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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLandmark Preservation Commission - Minutes - 02/26/2003LANDMARK PRESERVATION COMMISSION Regular Meeting February 26, 2003 Minutes Council Liaison: Eric Hamrick (225-2343) Staff Liaison: Joe Frank (221-6376) Commission Chairperson: Bud Frick, Jr. (484-1467) UMMARY OF MEETING: LPC accepted for Fort Collins Landmark Designation 1 amble House, 407 N. Wood St., and Darrah House, 612 S. College Ave. Final revi f Old Town Plaza Children's Playground was approved. Site and landscaping pla it the Mountain Empire Hotel were approved and a conceptual review of 1 uilding rehabilitation was heard. Re -roofing, new gutters, and repairs to McCa ouse, 218 Peterson St., were approved. Plans for repair of east windows a placement siding on 321 E. Mulberry, Calvert House, were accepted :)nceptual and final review. LPC heard preliminary presentations for alterations t2 W. Oak and 116 S. McKinley. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Commission called to order at 5:35 p.m. at 281 N. College Avenue, Fort Collins, Colorado. Agnes Dix, W.J. "Bud" Frick, Per Hogestad, and Myrne Watrous were present; Angie Aguilera, Janet Ore and Carole Stansfield were absent. Karen McWilliams and Carol Tunner represented staff. GUESTS: Darcy Gamble, owner, for 407 N. Wood St.; Janet A. Reid, owner, for Darrah House, 612 S. College; Lee Swanson, owner, Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shop, and Chip Steiner, director, Downtown Development Authority, for the Old Town Children's Playground; Steve Levinger, owner, and Richard Beardmore and Patrice Berglund, A-E Design Associates, for Mountain Empire (Historic Armstrong) Hotel, 259 S. College Ave.; Meagan Harper and Jim Liebl, Stile & Rail Construction, for McCarty House, 218 Peterson St.; Laura Thompson, owner, for 321 Mulberry St.; Richard Markey, owner, for 922 W. Oak; Craig Zimmerman, owner, and Bob Ballard, Wright -Ballard Construction, for 116 S. McKinley St. AGENDA REVIEW: Per Hogestad added CSU's Historic Building Review Board to Other Business. MINUTES: The minutes of January 22, 2003, were corrected with the following changes: In Staff Reports, the date of the National Trust Conference was corrected to Sept. 30-Oct. 4; in Commission Member Reports, the name of the building was corrected to Robertson/Haynes; and throughout, the spelling of Per Hogestad and Janet Ore was corrected. Agnes Dix moved to accept the minutes as corrected, Per Hogestad seconded, and the motion carried unanimously. Landmark Preservation Commission February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 2 STAFF REPORTS: Karen McWilliams distributed spreadsheets summarizing the 2003 Landmark Rehabilitation Loan awards, from staff member Timothy Wilder. She noted that for every dollar of preservation funds awarded, another nine dollars will be spent on the eight projects funded. COMMISSION MEMBER REPORTS: None LANDMARK DESIGNATIONS: 1. Gamble House, 407 N. Wood St. — presented by Darcy Gamble, owner, introduced by Karen McWilliams. Constructed in 1926, this home is a 1.5 story wood frame house on a concrete slab, sitting on the north edge of the Holy Family Neighborhood, northwest of downtown. Many sugar beet factory workers lived in the neighborhood throughout its boom from 1900 to 1920; the area has been historically predominately Hispanic. The uncommon Bungalow and Craftsman stylistic characteristics of this simple variant of the 19th/20th century American Movements style set it apart from the other homes in the immediate area. There is evidence that this house was moved to this location prior to 1945 or was jacked up for some reason, and floor joists under the kitchen show signs of fire. Additions made in 1945 and 1947 are now more than 50 years old and have their own historical significance. The current owners, Greg and Darcy Gamble, have added a flagstone walkway with stone facing on the concrete stoop and taken the interior wood floors back to their original surface. Ms. Gamble distributed photos of the property. Staff recommended approving the request for designation for its significance under landmark preservation standards A -- association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of history -- and C -- architectural importance. Pubic input: none Agnes Dix moved to accept 407 N. Wood St. for Fort Collins Landmark Designation; Myrne Watrous seconded. Motion passed unanimously, 4-0. Ms. McWilliams added that the Gambles are also moving two small 1898 houses from 224 Willow to a double lot at 423 Loomis, between Cherry and Sycamore. The houses had been scheduled for demolition as part of the Giddings redevelopment. 