cost comparison and photos of the existing roof shingles to show deterioration. Ms. Penick wanted to add a condition to the approval that there will be documentation of the existing roof and cost estimate that will be given to staff. Mr. Jarrell had nothing further to add. Ms. Ross discussed with Mr. Holloway the possibility of other shingle companies or other options to standing seam metal. Dr. Smith motioned to approve the application with the condition that documentation of the condition of the existing roof and the price comparison will be provided to staff for the record. Ms. Penick seconded the motion and the motion passed 5-0. E. COA 2502-0099 - 922 Caroline Street - Brooke Landry requests to make alterations to rehabilitate this mixed-used building, including restoring the 1948 storefront and opening several windows and a door facing the alleyway. Mike Hamann, Wack General Contractor, was present to represent the application. Ms. Peckler (HFFI) agreed with staff's recommendation and supported the rehabilitation along with the use of tax credits to help fund the project (see attached). Mr. Blackburn, Dr. Smith, and Ms. Ross agreed that the application was fully compliant and noted the applicant's efforts to work with the ARB in the pre-application process. Mr. Jarrell had nothing further to add and was also in support. Dr. Smith motioned to approve the application as submitted. Mr. Blackburn seconded the motion and it passed 4-0-1, with Ms. Penick abstaining. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT None. OTHER BUSINESS [01:18:18] A. Comprehensive Plan Draft Comments Ms. Schwartz gave an overview and expressed that she was open to accept comments. Mr. Blackburn said that he would submit his comments over email. B. Fall Hill Avenue Medical Historic District National Register Nomination Letter Discussion 4 Ms. Penick urged the Board to give their last comments before sending off the letter to staff to send to the Department of Historic Resources for the March 20 Board meeting. STAFF UPDATE [01:20:06] Ms. Schwartz informed the Board that a work session will be scheduled for March 24, 2025 at 5:30pm. She also notified the Board of the Planning Commission and City Council work session on March 26 discussing the comprehensive plan update as well as the initiation by City Council on April 8. ADJOURNMENT Chair Ross adjourned the meeting at 8:20 p.m. Aaplae Helen P. Ross, Chair 5 HISTORIC Fredericksburg FOUNDATION, INCC 10 March 2025 To: Kate S. Schwartz ksschwartz Ofredericksburgva.gov CC: Planning@fredericksburgva.gov The Historic Fredericksburg Foundation has reviewed the upcoming agenda and related COA documents for the March 10, 2025, meeting of the Architectural Review Board and submits the following comments on select projects. Public Hearing: 10.A.ii COA 2501-0093 - 314 William Street HFFI is pleased to see the modifications made to the latest version of the design of this second-story addition to 314 William Street. While HFFI appreciates the conditions outlined in staff's recommendation, we had hoped the applicant would have provided information about their plans to manage water at the new and existing roof as this data was specifically requested by staff in the applicants' February 10th meeting's COA. The alterations required to meet the proposed conditions of approval will likely impact the building's façade, however discretely they might be made, yet they also play an important role in the physical function of the building's drainage system. How will rainwater runoff be collected and directed from the new north-sloping roof? Creating a new drainage system will be an added expense and introduces new materials at the façade. If rainwater is re-directed to the north and away from the new addition, then new openings, scuppers, and downspouts will be required at the façade. How will these features be accommodated? What parameters are in place exactly to guide their design? Just a few questions that come to mind. Again, HFFI would like to thank the applicant for making modest alterations to ensure the compatibility of their design and the ARB for their leadership in navigating this robust and fairly challenging project through the City's review process. 10.B.i COA 2501-0097 = 1407 Caroline Street HFFI appreciates the relative sensitivity of the proposed new infill at 1407 Caroline Street. It is generally in keeping with the standards and guidelines for the district, yet the simplicity of the architectural drawings and site plan make it difficult to assess the spatial and visual compatibility of this new infill with neighboring resources and surrounding context. Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. 