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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLandmark Preservation Commission - Minutes - 10/20/1982LANDMARK PRESERVATION COMMISSION October 20, 1982 MEMBERS PRESENT: Dick Beardmore Susan McMillen Laurie Zitowitz Wayne Sundberg Ron Carsten Janet Zemeckis MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Felix Lee John Dewhirst A conceptual review was held at Old Town Associates office on Linden Street on October 20, 1982. Jim Reidhead and Chuck Mabry were there representing Old Town Associates. Chuck Mabry gave an overview of the basic concepts of Old Town. Jim Reidhead said that offices, retail, entertainment and social components were proposed. It would be a community concept. Proposed con- cepts are: a pedestrian plaza area on Linden for outdoor plays, etc., con- struction of a new building on the west corner of Walnut & Linden, creating courts in alleys and functional rear entrances in buildings. The maximum height on Mountain Avenue would be 4 stories. Dick Beardmore asked what materials and style would be used. Jim explained that it would be tradi- tional in texture, would maintain pedestrian scale on street levels, and there would be much glass and similiar configuration to existing buildings. It was asked if there would be use of basements. Jim stated that there would be limited use - a few offices, etc.. Ron.Carsten questioned the street material. Jim said that they were not far enough in design yet for definite plans on the streets. Chuck said that so far they only have gener- al design concepts for "in -fill" and new construction. Dick wanted to know if signs had been worked on. Jim Reidhead said that signs would be restrict- ed by leases and their code would be far more restrictive than City of Fort Collins Code. Chuck Mabry said they would have many controls similiar to shopping centers. He also stated that the project will be phased but basic- ly undertaken as one overall project in order to limit disruption and incon- venience. Old Town Associates will be asking for overall approval but each piece will be presented for detailed review by Landmark Preservation Commis- sion. Each building will go through State Historic designation and they are in close contact with State Historical Preservation Office. John Dewhirst asked if the State was concerned with "in -fill" and was told no, only exist- ing buildings. The State official, Arthur Townsend, has seen conceptual of entire project and has no problems. The schedule of the project was dis- cussed. The schedule is basically accurate but are,30 days behind. Dick Beardmore asked if the encroachment into the street was necessary for econ- omics. It was felt to foster the open feeling of plaza area it was needed. According to the "Mall experts" it takes more than simply planting trees and bushes to make it more appealing. The key is not how the buildings look but how the plaza functions for the "peoples" use of the businesses. Janet LPC Page 2 October 20, 1982 Zemeckis was concerned about the safety of pedestrians. Chuck Mabry said that the street traffic would be increased but slower. Underground access was brought up by Susan McMillen and Jim Reidhead stated that it would be difficult to feasibly do. The parking garage will be 12 levels above the ground and approximately 500 spaces. The DDA with OTA plan to create an aesthetically pleasing and functional garage. They do not want it to ap- pear to be a "wall of concrete". Wayne Sundberg questioned the proposed building alignment against what is spelled out in guidelines. The plan seems to be in potential conflict. Chuck Mabry stressed that the LPC should consider overall development as the major concern and consider trade offs for the ultimate product. OTA is trying to blend the old and new construction so that there will be lasting value, not fads. John Dewhirst reiterated that the project seems to be interjecting new build- ings with mass and lines not compatible with Guidelines. The members then reviewed a preliminary scale model of the proposed project, encom- passing approximately 175,000 square feet. After some discussion the meeting adjourned. Respectfully submitted, Dick Beardmore, Chairman Felix Lee, Staff Support DB/FL/dz Community Services Collaborative architeoure landscape architecture planning 3mntsmanship 1315 Broadway Boulder. Colorado 80302 303 442 3601 October 18, 1982 Mr. Felix Lee Buildinq Inspection Department City Hall Box 580 Ft. Collins, Colorado 80522 Dear Mr. Lee: OCT 21 1982 r.. G !!''- KT!ON As representatives of the Boulder consulting firm CSC, Ellen Ittelson and I attended the Design Guidelines Workshop sponsored by the State Historic Preservation Office. We have written design guidelines for several communities and were most interested in your comments on Ft. Collins' review process. Two concerns that particularly caught our attention were your comments on the difficulty of reviewing paint schemes, and the fact that no design guidelines exist for your historic residential areas. When CSC was preparing design guidelines for Central City, we encountered a similar problem because the Historic Preservation Commission wanted to have buildings painted historic colors, but had no basis on which to make the review. After investigation and discussion, CSC recommended that requiring the authentic colors previously used on particular historic buildings in Central City was the only reliable means for making this review. A separate review document on historic paint schemes was prepared and it included paint analysis of many buildings and paint colors from an original paint sample board from an old Blackhawk hardware store. The paint analysis was provided by CSC which has one of the only private laboratories in Colorado for materials analysis. The document gave a brief history of Western paint colors and their use, showed chips of commercially available colors that matched those found in Central City and Blackhawk, and gave a variety of historically authentic schemes for applying the colors. While the thrust of Central City's review process is quite strict, we feel that a similar document could aid your review process. Such a project would include paint analysis of an adequate number of historic buildings within Ft. Collins' design review area to provide a data base. This analysis would identify a range of colors that were used and would identify various schemes used in applying the colors. This documentation combined with CSC's knowledge of the historic use of paint in Colorado would provide a basis on which to review paint schemes to determine their appropriateness. r We would be very interested in discussing the preparation of such a document for Ft. Collins, and would also be interested in discussing design guidelines for your historic residential neighborhoods. We look forward to hearing from you. AVe �tru //yl�ours, /6L All, r�Feinberg ASF/pi