 Okay, good afternoon like to open the city of Santa Rosa Cultural Heritage Board meeting April 17th 2024 So miss camp if we could get roll call Thank You chair board member boron board member Carney I'm here Board member fennel It's absent board member Klein Board member Marslyn here vice chair Garrett your chair can't muser here Let the record reflect that all board members are present with the exception of board member fennel who is absent and Board member Carney who is joining virtually Board member Carney go ahead and make your introductions Hi, I request to attend this meeting remotely under AB 2449 and applying the just cause provision of AB 2449 due to contagious illness I will participate with both audio and video turned on throughout the meeting in this room I am accompanied by no one over the age of 18. Okay. Thank you Glad you could make it and hope you're feeling better Okay, moving on to item 2 approval of the minutes Does anyone have any changes to the March 20th 24 draft minutes and seeing no changes? The March 20th are approved as submitted As camper do we have any public comment on item 2 approval of the minutes? We do have public comment in person I do want to just let the record reflect that due to a board member joining virtually we will be accepting a public comment Via zoom or dial-in as well like to use the overhead projector. Are we ready? All right, my name is Dwayne D. Witt. I'm from Roseland and the reason why I'm here to speak with you today Is because cultural heritage often involves more than just buildings specifically Throughout the history of Santa Rosa Native Americans were involved in this area before we even got here and over in Roseland Pomo people some who lived along the area of Roseland Creek were here hundreds of years before anyone else So this Saturday at 10 o'clock in the morning over in Roseland We're doing a Roseland Creek cleanup And we've been doing this for 25 years 24 years ago mayor mark Mike martini came out to visit with us stayed for an hour or two and talked about the efforts to preserve the creek and an oak woodland nearby and other good things we were working on so Up until last year. No other governmental official came to us on any of these days. We do a Creek cleanup on Earth Day, and we do one on make a difference day in October but last year we were fortunate to have the mayor of Santa Rosa Natalie Rogers and District one representative council member Eddie Alvarez. They both came for a few moments They said and liked the effort so much. They stayed for a full two hours before they left They got a chance to see this beautiful area I also bring this up because at the time that this was being purchased by the Ag and open space district six acres to the south of the creek and It was needed to the city of Santa Rosa. There was a discussion. There would be a bikeway in a greenway There was a house on that property and then another property that was purchased most recently by the city outright with Ag and open space helping again Had some other historical houses. They'd actually been called out in the 19 94 southwest area plan as cultural resources But unfortunately the assistant city manager here for Santa Rosa didn't take that into account and went ahead and had them demolished and We were thinking they'd be saved like over where there's a community clubhouse at Doyle Park or there's a house up at Howard Park that was also saved and yet. They wouldn't save the ones over on the west side of Santa Rosa It was disturbing to some I Said don't give up. Let's keep trying to make sure and get every Board and commission in this city to understand that the Roseland area is a valuable cultural resource For the entire city and we hope that perhaps you can come out there Saturday morning at 10 o'clock and see this beautiful area and get a chance to look into your own view of how Creation care goes into account for cultural resources and cultural heritage. Thank you Thank you, Mr. To it. We have any other public comment Looks like we don't have any in the room if you are on zoom and you would like to make a public comment Please raise your hand Well, we're taking public comment for non-agenda manner matters at the moment and seeing we have no raised hands on zoom Chair Muser, I think we're good with public comment Okay, thank you Actually, we were taking public comment on the minutes the draft minutes, but now Now we'll move on to item 3 which is Public comment so and now we are taking public comments on item 3 non-agenda matters This is the time when any person may address the board on manners not listed on the agenda But which are within the subject matter and jurisdiction of the committee recording secretary Can you please provide instruction for a public comment and? Thank you chair if you are in chambers and wish to make a comment Please make your way to the podium if you are on zoom and wish to make a comment Please raise your hand you will have three minutes for your comment an account on timer will alert you at the conclusion of that period We have no public comment here Okay, it's saying none. We will close public comment for item 3 I'm for a board business statement of purpose Principal duties of the board include undertaking and updating historic inventories or surveys recommending designation of landmarks and preservation districts reviewing proposed alterations to historic buildings and promoting public awareness of preservation issues Moving on to item 4.2 board member reports. Do any of our board members have anything they'd like to report at this time? saying none close 4.2 4.3 other business so each year the vice chair is elected by The fellow board members of all the boards in the city's cultural heritage board included The chair just for new board members Which I'm currently serving is appointed by the mayor and typically last Along with the mayor's term So when the mayor is no longer mayor than the new mayor will select one of the board members to be the chair so tonight is time for us to nominate and select another vice chair so at So at this time, I'd like to Open up nominations if any of the board members would like to nominate a vice chair to the cultural heritage board. I would I'm like to nominate Patrick Carney for vice chair Patrick you're good with that Yes, of course Okay, and would we have a second for that nomination? second And we had a very eager second for that with a nomination by Chair Marshal