1200 Caroline Street, Fredericksburg, VA 22401 The drawings contain few numbers to quantify the widths and heights of its general form and some prominent architectural features. Where measurements are included, they are somewhat confusing. One example is the 18' - 1 5/8" figure denoting the building's height to the midpoint of the roof that seemingly starts at a point above its brick foundation. The reasons for this discrepancy are unclear. Perhaps the brick foundation is actually below the height of the sidewalk, but then the porch foundation is higher than the main massing foundation? What are the general dimensions of the porch? Those figures are not provided. Without measurements to quantify visually prominent features of the façade and roof, the ARB and members of the public are left to guess about how this new construction relates to its context and neighboring historic resources. How can the overall size, height, and proportions of proposed new infill be adequately assessed without knowledge of some basic benchmarks like the width and height of neighboring buildings and their prominent features? HFFI appreciates the compilation of photographs depicting neighboring historic properties within the 1400 block of Caroline provided in this COA. Digital drafting technologies have expanded the capabilities of depicting scaled renderings of proposed construction in context with the surrounding landscape. With a wide array of software available to model proposed construction in context of the existing environment is an invaluable tool to illustrate compatibility. Using the limited documentation submitted for this project, I created a couple of overlays using the site plan, local GIS, and Google Earth to visualize the placement, scale, and massing of the proposed design in context of the 1400 block (Figure 1 and 2). Given the above average site of the parcel, HFFI believes that the scale, height, and massing of this project is generally in keeping with design guidelines; however, a few modest changes would significantly its compatibility with neighboring resources. We agree with staff's recommendation that the southern extension of the house be further set back from the west wall of the main massing and public sidewalk, perhaps another 5-10 feet further east from its current location to minimize the visual impact of what is already a longer-than-average façade. The largeness of the building's massing would be mitigated by an increased setback of its southern section. Further, if the approval of height, scale, and massing is generally inclusive of the roof form and shape, HFFI requests that additional information, including measurements, provide details on the size, placement, and scale of the roof and its features in context. If the total roof height is roughly 16' and the first floor is a bit more than 10' tall, than is this one- story-house is about the same height as its two-story neighbors? How do the dormers relate to neighboring second stories? How do the dormers relate to the first-floor fenestration? Might these features be better aligned and scaled to suit the size of the roof and still respect the fenestration below? The accentuated front-gable at the façade's south end is another roof feature that could be tweaked to greater compliance with historic patterns in the district. A paired or tripartite window, or perhaps even a brick chimney would be more compatible with the Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. 1200 Caroline Street, Fredericksburg, VA 22401 district and could add further architectural interest. Measurements of the building footprint using Google suggest that its square-footage is slightly larger than the figure included in this application--just over 2,800 square feet, rather than the 2,144 square footage noted in the COA. This another reason to add figures and measurements in architectural drawings submitted for review to make clear to the ARB and members of the public the scale and massing of a proposed project. 10.B.11. COA 2502-0099 = 922 Caroline Street HFFI wants to thank the property owners and their team of design professionals for conducting a thorough physical and archival analysis of this building's history and historic fabric, and using the information gleaned from that work to produce a sensitive plan for its rehabilitation. The work described in this COA is not only in keeping with local guidelines, but also state and federal preservation guidelines as well. As proposed, the rehabilitation plan is compatible with the Secretary of the Interior's standards for rehabilitation and we are pleased to hear that the applicant's plans to pursue state and federal historic tax credits to offset the cost of this valuable and important preservation work. Folks at HFFI are here to assist and support anyone interested in using historic tax credits to protect, preserve, and revitalize historic properties in the Fredericksburg area. Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. 1200 Caroline Street, Fredericksburg, VA 22401 TITI 93f Figure 1: Proposed site plan for new construction at 1407 Caroline Street over recent satellite imagery (Google Earth). Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. 1200 Caroline Street, Fredericksburg, VA 22401 1504 1412 501 500 140 6 IT 1413 1411 409 419 1414 5 105 1410 D5 1415 1408 1403 1314 1413 06 V 1312 1402 1307 1411 - 1409 1400 1310 1323 1319 105 1320 02025 Arus Figure 2: Proposed site plan for new construction at 1407 Caroline Street over FredG/S basemap showing parcel boundaries, address points, and building footprints (FredGIS 2025). Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. - 1200 Caroline Street, Fredericksburg, VA 22401