Meeting Date: January 22, 2025
To: Members of the Park and Recreation Advisory Board
From: Mathias Hughey, Associate City Planner
Charlie Fredericks, Streets and Parks Manager
Title
Recommendation to Designate Central Park (421 4th St. E.) as a Local Heritage Preservation Site.
Body
Action Requested:
The Park and Recreation Advisory Board (PRAB) is asked to recommend to City Council that Central Park (421 4th St. E.) be designated a local Heritage Preservation Site.
Summary Report:
The city may determine certain places, buildings, structures, properties, district areas, or properties within the community are significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, landscaping, and culture and that those locations should be subject to additional review as they relate to the Land Development Code (LDC).
The Heritage Preservation Commission (HPC) initiated an application for Heritage Preservation Site Designation for Central Park, located at 421 4th St. E, at their November 2024 meeting after receiving a citizen request. After submitting the proposal to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) (in accordance with city code and state statute) the HPC received a letter from SHPO describing the nomination as “ideal.” At their January 2025 meeting, the HPC voted to recommend to City Council that Central Park be designated a local Heritage Preservation Site.
City code establishes six criteria that need to be considered in review of heritage preservation site designations. They are:
(1) That the quality of significance in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture is present in districts, sites, buildings, structures, landscaping, and objects that possess integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association; or
(2) That are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history; or
(3) That are associated with the lives of persons significant in our past; or
(4) That embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, or that represent the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; or
(5) That have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history; or
(6) That have a unique location or singular physical characteristics representing established and familiar aspects of a view, vista, site, area, or district in the city.
The HPC made a series of findings to justify the recommendation to the City Council, attached as Exhibit B of the HPC resolution, finding that Central Park met four of the six potential designation criteria.
In establishing the process to designate a local heritage preservation site, city code requires the PC review the application and make a recommendation to City Council, it also provides City Council the option to request the PC provide a statement on the compatibility of the designation with the Comprehensive Plan.
In addition to SHPO’s description of the park as an “ideal” candidate for a local designation, the 1991 Historic Sites Survey identified Central Park as a historic site noting it was, “significant for the retention of its nineteenth-century feeling.” The attached application provides a detailed account of the history of the park, and the justification for designating it a heritage preservation site. The key points are:
1. Central Park was dedicated as a public square on the original 1856 plat for the town. At that time, the surveyor placed a large stone at each of the four corners of the park and surveyed the rest of the blocks and streets using that block as the foundation.
2. The park has retained much of its form, function, and configuration throughout the past 149 years.
3. The park was the subject of two Minnesota Supreme Court cases that are responsible for the retention of much of its historic character.
4. The park is a defining feature of Northfield’s oldest residential neighborhood, predating most or all of the houses in the vicinity.
5. The park was dedicated by John North from his original purchase of 160 acres for use as a public square “for ornamentation and improvement as grounds of pleasure, amusement, recreation, or health.”
Character-defining features of Central Park include:
1. The diagonal crosswalks that intersect in the center.
2. The central circular feature - formerly a fountain, the seat wall and plaza were originally constructed in 1954.
3. The rows of trees around the perimeter.
4. The public square function “…for ornamentation and improvement as grounds of pleasure, amusement, recreation, or health.”
The HPC identified the period of significance as 1855 - 1954 with the expressed intent to include the construction of the seat wall.
By designating Central Park as a local heritage preservation site, any proposed changes to or construction within the park would require a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA). Street projects adjacent to the park exceeding a cost of 1 million dollars would trigger a non-binding review by the HPC, which could submit written comments to the City Council regarding the project.
A local designation for Central Park is not a National Register of Historic Places listing. That is a separate process managed by the National Parks Service, though similar criteria are considered. Central Park would likely be a strong candidate for a National Register listing. A National Register listing imposes no restrictions on the use of a property.
The City Code identifies the criteria to be considered in granting a COA for proposed new “construction, alteration, remodeling, rehabilitation, relocation, or addition to an existing building, structure, or historic object” and additional criteria for the “proposed demolition of a building or historic object.” The criteria that would be applicable to Central Park are:
(a) For all applications, the proposed action fully complies with all applicable requirements of this LDC; (required)
(d) That the proposed action is consistent with… the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Treatment of Historic Properties for sites located within or outside the H-O district; (considered)
(e) Consideration should be given to the amount and quality of original material and design remaining in the building or structure when applying criteria, guidelines and standards; (considered)
Applicable demolition criteria would include:
(a) In the case of demolition, that the structure could not be rehabilitated and used for a conforming purpose with reasonable efforts or whether the structure is without substantial historic or architectural significance;
(b) Consideration shall be given as to whether or not the demolition is necessary to facilitate a defined public purpose;
(c) Consideration shall be given to the length of time that the building or property has remained secured or unsecured, unused, abandoned, substandard and/or vacant; and
(d) Consideration shall be given to clear cases of economic hardship or to deprivation of reasonable use of the owner’s property.
If designated, the future planning, development, redevelopment, and capital maintenance of Central Park would require collaboration between the Heritage Preservation Commission, the Park and Recreation Advisory Board, and city staff.
Staff Recommendation:
Staff recommends a motion from the PRAB to recommend Central Park (421 4th St. E) be designated a local Heritage Preservation Site.
Alternative Options:
The PRAB may recommend that Central Park not be designated a Heritage Preservation Site designation or may table the matter.
Financial Impacts:
NA
Tentative Timelines:
November - Initiate application
January - Review application including SHPO’s comments
January - Planning Commission and Park and Recreation Board review and recommendation
February/March - Public Hearing, City Council review and decision
April - If designated, the ordinance goes into effect