2. Darrah House, 612 S. College Ave. — presented by Judith A. Reid, owner, introduced by Karen McWilliams. Landmark Preservation Commission February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 3 Constructed in 1904, this striking two-story house represents the Colonial Revival style of architecture that was popular among upper middle-class professional families in Fort Collins at the time. It was built for attorney Sanford Darrah and his wife Anna. In 1908, it was the headquarters of the Epsilon fraternity, and remained a frat house then a private boarding house through 1917. From 1917 through 1936, the house was rented to families and students. From 1936, when it was remodeled into four apartments, through 1976, 612 S. College was known as Colonial Apartments. In 1979 it was rehabilitated to serve as office space, as it does today. This included adding steel beams to bring the building up to building code standards; the name Darrah House over the porch and the stained glass "612" were added at that time. Non -original alterations on the back porch and stairway, front door and sidelights, and front stoop, do not detract significantly from the Darrah House's ability to portray the Colonial Revival architectural style. Ms. Reid distributed historical photos. Staff recommended approving the request for designation for its significance under landmark preservation standards A -- association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of history -- B -- association with the lives of significant people -- and C -- architectural importance. Public input: none Myrna Watrous moved to accept 612 S. College Ave. for Fort Collins Landmark Designation; Agnes Dix seconded. Motion passed unanimously, 4-0. CURRENT REVIEW: 1. Old Town Plaza Children's Playground — presented by Lee Swanson, owner, Ben & Jerry's Scoop Shop, and Chip Steiner, director, DDA, introduced by Carol Tunner. Final Review. Applicant distributed colored conceptual drawings of two play sculptures, a four -foot -tall bear and a seven -foot -long, 20-inch-tall trout, to be installed in place of an existing planter east of the Sangria Rose (building 23). The sculptures are made of concrete reinforced fiberglass covered with a protective rubber surface hand -inlaid with realistic animal colors. The standing bear is a change from the last review, when it was shown lying down. The peace pole currently in the planter will be moved to another planter, perhaps behind the benches. Old Town Square will be responsible for maintenance of the playground. Landmark Preservation Commission February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 4 The sculptures take eight weeks to build and will be shipped from California. Applicant anticipates having the sculptures installed in time for tourist season and expects them to last at least twenty years. Staff recommended the two proposed structures as meeting Old Town Development Guidelines 60, 61 and 62, adding that they should have a low - profile impact, be fanciful and fun, and not detract from the historic district. Public input: none Per Hogestad moved to approve the Children's Playground on Old Town Plaza as presented; Agnes Dix seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 2. Mountain Empire (Historic Armstrong) Hotel, 259 S. College Ave. — presented by Steve Levinger, owner, and Richard Beardmore and Patrice Berglund, A-E Design Associates, introduced by Carol Tunner. Conceptual Review of Comprehensive Rehabilitation. This building is being rehabilitated as first floor commercial space with upper floor condominiums. The building has been empty for at least 17 months. This is the first of two steps in the process, basic development review that goes to all the departments in the City for comment on concept and compliance. Ms. Tunner needs comments from the LPC before she can make recommendations from her department. Mr. Levinger also asked for suggestions and guidance on developing the historic storefronts and other design ideas that will come back to the LPC for action in the future. Mr. Beardmore presented the site and landscaping plan that deals with the rear of the building, where plans call for a redesigned egress stair, air conditioning equipment on a ground level pad, filling in the curb cut from Olive into the parking lot at the request of the Traffic Department, and a common trash compactor on an enclosed dumpster. Instead of finding matching brick to clad the exterior of the dumpster enclosure, applicant plans to match the pressed tin on the light wells and paint it to match the building. The stairway to the basement will be maintained. Electrical equipment will be underground; parking is still being discussed with Safeway. The pattern of street trees will be maintained and there