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CITY OF ASPEN
INVENTORY OF HISTORIC STRUCTURES:
Undesignated Structures Evaluated By
Historic Preservation Committee
January, 1987
Structures Scored 4 and 5
EVALUATION
AREA ADDRESS
LOT
BLOCK
SCORE
Commercial Core
305 E. Main
1/2B,
C
80
4
309 E. Main
D
80
4
309 E. Hopkins
C
81
4
303 E. Main
A,
B
80
5
406 E. Hopkins
K, L,
M
87
5
209 S. Galena
88
5
419 E. Hyman
F,
G
89
5
506 E. Hyman/
210 S. Galena
K,
L
94
5
529/531 E. Cooper/
405 S. Hunter
96
5
Main Street
616
W.
Main
24 4
205
W.
Main
H,
I
52 4
527
W.
Main
C
31 5
320
W.
Main
N, O,
P
44 5
West End
716
W.
Francis
O, 1/2P
15 4
712
W.
Francis
1/2P,
Q
15 4
700
W.
Francis
R,
S
15 4
609
W.
Smuggler
G
21 4
323
W.
Hallam
D,
E
43 4
121
W.
Bleeker
D, 1/2
E
58 4
834
W.
Hallam
K,
L
10 5
421
N.
5th
H,
I
21 5
629
W.
Smuggler
A,
B
21 5
334
W.
Hallam
1/2 K,
L
42 5
214
W.
Bleeker
N, O,
P
50 5
515
W.
Gillespie
4, 5,
6
99 5
0 0
Undesignated Structures
Evaluated by HPC
Page 2
AREA ADDRESS
LOT
BLOCK
SCORE
Community Church
127 E. Hallam
F,
G
65
4
110 E. Bleeker
M
65
4
134 E. Bleeker
R,
S
65
4
216 E. Hallam
K,
L
71
4
222 E. Hallam
M,
N
71
4
202 N. Monarch
K,
L,
M
78
4
105 E. Hallam
B,
C
65
5
Hallam Lake
514 N. 3rd
A,
B
40
4
225 W. Smuggler
D,
E
48
4
314 W. Gillespie
6,
1/2
5
91
4
330 W. Gillespie
4,
1/2
5
91
4
240 Lake 1/2 12,
13, 14,
15
103
4
120 W. Francis
N,
O,
P
55
5
330 Lake 5,
6, 7,
8,
9
103
5
W. Bleeker/
W. Hallam
610 W. Hallam
Q
22
4
1000 E. Cooper
K,
L
34
4
623 E. Hopkins
F,
1/2
G
99
4
West Aspen Mountain
212 W. Hopkins
P,
Q
52
4
219 W. Hopkins
D
53
4
124 E. Cooper
P,
Q
69
4
214 E. Hopkins
N,
O
74
4
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr. City Manager
FROM: Alan Richman, Planning and Development Director
RE: Continued Second Reading: Ordinance 11
DATE: April 21, 1987
SUMMARY: The Planning Office recommends final approval of
Ordinance 11.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION: At your regular meeting of April 13,
you directed me to make a series of changes to Ordinance 11, to
respond to concerns of the public and Councilmembers. Since I
will be out of town on the night of the continued public hearing,
I wanted to communicate directly to you all of the changes made
to the Ordinance.
PROBLEM DISCUSSION: Following is a brief summary of the changes
which you requested and our response.
1. Categorical Exemption- You directed us to eliminate the
application to staff for activities such as interior remodel and
exterior painting. This has been accomplished on page 12 of the
revised Ordinance.
2. Good Cause to Suspend Action- You directed us to revise
the provision by which HPC can suspend action on a demolition
application. On page 24 of the revised Ordinance, we have
rewritten the procedure to require good cause for suspending
action. We have more clearly defined the circumstances under
which a suspension of action can occur and have explicitly stated
that the applicant can appeal a suspension action to Council, to
tie this decision to you as the representative of the electorate.
