Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/02/1994 - Regular Minutes - Historic Preservation Committee HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 1994 - 7:00 PM CENTRAL PARK CONFERENCE ROOM 1000 KRENEK TAP ROAD MEMBERS PRESENT: Gary Halter, Chairman; Deborah Jasek, Joan Lamkin, Lois Beach, Bill Lancaster, Gary Basinger, Greg Keith MEMBERS ABSENT: Mary Jane Hirsch, Florace Kling, Vernon Schneider STAFF PRESENT: David Gerling, Special Facilities Superintendent I. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 7:07 p.m., by Lois Beach. II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: There were no corrections to the minutes for the February 2, 1994, meeting. A motion was made to approve the minutes and seconded. The minutes were approved with no further discussion. III. REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS: No new applications to approve. IV. DISCUSSION OF NORTHGATE PRESERVATION WITH CITY PLANNING DEPARTMENT: Gali Dolev with the City Planning Department was present to go over the list of questions for the committee to use when interviewing people about Northgate. On the fourth question, Gali stated her impression of Northgate was that it achieved significance during the 1930's - 1940's, and possibly the 1950's. Deborah Jasek said she has found information on Northgate further back than. Her information shows seven businesses located there in 1929. Gali stated that the old pictures she has from the early 1940's show the big buildings around it. Somewhere in between 1929 and the 1940's is when the area really grew. She doesn't have any documents from that in- between period, however. From the aerial photos it shows that the residential areas there grew up in the late 1940's and 1950's. Deborah said that everyone lived in on- campus housing until 1941, including the professors. There were some that lived in Bryan. The first subdivision in College Station was developed in 1921, but that was not in the Northgate area. Greg Keith asked if Gali had used the Sanborn Insurance Maps as a resource. Gali said she had seen them. Greg said they were maps created for insurance purposes. Sanborn had the southern half of the U.S., the insurance companies were located elsewhere and would not insure a company /building if they didn't Historic Preservation Committee Wednesday, March 2, 1994 Page 2 know what was there, so they had a team of men who would go around and draw the footprint of the buildings, using different symbols for year built, how many stories the building was, etc. Greg said the maps date back a while and would probably include some of the earliest buildings. He feels they would be an excellent source of information. A library in Austin has a complete collection, and he will find out which one. They would probably have them in the A &M Library in the map section or at the Bryan Library. Gary Halter said he was familiar with the maps, and that they had been used to try and locate the original Carter home when the park site was being developed. The Carter home was probably gone long before the maps were done. David Gerling said another date would need to be set to meet with Planning to discuss what information the Committee had been able to gather. It was decided that the next Historic Committee Meeting on April 6, 1994, would be the best time. Gali asked everyone to turn in information as they get it so that she would have something to work with. Her phone number at City Hall is 764- 3570, and she said she's there mostly in the mornings if anyone wanted to drop anything off. Deborah Jasek said she had found a couple of things she wanted to share with the Committee. She researched some of the old business ads to see how far back she could go to find an ad that said something about College Station. In December, 1889, W.C. Boyett had an ad specifying "groceries and school supplies for sale in College Station ", in the Battalion, on page 28. In 1907 there was an ad for "Charlie the Tailor ", located north of Gathright Hall on campus, (he later moved the business to Bryan). Deborah said that at one time, there were a number of businesses on campus - a grocery store, and a card /confectionery shop, to name a few. In October, 1928, there were a couple of laundries, and a stationery shop that sold pens and pencils, etc., advertising in different halls, where they would set up little stores /booths. She found out that Lipscomb Pharmacy was first mentioned in October, 1928. In October, 1929, she found ads for: Aggieland Studio which said it was located outside of Northgate; Ben Youngblood, a college tailor located in the Boyett Building; the campus grocery which was owned by the Boyetts; and, R.W. Ivey, the barber, who was located in the Aggieland Barber Shop next to Aggieland Drugs. Bill Lancaster said there was a possibility that Ivey's daughter still lives here. Deborah said that George B. Shaw ran the College Coffee Shop which was by A.M. Waltrip's store. Gary H. said that Waltrip was where Martha Camp's place is now. Deborah said that the Campus Theater opened in 1940 because in the 1945 Battalion in a section called "Way Back When Memories ", it stated that the Campus Theater had opened five years before. She also found an announcement about the Aggie Student Co -op, run by Ed Garner, located one block east of Northgate, which sold bicycles, etc. Bill Lancaster said that Ed Garner lives next door to him at present. Gary Halter said that the same building is a bicycle shop now as well. Next to the Co -op and adjacent to the Catholic Church was the bus station. The station (for the Kerrville and Greyhound Bus Lines) was moved off of campus on May 3, 1945. When on campus it was at the Aggieland Inn. Greg stated that on either side of the current Bicycle Shop there's half a storefront lot, and wondered what used to be there. The National Bank was on one side and on the other was the bus station. Bill Lancaster said that the wife of the man who used to run the bus station is still living. Her name is Mrs. Joe Barron now, and she would remember the bus station. Deborah said she would continue searching. Deborah said something else she found which was interesting was that in the 1940's parking was banned by the City Council on College Main. She has all the dates of the newspapers she looked at. Gary said that the Committee should try to contact everyone and get their forms back by the next committee meeting. He asked if anyone had agreed to interview North Bardell. No one had, so Gary said he would talk