will be a privet hedge along Olive Street. This needs LPC final review right away. Floodproofing requirements of the Storm Drainage Department and practical egress seem to be in conflict, and the requirements may interfere with some of the design. While the building is not in a FEMA floodplain, it is in the local floodplain, and the applicant would like to use reversible structural covers over the basement windows on Olive Street, mechanical vents and recessed Landmark Preservation Commissio„ February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 5 entry, if this is acceptable to the Building Department. However, this is not an issue that requires LPC action at this point. Public input: none. Agnes Dix moved to accept for Conceptual and Final Review site and landscape plans for the Mountain Empire (Historic Armstrong) Hotel; Per Hogestad added a friendly amendment requesting that plans for floodproofing the whole building be brought back to the Commission. Myrne Watrous seconded all. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Beardmore presented a detailed look at the research that his firm has done on the restoration of the historic storefronts of the building, and passed out several handouts, including 1920s historic advertisements for storefront construction products, an article on repair and reproduction of prismatic glass transoms, and historic photos. He proposes to put structural strength glass back into kickplates to allow light into the basement level. A tenant is interested in the basement corner space, so those windows will have to open. Mark Thorburn is talking to Abraxis Glass about prism glass for semi -pivoting panels for use in the transoms. The applicant is also considering a retractable -arm awning at the same location, and there is some question of whether entrances were really recessed. They will be back to the LPC with this issue later. Since much of the historic fabric is gone, the applicant proposes to use structural steel to rebuild to the proportions known (from historic photos) to be there in 1923. To minimize the expense of retrofitting air conditioning, the applicant proposes a number of passive methods of heating and cooling. They would also like to keep the steam radiators. Mr. Hogestad felt this was a very sensitive way of dealing with the issue. 3. B. H. McCarty House, 218 Peterson St. — presented by Meagan Harper and Jim Liebl, Stile & Rail Construction, on behalf of owners Wayne and Jean Carpenter, introduced by Carol Tunner. Conceptual and Final Review for Rehab/Loan Program. Jim Liebl said it appears that this house never had gutters. The applicant would like to go without gutters except on entryways and address drainage with better grading, mulch and other methods to promote drainage away from the house. The back entry should be an easy fix, and Mr. Liebl has found a company that builds half -round curved copper gutters for the front porch. These would be set away from the building with an air gap to allow moisture to escape. He would like to address the negative spots on the house with re- roofing and replacing rotten or missing fascia boards. Landmark Preservation Commission February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 6 Mr. Frick strongly suggested that gutters are important. He added that the Commission will need to see a cut sheet from the roofer and gutter supplier. Mr. Liebl said the crown molding to be replaced is very standard and available from Reed Milling in Denver. The fretwork needs some replacement that will be cut out and pieced in. On the issue of the shallow pitched porch roof, the applicant would like to replace multiple layers of rolled roofing with an ice and water shield overlaid with copper. Mr. Frick would prefer to see flat seam rather than standing seam, and suggested a selective demo of the porch roof to see what's under the existing roof. The attic space is not vented at all, and some options are a vented ridge cap or a power vent. Mr. Hogestad suggested a ridge vent makes sense, in view of the amount of ornamentation that is historic to the house already. Mr. Leibl showed a cut sheet of a roof vent that looked too large to the Commission, but he will look for a smaller one. Mr. Frick said there are still issues to be resolved before the LPC can approve the project, and submittal materials are required for the porch roof and ridge vent. Ms. Tunner said that the Landmark Preservation Loan Program award to this project was for wood shingles, eave repair and gutters. Mr. Hogestad said the Commission could entertain several solutions on how to handle the re -roofing. Mr. Liebl added that the owner wants it done over Spring Break, March 10, since the existing noise level will interfere with his tenant's psychiatry practices and the tenants will be gone then. Public input: none Per Hogestad moved to approve the wood shingle re -roofing, and fascia/crown molding repairs on 218 Peterson St. as described in the application submittal. A cut sheet of gutters shallow roof material and venting need to be submitted to staff for administrative review. Gutters are required. Agnes Dix seconded. Motion passed unanimously, 4-0. 