in and a second by vice chair Garrett Miss Kemper if we could call for a vote Thank You chair a board member boron board member Carney board member Carney I'm sorry. Yes. I Board member fennel who was absent board member Klein I Board member Marslyn I vice chair Garrett chair Muser I so it sounds like it passes with six eyes and With board member fennel being absent a moving on to item five department reports Michelle's I know you're stepping in for Miss Murray, but do you have anything you'd like to report? Thank You chair me as our members of the board I'm Jessica Jones deputy director of planning and yes, I miss Murray is out sick. So I am stepping in for her So I appreciate your Having me here today Just wanted to let the board know that The chair is aware of this, but we do have a conflict with this room today. There is a 6 p.m. School city school board meeting and so we do need to conclude this meeting by 5 30 5 45 at the latest That's all. Okay. Thank you miss Jones Statement of abstentions so tonight our items. We're not taking action. We're just making recommendations So I don't believe that anybody but if somebody feels they need to abstain or recuse themselves This would be the time Consent items we have none So now this moves us on to our scheduled item. So our first scheduled item At the request of the cultural heritage board this item has been added to the agenda to review the historic resource survey report Completed for Fremont Park and provide input on the opportunities and priorities for updating the master plan for the park and Our presentation tonight is going to be given by Mr. Scott Wilkinson who's a parks planner, so we'll turn this over to you. Mr. Wilkinson So could I have fun? Who can I do? I'm over here. What can I do? When can I do a public? Oh? You you will after After the Mr. Wilkinson and also any of the consultants he has what makes their presentation I will open it up to a public comment and we'll we'll get you on Thank You chair music members of the board. It's great to be here today We've got just a couple of technical Things we're going to be working through we do have our one of our consultants zooming in and trying to participate as a Panelist here for the presentation I also have with me Eleanor Cox from MIG MIG who provided the research and and Developed the historic resource survey that we've presented and we're going to be reviewing with you today, so We're excited to be here it's been over a year since we were in front of you for this project and When we were we were discussing the merits of the historical Significance of the Fremont Park and Whether or not it was eligible for a landmark status and Also looking at our investigation into renewing and re-envisioning the park for the current to meet the needs of the current community and And It was decided that For both of those efforts Whether whether special status landmark status was in fact going to be sought and to better understand The context going forward with the master plan To re-envision the park that a historical Survey Historical study was in fact Needed so we are pleased to Bring that to you for your review today And we will be providing the results of that whereby recommendations are also around how to Treat some of the character defining elements on on the site as well as like I say Allowing us to move forward with our re-envisioning and master planning process to add elements to really make the park safer and make it more activated and Welcoming for the community so With that I would like to turn it over to Eleanor who is going to sort of walk you through the presentation and we'll be able to answer any questions you have following So we need to step and And miss was it forgive me for clarifying but Eleanor did the historic survey is that correct? Okay. Thank you Thank you. Hi My name is Eleanor Cox. I am a historian. I work with a firm named mig or mig We I work within a group at that firm that specializes in cultural landscape preservation design and treatment and Our understanding is that a few years ago a master planning effort was put forward for Fremont Park at then during that process some questions were raised about the historic status of The park and some of its features within and so an RFP was released by the city We responded and were selected to produce a historic resource study Can you all see the presentation that I'm looking at? Okay There's another Person who's zoomed in today Gia Wilson and David Meyer there with MSLA It's a the design firm that did the original concepts and who we've provided our report for But I'm going to go over the findings of the report first and then I'll hand it off to Gia and David to talk a little bit about how they're going to extract that into the master planning process in overview We looked at the entirety of Fremont Park We Visited the site documented the features and then compared them to historical research in order to Evaluate it under the criteria of both the California and the national registers At the end of the report we provided a little bit of treatment guidance on preservation approach a couple of different approaches the design could Take and highlighted some constraints and some opportunities within the park in terms of research We reviewed historic documents that were provided to us by the city including the original plan put forward by Howard Gilkey We looked at contemporaneous Newspaper articles we reviewed other articles that had been written in the Historical Society newsletter and We reviewed the arborist report which documented existing trees and shrubs within the park We then teased out some of our research into a series of historic Contexts for Fremont Park our understanding is that although it had been flagged previously as a potential resource Nobody had really looked at it and done the analysis yet to evaluate it for historic significance so we sort of started at the beginning we looked at the foundation the Establishment of Santa Rosa. We looked at the establishment of Santa Rosa's parks system and parks Commission And then we looked at the establishment and the design of the park itself and its connection with Howard Gilkey We also compared the local context to national trends that were occurring at the time Just a glance at Howard Gilkey's plan was very it was very clear that he was inspired by both the city beautiful movement and Bozart's design and so we included brief summaries of those