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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHistoric Preservation Commission - MINUTES - 09/17/2025Historic Preservation Commission REGULAR MEETING September 17, 2025 – 5:30 PM Council Chambers, City Hall 300 Laporte Ave Also via Zoom •CALL TO ORDER Chair Gibson called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. •ROLL CALL o Commission Members Present – Bonnie Gibson (Chair) Jenna Edwards Aaron Hull Jim Rose David Woodlee o Commission Members Absent – Margo Carlock (Vice Chair) Jeff Gaines o Staff Members Present – Maren Bzdek, Historic Preservation Division Manager Jim Bertolini, Senior Historic Preservation Planner Heather Jarvis, Assistant City Attorney Yani Jones, Historic Preservation Planner Melissa Matsunaka, PZC Admin o Guest(s) – None •AGENDA REVIEW Maren Bzdek, Historic Preservation Manager, reviewed the published agenda. •COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION ON ITEMS ON OR NOT ON THE AGENDA None. •CONSENT AGENDA REVIEW No items were pulled from consent. • CONSENT AGENDA 1. CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF AUGUST 20, 2025. The purpose of this item is to approve the minutes from the August 20, 2025 regular meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission. Commissioner Rose moved, seconded by Commissioner Hull, to approve the Consent Agenda. Yeas: Edwards, Hull, Rose, Woodlee, and Gibson. Nays: none. THE MOTION CARRIED. • STAFF REPORTS ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Jim Bertolini, Senior Historic Preservation Planner, reported on the upcoming 2025 Urban Design Awards, which is an awards program coordinated by the City’s Planning Department to celebrate excellent architecture in the community over the past few years. The program will be held October 6th at the Drake Center. Bertolini noted a majority of the award winners have a relationship to the work done in historic preservation. • COMMISSIONER REPORTS ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA None. • CONSENT AGENDA FOLLOW UP None. • DISCUSSION AGENDA 2. 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, reported on a design review for a project at the Masonic Temple at 225 West Oak Street. Additionally, she reported on the Poudre Landmark Foundation’s Historic Homes Tour and associated talk by Historic Preservation staff titled Growing Fort Collins: Architecture in the Natural World. Jones provided a reminder about the Historic Preservation newsletter. 3. HISPANIC HISTORY SITES IN FORT COLLINS – ADDITIONS TO COLORADO STATE REGISTER OF HISTORIC PROPERTIES. Two City-owned Fort Collins properties—the baseball field at City Park associated with the Hispanic League teams and the Romero House—have been nominated to the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties as part of the “Colorado Heritage For All” initiative. This project aims to include and celebrate the histories of all Colorado communities, including underrepresented groups, to correct historical oversights and ensure the Register reflects the state’s rich history. As of 2020, only about 5% of properties in the State Register directly related to the history of women and STAFF: Maren Bzdek, Historic Preservation Manager Chair Gibson noted she is on the State Review Board and will be reviewing these properties in that capacity. STAFF PRESENTATION Maren Bzdek, Historic Preservation Manager, stated this item is serving to notify the Commission that two Fort Collins properties are going forward for consideration to be added to the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties, both of which are related to Hispanic history in Fort Collins. Damion Pechota, History Colorado, discussed the Colorado Heritage for All initiative which has the goal of adding 150 sites to the National and State Registers by the end of 2026 in celebration of Colorado’s 150th anniversary of becoming a state, which coincides with the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. He noted it was found that only 4% of Colorado State and National Register listings represent underrepresented communities. He stated the goal is to provide a model of how people-centered preservation can work at the State level. Dr. Molly Leva, History Colorado Historian and nomination preparer, discussed the two properties being considered: the Fort Collins City Park baseball field which was a vital gathering space for the Hispanic and Mexican American community during the mid-20th century, and the Romero House which is an adobe home in Andersonville built in 1927 that now serves as the Museo de las Tres Colonias. COMMISSION DISCUSSION Commissioner Edwards asked if placement on the State Historic Register is associated with restrictions on modifying the subject properties or surrounding properties. Mr. Pechota replied the State and National Registers are honorary and information gathering only and can come with financial and tax incentives. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Jerry Gavaldon, Museo de las Tres Colonias Board President, stated over 100 individuals visited the Museo during the Historic Homes tour. He discussed upcoming events including the Day of the Dead celebration. Meg Dunn stated she was pleased to see these two properties up for nomination and suggested there are additional properties in the city that would also qualify. She noted the Museo building needs to be re-mudded every other year and the community is welcome to get involved in those processes. 4. 1000 WEST PROSPECT ROAD - CONCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT REVIEW DESCRIPTION: existing historic house (Landmark Eligible), salvage and relocation of some historic landscape features, and construction of a new six-story multi-unit residential building on the east half of the site. OWNER/ APPLICANT: STAFF: Kurt Basford (Design professional); Ezra H. Headrick South Dakota, LLC (owner) 1000 W Prospect Rd Fort Collins, CO 80526 Jim Bertolini, Senior Historic Preservation Planner STAFF PRESENTATION Jim Bertolini, Senior Historic Preservation Planner, stated this is the second Conceptual Development Review for 1000 West Prospect Road. He stated the proposal is for a multi-unit residential building on a portion of the site and adaptive reuse of the existing historic house as an amenity space. He also noted many of the historic landscape features would be relocated and reused on the site, including the garage, fountain, and outdoor fireplace. Bertolini stated the site is located in the High-Density Mixed-Use Neighborhood (HMN) zone district and design compatibility is related to the historic house and resources on the parcel. He briefly discussed the historic value of the property. He noted the applicant is proposing a 6-story building as affordable housing units are part of the project and showed some updated renderings of the project. Bertolini noted the historic resources on the development site are expected to be treated