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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHistoric Preservation Commission - MINUTES - 07/17/2024Page 1 Jim Rose, Chair Location: Bonnie Gibson, Vice Chair Council Chambers, 300 Laporte Margo Carlock And remotely via Zoom Jenna Edwards Chris Conway David Woodlee Jeff Gaines Staff Liaison: Aaron Hull Maren Bzdek Historic Preservation Manager Regular Meeting July 17, 2024 Minutes • CALL TO ORDER Chair Rose called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. • ROLL CALL PRESENT: Margo Carlock, Jenna Edwards (arrived late), Jeff Gaines, Bonnie Gibson, Aaron Hull, Jim Rose, David Woodlee ABSENT: Chris Conway STAFF: Maren Bzdek, Heather Jarvis, Jim Bertolini, Yani Jones, Rebecca Schields, Melissa Matsunaka • AGENDA REVIEW Ms. Bzdek reviewed the published agenda. Chair Rose stated the Commission has received some correspondence regarding the 1105 West Mountain Avenue demolition notification and opened public participation on that item and any items not on the agenda. • COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION ON ITEMS ON OR NOT ON THE AGENDA Diana Maehlum, 1227 West Mountain, expressed concern about the proposed demolition of 1105 West Mountain and read an email formally contesting the demolition and requesting a historic review of the property. Sara Horner, 900 West Mountain, discussed her experience with the historic review process and subsequent granting of a demolition permit allowing for construction of her current mid-century modern designed home. She stated new construction in older neighborhoods can improve their character and integrity. Historic Preservation Commission Page 2 Adam Timock, property owner, stated he and his wife have lived in Old Town for many years and would like to build this home for his family and future retirement. He stated he plans to build the home in a compatible manner with the neighborhood and also plans to deconstruct the home and potentially retain some of its historic aspects. Commissioner Carlock asked Dr. Timock about his proposed design. Dr. Timock replied he has yet to proceed to the design phase; however, he intends to keep the design within the fabric of Old Town. Commissioner Woodlee asked Dr. Timock what might be salvaged from the current home. Dr. Timock replied he is unsure at this point; however, there are bricks, hardwood, and potentially other fixtures that may be salvageable. Commissioner Gaines asked Dr. Timock why Old Town is a draw. Dr. Timock replied he and his wife have known each other since elementary school and discussed his history with Colorado and living in Old Town. Krystl Timock discussed her love of the neighborhood and small town feel of Old Town. Commissioner Gaines asked if renovations to the existing house have been considered. Dr. Timock replied they have lived in a renovated home previously and the existing home is not accessible and remodeling does not seem to be the best use of resources. Mrs. Timock stated new construction can incorporate green technology, better insulation, and solar energy, and can help to reduce the long- term environmental impact. Dr. Timock also noted homes in the area that have been renovated frequently do not retain their original character. Ms. Bzdek noted the item has yet to be pulled from the Consent Agenda. Assistant City Attorney Jarvis recommended this item be voted upon separately. • CONSENT AGENDA REVIEW No items were pulled from consent. • CONSENT AGENDA 1. CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF MAY 15, 2024. The purpose of this item is to approve the minutes from the May 15, 2024 regular meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission. 2. SINGLE-UNIT DWELLING DEMOLITION NOTIFICATION – 1105 W. MOUNTAIN AVE. (**Secretary’s Note: This item was not officially pulled from the Consent Agenda but was voted upon separately given the discussion on the item.) 3. SINGLE-UNIT DWELLING DEMOLITION NOTIFICATION – 516 N. GRANT AVE. Commissioner Carlock moved, seconded by Vice Chair Gibson, to approve Item Nos. 1 and 3 on the Consent Agenda. Yeas: Carlock, Edwards, Gaines, Gibson, Hull, Woodlee, and Rose. Nays: none. THE MOTION CARRIED. Vice Chair Gibson moved, seconded by Commissioner Woodlee, in consideration of public comment and in response to owner comment, to approve Item No. 2 on the Consent Agenda. Yeas: Carlock, Edwards, Gaines, Gibson, Hull, Woodlee, and Rose. Nays: none. THE MOTION CARRIED. • STAFF REPORTS ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Page 3 Mr. Bertolini provided a follow-up on the Commission's consideration of an appeal for the property at 2601 South College Avenue which was appealed to Council. He noted Council overturned the Commission's decision; therefore, the property is considered to be not eligible for historic designation. • CONSENT AGENDA FOLLOW UP None. • DISCUSSION AGENDA 4. REPORT ON STAFF ACTIVITIES SINCE THE LAST MEETING Staff is tasked with an array of different responsibilities including code-required project review decisions on historic properties, support to other standing and special work groups across the City organization, and education & outreach programming. This report will provide highlights for the benefit of Commission members and the public, and for transparency regarding