movements and later connect them to the design in our analysis We also did a as detailed as we could site chronology. We looked we tried to identify original plantings We tried to identify the original build-out of the park What was constructed? What wasn't from Howard Gilkey's original concept? We reviewed historic photos again the newspaper research was very helpful in this it helped us Established, you know a period of significance during which the original design was implemented and then we looked at Howard Gilkey himself This was a landscape architect who I was not very familiar with before this project But he's a bit of a local son if you will he Went to high school here in Santa Rosa an apprentice with Luther Burbank before he went to the East Bay and both Educated himself and then later taught at UC Berkeley and so I think I learned a lot about this person and I think I Think our report gives him some flowers if you will because landscape architects aren't always Highlighted in the preservation field as our and neither our parks. So I thought it was um This was probably my favorite part of the project was learning about him and looking at some of his other designs in the Bay Area and then After we had teased out all of those contexts. We inventoryed the existing conditions So this is where the photo documentation that we did during the site visit became really important We tried to connect what's there now to what we had determined was there historically and we identified changes over time And we identified those features that convey its original design intent. I Believe that MSLA is going to go into a little bit more detail about those features that we identified So before I hand this off to them I'm just going to summarize the findings of the report the conclusions, which is that Fremont Park is Historically eligible for listing in the state and national registers It is historically significant under criterion a1 and c3 both for its role in city planning here in Santa Rosa and It's association with the establishment of a park system and then also for its both arts inspired design And as the work of a local master as Howard Gilke he had he was inspired by these National trends in design, but he had his own vernacular, which you can really see in this park He used regional plant palette, which was quite forward for that time. I think so so it's it's The work of a master in addition to being representative of these national design trends and we identified a period of significance the design was conceived in 1929 and we ended that this period of significance in 1931 which is when we determined that the fountain was installed So we thought that that was a good period in which to end the original construction It was when all of the major features had been implemented per the Original design intent some things were added later Particularly plant materials and they followed to some extent the original design But that first three-year period is really when the park that we determined to be significant was built We also walked through an analysis of integrity using the seven aspects of integrity that the National Park Service and the Secretary the Interior have identified and determined that the park has enough of its original character intact to convey that early significance And I believe at this point. I'm gonna hand the presentation over to Gia and or David and they will talk a little bit about some of those features that we teased out in the historical report Thank You Eleanor. My name is Gia Wilson. I'm a designer at MSLA and I'll be presenting to you Continuing the presentation of MIT summary of the historical report by going over the reports definitions of character defining features David did you also want to introduce yourself? Yes, I'm here. They've been wire. I am the founder of my studio land architects and my kill key. I also currently Teach with me see Britain. So local connection Great so starting with character defining features We want to start with the central axis the strong north south Access is one of the most prominent features of the park linked by symmetrical plantings on both sides The axis opens up to a lily pond and a cascading fountain at the center of the oval plaza Extends all the way to create a northern pedestrian entrance to the park. Yeah, I think I'm yeah I'm driving. So if you want me to say next slide when you're ready. Okay next slide a Secondary running eat a secondary axis running east west forming forms The east side of the entrance to the park and is framed by two arbors that terminates at the west side of the trellis of the plaza Next slide The stone found cascades to the pond below surrounded by brick and stone edging The fountain featuring the stone head of the ram also has signage for the park seen from the northern entrance of the park next slide The tertiary pathways Sorry symmetrical plantings Symmetrical plantings of use enhance the axis but also disrupt visual connection across the park next slide Tertiary walk pathways split connect and render throughout the park forming an alternative route of circulation next slide The red brick edging acts as a transition element separating the paved walkways from the lawn next slide Large specimen trees and a grove of redwood trees are interspersed on the lawn, which is further divided by the axes in the walkways next slide Modernet magnolias, chinese alms, american alms and deodor cedars form part of the specimen trees that provide shade to visitors during warm sunny days next slide The dense redwood grove forms The west edge of the park and the redwood stand and specimen trees are both character defining features next slide So as you can see this is a summary of all of the character defining features as defined by mig's historical reports including the central axis secondary axis lily pool and fountain Symmetrical plantings tertiary walkways brick edging open lawns scattered specimen trees and the redwood stand next slide So Fremont park significance lies with its association with santa rosa parks and recreation as well as its demonstration of the bozarts designed by gilkey Because of this criteria d3 in the national and california registers of historic places It's strongly applicable to Fremont park next slide Based on the findings of the historical report and the city's vision of the future of Fremont park The rehabilitation approach was selected among treatment options And according