pl_l-14-00033_hrc_staff

LAWRENCE HISTORIC RESOURCES COMMISSION

ITEM NO.4: L-14-00033

STAFF REPORT

A. SUMMARY

L-14-00033 Public hearing for consideration of placing the structure located at 1340 Haskell Avenue on the Lawrence Register of Historic Places.

B. HISTORIC REGISTER STATUS

1340 Haskell Avenue is not listed in the National Register of Historic Places or the Register of Historic Kansas Places.

C. REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS

1) History Summary (Information from John G. Haskell Pioneer Kansas Architect by John M. Peterson, 1984.)

The brick structure located at 1340 Haskell Avenue was constructed in 1868 according to the Douglas County Appraiser’s Office. According to Peterson, tax records indicate the construction of the structure may have started in 1866 and continued in 1867 as the valuation of the quarter section rose in both years. The 1868-1869 Lawrence directory shows both J.G. and D. C. Haskell living east of the city. (p.39)

John G. Haskell was born in Milton, Vermont on February 5, 1832. Franklin Haskell, John’s father, joined the second party sent to Kansas Territory by the New England Emigrant Aid Company and arrived in Lawrence on September 9, 1854. Franklin died in January 1857 and John moved to Kansas in July of that same year. Peterson notes that Haskell was most likely more of a building superintendent/contractor rather than architect in his first years in Lawrence. As an architect, Haskell was involved in the construction of the State House in Topeka, designed the Douglas County Courthouse with Frederick Gunn, and was the architect for many structures in eastern Kansas. Haskell designed buildings for Bethany College, Washburn University and the University of Kansas. Lawrence landmarks designed by Haskell include: House building, Plymouth Congregational Church, English Lutheran Church, and the John Roberts House (Castle Tea Room). (Many of Haskell’s well known structures in Lawrence have been demolished including Friends Church, Fraser Hall, Snow Hall, and Pinckney School.) Other buildings of note include the Chase County Courthouse and the McPherson county Courthouse.

John G. Haskell was also involved in the Lawrence community as a businessman and member of Plymouth Congregational Church. He was elected as one of twelve councilmen for Lawrence in 1858 and was elected to the Lawrence City Council in 1866. Haskell died on November 25, 1907.

John G. Haskell significantly contributed to the development of the Lawrence community and the state of Kansas.

2) Architectural Integrity Summary

The original Haskell house is described by Peterson (p.39)

…a fairly large rectangular two-story brick house set on a stone basement. The long dimension was set east and west and the main entrance, through a porch, was on the south. The steep gabled roof was covered with slate and had a tall chimney with decorated cap at each end. Other decorative elements were minimal; curved lintels over some windows and some ornamental brick work under the peaks of gables. The interior arrangement was not unusual; parlor, dining room, and kitchen on the first floor, bedrooms on the second, and storage areas in the basement. The interior trim and floors were oak, the fireplaces were stone, and molded plaster decorated the ceiling in some rooms.

At some time before 1892, Haskell added an addition to the northeast of the house that was two-story without a basement. Peterson notes that this may have occurred in 1883 when J.G. Haskell and family are noted as living on Rhode Island Street. This addition created an “L” shape plan for the structure. In 1892, Haskell again added to the house. According to Peterson (p.203)

In 1892 the Haskells again increased the size of their abode and materially changed its external appearance by putting on what a local newspaper described as “a new $4,000 front.” The new construction filled in the space within the two sides of the “L”, making the house more or less square, and changed the front to the west side. A two-story octagonal tower with a pyramidal roof was erected at the northwest corner. It was attached to the rest of the house by a two-story section which formed a wide entrance hall on the lower floor and a long, rather narrow room above. The main entrance under the extension of the porch led into the hall. The porch, which featured fancy railings and scroll work, stretched across the west side of the house from the door to the southwest corner.

There is a screened porch (date unknown) on the northeast corner of the structure.

Overall, the 1892 form and detail of the house create an example of Queen Anne architecture that maintains significant integrity of location, design, materials, and workmanship that make it worthy of preservation.

3) Context Description

The area surrounding the Haskell House is predominantly residential. Historically, the area was east of the City of Lawrence and was utilized as family farms. The area was not annexed into the city until 1951, according to the National Register Nomination for the Haskell French House. The property is not platted nor is the property directly to the north.