decisions made without the input of the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC). Yani Jones, Historic Preservation Planner, discussed some of the staff activities that have occurred since the last meeting, including a design review for 255 and 261 Linden Street, the Juneteenth community celebration, the Historic Larimer County Summerfest event which included a grand opening of the Emma Malaby Grocery museum, and a finding of eligibility for a barn on the City Park Nine golf course. Ms. Jones also provided a reminder about the Historic Preservation newsletter. Commissioner Woodlee asked if the Malaby Grocery is open on a routine basis. Ms. Jones replied Historic Larimer County now owns the building and intends to rehabilitate the building and use it as the Historic Larimer County office and the front historic museum. Vice Chair Gibson noted the museum will be open to the public on a case-by-case basis with the next time being September 21st during the historic homes tour. 5. 724 MARTINEZ STREET (CHAVEZ/AMBRIZ/GONZALES PROPERTY) – LANDMARK DESIGNATION DESCRIPTION: This item is to consider the request for a recommendation to City Council for landmark designation of the Chavez/Ambriz/Gonzales Property at 724 Martinez St. APPLICANT: Monica Gonzales, Santiago Gonzales, Celina Maldonado, and James Gonzales STAFF: Yani Jones, Historic Preservation Planner STAFF PRESENTATION Yani Jones, Historic Preservation Planner, stated the role of the Commission is to determine whether the property meets the criteria for landmark designation as outlined in Chapter 14, Article 2 of the Municipal Code. Ms. Jones noted this would be a consensual designation; therefore, if the Commission finds the property to be eligible, it would adopt a resolution recommending to City Council that the property be designated. Ms. Jones discussed the property’s location, showed historic photos of the home, and discussed the significance and integrity of the building. In terms of significance, Ms. Jones stated the property is associated with the early sugar beet industry in Fort Collins as well as social and Hispanic history. She noted this home was one of six built by the Great Western Sugar Company to be purchased in installment plans by field workers and she discussed the history of Alta Vista, which was platted by the Company. Additionally, Ms. Jones stated the home has significance for its design and construction as it is a rare remaining example of adobe construction in Fort Collins with character-defining features including linear construction, limited ornamentation, and the location in the Alta Vista neighborhood. Ms. Jones stated the home retains all seven aspects of integrity and the additions to the property can be considered historic in their own right. Page 4 Regarding questions asked at the work session, Ms. Jones noted there are financial incentives for repair that could be leveraged by the property owners if the property were designated as a landmark. Additionally, Ms. Jones noted both of the additions to the home were constructed during the period of significance that is associated with social and Hispanic history for the property. Ms. Jones stated staff recommends the property has significance under standards 1 and 3 and that it retains all seven aspects of exterior integrity. COMMISSION DISCUSSION Commissioner Carlock stated she is confident all applicable criteria are met. Commissioner Gaines concurred. Vice Chair Gibson stated there are few adobe structures remaining and expressed support for designating the property. Commissioner Edwards moved, seconded by Commissioner Carlock, that the Historic Preservation Commission adopt a written resolution recommending that City Council adopt an ordinance to designate the Chavez/Ambriz/Gonzales property at 724 Martinez Street as a Fort Collins Landmark, finding that this property is eligible for its significance to Fort Collins under Standard 1, Events and Trends, and Standard 3, Design and Construction, as supported by the analysis provided in the staff report and landmark nomination materials, and that the property clearly conveys this significance through integrity of location, setting, design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association to a significant degree, and finding also that the designation of this property will promote the policies and purposes of the City as specified in Chapter 14 of the Municipal Code. Yeas: Carlock, Edwards, Gaines, Gibson, Hull, Woodlee, and Rose. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. 6. 