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HomeMy WebLinkAbout023 - 06/13/1968 - DESIGNATING, PRESERVING, PROTECTING ENHANCING AND PERPETUATING LANDMARK STRUCTURES AND DISTRICTS WIT ORDINANCE NO 23 1968 BEING AN ORDINANCE DESIGNATING, PRESERVING PROTECTING ENHANCING AND PERPETUATING LANDMARK STRUCTURES AND DISTRICTS WITHIN THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS DESIGNED TO STABILIZE OR IMPROVE THE AESTHETICS AND ECONOMIC VITALITY AND VALUES OF LANDMARK STRUCTURES AND DISTRICTS IN THE CITY AND TO PROTECT AND ENHANCE THE CITY S ATTRACTION TO RESIDENTS AND VISITORS AND TO PROMOTE THE USE OF HISTORIC AND ARCHITECTURAL LANDMARKS FOR THE EDUCATION STIMULATION AND WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY AND TO PROMOTE AND ENCOURAGE CONTINUED PRIVATE OWNER SHIP AND UTILIZATION OF LANDMARK BUILDINGS AND OTHER LANDMARK STRUCTURES AND CREATING A LANDMARK PRESERVATION COMMISSION PROVIDING FOR THE ADOPTION BY SUCH COMMISSION OF STANDARDS AND SETTING FORTH A PROCEDURE DESIGNED TO PROTECT EXISTING LANDMARKS IN THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS WHEREAS in the opinion of the City Council the protection enhancement perpetration and use of historical and architectural landmark structures and districts within the City of Fort Collins is a public necessity and is required in the interest of prosperity civic pride and general welfare of the people of the City and WHEREAS the City Council desires to designate preserve protect enhance and per petuate those landmark structures and districts which reflect elements of the City s cultural artistic social economic political or architectural heritage and to foster civic pride in the beauty and accomplishments of the past represented in the City and to stabilize or improve the aesthetic and economic vitality and values of landmark structures and districts in the City and to protect and enhance the City s attraction to residents of the City and tourists and visitors to the City and to promote the use of historic and architectural landmarks for the education stimulation and welfare of the people of the City and to promote and encourage continued private ownership and utilization of land mark buildings and other landmark structures now so owned and used to the extent that the objectives listed above can be obtained and WHEREAS it is the opinion of the Council of the City of Fort Collins that the economic cultural and aesthetic standing of this City cannot be maintained or enhanced by disregarding the historical and architectural heritage of the City or by ignoring the destruction or disfacement of such cultural assets NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS Section 1 Creation of Commission (a) There shall be and hereby is created a Landmark Preservation Commission herein called the Commission (b) The Commission shall consist of nine (9) members The initial appointment to such Commission shall consist of the appointment of three (3) persons for a one year term three (3) persons for a two year term and the remaining three (3) persons for a three year term Thereafter appointments shall be for a term of four years (c) All appointments to the Commission shall be made by the City Council and in the event of a vacancy occurring during the term of a member the City Council shall make an appointment to fill out the unexpired term created by such vacancy (d) The Commission shall elect a Chairman and such other officers as it may require and shall make and adopt by laws for governing its work The Commission shall submit such by laws to the City Council for approval before they are adopted The by laws thereafter shall not be changed without consent of the City Council (e) All members of the Commission shall serve without compensation Section 2 Staff The staff of the Commission shall consist of a secretary and such other staff as may be authorized by the City Council The secretary shall be the custodian of the records of the Commission shall conduct official correspondence and generally supervise the clerical and technical work of the Commission The City Council shall appoint the secretary to the Commission Section 3 Landmark Standards Before initiating any formal action to designate landmarks or landmark districts the Comm ssion shall adopt landmark standards which shall consist of at least the following (a) A definition of what comprises a landmark (b) Criteria for the selection of landmarks and landmark districts Such standards shall be approved by the City Attorney and the City Council by resolution before being adopted Section 4 Designation of Landmarks and Landmark Districts (a) Whenever in the opinion of the Commission a structure or district meets the criteria of a landmark or landmark district the Commission shall contact the owner or owners of such landmark or landmark district outlining the reasons and effects of desig nation as a landmark and if possible shall secure the owner s consent to such designa tion Following such contact the Commission may proceed by officially adopting a reso lution stating that the preliminary investigation by the Commission indicates that the described property is eligible for designation as a landmark or landmark district and either that the Commission is in receipt of the owner s written consent to the designation or the reason the Commission feels that it should proceed without such consent and scheduling a public hearing by the Commission on the question of designation hereinafter called A Designation Hearing at a specified time date and place and directing that the notice of hearing be given as hereinbelow described (b) Notice of the designation hearing shall be given as follows (1) Written notice of the time date and place and subject of the hearing shall be sent by registered or certified mail not less than thirty (3Q) days nor more than forty (40) days prior to the hearing to all property owners of