Historic Preservation Committee

Meeting Minutes – May 6, 2014

A meeting of the Mountain Lakes Historic Preservation Committee (“HPC” or the “Committee”) was held on April 10, 2014, at the Mountain Lakes Borough Hall.  In attendance were Co-Chairs John Grossmann and Tom Dagger, Pat Rusak, Mike DeWitt, Chris Smith, and new member Lesley Karczewski.  Absent were Ginny Cassidy, Margaret DeWitt, Brigid Walsh, and Borough Liaison Frank Borin

Approval of Prior Meeting’s Minutes

The minutes of the April 10, 2014 meeting were approved in the form in which they were distributed to the Committee, with minor changes.

Treasurer’s Report

John Grossmann presented the report prepared by Chris Sheasby:

Opening Balance as of 4/8/14: $30,373.33

Debits:

   $876.00        Pat Rusak for digitizing 3,300 Hapgood work orders

   $276.31        Pat Rusak for framed architect’s rendering of the Library given as a gift to the Library

   $221.00        Reimbursement for plaque

$1,373.31        Total Debits

Credits:

  $81.00           Centennial Book

  $75.00           Centennial Book

  $29.00           Historic Photo

$185.00           Total Credits

Closing Balance as of 5/1/14: $29,185.02.

Archivist’s Report

Pat Rusak reported that about two dozen attendees listened to her presentation to the 55+ group on April 25, which included a map of Hapgood’s first community in Shoreham, Long Island, and the newly acquired Pauline Frederick poster.  The HPC, she said, had a great location at the Empty Bowls event and drew a good bit of traffic to the tables where the 1916 map and other historic items were on display.  Merchandise sales totaled nearly $150.  The Committee is nearly out of its inventory of Centennial books.

Pat the upcoming open house for 3^rd graders scheduled for June 9 and 10, and asked for help in setting up for the open house.

Pat discussed the recent project to preserve and digitize the contents of the archives, focusing on Hapgood’s work papers and consisting of 3,300 pieces of paper.

Pat mentioned the difficult upcoming task of copying the 1916 street map.  Lesley Karczewski said that she knew of a company in Philadelphia that copies large maps and would provide contact information at the next meeting. 

From digital coping of historical records the discussion turned to storing the amassing digital files.  Mike DeWitt noted that the Gmail account he has set up for the HPC comes with 15 gigabytes of storage capacity, and for as little as $3 a month that could be increased to 100 gigabytes.  In looking towards backup of archival material and such online HPC initiatives as the oral histories and historic house photos, the Committee approved a motion to fund that expense if and when it would be required, subject to prior confirmation with the other Committee members by email.

Borough Liaison Report

Frank Borin was unable to attend the meeting but communicated in advance via e-mail:

1.         Lesley Karczewski’s appointment to the HPC was approved by the Council. 

2.         After inquiring about integration of the HPC Ordinance into the Borough’s searchable database, he has been “advised by the Borough that it is in progress.”  (Update: As of June 9, the ordinance, which was passed 22 months ago, is still not reflected in the Borough’s data base.)

3.         “An issue was raised recently by Councilman Lester about whether the HPC is taking steps to electronically copy and store its historic records.  The Councilman expressed concern about the longevity of papers maps and records and the threat of future storms like Sandy and believes that it is worth the effort and investment to electronically store that information.”

**Both Archivist Pat Rusak and John Grossmann replied via e-mail stressing that the HPC is indeed dedicated to digitizing key documents in the archives, and, as indicated in the above Treasurer’s report, is taking steps to this end.  

Old Business

Transition to Borough Administration of HPC Account

Nothing new from the Borough on this front.

Plaques

Roberta Matalon is no longer handling historic house plaques.  We need to find a new volunteer to handle this in the future.

Ordinance Implementation

To move forward on the integration of the two sets of street-view photos of the residences covered by the ordinance, Tom Dagger suggested a work day be scheduled for next month, hoping a weekend day might be found suitable for Chris Smith, Mike DeWitt, and John Grossmann.  There was also discussion of the need to update the house-specific information that is stored on the website.

New Business

HPC Display Boards

Having helped staff the HPC tables at Empty Bowls, Margaret DeWitt had suggested to John Grossmann that the Committee might want to have some signage made to help attract visitors at public events.  One such sign might say something along the lines of:  “Find your home on the early Borough map.”  John led a discussion that ended without a recommendation on signage. 

Date for Next Meeting

Tuesday, June 10, at 7:30 p.m. at the Mountain Lakes Borough Hall.

Minutes prepared by John Grossmann and Tom Dagger.