HomeMy WebLinkAbout613 S MELDRUM ST CARRIAGE HOUSE - FDP200028 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - PROJECT NARRATIVEProject Summary:
I purchased my home at 613 S. Meldrum in May of 2018. I was attracted to the home for its age and historic beauty. While a bit eclectic, the neighborhood is located half a block away
from Colorado State University and offers the vibrancy and diverse character I cherish.
The home itself was in rough shape when I purchased it as it was maintained minimally as a rental property. The porch was dilapidated, and hazardously was detaching from the main structure.
The home's brick façade needed significant repair as settling over the past century-plus, it revealed cracks and holes where pests could enter. I have acquired a bit of experience in
restoring historic buildings over the years and saw through this rough exterior to the home's great bones and beauty.
I have invested a significant amount of money in rehabilitating the property, and my domestic partner and I have invested countless hours in restoring the home to its historic luster.
Of course, I'm biased, but our blood and sweat equity has once again revived the home's historic charm, and many a passerby stops to comment or ask questions about the property. That
said, the house is small relative to modern-day standards and user needs. It does not possess a garage, storage space, or other amenities that families expect today, like a home office.
Hence, my desire to develop a carriage home on the back half of the property that adds the additional space and provides the amenities necessary for my domestic partner and me to age-in-place
comfortably.
We have invested quite a bit of time and extensive analysis of the neighborhood, particularly the NCB district, relative to other abutting neighborhood districts. We were working with
city planning on various iterations of designs. The planner, Mr. Mapes, made us aware of the prevailing code, which would prevent the development of our desired building plan. While
we explored other options, we believed the enhanced carriage house's design to be most congruent and cohesive to the neighborhood while also accomplishing our objectives for extra space.
We felt strongly about not adding onto the historic home as any attachment would compromise its original historic state rather than honor and preserve it.
The planner detailed the processes available to us in seeking approval for the development with its code infractions. This process included requesting Modifications of Use, taking our
case to a hearing officer, and appealing a decision to City Council. Understanding this course, we followed the process. We are grateful that a majority of the councilmembers saw the
merits of our case in our appeal. While it was quite arduous, we ultimately succeeded in obtaining the votes needed to approve and start developing the attached design.
We feel confident the 'carriage home' with updated, current amenities will provide for not only our retirement years but create a foundation for the preservation of the primary historic
home beyond our lifetimes. Our project provides for ample parking with single and tandem parking for three vehicles in the garage and a carport in front of the garage. Additionally,
there will be tandem two-car off-street parking in the front yard of the primary home.
I met with Mr. Rob Irish from the city on electrical plans and had a Professional Engineer (PE) draft plans based upon our discussion regarding utility requirements. The plans address
the best placement and routing for utilities, as illustrated in the documentation. Aside from utilities, we will confine all development for this project to the back half of the lot.
Regards,
Jeff Palomo
Owner/Developer