3. Appeal Limitations- On page 25 of the revised Ordinance,
we have responded to your direction to provide Council with
greater discretion to resolve appeal situations. We have done
this by adding denial of due process to the causes for an appeal,
and by expanding the remedies beyond just reversal and remand of
the application. Additional remedies proposed include altering
the conditions of approval, changing the length of time during
which action on a demolition application is suspended or the
terms of the suspension or such other action as Council may deem
necessary to remedy the situation.
4. Demolition Review- There are two locations in the
• 9
Ordinance where we have responded to Council's direction to add
all structures within the Main Street and Downtown districts and
all 114's" and 115's" from the inventory to the group of structures
subject to demolition review. First, on page 20, we have specif-
ically cited the additions. Secondly, on pages 10-11, we have
established the inventory of historic sites and structures, and
the procedure by which structures are placed on the inventory,
periodically evaluated by HPC and either removed from the
inventory (if they are rated 0 or 1) or made subject to demo-
lition review (if they are rated 4 or 5). Though Council did not
discuss this section during its prior review, staff believes it
is essential to provide notice to the public as to how a struc-
ture is rated 4 or 5 and how the public can comment upon the
evaluation process.
5. Remove Redundancy- There were a number of cases where
the terms "compatible" and "character" were defined in the
Ordinance. These redundancies have all been removed. We have
also worked hard with the City Attorney to consolidate the
language in many other portions of the Ordinance to improve its
clarity and reduce its wordiness. Finally, the typos and
incorrect cross references which we mentioned at the last meeting
have all been fixed.
6. Eliminate Masculine References- Throughout the Ord-
inance, the terms "he" or "his" have been eliminated. The term
"Chairman" has been changed to "Chairperson".
In addition to the six changes requested by Council, and add-
ressed in the Ordinance, there are two other important Council
comments from the prior meeting which should be addressed. These
comments and our responses are as follows.
7. Ordinance is too Long- It was mentioned that while
Section 24-9 of the Code takes up only 11 pages in the Code, it
requires 28 pages in this Ordinance. While I certainly agree
with the Council that this Ordinance is quite long, I believe
that the length can be explained. First, the 28 pages contain
about two pages of "Whereas" statements and adoption language
which will not be codified. This means the Ordinance is actually
26 pages in length. Second, to make this Ordinance consistent
with the Code Simplification program, Section 24-9.2 was added,
identifying and defining the responsibilities of decision making
bodies. When the new Code is finally prepared and adopted, this
Section will not be part of the Historic Preservation regula-
tions, but instead will appear in a separate Article. This will
effectively remove 5 more pages from this Ordinance. Finally,
please recognize that while an Ordinance that is effectivly 21
pages long is quite lengthy, it is so in part because we have
tried so hard to spell out submission requirements and review
procedures, consistent with the intent of the simplified Code.
There continues to be repetition in these sections, but the
Consultant's opinion is that each procedure will stand better on
its own and can more easily be given to an applicant as one
document. We expect to continue to work with the consultant on
this problem and believe that when the provisions in Ordinance 11
are incorporated in the Code rewrite, we can eliminate the
remaining redundancy in such items as public hearing requirements
and the actual review procedure. The Council should therefore
view this as an interim Ordinance, to be put into effect for its
substance and procedure, but with its form to be improved by the
Code simplification.
8. Wait for Code Simplification- It was suggested at the
last meeting that we may be better off waiting for the entire
Code to be rewritten than to try to clean up this one Section.
Although, in general, we concur that piecemeal revisions at this
time should be avoided, we feel that this Ordinance, and the
Historic Incentives Ordinance which will follow on May 11 are
exceptions to that rule. This Ordinance will help HPC to
function better during this building season. It will allow
activities to be exempted from review or to go through only one
step, rather than the current two step process. It will protect
our historic resources through a stronger demolition review
process which will affect a wider universe of structures than is
presently the case. Finally, it has been reviewed by the
Consultants, is consistent with their work and is recommended by
them for adoption. Any changes which need to be made after a
season of experience with the Ordinance or due to the form of the
other Articles can easily be incorporated in the rewitten Code.
