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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 09/07/1999 - RESOLUTION 99-112 DISAPPROVING THE PROPOSED DONATI 1 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY ITEM NUMBER: 26 DATE: September 7, 1999 FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL STAFF: Marty Heffernan ;SUBJECT: Resolution 99-112 Disapproving the Proposed Donation of an Aviation Memorial at East Mulberry Street and Timberline Road. RECOMMENDATION: Staff and the Art in Public Places Board recommend that Council not authorize this project at the proposed site(Mulberry and Timberline). Staff recommends that Council direct staff to work with the Air Force Association to identify other possible sites for this project. FINANCIAL IMPACT: Under this proposal, the Air Force Association would pay for all of the costs associated with constructing the site,except for the landscaping. These costs are estimated to be$3 5,000 to$50,000. The City, as part of the completion of the work associated with the Timberline Extension Project, would install the landscaping at an estimated value of$35,000. Annual maintenance funding, estimated to be $10,500,would be an ongoing obligation of the City. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The Longs Peak Chapter of the Air Force Association,an association of active and retired Air Force servicemen and women,and other public supporters of the U.S. Air Force,represented by Edmund L. Robert, has proposed to the City a plan to develop an aviation memorial to be located on the northeast corner of the intersection of East Mulberry and Timberline Road. Various members of City staff have met with Mr. Robert over the past 3 years to gain a better understanding of his proposal and to determine the City's involvement in this project, if any, and associated costs. The proposal involves mounting a demilitarized AT-38 aircraft on a circular pedestal. The aircraft will be surrounded by a sidewalk, grass, trees, and other landscaping and will include an adjacent parking area. Under this proposal,the City would be obligated to maintain the site indefinitely. The estimated annual cost of this maintenance is $10,500 in today's dollars. If the memorial is not installed at this site, annual maintenance costs are estimated to be $1,500 to $2,000. The Air Force Association will provide and help maintain the aircraft and expects to secure volunteer labor to help with construction of the memorial. Staff understands project costs over the City's $35,000 landscaping contribution will be raised by and will be the responsibility of the Air Force Association. The memorial will be located on property owned by the State of Colorado (the state has indicated a revocable permit will be issued for the memorial), and outside the City limits. The DATE: September 7, 1999 2 ITEM NUMBER: 26 aircraft will be donated to the City,and the City will bear any liability risk associated with owning this type of facility. The design of the project should prevent access to the aircraft by the public,as it will be over 10 feet off the ground. City staff has identified up to$35,000 that could be devoted to landscaping and site improvements for this proposed project. The money is in the Timberline Road project and was to be used to landscape this portion of the Mulberry-Timberline intersection. The memorial would be a very prominent feature on Mulberry Street. Transportation staff has expressed some reservations about the impact of the memorial on driver safety due to its prominence. The City Code requires Council approval of any "artistic monument" donated to the City to be placed in a public area if the value of such artistic monument is$10,000 or more,and it also requires a review of such proposed donation and the recommendation of the Art in Public Places Board. In this case,the Board has reviewed and rated the aviation memorial proposal. The Board unanimously and strongly recommends that Council deny the proposal because the aircraft is not compatible with the proposed site. The proposed location at Mulberry and Timberline is a very prominent site within an important gateway to Fort Collins. The aircraft is not unique to Fort Collins,does not rate well aesthetically and is not appropriate for a site that could be better utilized to define our community. The Board also believes the City should develop coordinated,thoughtful plans for its gateways before it begins to define them with individual pieces. The Council's adopted Policy Agenda contains two items that address this area. The Board believes it would be premature to install this memorial before the completion of the East Mulberry Corridor Plan(A-5)and the plan for Community Gateways(A-10). The Board recommends the City continue to work with Mr. Robert to find an appropriate location for the aircraft. RESOLUTION 99-112 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS DISAPPROVING THE PROPOSED DONATION OF AN AVIATION MEMORIAL AT EAST MULBERRY STREET AND TIMBERLINE ROAD WHEREAS,the Longs Peak Chapter of the Air Force Association,an association of active and retired Air Force service men and women and other public supporters of the U.S. Air Force, represented by Edmund L. Robert, its Vice President and Project Chairman,has proposed to plan and develop an Aviation Memorial to be located on the northeast corner of the intersection of East Mulberry Street and Timberline Road; and WHEREAS, the proposal for the Aviation Memorial is based