Historical Commission Meeting Minutes - February 19, 2025

Historical Commission Meeting Minutes
February 19, 2025 @ 7pm
A hybrid meeting was held both via Zoom and in person at the Township building.
Call to Order – Meeting was called to order at 7:06 PM
Pledge of Allegiance
Roll Call of Members:
Commission Members Present: Patty DeFroscia, Tom Parr, Donna DiPrinzio, Mark Evans, Lorraine Tindaro, Jamie Evans
Commission Members Absent: Leah Jennings and Cathy Callahan
Staff Members Present: Don Vymazal and Abbey Swan
Professionals Present: NA
Guests Present: Mike Bedrick, Chris Parr, Eric and Laurie Sekinsky
The Historical Commission February 19, 2025 agenda was posted on the Township website and at the township building on February 18, 2025. Agendas were made available to the public at the meeting. The 2025 Historical Commission meeting schedule was published in the Daily Local News on December 18, 2024.
Public Comment –
Approval of 1/7/2025 and 1/15/2025 Minutes
Both minutes were approved unanimously

1. New Business:
   1. Judges Needed for National History Day – The Chester County History Center is seeking volunteers to judge student projects for National History Day. The contest will take place March 21-22 in West Chester. Anyone who’s interested should contact  [email protected].
   2. 250th Grants – The group discussed potentially applying for a grant to help host America 250 events. A grant round will be open April 1 – May 15. Grants are available for $5,000, $10,000, or $20,000 with a 50% match required. There are a variety of areas to which grants can be applied. After brainstorming some ideas, the group agreed to think about next steps before the March meeting.
2. Old Business:
   1. Lincoln Highway Historic Marker Project – Patty updated the group on the Lincoln Highway Marker project stating that OCHS member Tom Fluck volunteered to take the lead on finding out more information.
   2. Review Letter for Endangered Resources - Tabled
   3. 2025 Hybrid Meeting Requirements – The commission reviewed the policy that was adopted by the Board of Commissioners. All generally approved of the policy and asked Abbey to update the policy to reflect the Historical Commission’s unique situation.
   4. Historic Preservation Ordinance – Historic Resources List - Tabled
   5. 2025 Event Planning
      1. Spackman Farm Picnic – The picnic is coming up on June 28th. Last year we had between 100 and 150 and would like to aim for 200-300 this time. Last year we rented two Krapf buses to shuttle people for $2257, plus 3 porta potties for $500. The total cost of the event was $7,742.72 so we should plan to spend at least that much again this year. Abbey will line up the buses with Krapf. Chris Parr reported that from a parking perspective, the two buses worked well, despite a few minor issues. The group discussed logistics about setup for the tables, registration, and other event elements. Abbey suggested that check-in could be done digitally or in the parking lot depending on the site you use to sell tickets. Food options were also discussed – most agreed that food trucks would be easier than pre-selling food. Mark suggested that perhaps some elements of the Town Tour dramatization could be incorporated this year. The group discussed finding a balance between fundraising opportunities for the farm and hosting an event for the township public. We agreed to look into sponsorship opportunities as well. Don explained that the group will have to complete the public event application with layout and other details.
      2. Scanning Event – The group discussed hosting an upcoming scanning event at one of the historic properties.
3. Sub-Committee Reports:
   1. Membership – There are three open seats on the Commission, currently
   2. Events – Covered above
   3. Spackman Farm – The roof and porch are complete and we’re just waiting on snow guards. Adding dehumidifiers to the basement is next.
   4. Marketing And Social Media – once we iron out details for the Spackman picnic we can start advertising. Abbey offered to put out a general Save the Date on social media. The group will decide at a future meeting where to spend advertising budgets (Donna suggested County Lines Magazine).
   5. Historical Preservation –
   6. Caln At Risk – Lloyd Farm: no update, Mainline Health was before the Planning Commission. Vicker’s House – when Tower Health sells, we’ll approach the new owners about tarping the roof. Caln School will be discussed later this year. Pumphouse on Lloyd Bridge – Tom and Mark will reach out to the Downingtown Borough Council.
   7. OCHS Liaison Report – OCHS held a talk on the Mills of Chester County and another one coming up on April 6th at 2:00 on the Barns of Chester County at the Thorndale Fire House. May 3rd is the Flea Market and OCHS needs donated items to sell. May 4th is the first open house at the Meetinghouse and the dedication of the repaired mounting block. They’ve also got volunteers interested in working on the oral history project again. Mark suggested they talk to Dan Jefferis and his wife. Abbey will send out a Sign Up Genius to the group to sign up for schoolhouse tours.
   8. Finance Update – No expenditures to date – the budget is still at $20,000. Mark suggested Donna check with Lisa to see if CCHPN and PA Share dues have been paid.
4. Additional Business:

Eric and Laurie Sekinsky spoke to the Commission about the work that they’ve been doing on the Crooked Window House which they recently purchased. They showed photos of their progress and some neat items they’ve found inside. Members suggested groups and names of experts that they may want to reach out to.
 
Abbey presented a memo and some designs for magnets that she made with AI. We can order magnets or stickers in various sizes. Tom likes all of the designs and thinks we will need more than 100 to get through all of the summer tours. Donna suggested ordering a number of different items (like car magnets) to sell as merch. Most of the group members liked the first option best. Abbey will make a proposal with refined designs for the group to vote on at the March meeting.
 
Tom brought up the scavenger hunt idea again this year – Patty mentioned that OCHS is planning to reach out to coordinate with our neighbors who participated last year.
 
Tom asked Abbey to create a Historic Commission banner to hang on someone’s 10x10’ canopy for events. The Historic Commission could also use a logo.
 
Tom showed us sign examples from Lincoln Sign Company for sign holders for the Farmhouse. Mark proposed that we continue the conversation at the next meeting.
 

• Meeting adjourned at 9:10 PM.