RECOMMENDED MOTION: "Move to adopt Ordinance 11, Series of
1987".
CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS:
J 0�'V
Aspen/Pitkin Planning Office
130 S. Galena Street
Aspen, Colorado 81611
^F1^
^F2^
RE: ^F3^
Dear ^F4^,
April 29, 1987
Please be advised that a public hearing will be held before the
Aspen City Council at a meeting to begin at 5:00 P.M. in the City
Council Chambers, 130 S. Galena Street, Aspen, Colorado on May
11, 1987. The purpose of the hearing will be to consider
revisions to Section 24-9 of the Municipal Code pertaining to
Historic Overlay District and Historic Landmarks.
The proposed revisions to Section 24-9 effecting demolition and
removal review include:
1) The establishment of an Inventory of Historic Struc-
tures,
2) The Historic Preservation Committee's (HPC) evaluation
process for the evaluation of undesignated structures,
3) The ratification of guidelines which the HPC used to
rate each structure on a scale of 0-5,
4) The provision that any structure rated a 4 or 5 is
subject to the "demolition and total removal" regula-
tion within this ordinance.
The intent of the demolition regulation is to allow the community
the opportunity to review demolition plan, for all significant
historic structures in order to determine whether or not com-
munity resources should be used to preserve these structures.
All owners of structures rated 114" and 115" are receiving individ-
ual notice of this public hearing. The Historic Preservation
Committee (HPC) held neighborhood meetings in January, 1987 and
regular meetings for further study and evaluation during January,
February and April, 1987 to evaluate all structures on the
Inventory of Historic Structures based on the 110-5" guidelines
During that process, your structure at ^F3^ was rated "^F5All.
•
The Inventory of Historic Structures Evaluation Guidelines are as
follows:
0 - Structure was incorrectly placed on Inventory and is
actually neither old nor reconstructed.
1 - Structure is old, but has been so drastically altered to not
be easily recognizable as a Victorian or mining era struc-
ture. Its situation in the neighborhood typically has
minimal historic influence because the neighborhood has been
substantially rebuilt with new structures of a larger scale,
or the structure is badly deteriorated.
2 - Structure has been altered in a way that has negatively
affected its historic architectural integrity. Typically,
the structure cannot be associated with any important
historic person or event, and is merely representative of a
miner family home environment. Neighborhood influence is
also not significant because the structure's historic
qualities have become nominal.
3 - Structure has been altered in a way that negatively affects
its historic architectural integrity; however, the structure
retains some historic significance because of particularly
distinctive historic structural elements and/or its contri-
bution to the historic character of a neighborhood. In a
few cases, the structure has been associated with an
historic person or family.
4 - Structure has been altered in a way that is considered
compatible with the original architecture; and the historic
character is preserved. Structure typically has strong
positive influence in the neighborhood's historic character
and may be associated with important historic persons or
events. In all cases, structures were in their original
location, to the best of staff and HPC's knowledge.
5 - Structure appears to be unaltered or has been carefully
restored/reconstructed. In some cases, structures were
rated in the 1980 Inventory as excellent or exceptional
rather than notable. Typically, these structures are very
good representatives of an historic architectural style and
craftsmanship, and have a strong positive influence on the
neighborhood's character. Structures evaluated at 5's may
also be associated with important historic persons or
events.
