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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.hpc.201705101 ASPEN HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF MAY 10, 2017 Chairman Jeffrey Halferty brought the meeting to order at 4:30 p.m. Commissioners in attendance were Jeffrey Halferty, Gretchen Greenwood, Willis Pember, John Whipple, Roger Moyer, Richard Lai. Absent were Jim DeFrancia, Nora Berko and Bob Blaich. Staff present: Andrea Bryan, Assistant City Attorney Amy Simon, Historic Preservation Planner Linda Manning, City Clerk Approval of draft minutes from April 12th, 2017: Ms. Greenwood moved to approve, seconded by Mr. Pember. All in favor, motion carried. PUBLIC COMMENT: none. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS: none. DISCLOSURES OF CONFLICT: Mr. Whipple has a conflict on 500 W Main St. as well as Mr. Halferty. PROJECT MONITORING: None. STAFF COMMENTS: Ms. Simon gave a reminder that there will be a regular meeting on May 24th and a special meeting on May 31st to take care of some projects being pushed from the May 24th agenda. CERTIFICATES OF NO NEGATIVE EFFECT: Ms. Simon said there was one item for the Creperie to allow them to put up some canopies that they’ve used in previous summers. They were approved for the summers and will be removed each winter. They are made of corrugated metal that shield the tables and are not visible from the street. She said they are also in the process of approving an amendment for Su Casa. The Building Department is requiring a bridge to cross over the staircase for access to the Hub. There will be a small visual impact for a platform with railing and we have allowed this to move forward. PUBLIC NOTICE: Ms. Simon stated there is no public notice for tonight and for clarification, the item that is showing up for Old Business has been withdrawn. They will be coming back for final in June. OLD BUSINESS: 500 W Main – Conceptual Commercial Design Review. No action required. Amended Proposal Withdrawn. NEW BUSINESS: Aspen Pedestrian Mall walking tour. Mike Albert, principal and partner with Design Workshop presenting on the Mall. The mall is now over 40 years old and the utilities are at the end of their life. Breaks in the pipes have caused major problems to businesses on the mall at the most inopportune times. The goal is to development a master plan for development and improve the pedestrian experience. This project is just for the renovation of the mall and not about the expansion or the alleyways. The plan is to maintain the historic integrity and character while upgrading the utilities and explore innovative ways to improve the storm water 2 ASPEN HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF MAY 10, 2017 infrastructure, protect the roaring fork, retain the mall as an urban park, increase accessibility and engage the public and community. There are three specialists to help in the process. The three areas of focus are: projects for public spaces, sustainable infrastructures and Tina Bishop for a historical and cultural aspect. Phase 1- Inventory and analysis Phase 2 – Conceptual planning and design Phase 3 – Design Phase 4 – Approvals Phase 5 - Construction This is not a new problem and many malls are built during this time are going through the same issues. Successful public places think about programming and uses, diversity of people through the day and year, access and linkages and how design can foster interaction among people. As far as outdoor dining goes, an expanded number of plates creates revenue to the bottom line and provides vitality energy and life to the space. The cities green reputation will be enhanced by the storm water management plan. Currently the limits of the mall do not receive storm water management to current codes so bringing this into compliance, will improve the water quality in the Roaring Fork. Accessibility is an issue throughout the mall. There is also a human comfort aspect with the trees providing a picturesque environment. There have been several aspects from the public outreach summary, which are the project website, information letter, door to door outreach, email blast, city newsletter, community voice. Please visit aspenpedestrianmall.com for more information and to leave comments. Tina Bishop introduced herself and said that her analysis begins with a chronology of the malls. This includes three temporary malls that occurred over time, which are broke into periods by what happened during those times. She proceeded to show slides of the original construction and looked at the original 1976 drawings and historic photographs. There was a very simple pallet of materials built building edge to building edge, curb to curb and it created an important vocabulary. The Mill street renovation was done in 2000, which added the bathroom and playground. There are three typologies to the mall currently: the urban park, urban plaza and nodes (the pieces that connect everything together). They are looking at what has significance and integrity and is still contributing in order to see the future of the mall. Mr. Moyer asked how many original people are still here in town since the mall was built and Ms. Simon said they are reaching out to people to start discussions. Mr. Pember stated that he wondered about the compared efforts for renovating a building as opposed to a landscape. This is vastly different and wondered if in a public plane, if this is really the kind of way you execute. This is where he sees a disconnect in restoring historic buildings and the renovation of the mall project. Ms. Bishop said they were lacking in photographs from different angles and are lacking in information in general from the 1980’s to 2000 so she would welcome any plans or information that Mr. Pember may have to contribute. 3 ASPEN HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION MINUTES OF MAY 10, 2017 Mr. Lai commented that the Independence node is one of the weaker areas and wondered about a water or water/fire feature. Mr. Albert said they are open to comments and suggestions and all options on the table and will get guidance from Council on this to move forward, but yes, this is a possibility. Ms. Greenwood and Mr. Whipple both agreed that it is encouraging to see many different departments working together on this project because that doesn’t happen very often. Ms. Bishop commented that it is important to see what the choices are according to the degree of change and how the changes will be managed. She also mentioned that there is no documentation on the plans that there was a landscape architect originally, but many different architects were involved. Mr. Albert commented on the trees and in regards to sun and shade comfort and he said the majority of people who voted said it was fine as is. He said people also voted that the outdoor dining is perfect the way it is as well as the current lighting structure. Mr. Whipple asked if there has been talk of replicating the bricks or having them made somewhere since there is a shortage of them and Mr. Albert said there is so much discussion about the bricks and replicating is not off the table and it’s something that needs to be explored. Ms. Simon said everyone must realize that even through all of the community outreach being done, there is only a slice of the community that is responding and giving their opinion. She wants to know how they are dealing with this and what else is being done to include people. Mr. Albert said there is an online survey that has gone out and will be sent out again over the next month and ask some demographic questions so they can parse out how business owners answered as opposed to locals or down valley citizens, etc. Mr. Lai said he is so gratified to see the direction this project is going and thanked everyone involved. Mr. Albert said he will inform the board when there is another survey available to keep everyone involved and in the loop and mentioned they will be back for another discussion in August or September. The board decided no walking tour was needed. MOTION made at 6:19 p.m. by Mr. Whipple to go into executive session with Jim True and seconded by Ms. Greenwood. Motion to convene executive session for the purpose of discussion of: C.R.S. 24-6- 402(b): conferences with an attorney for the local public body for the purposes of receiving legal advice on specific legal questions. Commissioners present: Jeffrey Halferty, Gretchen Greenwood, Willis Pember, Roger Moyer, Richard Lai. Staff present: Jim True; City Attorney, Andrea Bryan; Assistant City Attorney, Linda Manning; City Clerk, Amy Simon; Historic Preservation Planner. MOTION to adjourn at 6:46 p.m. by Roger Moyer and seconded by John Whipple. All in favor, motion carried. 4