to mig's report the rehab treatment advises flexibility and the maintenance of its historic essence of the site while Allowing improvements for ongoing and future use next slide So opportunities to rehabilitate The following intervention interventions are recommended by mig but are definitely not limited To improving areas that have been altered outside the period of significance like the magnolia trees Or the memorial boulders in the southeast corner of the park or the trees in the eastern planter in the secondary axis another another Opportunity for rehabilitation is activating passive park areas like the redwood stand and repurposing the fountain Next slide So we are aiming to have a read to Enact a rehabilitation treatment that would result in a design that clearly reflects skill keys bozarts inspired design concept Uses a plant pilot compatible with historic plant list retains or reinterprets most of the park's character defining features Specifies a new but compatible surfacing material Proposes installation of compatible new active park uses End features and contemporary site finishings including benches, lights, trash bins and signages Uh next thank you Uh so our master plan priorities We also wanted to remind every one of them are to preserve historic integrity promote safety And activate the park for modern use next slide We also wanted to Go over our previous a previous summary of our outreach and design next slide Our previous community surveys that included input from over 200 community members stated safety as their primary design concern Namely friendly recreational areas that lead to community activation follow after with considerably lesser emphasis on keeping the park as it is currently Seeding areas walking past pollinator gardens and play elements leave the pole for features that would enhance the character female park Within the play elements the community opted for ping pong tables and areas to plague chairs with a strong inclination to avoid major sports activities Natural play climbing features and swings for children seem to gain more popularity in order to make this park more family friendly Next slide Like uh, we also wanted to go over some opportunities that align with our master plan priorities next slide We carried forward these valuable inputs and observations from previous design and community meetings for our current process We plan on integrating seating areas walking paths and open lawns And we also took into account the community that the community also showed a preference for paths to sports and gaming features like table tennis and chess uh next slide Natural play and climbing areas along with swings align with the community's desires to activate the park in an inviting manner And design features like the central plaza and central access along with seating platforms would further integrate circulation with species for gathering next slide We also aim to maintain existing trees that are historically significant and in good health as a part of our planting agenda Historical features that convey the design intent of Howard Gilkey like the red brick edging We hope to rehabilitate and restore to its former glory Other aspects like tertiary pathways. We are planning on modifying and alignment with the Beaux Arts nature of the park At the end of our last community meeting there was a common consensus to redesign the park given its current condition As per MIG's recommendation of the rehab approach, we believe that we will be able to meet the community's desires while also retaining the historic nature of the park Next slide We wanted to uh present to you guys some Case studies uh successful rehabilitations of historic parks have been done in the past Today we would like to present to you Franklin Park originally created in 1832 Franklin Park is another historical urban park And this one is located in Washington, DC Next park Poor tree health lack of universal access to terrarium path pest infestations and compacted soils led to a general concern about safety and maintenance of Franklin Park So olden studio and David Rubin land collective were contracted to rehabilitate the park Next slide Through community and stakeholder meetings the design team behind Franklin Park was able to take To bring a new take on the park incorporating updated furnishings planting and programming The team modified the original footprint of the park to improve circulation and programming As you can see from the plans here simple improvements to the original footprint of the park can still respect the original geometry And breathe new life into the community space Next slide Today Franklin Park is a vibrant hub for the community the design team introduced more family friendly programming and addressed community concerns about Accessibility pests and safety leading to the creation of a welcoming park for all Next slide Another success story we would like to highlight is Bryant Park in New York City Next slide Like many historic parks Bryant Park had fallen into disrepair and the community had many concerns regarding safety in the park Next slide While Bryant Park had undergone multiple renovations throughout the years It wasn't until olden's master plan in the early 90s that Bryant Park started to see change As you can see through these images the profile and organization of Bryant Park has undergone some major changes throughout the years Not shown was it stints as a crystal palace for the world's fair a reservoir a cons the construction storage area Olin's rehabilitation included additions of movable furniture adding further programming like movie nights in A cafe salt to attract visitors as well as improving sightlands to up the park to increase safety Next slide After Olin's rehabilitation of the park it became a vibrant urban gem that sees thousands of people every day In our rehabilitation of remote park We hope to follow the footsteps of other great green spaces like Franklin Park and Bryant Park To cater recreational area that serves the modern community while also respecting its historic roots And yes, thank you Thank you. Gia and David and Eleanor for that presentation. Um So you could see from the work that was done that quite a bit of Research was done in terms of the background of the park and then we we were really excited to share a couple of these successful Examples that have been done obviously in other parts of the country but kind of analogous