Historic Preservation Committee
Meeting Minutes – January 13, 2011
A meeting of the Mountain Lakes Historic Preservation Committee (“HPC”) was held on January 13, 2011 in the meeting room at the Mountain Lakes Borough Hall. In attendance were Co-Chairs Tom Dagger and John Grossmann, Pat Rusak, Jess Mahony (Nasta), Roberta Matalon and Beth Mauro. Borough Council Liaison, Blair Bravo arrived later. Peggy Bulfer was absent.
Opening Items
Treasurer's Report – John Grossmann reported on behalf of Treasurer Chris Sheasby the following financial information as of 12/9/10. Expenses since the last meeting included $633.47 and $47.97 for postage to John and Peggy; $167.23 to Erie Landmark for one plaque; and $65.00 to Peggy Bulfer for a centennial tote bag for a thank you gift to Judith Waterman - the Rutgers Press editor/designer. Total expenses came to $913.67. Revenue included $400.00 for two plaques; $45.00 for notecards; and $7,547.00 for Centennial Books.
|
Opening balance |
$26,852.03 |
|
Revenue |
$7,992.00 |
|
Expenses |
$913.67 |
|
Closing balance |
$33,930.36 |
Archivist's Report
Pat Rusak’s “state of the archives” report spoke to the current and future need for more space. In the short term, the problem can be addressed by replacing her current work surface with more shelves to hold historic papers and photos. She feels that continued donations of historic photos and papers in the next several years will overwhelm the current archive room.
The committee briefly discussed possible remedies, including storing some materials off-site, as was formerly done in a facility in Fairfield, NJ. Attention to this ongoing problem will be necessary.
Centennial Report
The Centennial Kick-off event was a success with more than 700 Lakers attending! More than two dozen books were sold at the event. The Gala is scheduled for March and tickets are on sale now. Expectations are that the tickets will sell out fast.
Public Comments None.
Old Business
Historic Preservation Ordinance – Tom Dagger reported the progress as status quo. A detailed outline will be discussed for the following meeting.
History Book – John Grossman reported the book has sold upwards of 600 copies of a contracted print run of 1,000. He reported that several dozen copies arrived damaged, but also that the printer shipped 1,075 books, so that the overrun essentially cancelled out the issue of damaged copies and a final check was sent to Rutgers Press.
Historic Walking Tour – John Grossmann played part of one stop of the audio tour through one of two hand held speakers that will soon be available for checkout at the library with companion iPods pre-loaded with the 12-stop tour. The system will be tested by Jess and Roberta before it becomes available to the public. The plan is to have an accompanying instruction sheet and tour map for each iPod/speaker set. Andy Bulfer is working to put the map on the HPC webpages so non-walkers can listen stop by stop simply by clicking on locations 1-12 on the map. The hope is to go live by the HPC Open House on April 1-2.
Oral Histories – No news at this time regarding oral histories. Blair Wilson mentioned that George Wilson, Pete Haas and Pete Ancona might be an interesting trio to interview simultaneously. The first two have already been done, but John Grossmann suggested she inquire of Pete Ancona as to his availability for a solo interview.
HPC Open House - -Roberta Matalon noted general plans for the open house. Vendors are needed for the success of the event. A letter is to be approved and distributed to prospective vendors and other participants. A roster of prospective vendors will be shared along with their responses to the invitation before the end of January.
New Business
New Members – News ways to draw new members are necessary. Various people are being considered.
Other - Morris County Historic Preservation Trust Fund 2011 Grant Application Workshop will be held on January 26th. This was briefly discussed. One or more members of the HPC will try to attend.
Date for Next Meeting
The next meeting will be on Thursday, February 10, 2011 at 7:30 PM in the meeting room at the Mountain Lakes Borough Hall.
Minutes prepared by Roberta Matalon and other HPC member contributors.