4. Emily E. and J.M. Calvert House, 321 E. Mulberry — presented by Laura Thompson, owner. Conceptual and Final Review, introduced by Carol Tunner. The applicant plans to work on the entire exterior but is concentrating on rehabilitating the east elevation of this recently designated house, replacing non -historic windows, replacing siding to match the house, repairing the foundation and installing gutters. Plans also call for adding an air-conditioning unit and converting the laundry room to a master bathroom on the interior. All the siding will be removed and structural support repairs made so the windows no longer sag. The windows are small, but Mr. Hogestad suggested Landmark Preservation Commissio,, February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 7 the lintels should match the historic ones on the rest of the house. Trimming the air conditioning unit out will work. Ms. Watrous said she liked the idea of rehabbing an elevation at a time. Public input: none Myrne Watrous moved to accept plans for the east elevation of 321 E. Mulberry as presented, with pediment, lintels and trim to match the historic windows, and using any glass of choice, wood window units with sashes, and preserving the corner boards; Agnes Dix seconded. Motion passed unanimously. DISCUSSION ITEMS: 1. 922 W. Oak — presented by Richard Markey, owner, introduced by Karen McWilliams. Preliminary Hearing for Alterations. The LPC agreed with staff and LPC chair that this property, built in 1948 and renovated in 1968, is individually eligible for landmark status, based on the amount of historic fabric intact. The owner wants to raise the roof to add a second floor and dormer, so there will be three bedrooms upstairs and one downstairs. Ms. McWilliams pointed out that if the owner and LPC reach agreement that the addition is appropriate, the process is over. If there is no agreement that it preserves the historic character of the property, then the owner goes through the formal design review process. Although the owner said the design is not for a full second story so as to not impact the neighbors' view and sunlight, Mr. Frick pointed out that the rest of the block is composed of low bungalows, and adding a story would not be compatible with the neighborhood. Mr. Hogestad said that adding a story to a simple bungalow will alter the character of the house so much it will no longer be individually eligible, and it will alter the historic context. Mr. Frick and Mr. Hogestad also agreed that the alternative of moving the house up and finishing the basement was not an acceptable solution. No agreement was reached on the proposed rehabilitation. 2. 116 S. McKinley — presented by Craig Zimmerman, owner, and Bob Ballard, Wright -Ballard Construction introduced by Karen McWilliams. Preliminary Hearing for Alterations. The owner purchased this neglected but individually eligible property at the request of the school across the street, in part to get rid of vicious dogs. He intends to resell the property once it is refurbished and brought up to code, but is open to ideas to keep it original and structurally sound. The LPC agreed that it is individually eligible for landmark status. The question then was what sort of finish should be used to replace the crumbling Kelly Stone Landmark Preservation Commissiw February 26, 2003 Meeting Minutes Page 8 exterior. Both stucco and Efis finish were discussed, as well as replacement Kelly Stone. The owner was concerned about the cost, and was willing to investigate alternatives to bring back to the Commission. In addition, the dilapidated garage will be torn down and a new one constructed, with a roofline that matches the house. The Commission concurred with demolition of the garage. The owner also agreed to remove the water -damaged porch exterior paneling to investigate whether it needs ventilation then return with options, for example, beadboard with vent holes. OTHER BUSINESS: Per Hogestad announced that he had resigned from the Historic Building Review Board at CSU. There was some discussion of whether the chair or any member of the LPC was required to fill this position. Mr. Hogestad will confirm with Jim White, chair of the HBRB. Meeting adjourned at 10:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted by Kate Jeracki, Recorder March 9, 2003