to what we we hope to do do here and In terms of preserving, you know the the elements The the real strong character defining elements of the park and and retaining and or reinterpreting them in a way that can really Create something special for for our community here today in Santa Rosa. So With with that we would love to hear your input and Any ideas you have going forward, but the hope is that We can get some Good feedback on this strategy this approach and then our plan is to re-engage the community In the design process going forward very very shortly this summer Thank you very much and thanks for the great presentation and the I thought that historic report was excellent. I I actually read the whole thing so I would like to if it's okay Kind of go a little out of order and open up public comment at this time because I think we have somebody who's probably Needs to be somewhere else and I want to definitely hear from them and Before we open up board comments. So Ms camp if we could open public comment Great. Thank you. Thank you very very much. I'm jane bender and I think I know some of you I'm here actually representing a lot of volunteers because Quite a few years ago. We did restore the park We had the the fountain going we had the waterfall going We had found the quarry with the original rock that replaced the damages in the In the fountain and in the The bed the garden area And even for the the sign the monument sign out on the street We did it Because the park was just beautiful when we got done with it but unfortunately It has come under disarray. So I was just over there and it doesn't look at all like it did 20 years ago when we put it together But you need to know that there were 30 000 dollars raised that was put into the park A lot of people who had had cancer came to put that together um, I don't think we're attached to where the The sculpture would go if it would even go in that park now um It was not an original Sculpture of course, which we got a little Rashed back of flashback from some of the artists because it wasn't original or local art But it was put together by the block foundation and um, I think it communicates The hopefulness of the cancer disease so anyway We would love to see it brought back To its original form. It was a beautiful park and that That visualizing of the fountain coming down into the the pond and with the fountain Flowing up was just beautiful. So I really hope that you can do it and I appreciate all the work you've done in it But I just wanted you to know and so did the others who worked with it that The stone that's in there. It was the original from the original quarry. So that's You don't have to mess with that one So if there's anything, you know, I can do or ellen bailey or bill Montgomery We were all very active in putting that together and we would be happy to work with you in any way we can and thank you for all your work on it and um It'd be great to see I'd keep it. It's the entrance way to our downtown And that's really really critical That we tell the people coming into the downtown. We revere our history And we love our parks Thank you miss bender. I'm so happy you showed up tonight I've I've been wondering what your comments would be on this because I do remember when When that was done and uh, and how nice it it turned out. So thank you Yeah, I'm sorry. I kept budding in but I didn't know quite where I I was supposed to speak and I wanted to make sure I was heard not for me but for the People who worked on that park and for bill and ellen too Any other public comment? I'm I'm sorry. I'm I'll be more than happy to Be happy to reopen the public comment at that time If there's no other public comment at this time, I'll close the public comment And I'll turn it back to the board for Questions clarifications to either Our consultants or our planner You know, I do have a question. I I know that you know, jane and and uh The rest of the committee did a really nice job. I lived in the neighborhood and remember that and I'm just wondering Why did it become so Bad, I mean who was responsible for maintaining that it seems to me a lot of money was spent a lot of effort was made and And it's in the condition it's in today welcome That's a great question. I I can absolutely appreciate that Maintenance is one thing. I think there are many other factors that have sort of gone into It's fallen into the state of repair that it's in right now and and and and you know part partly One of those factors is actually has to do with Some of the fact that the vegetation is a bit overgrown. It has become a place that has attracted folks To hang out during the day Because of visibility has been limited into the interior of the site So that's been a factor The The surfaces a lot of the the structures there Just haven't been replaced in in in decades, you know So it the time is is is due for it to be upgraded In a significant way And that's why we're really looking at a at a wholesale renovation of the park and want to make sure that we Do it in the best way possible going forward. So Thank you I do have a question Is there regular maintenance of that of freemont park? Absolutely, there is regular maintenance I'm not going to be able to tell you what the the the regime is for for that Maintenance right now. But yes, we it is it is part of our our regular Schedule of maintenance there to maintain it at a certain level. Yeah, and Honestly, you know the drought conditions have also taken a toll on the park the irrigation was turned off Has been turned off a couple of different times in the last several years. And so That has definitely had an impact as well And do you have any idea how often you have an arborist in there to You know from the use limb up the redwoods Um Not regularly at all with an arborist. No, um, most of the uh maintenance is uh performed by our our maintenance crews Park's maintenance crews. Yeah, we did have an arborist evaluation as part of this project and um The the their report is attached to the to the report that you might have seen at the back there Thank you The plan would be then to just relance scape is is what i'm hearing So it would be a total different Plants would be in a different spot and The paths would be repaved. Is that what the what's In line for that Yes, we we're very much um looking at uh the site as a whole to um Re re re landscape replace pathway surfaces um paving Planting irrigation system lighting