upon the commitment by the City to pay up to$35,000 in funds for landscaping of the Memorial site,to coordinate and assist with arrangements for site control and donated Army heavy labor, to accept the completed Memorial as a donation subject to Air Force regulations applicable to surplus aircraft, and to assume responsibility for ongoing operation and maintenance of the Aviation Memorial as a public park;and WHEREAS, the Aviation Memorial is planned to include a demilitarized AT-38 aircraft, mounted on a circular pedestal, and surrounded by a sidewalk, grass, trees and other landscaping; and WHEREAS, funding for the City's participation in the development of the Aviation Memorial project would be available through revenues previously appropriated by the Council for landscaping adjacent to the Timberline Road Extension; and WHEREAS, Section 23-309 of the City Code requires that works of art, including artistic monuments, with a value of ten thousand dollars or more may be accepted only with the approval of the Council,upon review of such proposed donation and the recommendation of the Art in Public Places Board ("the Board'; and WHEREAS, a presentation regarding the proposed Aviation Memorial was made to the Board at its regular meeting of July 21, 1999; and WHEREAS, the Board evaluated the proposal based on the City's Art in Public Places Guidelines (the "APP Guidelines"), and based on its review, voted unanimously to strongly recommend that the proposed donation of the Aviation Memorial not be accepted by the City, because the Memorial is not compatible with the proposed site. NOW,THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT . COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That the Council hereby disapproves the proposed donation and cooperative development of the Aviation Memorial on the northeast comer of the intersection of East Mulberry Street and Timberline Road. Section 2. That the City Manager is hereby directed to work with the Air Force Association, Longs Peak Chapter, to identify a mutually acceptable location for the Aviation Memorial, consistent with the A.PP Guidelines and other planning and aesthetic considerations. Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held this 7th day of September, A.D. 1999. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk Cultural, Library and Recreational Services Lincoln Center City of Fort Collins MEMORADUM To: City Council From: Art in Public Places Board Through: John Fischbach, City Manager Date: July 22, 1999 Re: Aviation Memorial The Art in Public Places board appreciates City Council's request for our recommendation concerning the proposed aviation memorial. We are also pleased to learn that Council's recently approved Policy Agenda contains several items that address enhancing the gateways into the city, including the East Mulberry Corridor Plan. The Art in Public Places Board concurs with the Council that the gateway issue is very important to our citizens. The Art in Public Places board has a history of supporting the corridor efforts. During the Building Community Choices process, the Art In Public Places board requested that $175,000 be spent to begin to enhance these entryways through the purchase of artwork. This request did not make the Building Community Choices ballot. Enhancing the gateways to our city remains a high priority for the board. At our July 21 meeting, the Art in Public Places board reviewed the request by the Air Force Association (AFA) to partner with the City to create a monument adjacent to Mulberry Street at the intersection of Timberline Road. We congratulate Ed Robert and this fine group of concerned citizens in their efforts to beautify this entrance into Fort Collins and create a lasting memorial to aviation. It is however, the unanimous decision of the Art in Public Places board to recommend that City Council not engage in this partnership with the AFA. We feel that without a plan for this corridor it is premature to place such a dramatic monument at that site. When the East Mulberry Corridor Plan is complete we would envision using a public process to solicit enhancements to the corridor. The aviation memorial may be appropriate at another site, but we feel that the Nestimated $10,000 of City funds that would be spent each year for maintenance 417 West Magnolia • Fort Collins,CO 80521-2646 • (970)221-6735 • FAX (970)484-0424 of the memorial and its grounds would be better spent on implementing a Council approved corridor plan. The board also considered the proposal using the APP process for the donation of art to the City. Although it may be a stretch to consider the aviation memorial an artistic monument, the proposal received a score of only 22.8 points out of a possible 100. It takes a score of 70 for the board to recommend that City Council approve a donation of art to the City. In conclusion, we wholeheartedly support the Council's Policy Agenda as it relates to the gateways to the City and would like to participate in any way you feel is appropriate. We think that the City should not participate in this project and oppose any action by the AFA to erect the monument without a Council approved plan for the East Mulberry Corridor. We appreciate City Council requesting the opinion of this board on this issue. The board would like to devise a process to review similar requests that the City receives regarding monuments, memorials and other projects that relate to the culture and aesthetics of our city.