record on the date of the resolution who own or have any legal or equitable interest in the real property being proposed for designation as a landmark or landmark district (2) Signs designating the proposed action and the time date and place of the hearing shall be posted by the Commission for a period of not less than fifteen (15) days immediately preceding the hearing on all property proposed for landmark designation and on the boundaries of all areas proposed for landmark designations such signs to be prominently displayed and easily readable from abutting public ways (3) A legal notice indicating the nature of the hearing the property involved and the date time and place of the scheduled public hearing shall be published once in a legal newspaper of the City of Fort Collins not less than ten (10) nor more than fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing The description of the property involved may be by popular name or street address rather than by legal description (4) Written notice of the proposed landmark designation including the identification of the property the basis for commencing the designation procedure and the time, date and place of the hearing shall be given to the City of Fort Collins Plan ning Office hereinafter called The Planning Office not later than thirty (30) days prior to the hearing (c) The City of Fort Collins Planning Office shall review the proposed desig nation with respect to (1) its relationship to the zoning ordinance of the City of Fort Collins and the Plan for Progress of the City (2) the effect of the designation upon the surrounding neighborhood and (3) such other planning considerations as may be relevant The Planning Office may recommend approval rejection of modification of the proposed designation and its recommendation shall contain a statement of the basis therefor The recommendation shall be delivered to the Commission in written form at or prior to the hearing If the Planning Office fails to act within the specified period the proposed designation shall be deemed to have been approved by the Planning Office 2 (d) A quorum of the Commission shall conduct the hearing If a quorum is not present the members present may adjourn the meeting to another date within two weeks and, if a quorum is not present at such adjourned meeting the hearing shall be canceled and the designation procedure terminated If any hearing is continued the time date and place of the continuation shall be established and announced to those present when the current session is to be adjourned Reasonable opportunity shall be provided for all interested parties to express their opinions regarding the proposed designation or designations How- ever nothing contained herein shall be construed to prevent the Commission from establish ing reasonable rules to govern the proceedings of the hearings or from establishing reasonable limits on the length of individual presentations Transcripts of the hearings shall not be required however the Commission s records shall include the name and address of each speaker the organization or person or persons he represents if any whether or not he is an owner or a holder of some interest in the affected property or represents such owner or holder and a summary of the relevant portions of each statement written presen tations including the report of the Planning Office shall be incorporated into the record of the hearing (e) The Commission shall act officially on each proposed designation within forty-five (45) days of the hearing thereon The Commission may approve reject or modify any proposal but no proposal may be extended beyond the boundaries of the land described in the original resolution unless the initiation and hearing procedure is repeated for the enlarged boundaries The Commission shall set forth in its records the findings of fact which constitute the basis for its decision If the Commission fails to act within the forty five day period the designation shall be deemed to have been rejected and the designation procedure shall thereby be terminated (f) Within fifteen (15) days after reaching its decision the Commission shall either transmit to the City Council the Commission s recommendation on the designation of a landmark or landmark district including the description of the property involved and the findings upon which the recommendation was based or (2) terminate the designation procedure If more than one property is involved in the designation procedure the Commission mayapprove in part and terminate in part Each part shall then be treated as a separate action In-no event may any property be added to the area described in the initiation resolution without instituting a new designation procedure (g) Upon receipt of the recommendations transmitted by the Commission the City Council may by ordinance designate property as a landmark or landmark district Due consideration shall be given to the written views of owners of effected property and in its discretion the City Council may hold public hearings on any proposed landmark or landmark district designation If no action is taken within ninety (90) days after transmittal of the recommendation the designation procedure shall be considered terminated (h) Within fifteen (15) days of the effective date of an ordinance designating property as a landmark or landmark district the Commission shall record among the real estate records of the Clerk and Recorder of the County of Larimer either (1) a certified copy of the ordinance designating the specified property as a landmark or landmark district or (2) a notice stating that the specified property has been designated as a landmark or landmark district and citing the ordinance and the effective date thereof which made the designation effective Notice may also contain a brief summary of the effects of such designation as set forth in this ordinance Failure to record such ordinance or