and and and and and the whole um look and feel of the place With the idea of the strategy and involved of rehabilitation given given it's the historic nature and our desire to Work within that But but still Bring in the desire that we heard from the community during our first round of outreach which was um Quite a robust in terms of of a feedback around adding elements that would provide Features for families for kids to really activate the site In the in the way of picnic areas and seating areas as well as a play area Um, so that's one of the things that the rehabilitation strategy does allow for is the implementation or introduction of Of new uses as long as they are compatible With the historic nature of the park and that we are Really working within um some of those big character defining elements Such as the the the overall layout and framework of the the path network and spatial organization So you would keep the central pathway with the trees on each side and then The recreational things would be often other areas What about the sculpture can it go? Yes It can go. We have actually had conversations. Um, uh, miss bender Reference the block foundation that donated the the sculpture originally I've been in contact with with the foundation and they are amenable to it going away and would actually Help us remove it and um Take it back to their sculpture headquarters and Possibly repurpose some of the parts because as it was mentioned It is in fact not an original piece of art it is something that they've reproduced and Set up in and uh numerous other locations around the country, so I've got a few comments. I I know I sent you a kind of a late correspondence. I I don't know if you got Got it, but Anyway, um kind of specific questions to the um the historic report On as far as the character defining features Um Will the new design retain those character defining features And if not if the features are Will they be eliminated or changed to a degree That um, they're no longer a feature And therefore the park is no longer eligible for national or state Registry in other words, um Are you going to keep those character defining features intact enough so that the national and state registry Remains intact or the possibility for that remains intact or Will they be changed to a degree that our park is no longer historic? Yeah. Yeah, I'm going to um Let uh, uh, miss cox jump in on this But yes, that that is that is our our our goal is to work within the the the the strategy of the rehabilitation considerations to to to do that that That's not necessarily our charge right now. We're we are really interested in in the design And um, but we don't want to preclude or do anything that will would knock us off of that course Yeah, I think that's correct. Uh, the goal as I understand it of the current project planning is to meet the secretary of the interior standards, which would protect the park's eligibility as a State or national resource Uh, I don't think that means that There isn't some room for alterations or modifications to the list of character defining features But I think it it will use them as a framework for planning Uh, so there will be references to the features and wherever possible. They'll be retained repaired or rehabilitated I think some conditions have changed like climate which may just You know, which the design may respond to um With regards to treatment considerations um The secretary of the interior standards For rehabilitation and restoration. Will those standards be followed? I believe that's the goal. Yes currently and we presented two different sets of standards as Good fits for this particular park in the report And in conversations with the city and with the design team Uh, I believe they are leaning towards the rehabilitation approach Specifically to build in a little bit more of that active use So, um with that then what is the current status of the design process? And in particular, I know we had what three or four previous, you know designs Are any of those still on the table or are we starting with a blank sheet of paper or are we with the design? Yeah, great question. Uh, we we we did present four schemes that were um, you know Really taking a deep look at re re envisioning the park and through this process We've we've we've greatly retooled that The scope of that inquiry so that yeah, we we are looking at a new A fresh start at the design At this point going forward and we've been working on a few things with meyer studio landscape architects who are joining us remotely david and gia and But we wanted to run by first off, you know the the the report with you and then also the the basic strategy and the the recommendation to follow the rehabilitation standards that We hope will give us the flexibility to You know meet the needs of the community while also preserving the likely the possibility for Uh Listing the the park property uh down the road David or gia, uh Feel free to jump in here I know that we are a little bit short on time here with another meeting coming in behind us But please if you have anything to share with regard to the design at this point Well, I would say generally uh, Stephen Scott and uh others that you know, we're we really kind of Are intrigued and and love the guilty design on personally of those art stands. So I think as we move forward, we got a great opportunity to integrate a lot of the historic defining features With open arms and so we're looking forward about we are currently looking at studies that We'll be taking going out to the community soon. So soon. We'll have some ideas to share Okay, thank you. And uh, so I guess my first recommendation for the night back to you will be when you get your design Draft put together if you would please bring it back to us At that time, I would give us a chance to review that I guess and and I don't mean to set to to put you on the spot or anything, but I'm just kind of curious What do you feel your role and responsibility is as recreation and parks for the preservation of Historic sites and And cultural historic sites Yeah, I I I think we don't take it lightly at all. We're blessed with some really wonderful historic sites here in town and and and this is one of them That I personally Didn't realize Had as a rich of history as it in fact Does so I I see it as a real great opportunity to you know, celebrate that but and also You know work with the community to to enliven it to