For further information contact Steve Burstein in the
Aspen/Pitkin Planning Office, 130 S. Galena Street, Aspen,
Colorado 81611 (303) 925-2020, ext. 223.
s/William L. Stirling
Mayor, Aspen City Council
PUBLIC NOTICE
RE: CONSIDERING REVISIONS TO SECTION 24-9 OF THE MUNICIPAL
CODE PERTAINING TO HISTORIC OVERLAY DISTRICT AND
HISTORIC LANDMARKS, INCLUDING CHANGES TO DEMOLITION AND
REMOVAL REVIEW
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a public hearing will be held
before the Aspen City Council to begin at 5:00 P.M. in the 1st
floor City Council Chambers, 130 S. Galena Street, Aspen,
Colorado on May 11, 1987. The purpose of the hearing will be to
consider revisions to Section 24-9 of the Municipal Code pertain-
ing to Historic Overlay District and Historic Landmarks.
Proposed revisions to Section 24-9 effecting demolition and
removal review include:
1) The establishment of an Inventory of Historic Struc-
tures,
2) The Historic Preservation Committee's (HPC) evaluation
process of the evaluation of undesignated structures,
3) The ratification of guidelines which the HPC used to
rate each structure on a scale of 0-5, and
4) The provision that any structure rated a 4 or 5 is
subject to the "demolition and total removal" regula-
tion within this ordinance.
The intent of the demolition regulation is to allow the community
the opportunity to review demolition plans for all significant
historic structures in order to determine whether or not com-
munity resources should be used to preserve these structures.
The Historic Preservation Committee (HPC) held four special
neighborhood meetings in January, 1987 and regular meetings for
further study and evaluation during January, February and April,
1987 to evaluate all structures on the Inventory of Historic
Structures based on the 110-5" guidelines. The guidelines read as
follows:
0 - Structure was incorrectly placed on Inventory and is
actually neither old nor reconstructed.
1 - Structure is old, but has been so drastically altered to not
be easily recognizable as a Victorian or mining era struc-
ture. Its situation in the neighborhood typically has
minimal historic influence because the neighborhood has been
substantially rebuilt with new structures of a larger scale,
or the structure is badly deteriorated.
2 - Structure has been altered in a way that has negatively
affected its historic architectural integrity. Typically,
the structure cannot be associated with any important
historic person or event, and is merely representative of a
miner family home environment. Neighborhood influence is
also not significant because the structure's historic
qualities have become nominal.
3 - Structure has been altered in a way that negatively affects
its historic architectural integrity; however, the structure
retains some historic significance because of particularly
distinctive historic structural elements and/or its contri-
bution to the historic character of a neighborhood. In a
few cases, the structure has been associated with an
historic person or family.
4 - Structure has been altered in a way that is considered
compatible with the original architecture; and the historic
character is preserved. Structure typically has strong
positive influence in the neighborhood's historic character
and may be associated with important historic persons or
events. In all cases, structures were in their original
location, to the best of staff and HPC's knowledge.
5 - Structure appears to be unaltered or has been carefully
restored/reconstructed. In some cases, structures were
rated in the 1980 Inventory as excellent or exceptional
rather than notable. Typically, these structures are very
good representatives of an historic architectural style and
craftsmanship, and have a strong positive influence on the
neighborhood's character. Structures evaluated at 5's may
also be associated with important historic persons or
events.
For further information contact the Aspen/Pitkin Planning
Office, 130 S. Galena Street, Aspen, Colorado 81611 (303) 925-
2020, ext. 223.
s/William L. Stirling
Mayor, Aspen City Council
Published in the Aspen Times on April 30, 1987.
City of Aspen Account.
A r •
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr. City Manager
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Second Reading of Ordinance 11
DATE: May 6, 1987
Attached is Ordinance 11, which now includes the revisions
requested by City Council at the hearing on April 27. At the
meeting we will point out to you the minor changes we have made.
As requested by Council, public hearing notice was given in a
newspaper of general circulation in Aspen and through letters to
each owner of a structure rated 114" or 11511. The letter informed
the owners of the demolition and total removal provisions under
consideration by Council. Since the time of publication and
mailing, we have had some public inquiries in our office, and we
expect some comments to be made at the hearing.