201 LINDEN STREET (LINDEN HOTEL) – DESIGN REVIEW DESCRIPTION: Alterations to the Linden Hotel at 201 Linden Street to include complete replacement of the historic windows. APPLICANT/OWNER: Linden Street Treehouse, LLC vy OneSeven Advisors, LLC 148 Remington Street, Ste 100 Fort Collins, CO 80524 STAFF: Jim Bertolini, Senior Historic Preservation Planner Maren Bzdek, Historic Preservation Manager Jim Bertolini, Senior Historic Preservation Planner, stated this item is a request for window replacement for the upper story windows of the Linden Hotel at 201 Linden Street and stated the role of the Commission is to determine whether the project plans meet the Secretary of Interior standards for rehabilitation and the Old Town design standards and to issue or deny a certificate of appropriateness or continue the item. Mr. Bertolini detailed the request for window replacement and stated this would be the first major rehabilitation of the building since the larger rehabilitation in 1994-95. He noted one of the window panes fell into the street in October of 2023 and Poudre Fire Authority subsequently ordered the windows to be secured with plexiglass. Mr. Bertolini stated staff has ordered an updated window study which is a typical requirement to determine if replacement is necessary or repair is possible, and that study is underway. He provided some background information on the property and discussed its character defining features. Additionally, he noted two windows that were previously replaced were replaced in kind. Mr. Bertolini discussed the 2018 rehabilitation proposal for the property which included a request to replace the windows that was denied by the then Landmark Preservation Commission on the basis that the suitability of the work was not acceptable. The window study commissioned at that time recommended that repair was possible. He noted replacement is generally only acceptable under the standards when repair is not possible. Page 5 Regarding questions asked at the work session, Mr. Bertolini stated economic hardship is generally not considered as part of the City’s Land Use Code or Municipal Code requirements; however, there are some grounds within Chapter 14 that allow the Commission to issue a waiver of conditions to the typical Code requirements. Additionally, Mr. Bertolini stated window repair is typically more cost effective in the long term and there are financial incentives available to help offset repair costs for designated historic buildings. Mr. Bertolini stated it is typical to specify window treatments on some type of elevation drawing; however, a clear plan is really all that is needed. Mr. Bertolini stated staff did provide a detailed analysis of the possible replacement products relative to the standards and guidelines; however, he noted staff does not have current evidence that indicates the current windows are beyond repair. In terms of replacement, Mr. Bertolini noted the Old Town design standards do not specify allowing substitute materials, but specify in-kind replacement. Mr. Bertolini stated staff does not currently have a recommendation for the Commission as it does not feel it has enough information to determine if the existing windows are beyond repair or not, which is why the updated window study has been commissioned. APPLICANT PRESENTATION Claire Havelda, attorney representing the applicant team, stated this is a request to replace all 42 of the 147-year-old windows on the second and third floors of the building at 201 Linden Street. Ms. Havelda stated the only visual difference is less than a one-half inch difference on the window check rail which will be visually imperceptible from the ground. She discussed the window failure in 2023 noting the pane actually fell onto the sidewalk which is obviously a severe safety issue that the building owners wanted to address immediately. Ms. Havelda noted staff’s best information will be the expert report which will be coming in August and requested the Commission not wait for that given the safety concerns and concerns about the scope of the work the City requested. She stated there is a fundamental design flaw with the windows that no amount of rehabilitation is going to overcome. Additionally, she stated the previous window report and likely the forthcoming report do not take into account relevant City and owner goals. Ms. Havelda provided a physical example of the proposed replacement window and outlined the items she would like included in the record, to which there was no objection. Ms. Havelda discussed the history of the request to replace the windows, first in 2005, which was denied by the City, and the next in 2018, which was also denied based on the City commissioned Barlow report. Ms. Havelda expressed concern about the previous Barlow window report stating no weight was given to private property owners fundamental property rights, not analysis was done in terms of window operability, safety, civil liability, and sustainability from the perspective of the owners, and the owners’ repair requirements that were suggested in the report were a potential case law violation. Additionally, Ms. Havelda stated the Barlow report provided no weight to the City’s climate action and sustainable goals or to the Historic Preservation Commission’s own guidelines and policies in the Municipal Code. Ms. Havelda stated there is significant deterioration to the windows to warrant replacement under the Secretary of Interior standards. Additionally, she noted it is not mandated that replacement materials be identical to existing materials and stated replacement meets the goals of the Historic Preservation Commission, building safety standards, and the City’s energy and sustainability goals. Ms. Havelda reiterated the windows will be visually identical from the street and stated retention of faulty materials does not outweigh the safety, operability, and environmental and sustainability concerns that replacement would address. She went on to discuss the Secretary of Interior standards for replacement and the Historic Preservation