to Create a couple of additional uses there that Can bring positive activity downtown someone mentioned it's sort of a gateway to the downtown Zone and and the expansion of the downtown experience there along fourth street. So I just think that we have a really great opportunity to try to try to do both of those things it it presents a bigger A different type of a design challenge. I think then we Endeavored to to at the start of things when we when we came out with the the designs that We did initially so we're we're retooling and And I think that this this presents a real neat opportunity for us to move forward and create something pretty wonderful Thank you. Yes You know both the national park service and the california state park service has preservation The word preservation firmly in their mission statements city of san jose does not and I guess My concern is is And maybe it's an unfounded concern, but that institutionally The recreation of parks department has never seen themselves as an entity for the preservation of resources rather than The replacement of resources as as needed. So I would just like to kind of plant that seed that Because with our historic neighborhoods if we had a historic house and That was to be preserved we would We would fight as a board for that house to be preserved and not to be changed to the point that it's no longer a historic house Once that park is gone that park is gone once once the fountain is gone once the cascading effect It's not coming back and if it's changed so much that it's not even recognizable anymore might as well be gone As well. So Anyway, and that's the function of this board. That's that's why we're here or that's our holes is to preserve the historic and cultural Features of the city of santa rosa Any other questions or comments what I kind of like to do is I'll open it to public comment and then I'm going to come back for any final recommendations To mr. Wilkinson Regarding a project Okay, so with that Miss camp if we can open public comment period If you are in council chambers and wish to make a comment on our item Please make your way to the podium if you are on zoom and would like to make a comment Please raise your hand and you'll get called accordingly And we have our public comment Are you ready? Give me that clock so I know I go by the rules We ready Hello, my name is dwayne d. Witte. I'm from roseland Thank you for all the good comments. Thank you for all the information Santa rosa has admitted that it faces a structural financial Deficit for the next four to five years So first and foremost, I would like you folks to pursue the historic recognition For both under the state and the federal preservation Guidelines make sure that that's in place so that we don't go about trying to fix things that might not be broke Also, one of the reasons why that park has become a bit Problematic is because of the lack of management and maintenance first and foremost So if we can bring that back in this is a Very nice park still It's been said that the uh sculpture can be moved and jane bender who would help to get that sculpture there is comfortable with that So let's take that out Over 60 years ago as a boy. I used to play in the water features at that park So I know it really well And I do believe that we need to keep as many of those original features as they were Just get them back up to top line And have the parks and recreation department Be there to make sure that they are maintained at that this morning The city of santa rosa was having its rainwater Or its uh water conservation committee subcommittee. It was at 130 actually And they were talking about the need for Resiliency Rainwater harvesting could be done at this place if done correctly for sustainability I should point out that in 2008 16 years ago I got a masters in landscape architecture from the united excuse me again university of california at berkeley Where mr. Gilkey is from So I know these things in many ways and I know that low impact development could be due It could be doing so many good things there at this park if we take this on a slower approach and also Bring in hewfew trell and his money from across the street with his nice large seven-story building there now And those park impact fees that come from that type of activity Make sure that we get this worked out with him because He's probably advocating to make sure that the kids that are going to live in his building have a place to go use swings And things of that nature So don't ruin the park that we have Make it better Make it nice for those three and four year olds to go play there like I did 60 years ago And this could be something for them 60 years in the future to bring their grandkids out there and have a really good time So let's look into rainwater harvesting and those water features And do it in such a way that we can also Do sustainability for the underground water there an excellent example was shown today at that Water conservation subcommittee meetings. So please check with them. Thank you very much for your time and all the best to you in the future on this Thank you, mr. Toit Have anyone else who would like to speak this time If you're in council chambers and wish to make a comment on the item, please make your way to the podium Seeing as we have no one making their way to the podium and we have no one on zoom We've no public comment Okay, so close to public comment period and um Mr. Carney See up there on the screen and I don't mean to uh have Ignored you but I might give you an opportunity. Do you have any questions or comments? this time Yeah, sure. Um, thank you all for the presentation Uh, I thought the report was excellent as well. I um Support the listing of this park on on both registers national and california Um, I also support the rehabilitation treatment of the park Um As long as we can keep as long as many of those character defining features That exist today I would think that one of the most important character defining features is that cascading fountain It seems that a lot of the member of the public and um members of board touch on that and I noticed there's um A portion of the report that talks about removing or reducing the water flow and that and And trying to to repurpose that and that would continue to convey as a stark feature I I don't know what that would be. Um, it seems like It as a fountain is what it Makes it what it is, but um, I'm interested to