HomeMy WebLinkAboutLandmark Preservation Commission - Minutes - 07/23/2003LANDMARK PRESERVATION COMMISSION
Regular/Workshop Meeting
July 23, 2003 Minutes
Council Liaison: David Roy (407-7393)
Staff Liaison: Joe Frank (221-6376)
Commission Chairperson: Bud Frick, Jr. (484-1467)
SUMMARY OF MEETING: LPC heard an update on the Downtown Strategic
Plan and provided a complimentary review of Pine Street Lofts at 251-253 Pine
St.
CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Commission called to order by Chairman Bud
Frick, Jr., at 5:33 p.m. at 281 N. College Avenue, Fort Collins, Colorado., Agnes Dix,
Per Hogestad, Carole Stansfield and Myrne Watrous were present. Angie Aguilera and
Janet Ore were excused. Joe Frank, Clark Mapes, Karen McWilliams, Carol Tunner and
Troy Jones (Current Planning City Planner) represented staff.
GUESTS: Kevin Berryhill, Scott Watkins and Tim Foster, Berryhill Development, Ross
Cooney and Will Wilson, CCMK Architecture, for 251-253 Pine St., Pine Street Lofts.
AGENDA REVIEW: No changes.
MINUTES: The minutes of June 25, 2003, were amended as follows:
The name and occupation of David Hueter, designer, are corrected on pages 1 and 2.
Page 4, second sentence under Opera Galleria Complementary Review now reads:
Mr. Torgerson is proposing a two-story addition on the top rear of the Opera
Galleria and rear of adjacent building to the north.
In the next -to -last sentence of the same paragraph, Anheuser Busch is now
spelled correctly.
Myrne Watrous moved the LPC approve the minutes as amended, Agnes Dix
seconded and the motion carried unanimously, 5-0.
STAFF REPORTS: Carol Tunner reported that the Fort Collins landmark Romero
House, 425 Tenth St., had received a grant of $201,000 from the State Historical Fund.
The Armstrong Hotel had also received $171,000 with a $339,000 match and an
additional $1.5 million in other funding, and the Plummer School Commons Project
received no funding.
The 2002-03 (federal year) Certified Local Government (CLG) report due August 1, will
include the following identified problems: pop-ups/scrape-offs, inappropriate remodels
and addition to residential properties, insufficient funds to expand programs and staff,
and local laws that allow educational institutions to ignore historic preservation and the
Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.
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July 23, 2003, Meeting Minutes
Page 2
Ms. Tunner administratively approved a temporary banner for the Museum of
Contemporary Art. The banner will hang from the top corner of the building to the
ground for 20 days.
COMMISSION MEMBER REPORTS: Myrne Watrous reported on the DDA meeting she
attended. The design of the First National Bank tower has changed; DDA awarded the
project a grant of $130,000. The Performing Arts Center is now a private sector -driven
Chautauqua effort that received $150,000 from DDA. DDA has also purchased two
trashcans and two benches for Pine Street, for $3500. Bud Frick will attend the DDA
meeting on Thursday, August 7.
DISCUSSION ITEM:
Downtown Strategic Plan Update -- presented by Clark Mapes.
Mr. Mapes provided an update on the progress of the LPC's recommendations
pertaining to height and mass issues of new buildings in downtown. He reported that
through the process of gathering additional input, no clear alternatives, opposition or
other significant ideas have arisen, so staff will carry forward the LPC recommendations
to update the Downtown Strategic Plan. Staff has contracted with OZ Architects of
Boulder to assist with miscellaneous redevelopment issues and review the
recommendations; OZ will send comments to Mr. Mapes next week. Staff will also be
meeting with local developers, architects, and westside neighbors next week, and
hopes to have a new policy document adopted by City Council after a public hearing on
September 2. This will be the basis for updates to the Downtown Plan. Mr. Mapes will
bring updated policy documents to the August 13 LPC meeting for review.
