Historical Commission

CITY OF NORWALK HISTORICAL COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING. APRIL 23, 2025 VIA ZOOM VIRTUAL MEETING ATTENDANCE: Dana Laird; Chair, Eric Chandler, Mark Jackson, Richard Stein, Elizabeth Golden, Lisa Wilson-Grant STAFF: Michelle Andrzejewski OTHER: Patsy Brescia, Doug Hempstead, Diane Jellerete, Susan Gilgore, David Westmoreland I. CALL TO ORDER Ms. Laird called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Ms. Laird called the roll as reflected above. III. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES A. Special Meeting: March 19th, 2025 Approval of the March, 19, 2025 minutes was tabled until the next meeting. IV. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION CITY OF NORWALK HISTORICAL COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING. APRIL 23, 2025 Page 1 No one from the public was present to comment. V. REPORTS FROM BOARDS A. Norwalk Historical Society; Diane Jellerette Ms. Jellerette discussed the upcoming Earth Day Festival. She also noted at Mill Hill they were having guest speaker David Pogue. David Pogue has written a book on climate change. She described various other events they would be involved in such as the Memorial Day Open House at Mill Hill. She stated Connecticut Open House Day would be on Saturday, June, 14th. She added not only would Mill Hill be open so would the museum by City Hall. She mentioned the event they were having with the Norwalk Village Green Chapter of the DAR called Scouts and Soldiers, Native Americans in the Colonial Militia, and Wars. The lecture will be presented by Drew Shuptar Rayvis. Ms. Jellerette then listed the upcoming Mill Hill Garden Party Concert. Ms. Jellerette discussed Norwalk’s America 250 Commission mentioning their two representatives. She also noted they put together a list of people to invite to participate in various projects.. B. Lockwood-Mathews Museum; Susie Gilgore Ms. Gilgore stated they would be reopening the mansion in a few weeks. She indicated there would be several special tours and events including a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May, 27th. She then discussed the April 10th talk at HTMX. She noted another is planned for May, 18th on the subject of classic car culture and James Melton. She then went on to describe their June 12th collaboration with the Silvermine Gallery. Ms. Brescia provided her update on the construction and the status of their fine arts collection. She noted they had restored the Randolph Rogers statue. She also discussed the restoration of the doors. Ms. Brescia also noted they were having a pre-opening event with the contractors involved with the project. She stated they would be up and running for the summer and the fall. VI. REPORTS A. Buildings CITY OF NORWALK HISTORICAL COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING. APRIL 23, 2025 Page 2 Mr. Westmoreland had nothing to report at this time. B. Cemeteries Ms. Laird said that somebody hit the fence at brookside cemetery. She noted no headstones were damaged and the fence has been repaired. C. Financials Mr. Westmoreland said he’d look into whether the official budgets have been approved. VII. OLD BUSINESS A. Discussion of proposed revisions to Chapter 55 Demolition Delay Ordinance (establish sub-committee) Ms. Andrzejewski indicated it would make the most sense to establish a sub-committee from the Historical Commission to help write the ordinance. Mr. Stein offered to volunteer to be a member of the sub-committee. Mr. Chandler, schedule permitting agreed to volunteer as well. They agreed to meet via Zoom. Ms. Andrzejewski, in response to Mr. Westmoreland, clarified the reasoning behind the proposed ordinance. Mr. Westmoreland was concerned about the need for proper expertise. He was unsure if the members of P and Z had the required expertise. He stated it’s not about planning and zoning, it’s whether or not something is significant historically or architecturally. Mr. Chandler suggested looking to outside sources, Architectural historians outside of the city, and the Commission. Mr. Westmoreland pointed out there would be a funding issue. He also noted an outsider’s potential lack of Norwalk Historical knowledge. Mr. Chandler suggested a possible candidate to sit on the Commission, but the Commission was unsure if they were Norwalk residents. Ms. Wilson-Grant suggested looking into members of the Norwalk Preservation Trust. Ms. Golden wondered if there was a way to openly attract people in the architectural community to fill the vacancies on the Commission. VIII. NEW BUSINESS CITY OF NORWALK HISTORICAL COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING. APRIL 23, 2025 Page 3 There was no new business to discuss. IX. ADJOURNMENT ** MR. CHANDLER MOVED TO ADJOURN THE MEETING. ** MR. JACKSON SECONDED THE MOTION. ** THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. The meeting adjourned at 7:54 p.m. UPCOMING MEETINGS May 28th, 2025 Respectfully submitted China Mayhew Telesco Secretarial Services CITY OF NORWALK HISTORICAL COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING. APRIL 23, 2025 Page 4