to him. Lois Beach said that when Colonel Walter Parsons wrote the Brazos County Book, he gathered together a lot of information. He just recently died, but his Historic Preservation Committee Wednesday, March 2, 1994 Page 3 daughter Ann O'Neal, has all his papers. She also asked if she should talk to John Rainey at Texas Aggie Bookstore, to see if he might have any old pictures or papers since he owns that building. Gary H. said it was a good idea. He asked if everyone knew who they were supposed to talk to. Greg said he'd talk to Don Ganter about the Campus Theater, and try to research who owned it when it was opened. Bill Lancaster said he'd talk to Jack Zubig, Lauterstein and Hornak. He said that a history of the First Baptist Church had been written and he would get a copy of that. L.A. Maddox is the historian or archivist for the church and Bill said he would check with him to see what he had. Deborah J. said she'd research St. Mary's. Joan said she'd check with the Church of Christ to see what she could find out, even though the church is going to be torn down because of severe structural problems. Joan said according to the state archives, the church does not have that much significance as a historical building even though it was built in the mid 1930's. She said Mark Sicilio was trying to get the building saved. Lois Beach said she'd contact someone about the Presbyterian Church. Bill and Joan suggested she talk to Will Worley. Gary H. said he'd do Loupot. University National Bank doesn't exist anymore and most of the people are gone now. Someone suggested that Taylor Reidall (sp ?) or John Willingham may know something. Lois said she'd contact Mrs. R.H. Mitchell. Deborah said she would talk to Martha Camp. The Lipscombs on the list are not the Lipscombs that the Committee needs to talk to. Bill Lancaster said that Lou Cashion may be able to give someone some information - her uncle was married to a Lipscomb daughter. Gary Basinger said he'd talk to George Boyett and Red Cashion. Bill Lancaster said he'd talk to Allister Waltrip. He also stated that at one time, George Shaw had some hamburger stands on campus behind Heaton Hall. V. PRESENTATION BY DR. GODBY ON COLLEGE STATION DEPOT PROJECT: David Godby told the Committee that he was not a Doctor, but he was honored to accept the honorary degree! He's with A &M and said that he was there to discuss the possibility of becoming partners with the Committee to work on the project of reconstructing the depot which gave College Station its name. He stated that he was there as a private citizen and that if any information got out to the news media, it could kill the project. He is a registered architect and his title is Assistant Director of the Physical Plant. He heads up a group called Engineering and Design Services, an in -house architectural and engineering firm. They design all types of projects for A &M and he personally supervises all that work. Once a building is built the University owns it and is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep. At A &M there are 700 buildings, totalling 15 million square feet of space. He feels that part of his job is to learn about the history of the city and A &M. He passed around some pictures of the depot that the archives had blown up for him. From those prints you can see more detail in the building. He's met with Gary Halter before and one of the things that struck him was that as traditional minded as A &M is - they didn't have the 1883 Victorian building that gave the town its name. One of the reasons the site for A &M was chosen here was that the 2,400 acres donated for the college was on a railroad. That's why the idea is to build a depot as close to the original as possible (colors and everything) as a full scale museum piece, with the City of College Station and the University going half and half on the cost. His first calculations are that it will cost about $100,000. He has talked to Barry Moore, an architect in Houston who has done historical preservation before (he's the one who renovated the opera hall in Columbus). Barry agreed with David's figures. The building will only be about 1,000 square feet, but the cost will be about $100 per square foot because of all the hand work that will need to be done in a building of this type. David stated that he is also the advisor for class gifts, and he will be meeting with the 1994 class gifts chairperson. The amount spent on the 1991 class gift Historic Preservation Committee Wednesday, March 2, 1994 Page 4 was $75,000 for an eagle statue, and the class of 1993 had about $50,000 to spend on new letters for Kyle Field. Various gifts will be discussed at the meeting, but the depot is the gift that David would like to see them do, because this is beyond another trinket for the campus, its represents all the history of A &M and how difficult it was to start the college. There is a place to put the depot, which is not far from where the original stood. The land has just a few trees on it, which would be reminiscent of how it was then - 2,000 of the original 2,400 acres had no trees on it, and only a few buildings. All the trees on campus now were planted, except those that run along the creek. The depot would not be a big building - 700 square feet inside, 1,000 - 1,200 square feet total with the overhang. David said he would like to see it used as a museum dedicated to the early days of A &M, which originally started out as a classical school teaching Greek and Latin. When the Governor found out, President Gathright and his faculty were gone. They finally got the mechanical part going, but it was difficult getting the agriculture portion going because the boys wanted to go to college to get off the farm, not to go back to it. It's not widely known, but it wasn't until after the first World War that the college took off as an A &M college. It took a long time and a lot of struggle. David will let the committee know how the meeting goes with the class gift chairpersons. He will recommend that the depot would be the most significant of the gifts to be considered. The class then has a vote and the chairpersons will have the money raised - generally they can raise whatever they want - usually somewhere between $50,000 - $100,000. But it makes sense to be a joint project with the City. The Board of Regents would have to approve the location of the depot if the class votes to do this project. Gary asked David about the long term prospects of LOTRAK. David said the chances were slim. He said