RECOMMENDED MOTION: "Move to adopt Ordinance 11, Series of 1987."
CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS: �,, ( tt' \it)^`��
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'1 41
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MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr., City Manager
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office + 1'
RE: Revisions to Section 24-9, Historic Preservation,
Second Reading - Public Hearing
DATE: April 8, 1987
SUMMARY: The Planning Office, Planning and Zoning Commission and
Historic Preservation Committee recommend that City Council
approve Ordinance 11, (Series of 1987), repealing and re-enacting
Section 24-9 Historic Designation, on second reading.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION: The Code Amendment before you is an
implementation action in response to the Historic Preservation
Element of the Aspen Area Comprehensive Plan, adopted in October,
1986. When Council adopted first reading of Ordinance 11 on
March 23, 1987, it was requested that P&Z and HPC hold a joint
meeting to resolve the different revisions of the Ordinance being
brought ,forward. This meeting was accomplished on April 7; and
the Ordinance attached contains the jointly agreed -upon language.
ADVISORY COMMISSION VOTES:
The Planning and Zoning Commission has been working on revisions
to Section 24-9 since October, 1986. Five meetings were held to
consider the Code rewrite prepared by the Planning Office and
Code Simplification Consultant. P&Z Resolution #87-2, recom-
mending the repeal and re-enactment of Section 24-9, is the
outcome of P&Z's efforts.
HPC has also been involved in review of Section 24-9. Several
HPC members attended P&Z's sessions on the proposed code amend-
ments and made comments which were incorporated into the Ordi-
nance before you. In addition, meetings of the HPC were held on
March 12 and 31, 1987, out of which several other changes were
proposed in HPC Resolution #87-1. These changes were incorpora-
ted into P&Z's version (same as Ordinance 11).
9
PURPOSE OF MEMORANDUM: The purpose of this memorandum is to give
background and issues analysis of the proposed revisions to
Section 24-9. The main body of the memorandum is the same as the
Planning Office March423 memorandum enclosed in Council's packet
of the same date.
BACKGROUND:
Existing Section 24-9 of the Code identifies procedures and
standards by which structures are designated "H" and by which
development reviews are conducted by HPC for individually
designated structures and for structures in the Main Street and
Downtown Historic Districts. Staff, P&Z and HPC are presenting a
significant rewrite of this section to you in an effort at
streamlining HPC's review procedures for the coming building
season and to address other substantive issues discussed herein.
These procedures are necessary for all structures currently
subject to HPC review and should be reviewed whether or not any
further designations ever take place.
Please note that the attached lengthy ordinance does not repre-
sent new regulations but is replacement for existing code
language. Please also note that this ordinance is not the
incentive techniques, which will be forwarded to you in a
separate ordinance this spring.
PROBLEM DISCUSSION:
1. Intention for Rewriting Section 24-9: The Historic Preser-
vation Plan Element identified two areas that involve amend-
ments to Section 24-9, constituting the top priority imple-
mentation action:
a. Demolition and Removal review.
b. Expiration of HPC approvals (in the event that no
building permit has been issued within eighteen months
after HPC approval).
While looking at these code changes, considering individual
designation and district concepts and working on historic
development guidelines, staff, P&Z and the public recognized that
the entire article on historic designation needed work. The
following concerns were added to the above priority action:
a. Clarification and simplification of the historic
designation and development review standards and
procedures.
1. The format of historic preservation regulations
should be consistent with the code simplification
effort underway.
2
2. The processes and standards involved should be
clarified for the benefit of applicants and the
reviewing bodies (HPC, P&Z and Council).
3. Unclear language, out-of-date assignments of
responsibility, and confusing cross-references
should be removed.
b. The review process should be organized to be relatively
easy for smaller projects and more comprehensive for
complex projects. This would streamline the existing
code which sets forth a single comprehensive process
for virtually all proposals, creating unnecessary cost,
delay and hardship for some applicants.