see what that could be but uh I think a lot of people like that water feature Obviously, I know there's climate and and and water concerns, but uh, that that would be um One of the most important features. I think That's all Thank you board. Senator carney Any other um comments recommendations or staff? Um, thank you. I agree with chair muser that the important and with um um I'm sorry patrick That the importance is that we get on the california register and the National register and that we maintain the um As much of the basic original design as we can that Includes the landscaping portion as well as the hardscape. So the obviously the fountain and the arbors I'll come under the hardscape Also the access and the pathways I've lived in the neighborhood for nearly 50 years. Sorry 50 years my kids played in that fountain as well And it's a wonderful park The biggest problem is it isn't maintained. It's dirty. There are homeless people in there. They're people doing drugs and um I Would like to see it stay green. I think that um It's it's this beautiful oasis on a long busy street And there are very few of those green spaces and I think we should celebrate the few we have left So thank you, and I appreciate your presentation, and I really thought the report was excellent. Thank you um So I I have just a couple of of comments or recommendations is um, I really support The character defining features And I would ask that those character defining features Don't get changed to a degree that they're no longer character defining features um And I guess the hard thing I'm I'm Having a hard time getting my head around is we've got a downtown station area plan historic report That basically says the park should be a landmark historic landmark And we have a historic report That your department did that basically said not only should be a local landmark. It also should be a national and a state landmark and I don't understand why it it seems like And hopefully maybe we are but it seems like we should all be on the same page the cultural heritage board the city of san Arosa and the city of san arosa parks and recreation department Basically saying this is an important spot in our city And it shouldn't be changed to a degree that is no longer a historic site So, um, I look forward to a plan You know draft coming back to us That shows that it can be both and I do believe I've said all along from the beginning that I do believe that we can accomplish both. I think we can still keep it within its character finding elements and I think Also the primary ones are that cascading fountain the pond and that Linear entrance coming in and I know one of the recommendations may be replacing the use With some other type of vegetation, but still keeping that that same style And I know law enforcement is concerned about having sightage through the park being able to see but possibly Maybe like at juliard park they can drive through juliard park Maybe there's a way that there could be a path design that The law enforcement could drive through the park and still you know instead of sitting in their car at the curb and having to You know moonscape the park so that they can see across it So those are probably and then um And then following the secretary of the interiors recommendations for precipitation And for preservation and such so and really just putting you know I would hope that when it came back to us We could see that there was an intent of preservation of the park rather than A removal of all the features because I think the first thing that we saw the first four Was basically an elimination of its historic intent any any final comments from Mr. Wilkson or Our consultants No, I think I I I really appreciate all the comments Chair Muser and the board gives us a lot of good food for thought My great hope is that that we can and will be on the same page going forward. So I think that there's there's room to To do both and we'll look at these The details of the design will be where Where the real fun will be had in terms of you know Seeing how we can Accommodate the new uses and attend to The safety concerns the the the environmental concerns with Drought drought tolerant Water saving Elements and also make it a place that celebrates the history So thank you and we look forward to further conversation Okay, thank you very much A great presentation by all. Thank you very much for taking the time and I will acknowledge I know you didn't have to do this And I do appreciate that you did do this you could have just You know gone straight to the city council and not Delt with us at all and and I do appreciate that Okay with that and not saying any other items On our agenda I'll call this meeting adjourned Recording in progress Now reconvening the uh april 17th special board meeting of saturday city schools board If you would all please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance Thank you We will now move on to Let's see Report of actions taken in closed session. There were no actions taken in closed session So with that we'll move on to public comment on agenda items only if you have a comment to make Please make sure you submit a blue card I will be calling out your names and you will have three minutes First we have um, I'll go with Dwayne followed by Catherine I guess you got to put a timer up there so we know I'm on three. My name is Dwayne D. Witt I'm from roseland, but a proud graduate of the santa rosa school system Cook junior high santa rosa high school I'm here to Point out that it's a good thing to have the graduation requirement waivers And the reason why is there's a number of young people who may not Fit all of the specific requirements, but they need to get on with life many youngsters For whatever reasons at 15 16 17 They may already be starting families They may already be working And out there struggling to keep themselves housed and doing different things of that nature When I was young It worked out that they called them a social promotion You got to go to the next class no matter what your situation was because they wanted you to be throughput Get on go forward graduate That's not such a bad idea For young people, especially if they're having to work santa rosa high school had a nice work experience program, which I started in as a junior And I was living on my own as a senior paying my way through And I couldn't do math very well I learned it after I got out of high school