he thought it was a definite possibility for George Bush to have the street go under the tracks like it is on University - its cheaper and easier for the cars to handle the slope, but it is extremely expensive. Gary said the reason he brought it up was that it might create a siting problem, but that the depot would probably be a building which would be easy to move, if necessary. David Godby said that some people had suggested that the depot be the AmTrak stop, but he said there would be problems with ADA and OSHA which would be in conflict with having this as a museum piece. There will not be a lot of room inside - just enough to tell the story of the early days - the founding of A &M up until perhaps the first World War. He said a lot has been heard about Earl Rudder and others, but there were a lot of people who went before Rudder who worked hard to get the college going, and unfortunately they have been almost forgotten. Gary said that the depot which would be built is not the depot most of the older Aggies remember. He also stated that the Committee would have to get Council approval to pay half of the cost. Greg said he could make some changes to the book before it goes to the City Council. Gary said it would be better to wait and see what the Class of 1994 says, before approaching the Council. Gary said that there is a bench that someone has said he would donate if a reconstruction was done, which was actually at one of the depots. David Godby said that once the depot project was approved and underway, his area would manage it but that they would probably bring in a specialist architect who would finish the research. He feels that information could be gotten from the archives of the railroad lines. Gary said that this had been tried before, with both the railroads being very cooperative, however, they said there were no plans for the depots - they were generic stations that were moved here and set up. Greg said that it would be good if perhaps old ticket stubs could be found to place in the museum. Gary H. said there was a ticket in the archives from the last train out of College Station back in 1957 or 1958. David Godby said the people in the archives are very eager to help with the project. He also said that there was a lot of stuff from Cushing that could be donated. So much in fact, that they probably don't even know what they have - possibly things that came from the station. Gary said some exterior things could be added which could be donated Historic Preservation Committee Wednesday, March 2, 1994 Page 5 or gotten inexpensively. David Godby said that some track could even be added and an engine gotten. There is a railroad museum in Galveston which would be a good contact on how to go about getting an engine. This was something that could be added later. Joan Lamkin asked if the historical plaque for the railroad depots would go at the site. Gary Halter said that the state will allow you to move a marker but you had to get permission. He felt that the state would not object to moving it to the depot site. Greg asked David Godby about the old cornerstones stored in a greenhouse in Hensel Park. Gary said that Rick Floyd gave him a list of those cornerstones, which buildings they were from, and where they were stored. Rick talked to Gary and suggested he call Bob Walker with the Development Foundation. Gary talked to Bob Walker and asked him to consider incorporating those old cornerstones into the design of the new building the A &M Development Foundation will be doing. Gary stated that Bob seemed to like the idea. David Godby said that it was his understanding that those cornerstones were supposed to go to the archives and that the archives people should already know about them. Greg asked David Godby if he was aware that the brass plates on the cornerstones, which named the building it came from, had been stolen. David said he was not aware of this. Gary Halter said he knew that two of those cornerstones had been incorporated into other buildings. Hart Hall, for example, has the old cornerstone for the original building that was on that site. Gary said that according to the list Dr. Floyd gave him there aren't very many of those cornerstones left. Greg asked if the Gathright Hall or Old Main cornerstones had survived. Gary H. stated that he did not believe so, but that at one time there was a small park area by the registrar with a small plaque that said "original site of Gathright Hall" (torn down in the 1930's). The "park" had been removed, however, when the sidewalks in that area were redone, and it was never put back. David Godby said he would be in touch after he talked to the class gift chairpersons. VI. DISCUSSION OF ROUND TOP INFORMATION: Gary H. said the proposal is finished. The downside is that the cost will be about $6 million and that includes an endowment. He passed around pictures of the buildings that Steve Beachy took when he visited Round Top. There is also a book that describes each of the houses, including a complete architectural drawing of most of the houses. The idea is to move these buildings to College Station and put them on campus near the George Bush Library. Gary doesn't feel that the project will happen, unless a foundation in Texas comes forward and donates money. The question is how does this fit into the local history? Round Top does not know about this move as yet. * *Due to mechanical failure, the minutes from this point forward were not recorded. VI. OTHER COMMITTEE CONCERNS: VIII. ADJOURN: The meeting was adjourned at 8:05 p.m. HISTORICAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS FOR NORTHGATE PRESERVATION Resource Name: Address: Owner: What was the role that the owner / church / person played in the history of Northgate? How is the building related to the development of the community in Northgate? What were some historically significant events and / or patterns of activity associated with the property? General description of Northgate during the periods when it achieved significance. Who were the main active personalities involved with commercial, churches, residential areas? Are there any documents on the buildings and Northgate? Historic photos, old drawings of the outside of the building and the inside , maps etc. Who were the persons responsible for the design or construction of the property? What is your opinion on preservation of the area and the buildings, and on the demolishing and rebuilding of the area? Are there any specific buildings that you feel need to be preserved?