2. Chief Concerns of Staff, P&Z and HPC: The following is a
brief explanation of the areas that received special
attention in the rewrite of Section 24-9 by staff, P&Z and
HPC. Public comments made at P&Z's public hearings were
also very helpful in formulating the amendments, and were,
for the most part, incorporated in the Ordinance.
Purpose of 24-9 and Standards for Designation:
The purpose of the article, Section 24-9.1, and stand-
ards for designation, Section 24-9.3, both contained vague,
unclear language. We have attempted to better state the
meaning of historic preservation and historic significance.
Administration and Decision -Making Entities:
Section 24-9.2 explains the administration and decision
making entities in the historic designation and review
process. This entire subsection was drafted by the consul-
tant for inclusion in the new simplified code and will be
incorporated as Article 4 of that Code, (which was presented
to you by the consultant). Section 24-9.2(d), the provision
for constitution and operation of HPC, has been taken from
the existing HPC By-laws. Most of the suggestions in HPC's
Resolution 1987-1 pertain to this subsection and reflect the
Committee's concerns on how to better organize their group
and functions. These concerns are relevant as the Committee
by necessity will have to operate in a more formal manner
with increased caseload and more sophisticated review
processes.
Review Standards and Submission Requirements:
The proposed review standards and submission require-
ments for exempt, minor and significant development are
stated in Section 24-9.4. Development exempt from HPC's
review would be approved at staff level. "Minor" develop-
3
Mir
f y; J!
ment would include limited alterations, attachments, and
additions and be reviewed in one step. "Significant
development" would include projects larger in scale than
minor and require a two step conceptual and final review
process.
The current language of the Code allows for exemption for
"no change" by the Planning Office, pre -application review
by the HPC in cases of "minor repair projects" and a public
hearing /final review. Almost every project considered by
the committee is now subject to go through the two step
public hearing/final review. However, in actuality the
Committee spends a fair amount of time determining when a
project should undergo the two steps. The new language
creates more distinct and meaningful differences between the
one-step "minor" and two step "significant" review, correct-
ing this problem.
The main issues raised by P&Z and the public were: (1) how
much'authority should be given to the Planning staff and (2)
how can the review process by expedited when the scale and
issues of development are not great? The staff is proposed
to have a limited role in exempting projects from review by
HPC with a minimal of discretion (see Section 24-9.4(c) on
page 11). This approach does not accomplish as large a
transfer of responsibilities to the staff level as some
would like to see. The Code Simplification consultant and
Planning Office position is that it is not appropriate to
give staff open-ended, discretionary power in an area where
there are so many variables and viewpoints as in historic
preservation issues.
Minor development review, explained in Section 24-9(e)(3) on
pages 14-16, allows HPC to approve minor attachments,
alterations and expansions no greater than 250 square feet
in a one step review process (no public hearing) allows HPC
to approve multiples and combinations of attachments and
alterations that have a minor cumulative impact, giving the
Committee discretion to approve a project above what it
presently has for a one-step review process.
Significant Development Review:
Significant development review, explained in Section 24-
9.4(e)(4) (on page 17), consists of conceptual review
(public hearing) and final review. A more complete set of
submission requirements is set forth for the easy under-
standing of applicants and HPC. The current code requires
"preliminary drawings and other data... sufficiently clear
and explicit," leaving it up tog staff and HPC to muddle
through some poorly assembled applications.
4
Approvals of significant development plans would expire if a
building permit is not granted within 18 months of HPC's
approval of said,- plan, necessitating renewal review (see
Section 24-9.4(vii)(ee) on page 21). Such "sunsetting" of
approvals is not currently in the code and will allow HPC to
review the proposal as to whether it still is compatible
within the neighborhood, or to see if the neighborhood has
changed since the prior approval.