While the historic uses of the area were agricultural and residential, the modern context is quite different in that there is no longer an agriculture use pattern. Though the majority of the properties surrounding the house are residential, the parcels are representative of large tracts of land subdivided for residential development. The property to the west was subdivided as early at 1884 as Steele’s Subdivision. The property to the east is unplatted except for one parcel that was platted in 2004 as Hines Subdivision No. 2.

The property to the south developed as a neighborhood school and is now used as a site of the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence. The property to the north retains the large lots associated with the structures known as “Haskell row” and continues residential uses.

4) Planning and Zoning Considerations

1340 Haskell Avenue is zoned RS 7, Single-Dwelling Residential District. The primary purpose of the RS districts is to accommodate predominantly single detached dwelling units on individual lots. The districts are intended to create, maintain and promote housing opportunities for individual households, although they do permit nonresidential uses that are compatible with residential neighborhoods. The RS Districts are differentiated on the basis of required minimum lot size – the RS7 requiring 7,000 square feet. The current use of the property is residential.

The majority of the area surrounding 1340 Haskell Avenue is zoned RS7 and RS5 for residential use. The property to the south (Boys and Girls Club) is zoned GPI – General Public and Institutional Use district.

5) Fiscal Comments

There are no monetary benefits directly associated with nomination of a structure to the Lawrence Register of Historic Places at this time. However, Chapter 22 of the Code of the City of Lawrence does identify mechanisms for financial incentives. If these programs become available in the future, structures listed on the Lawrence Register will be eligible for participation.

Listing on the local register does help preserve built resources important to Lawrence's history and helps to maintain streetscapes in older neighborhoods through environs reviews.

The original information submitted with nominations for properties to the Lawrence Register is kept on file in the City Planning office for public review and consultation with regard to development projects within the notification area. This type of information is useful, for example, if present or future property owners seek nomination to the State or National Register of Historic Places.

6) Positive/Negative Effects of the Designation

The positive effect of designation is the creation of a permanent record of the historical significance of an individual property, for its architectural quality or its association with a significant local individual or event. This provides the local Historic Resources Commission with pertinent historical data which can help to provide an ‘historic' perspective to property owners when they desire to improve, add on, or redevelop a property within an older section of the City.

The public accessibility of this information is also a resource as it can be used by realtors, builders/developers, and others in the community prior to a property's resale, redevelopment or rehabilitation. In a more general sense, this information can be used by the Chamber of Commerce and existing businesses and industries to ‘identify' one of the facets that makes up Lawrence's Quality of Living.

Additional effects of designation are the creation of an arbitrary, 250' environs notification and review area. Within this 250' circle, projects which require city permits, e.g., demolition, redevelopment, renovation or modification, require review by Historic Resources staff or the Commission. These environs reviews permit scrutiny of proposed development/redevelopment by individuals sensitive to historic preservation.

A Certificate of Appropriateness or a Certificate of Economic Hardship is required to be issued by the Historic Resources Commission before a City permit can be issued for the proposed project. If the Historic Resources Commission denies a Certificate of Appropriateness or a Certificate of Economic Hardship, the property owner can appeal to the City Commission for a new hearing. The City Commission can uphold the decision of the HRC or it can grant the proposed development over the Historic Resources Commission's action. Certificates of Appropriateness or Economic Hardship are required for a project within the 250' radius of a Local Register property.

Examples of projects which would require review and approval are: projects involving the exterior building which are considered ‘structural' changes, demolitions or partial demolitions. Minor changes which require a city permit can be administratively approved by the Historic Resources Administrator.

7) Summary of Applicable Designation Criteria

Chapter 22, of the City Code is the Conservation of Historic Resources Code for the City of Lawrence. Section 22-403 of this code establishes criteria for the evaluation of an application for nomination to the Lawrence Register of Historic Places.

D. CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION AND DESIGNATION - Section 22-403

Nine criteria are provided within this section for review and determination of qualification as a Landmark or Historic District. These criteria are set forth below with staff's recommendations as to which this application qualifies for:

(1) Its character, interest, or value as part of the development, heritage or cultural characteristics of the community, county, state, or nation;

(2) Its location as a site of a significant local, county, state, or national event;

(7) Its embodiment of design elements that make it structurally or architecturally innovative;

(8) Its unique location or singular physical characteristics that make it an established or familiar visual feature;

(9) Its character as a particularly fine or unique example of a utilitarian structure; including, but not limited to farmhouses, gas stations, or other commercial structures, with a high level of integrity or architectural significance.

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The HISTORIC RESOURCES CODE establishes a procedure to follow in the forwarding of a recommendation to the City Commission on applications for listing on the local register.

"Following the hearing the commission shall adopt by resolution a recommendation to be submitted to the city commission for either (a) designation as a landmark or historic district; (b) not to designate as a landmark or historic district; or, (c) not to make a recommendation. The resolution shall be accompanied by a report to the city commission containing the following information:

The Historic Resources Commission needs to formulate its recommendation in response to the following subsections section 22-404.2 (b):

(1) Explanation of the significance or lack of significance of the nominated landmark or historic district as it relates to the criteria for designation as set forth in section 22-403;

(2) Explanation of the integrity or lack of integrity of the nominated landmark or historic district;

(3) In the case of a nominated landmark found to meet the criteria for designation:

(A) The significant exterior architectural features of the nominated landmark that should be protected; and,

(B) The types of construction, alteration, demolition, and removal, other than those requiring a building or demolition permit, that cannot be undertaken without obtaining a certificate of appropriateness.

(4) In the case of a nominated historic district found to meet the criteria for designation:

(A) The types of significant exterior architectural features of the structures within the nominated historic district that should be protected;

(C) A list of all key contributing, contributing and noncontributing sites, structures and objects within the historic district.

(5) Proposed design guidelines for applying the criteria for review of certificates of appropriateness to the nominated landmark or historic district.

(6) The relationship of the nominated landmark or historic district to the on-going effort of the commission to identify and nominate all potential areas and structures that meet the criteria for designation.

(7) A map showing the location of the nominated landmark or the boundaries of the nominated historic district.

E. RECOMMENDATION:

Staff recommends the John G. Haskell House located at 1340 Haskell Avenue for designation as a Landmark on the Lawrence Register of Historic Places pursuant to Criteria #3 and #6 as described in Section 22-403.

If the Historic Resources Commission recommends this property for local nomination, the Commission should adopt a resolution for recommendation to be submitted to the City Commission for designation as a landmark. In addition to the resolution, the Commission should direct staff to prepare a report to accompany the resolution including the information set forth in Section 22-404.2(1) - (7) and the environs definition.

Staff recommends the following for the report to the City Commission:

(1) Explanation of the significance or lack of significance of the nominated landmark or historic district as it relates to the criteria for designation as set forth in section 22-403;

The Haskell House is significant for its association with John G. Haskell and its Queen Anne architecture.

(2) Explanation of the integrity or lack of integrity of the nominated landmark or historic district;

The structure maintains significant integrity of location, design, materials, and workmanship that make it worthy of preservation.

(3) In the case of a nominated landmark found to meet the criteria for designation:

(A) The significant exterior architectural features of the nominated landmark that should be protected; and,

The wood windows, two-story octagonal tower with a pyramidal roof and porch details should be protected.

(B) The types of construction, alteration, demolition, and removal, other than those requiring a building or demolition permit that cannot be undertaken without obtaining a certificate of appropriateness.

Alterations to the windows, porch and siding should require a Certificate of Appropriateness.

(5) Proposed design guidelines for applying the criteria for review of certificates of appropriateness to the nominated landmark or historic district.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, published in 1990, and any future amendments, in addition to any criteria specified by Chapter 22 of the Code of the City of Lawrence, Kansas.

The HRC may also adopt An Analysis of the Environs for 1300 Haskell Avenue and delineate how environs review will be conducted in relation to the listed property.

A primary goal of the HRC is to build a Register of properties which show the diversity and growth of Lawrence since its inception. The nomination of this property is another step toward registering a wide variety of historic properties which together present a visual history of Lawrence’s past. The goal of the Lawrence Register of Historic Places is to represent all socioeconomic strata; businesses and industries which illustrate the diversity that has been prevalent in Lawrence since its inception.

(7) A map showing the location of the nominated landmark.

See attached