Commission’s defined purposes, including to stabilize and improve the aesthetic and economic vitality and values of historic sites and structures, to promote the use of historic structures, to promote and encourage continued private ownership and utilization of such structures, and to promote economic, social, environmental, and sustainability through ongoing use of the existing buildings, all of which are met by this window replacement project. Ms. Havelda discussed the Old Town design standards met by replacement and stated repair costs are estimated to be much greater than replacement costs in this case. Page 6 Mark Wernimont, Colorado Sash & Door, provided information as to his work experience over the past 40 plus years. He stated the fundamental design flaw with the existing windows is that they were produced with 1 3/8-inch-thick sash, which is the same size that is in all residential homes built in Fort Collins, despite the windows being nine feet tall. Additionally, he noted the pane of glass that fell to the pavement was due to a check rail failure. Mr. Wernimont stated the proposed replacement windows would meet all current energy codes as well as structural and sound standards. He also reiterated the existing windows would need to be sealed shut to meet the energy standards. David Diehl, OneSeven Advisors, owner’s representative, commented on water deterioration that has occurred to the building and discussed liability concerns with the existing windows. Ms. Havelda stated window replacement is the only option that allows for harmonious consideration of all applicable interests, codes, and policies. COMMISSION QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION Commissioner Carlock stated she understands residents would like to be able to open their windows; however, she noted the Commission has certain obligations and codes to follow. She requested clarification as to the statement that new windows would be more energy efficient and durable. Additionally, she stated it is possible the windows are beyond repair; however, she stated that conclusion could not be made without seeing the commissioned window study. Vice Chair Gibson asked when staff is expecting the window study report to be available. Ms. Bzdek replied it is anticipated by August 5th; therefore, staff analysis could be provided prior to the Commission’s August hearing. Commissioner Gaines stated waiting another month for the report makes sense. Chair Rose asked how many times the paint color has changed on the building. Mr. Bertolini replied it is typical for paint changes to occur every five to ten years. Chair Rose stated if the windows are allowed to be replaced with windows that are clad with a precise color, the opportunity for repainting the building to change with the times has been frozen. He suggested the replacement windows should be required to be a changeable color, which would not be possible with a clad window. Ms. Havelda replied the applicant would need to seek approval from the Commission for a color change. Chair Rose concurred the Commission would be better prepared to reach a conclusive decision after reading the window study report. Commissioner Edwards asked about the fundamental design flaw of the windows. Mr. Wernimont replied the sash on double-hung normal residential windows is 1 3/8 inches thick, which is what is currently in place here, and windows of the size in this building should have a greater sash thickness. Vice Chair Gibson questioned whether windows that have lasted 147 years have a fundamental design flaw. She stated she would like to compare the applicant’s expert report with the City’s expert report prior to making a definitive decision. Commissioner Woodlee concurred he too would like to first see the City’s commissioned report, but noted he is quite concerned about the safety issue. Commissioner Edwards also concurred with Vice Chair Gibson and Commissioner Woodlee and noted the report would also help inform the proper replacement materials if that is the route taken. Commissioner Carlock thanked the applicants for bringing the physical replacement window and suggested it may be valuable for members to look at it now to avoid having to bring it back to another meeting. Chair Rose expressed concern that one Commissioner is absent and suggested it may be valuable for the applicants to bring the window back. Commissioner Gaines concurred. Page 7 Commissioner Carlock moved, seconded by Vice Chair Gibson, that the Historic Preservation Commission continue this item to the next meeting, scheduled for August 21st, 2024, or such time as staff is in possession of the commissioned window study regarding whether the proposed work meets the Secretary of Interior standards for rehabilitation. Yeas: Carlock, Edwards, Gaines, Gibson, Hull, Woodlee, and Rose. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Chair Rose commended the applicants for the presentation and patience in waiting for a decision until the next meeting. • CONSIDERATION OF CITIZEN-PULLED CONSENT ITEMS None. • OTHER BUSINESS Vice Chair Gibson announced the first ‘Coffee with a Commissioner’ event at Explorado Market on Saturday. • ADJOURNMENT Chair Rose adjourned the meeting at 8:25 p.m. Minutes prepared by and respectfully submitted by Melissa Matsunaka.