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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-03-18 Old Center Historic District Commission Minutes Old Center Historic District Commission Meeting Minutes March 18, 2026 Present: Roger Lawson, Lisa Roberts, Laurie Belsito, Michael Lenihan, Ryan Schruender, Dan Leary, James Dowd The meeting was called to order at 6:02 p.m. in Select Board Meeting Room at Town Hall. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Public Hearing— Certificate o f Appropriateness for 2 Johnson Street. This would allow!for a metal sign to be placed to the right of main entrance. R. Schruender made a motion to open the public hearing for a certificate of appropriateness for 2 Johnson St. and D. Leary seconded the motion. Nancy Phillips, the applicant, presented a gold tone metal sign 24"x5" to be placed to the right of the entrance at 2 Johnson St. as pictured in the handout. There was discussion as to where exactly the sign would be located, with suggestion to put it under the current sign for Silver Shooter Photography, yet ultimately settling on the original location to the right of the door. The signs color scheme was also discussed with L.Belsito bringing up that other recently approved signs in the area were directed to have a black background with gold lettering. There was general agreement that the sign being proposed was small enough and had the general look of something the commission would approve. There was discussion about other signs in the area, including signs that never came before the commission for approval. N. Phillips said this was a sign she used at her old office and would be open to something else in the future if she were to replace it. R. Schruender made a motion to close the public hearing for the certificate of appropriateness for 2 Johnson St. and I Dowd seconded the motion. R. Schruender made a motion to approve the sign as presented for 2 Johnson St. and L. Roberts seconded the motion. There was unanimous approval. There was general discussion about coming up with a standard for signs in the district and current signs in the area. R. Lawson mentioned he would reach out to town council to see if we would need to pursuit a bylaw regarding a sign standard. R. Lawson discussed the possibility of requesting a tour of the North Parish church as renovations the commission approved to go forward were finally underway. There was also an announcement that the Grange building was going to begin renovations as well. J. Dowd brought up historic district signage examples stemming from the past proposal that came before the commission and R. Lawson proposed the commission provide approved examples to Jean Enright by the fall as our recommendations. He went on to discuss a recently discovered bell from the old Merrimack School they were looking for a home for M. Lenihan proposed working it into the new Kittridge school plan. There was more discussion about the condition of the bell and history of it as well as other possible ideas for placement. The bell is currently located at DPW and J. Dowd offered to put anyone interested in touch with the right people. R. Lawson mentioned a group formed called Fiends of North Andover Common like the existing Friends of Memorial Park under the Improvement Society. The group was formed as a way to target upkeep of the common. He mentioned changing the lighting to a softer light was a current project they are working on. Types and costs of lighting and possible Junder sources were discussed. Approval of'the meeting minutes from 1/28/26 R. Schruender made a motion to approve the meeting minutes from 1/28/26 and D. Leary seconded the motion. There was unanimous consent. The meeting was adjourned at 7:00 p.m.