Metal siding decision delayed

The owner of a property in downtown Portland who asked to put metal siding on his building went home without an answer Wednesday night.

Members of the Portland Historic Preservation Commission met Wednesday and heard the request by Larry Iliff, who owns a building at 212 N. Meridian St. Iliff wants to replace siding located on the side of the building that faces an alley.

The existing metal siding is rusted and has some holes, Iliff said Wednesday.

Although replacing something done before the Downtown Portland Historic District Guidelines were established is not covered in the guidelines, the use of metal siding is discouraged by those guidelines.

Commission members delayed a decision until next month and asked that Iliff bring quotes for wood siding and cement board siding to the Dec. 16 meeting. They also asked him to come up with some different color schemes for the metal siding. Iliff is proposing using white siding.

Joe Jarzen, who serves as an advisor to the commission, said this morning that the guidelines do not specifically address replacement of something that was done before the guidelines were adopted.

Although the commission members would like to see the building covered in something other than metal, they could vote to allow Iliff to use this material, Jarzen said. The wood-framed structure originally was a theater. It most recently housed Scorpion Tattoo and Body Piercing.

The front of the building is covered in faux bricks, Iliff said. Underneath the metal siding is diagonal wood siding. Iliff said the wood is in bad shape, but not rotted, and could be very expensive to replace. He plans to sell the building in the near future.

Several commission members said they were concerned that replacing metal on the building would make it look industrial or like a barn. Iliff said to replace the siding with new metal siding would cost $3,000 to $3,500. He plans to do the replacement work.

"We're here to try to preserve this building, but if I don't get this done I can't preserve this building," Iliff said, adding that he wants to get the work completed before snow falls.

"As a building owner, I'd want an answer right now," said commission member Emily Roberts, who owns buildings downtown. "I think he deserves an answer soon."

Commission member Barry Hudson said Wednesday that he didn't feel comfortable making a decision on Iliff's request without first hearing about other options for siding.

Other commission members also agreed that they wanted to hear about prices for other options before making a decision.

"We want to help you make that a better building," Hudson said.

In other business Wednesday, commission members approved the guidelines for the historic façade grant program, with some amendments.

The changes include clarifying that property owners must pay their matching share before they will receive any grant money. Any money the property owner spends on the project after paying the 50 percent match will then be reimbursed through the grant program.

Commission members also voted to change the amount of points that can be awarded for properties that are not located on street corners or along Meridian Street. They voted to increase the maximum amount of points to four from two. Projects are scored on several aspects, including location and the impact the property will have on the community.

After the meeting, Jarzen said a five-person committee, made up of two members of the historic preservation commission, two members of the Portland Redevelopment Commission and Portland Mayor Bruce Hosier, will decide which projects are funded through the grant program. But the projects will have to be issued a Certificate of Appropriateness before work can begin.

In a related matter, commission members decided on a time and location to meet with downtown property owners and discuss the façade grant program.

The meeting will be held Dec. 3 at 5:30 p.m. on the conference room at the Community Resource Center, 118 S. Meridian St., Portland.

Also Wednesday, commission members:

•Heard quotes for billboard rental.

The cost would be $298.08 for one month, plus $100 for the poster, Roberts said. She said billboards are available near Medler's Furniture and Pizza Hut.

Commission members plan to advertise the answers to some common questions that property owners have about the historic district guidelines.

•Learned that some of their terms will be ending in January.

The terms for Roberts and Don Gillespie will end Jan. 20, 2010; the terms for Pat Sheffer, Milo Miller Jr. and Christy Corle end in January 2011; and the terms for Barry Hudson and Jane Spencer end in January 2012.[[In-content Ad]]