COMPLIMENTARY REVIEW:
251-253 Pine St., Pine Street Lofts -- presented by Ross Cooney and Kevin Berryhill,
introduced by Karen McWilliams.
The Pine Street Lofts is a Basic Development Review Project, adjacent to the Old Town
Fort Collins National Register and Local Landmark District. LPC comments will be
incorporated into staff's review of this project for its compliance with the applicable
standards in the Land Use Code.
Ross Cooney explained the project, stating that the sloping triangular site -- the old
Poudre Valley Creamery -- has posed particular problems. The proposed three-story L-
shaped building goes straight up from the property line, with 14 residential units
accessible from both front and rear. The building fronts on both Pine and Jefferson
streets, with trees featured on both streetscapes. Entryways are oval, and a ramp runs
through from Jefferson Street to an interior plaza. The 28 below -grade parking spaces
are on a sloping deck accessed by a 6-percent-grade ramp from the rear alley. There
will be a public elevator to the parking garage and some units will have personal
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July 23, 2003, Meeting Minutes
Page 3
elevators. Units will be for sale, not rental, to be priced between $250,000 and $400,000
with high -end finish.
To tie into the surrounding historic buildings, the first two stories of the project will be of
masonry with vertical windows and horizontal bands; stucco will be used on the rear
elevation with brick around the windows. The third floor will be set back slightly, with
additional patio space on the Pine Street side. It will be surfaced with raised profile
metal paneling. Coping and surrounds of entrances and base will be of red sandstone.
The head height of the windows will be maintained to compensate for the slope of the
site. Issues of controlling access to the plaza and stairwells is still under discussion.
To address noise issues, units on the Jefferson Street side of the project will have
bedrooms on the back side, with lots of studio space on the street side. The 14 units
have 11 different floor plans. Upstairs units are two-story; the narrow end unit is three
stories. Because of market conditions, there are no plans to include commercial uses in
the project.
In general, the LPC felt the use of metal on the third floor was inappropriate for the site.
The Commission had additional concerns over the lack of articulation of the fagade, and
felt vertical changes should occur in 25-foot increments. Per Hogestad also suggested
additional details, such as corbels, be added to give the project a human scale,
referencing the Edbrooke Lofts at 14th and Wynkoop streets in Denver as an example.
Agnes Dix suggested the third floor should be set back further than eight feet to make it
less visible from the street.
Bud Frick also thought the fagade was too flat, and elevations facing the streets should
pay closer attention to surrounding buildings, with the more whimsical eyebrows and
other details on the third story moved to the rear, facing the plaza. He would like to see
the plaza more private than public, but the design addresses ADA access requirements.
Mr. Frick pointed out that the development proposal needed to be designed to comply
with Section 3.4.7 of the Land Use Code, and must be compatible with the height and
character of the historic districts. The third floor should be set back so as to not be
visible. Historically, facades were broken vertically, which is not evident on this project.
The windows and arched openings should also be revisited for size, placement and
continuity with historic buildings.
Carole Stansfield asked if the building wasn't overwhelming for the site. Kevin Berryhill
explained that Pine Street is wider than typical Old Town streets. Future redevelopment
projects in the area will most likely be four stories, and surrounding buildings are one
and two stories, which makes this an appropriate transitional project. He wants the Pine
Street Lofts to fit into Old Town as a whole, not just one street, and to tie into both the
historic district and future development.
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July 23, 2003, Meeting Minutes
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Applicants are willing to bring updated plans back to the Commission when they are
closer to a finished product.
OTHER BUSINESS:
In response to a question from Myrne Watrous, Karen McWilliams will research the
status of the home at West Mountain Avenue and Grant Street.
Carole Stansfield announced she is moving to Florida in October and will submit her
formal letter of resignation. She will be missed.
Meeting adjourned at 7:15 p.m. f i
Respectfully submitted by
Kate Jeracki, Recorder
July 25, 2003