notice within the required time shall suspend the effective date of the designation until the recording has been made (i) Within ten (10) days after the recording of the ordinance or the notice of designation of property as a landmark or landmark district the Secretary of the Commission shall send to the owner of each property so designated by registered or certified mail a letter outlining the reasons for such designation and the obligations and restrictions created by such designation Such letter shall also contain a request that the owner notify the Secretary of the Commission prior to (1) Selling or leasing said property or improvement 3 (2) Preparation of plans for the reconstruction or alteration of the exterior of improvements located on such property (3) Preparation of plans for the construction of addition to or demolition of improvements on such property Section 5 Amendment or Revision of Landmark or Landmark District Designation A landmark or landmark district designation may be amended or rescinded in the same manner as the original designation was made Section 6 Procedure to Authorize Erection Construction Reconstruction, Alteration Additions to Relocation or Demolition of Structures Designated as Landmarks or Located in Landmark Districts (a) If an application is made for a building permit (including any permit for the demolition of any building) for any of the following acts (1) Alternation or reconstruction of or addition to the exterior of any improve ment which constitutes all or part of a landmark structure or landmark district (2) Demolition of any improvement which constitutes all or part of a landmark structure or landmark district (3) Construction or erection of or addition to any improvement upon any land included in a landmark district Action on such permit shall be deferred by the Building Inspector except as provided in paragraph (f) below or unless accomplished by written approval by the Commission The Building Inspector shall within seven (7) days notify the Commission in writing that such a permit has been requested and the nature of the request J (b) If upon receipt of notification of a request for a building permit from the Building Department the Commission finds that the proposed work is of a nature which will not adversely affect or destroy any exterior architectural feature of the improvement and is appropriate or consistent with the spirit and purpose of this ordinance the Commission shall so advise the Building Inspector as soon as practicable but in no event longer than fifteen (15) days after receiving the notification of the request for the permit Upon receiving the Commission s report of acceptability the Building Inspector shall proceed with the review of the application for a building permit and shall notify the applicant to that effect No substantial change shall be made in an application for the building permit approved by the Commission without resubmittal to the Commission and approval of such changes in the same manner as the original application (c) If the proposed work is not acceptable as outlined in paragraph (b) above as soon as practicable but in no event longer than fifteen (15) days after receiving notify cation of the request for the building permit upon receiving the Commission s report that the proposed works are not acceptable the Building Inspector shall deny the apple cation for the building permit and shall so advise the applicant If no report is made by the Commission w thin fifteen (15) days the application shall be processed as if It were approved (d) If the proposed work is not acceptable as outlined in paragraph (b) above the Commission acting with all due diligence shall explore all means for substantially preserving the landmark structure or landmark district which would have been affected by the required permit These investigations may include by way of example and not of limitation (1) Feasibility of modification of the plans (2) Feasibility of anyalternative private use of the structure or structures which would substantially preserve the original character thereof (3) Possibility of public acquisition for a public purpose of the structure or structures involved These studies shall include contact with the original applicant for the building permit (e) If the Commission is unsuccessful in developing either alternate plans or an appropriate public or private use for such structure or structures which are acceptable to the owner, it shall so notify the Building Inspector in writing If within ninety 4 (90) days from the date of receiving the original notification of the requested permit the Commission does not submit such statement to the Building Inspector the Building Inspector shall proceed as if such statement had been filed Upon receipt of such state ment the Building Inspector shall notify the original applicant that if he files a new application for a permit for the same work within twelve (12) months of issuance of said notification by the Building Inspection the permit shall be processed in accordance with the usual procedures with no further delay imposed by reason of this ordinance If a period of more than twelve (12) months elapses before the request for a building permit is refiled or if the request differs from the original application the request shall be handled as if the initial application had not been made (f) In any case where the Building Inspector the Fire Department or any other public authority having the power to do so orders or directs the construction, reconstruction alteration repair relocation or demolition of any landmark improvement for the purpose of remedying conditions determined by that officer, department or authority to be imminently dangerous for life health or property nothing contained herein shall be construed as making it unlawful for any person to comply with such order Any such officer department or authority shall give