according to the Secretary of Interior standards for rehabilitation and stated staff’s analysis of what has been presented thus far is that the treatment of the primary house meets the standards; however, standard two for overall character defining features and standard nine and ten for compatibility and reversibility of additions are not being met as the landscape is being completely reconfigured to accommodate the 6-story building. He noted there are no height restrictions on construction near historic buildings, though that is typically managed by using step backs and breaking up the building into similar massing. Additionally, he stated there appears to be enough design compatibility under most features, though there is some concern about visibility. Bertolini discussed some examples of modifications of standard and noted a project must meet at least one of four conditions in order to grant a modification. He outlined some discussion questions for the Commission given staff’s remaining concerns dealing with the loss of landscape and overall context, and related to whether the Commission would support a modification of standard if the project were to come forward for a formal recommendation. Bertolini noted staff has received two public comments in opposition to the size and scale of the development and loss of the landscape features, one of which included a letter from Historic Larimer County. APPLICANT PRESENTATION Kurt Basford stated the goal of this project is to provide student housing with an affordable component while respecting the existing context of the historic home. He stated the design of the new construction respects the Craftsman style of the home and noted the home will be used as the amenity space for the development. He provided information about the plan that has been revised since last seen by the Commission. Basford commented on the distance between the new construction and the existing home which exists primarily to not disturb the foundation of the home. He also noted the birdbath and outdoor fireplace will be relocated to the new courtyard between the two buildings. Additionally, he stated parking is proposed to be open air at-grade with the apartments on the upper floors. Basford stated the original plan was to use precast concrete panels; however, due to continuing escalation in construction costs and feedback from community comments, the decision has been made to shift to a light, wood frame stick construction methodology which will allow for greater articulation in the façades. He noted a window system that will mimic the wood trim of the existing single-pane windows in the home has been identified for the new building. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Meg Dunn commended the fact that both entries face Prospect and that the unique interior details of the home will be preserved. She stated the stairwell shed roof stands out in contrast with the style of the house and suggested there could be a way to gable it or make it better match the character of the house. Additionally, she asked about step back requirements and modification of standards related to landscaping. Bertolini stated the step back requirements are city-wide for instances wherein a historic building is within 200 feet. He stated the modification of standards would be related to the character-defining landscape features that would need to be modified to accommodate the new building. COMMISSION QUESTIONS/DISCUSSION Commissioner Hull asked about the spacing between the new building and the existing home. Basford replied there will be 24-36 inches of a setback behind the home. Commissioner Woodlee asked if an adequate amount of space has been considered for future maintenance of the home. Basford replied in the affirmative and noted the stone masonry has been limited to the lower two levels of the new building to mimic the lower half of the existing home. Commissioner Rose commended the new design and stated it does not appear there has been an attempt to try to relate the fenestration of the new building to the existing home. Basford replied that is accurate as the prior precast concrete construction methodology limiting the ability to be more directly representative of the existing fenestration; however, that will change given the new stick frame construction. Commissioner Rose asked about the fenestration on the home’s north side. Basford replied there are windows on the north side and stated a treatment will be used at the garage level to ensure headlights are not coming through those windows. Commissioner Edwards asked about the courtyard or corridor plan for the space between the buildings. Basford replied the birdbath will be at the front entrance as an active, welcoming element, and the 20 by 50 foot space between the buildings will include the relocated fireplace. Chair Gibson asked about the approximate square footage of the current design. Basford replied it is approximately 52,000 square feet, which includes the at-grade parking level. He stated the occupiable residence space is about 42,000 square feet. Chair Gibson asked about the minimum square footage for a feasible project. Basford replied it is essentially what is planned and noted the bed count needs to be 115-120 with 350 square feet per bed. He also noted there are high-rise provisions for fire purposes that are now required with the wood frame stick construction. Chair Gibson stated the renderings are much improved over the last set; however, the historic home is completely dwarfed by the new building, and one would not know it exists. She stated having a building of the proposed size on the site does a disservice to the historic home. Basford noted the vegetation on the south side of the site prohibits any view of the home currently. He asked if the Commission would be open to proposing an alternative landscape design that might place trees in the corner that reflect the larger coniferous and deciduous trees that are there to create more of a view corridor to the existing home. Chair Gibson replied they would need to see the plan. Commissioner Edwards suggested there may be a way to be creative with the landscaping to create a window that hides part of the large structure and creates a sight line to the front of the historic home. Commissioner Rose stated there are significant features of the home that would contribute to its overall integrity that are being compromised with this project, including the landscape features. He commented on mitigation measures for other granted modifications of standard. He stated he would like to see the building scaled down, though he commended the step backs, the vocabulary of materials, and the integration of fenestration. He stated the buildings are very different from one another and need to have a better relationship. • OTHER BUSINESS None. • ADJOURNMENT Chair Gibson adjourned the meeting at 6:49 p.m. Minutes prepared by and respectfully submitted by Melissa Matsunaka.