the Commission as early notice as possible of the proposed or actual issuance of any such order or directive Section 7 Violations and Remedies (a) Whenever by the provisions of this ordinance the performance of any act is required or the commission of any act is prohibited a failure to comply with the ordinance shall constitute a violation of this ordinance Every day for which a violation exists shall constitute a separate violation and a separate offense (b) Any person firm or corporation violating any provision of this ordinance shall be subject to the penalty provided by the Code of Ordinances of the City of Fort Collins Colorado 1958 as amended In case any building or structure is erected constructed externally reconstructed externally altered added to or demolished in violation of this ordinance the City or any proper person may institute an appropriate action or proceeding to prevent such unlawful action The imposition of any peantly hereunder shall not pre clude the City or any proper person from instituting any proper action or proceeding to require compliance with the provisions of this ordinance and with administrative orders and determinations made hereunder Section 8 Rules The Commission shall have the power to make whatever rules are necessary for the execution of its duties as set forth in this ordinance All such rules shall be approved by the City Council by resolution before becoming effective Section 9 Extension of Time Limits Any time limit set forth in this ordinance may be extended by mutual consent of the Commission and the applicant or of the Commission the P anning Department and the applicant whichever is applicable Section 10 Definitions The following terms shall mean and include (a) Alteration Any act or process which changes one or more of the exterior architectural features of a designated landmark structure or district (b) Commission The Landmark Preservation Commission (c) Exterior Architectural Feature The architectural design style general arrangement and components of all the outer surfaces of a structure or improvement includ ing but not limited to the color texture materials type and style of all windows doors lights signs and other fixtures appurtenant to said structure or improvement (d) Improvement Any building structure place work of art or other object constituting a physical betterment of real property or any part of such betterment (e) Landmark Landmark District Any improvement or group of improvements (1) Which has a special character or special historic or aesthetic interest or 5 value as part of the development heritage or cultural characteristics of the City State or Nation (2) Wherein any event of major historic significance with a measurable effect upon society took place (3) Which is closely identified with a person or group of persons who have had some measurable influence on society (4) Wherein the broad cultural political economic or social heritage of the community is exemplified (5) Which faithfully portrays the environment of a group of people in an era of history characterized by a distinctive architectural style or which embody those distinguishing characteristics of an architectural type speciman or which is the work of an architect or master builder whose individual work has influenced the development of the City (6) Which because of being a part or related to a square park or other distinctive area should be developed or preserved according to a plan based upon a historic cultural or architectural motif (7) Which due to its unique location or singular physical characteristic represents an established and familiar visual feature of the neighborhood community or city (8) Which has been officially designated as a landmark or landmark district pursuant to the provisions of this ordinance (f) Relocation Removal of a landmark not from a site deteriorating in historic significant accessibility or esthetic surroundings to a site more assuredly giving ade quate protection or providing public appreciation or enjoyment (g) Structure Anything which is constructed or erected and the use of which requires more or less permanent location on the ground or attachment to something having permanent location on the ground not however including wheels an edifice or a building of any kind Section 11 Severability It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent that the several provisions of this ordinance shall be severable in accordance with the provisions set forth below (a) If any provision of this ordinance is declared to be invalid by a decision of any court of competent Jurisdiction it is hereby declared to be the legislative intent that the effect of such decision shall be limited to that provision or provisions which are expressly stated in the decision to be invalid and such decision shall not effect impair or nullify this ordinance as a whole or any other part thereof but the rest of this ordinance shall continue in full force and effect (b) If the application of any provision of this ordinance to any lot building or other structure or a tract of land is declared to be invalid by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction it is hereby declared to be the legislative intent that the effect of such decision shall be limited to that lot building or other structure or tract of land immediately involved in the controversy action or proceeding in which the judgment or decree of invalidity was rendered and such decision shall not effect impair or nullify this ordinance as a whole or the application of any provision thereof to any other lot building or other structure or tract of land Introduced considered favorably on first reading and ordered published this 23rd day of May A D 19 68 and to be presented for final passage on the 6 13th day of June A D 19 68 Mayor ATTEST City Cler Passed and adopted on final reading this 13th day of June A D , 1968 Mayor ATTEST i City Cler 7