Demolition and Removal Review:
The proposed demolition and removal review in Section 24-9.5
applies only to historic landmarks and not to non -historic
structures in our two historic districts. Our current
demolition review is grouped with erection, construction,
reconstruction and remodeling activities and applies to all
structures designated and in historic districts. The
present code is vague with regard to what the applicant
needs to demonstrate to justify demolition and what the HPC
needs to consider. Strict review standards (Section 24-
9.5(b) on page 22) and comprehensive submission requirements
(Section 24-9.5(c)(2) (on pages 23-2 ) would be established
by the new ordinance.
A special provision of this review is that HPC can suspend
action on a demolition application for up to six months (see
Section 24-9.5(c)(5) on page 25). During this time, the
City and applicant have the responsibility to work together
investigating the feasibility of an acceptable alternate
plan, including looking at economic options, moving,
purchase and similar alternatives.
At first reading, Council requested that the issue of
demolition review within the existing Main Street and
Commercial Core Historic Overlay District be addressed. The
P&Z and HPC discussed the matter at their April 7th meeting;
and the alternatives favored will be discussed at Council's
April 13 meeting. Should Council wish to adopt one of the
alternatives suggested by P&Z and HPC, some revision to
Ordinance 11 will be necessary.
RECOMMENDATION: The Planning Office, Planning and Zoning
Commission and Historic Preservation Committee recommend City
Council to repeal and re-enact Section 24-9, Historic Designation
as that revision reads in Ordinance #11 (Series of 1987), amended
to include the suggestions in the HPC resolution.
PROPOSED MOTION:
"Move to adopt Ordinance K1, (Series of 1987) on
second reading."
5
CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDATION:
SB.24.9
!D
% 0 0
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Consideration of HPC's Proposed Revisions to Section
24-9, Historic Preservation
DATE: April 3, 1987
BACKGROUND: The Planning and Zoning Commission adopted Resolu-
tion 87-2 (attached) on March 3, 1987 recommending the repeal and
re-enactment of Section 24-9. HPC members had participated in
the P&Z's discussions prior to that meeting, and also held a
special meeting on March 13 to make further recommendations on
revisions to the code section (HPC Resolution 87-1 is attached).
When City Council held first reading of Ordinance 11, they
requested that P&Z and HPC hold a joint meeting to resolve the
different revisions of the Ordinance being brought forward.
PROBLEM DISCUSSION; The pertinent language in P&Z's version of
Section 24-9 has been denoted to help highlight the+differences.
Most of the recommendations in HPC's Resolution 87-1 pertain to
Section 24-9.2, Administration and Decision -Making Entities.
Their suggestions reflect the Committee's on -going concerns on
how to better organize their group and functions. Staff supports
the suggestions made. We believe that provisions such as: (#1)
the ability to make recommendations to P&Z to initiate amendments
to the article, (#4) clarification of excused absences as grounds
for removal of an HPC member, and (#7) requiring staff to provide
HPC with information on historic preservation items before other
City boards, are constructive improvements to Section 24-9 that
should help the HPC operate in a more productive manner.
The HPC has also recommended several changes in substantive areas
of the code that need to be considered. Recommendation #8 would
clarify the submission requirements and review procedures for an
application to rescind designation. Recommendation #9 would
require as part of demolition review a redevelopment plan and
statement of effect unless waived by HPC. The committee's
assumption is that in the majority of cases they would be
interested in reviewing redevelopment plans.
Section 24-9.5(c)(5)(i) (on Page 23) states the public hearing
requirement for review of a demolition application. A public
hearing with notice in the newspaper is required. The code does
not make a distinction between partial and full demolition public
hearing requirements. Two issues arose from the HPC's discus-
sion as follow:
(1) A public hearing is excessive for the partial demoli-
tion portion of a minor development proposal.
(2) Notification of full demolition review public hearings
should be accomplished by the posting of notice in a
conspicuous place on the property and letters sent to
neighbors, similar to how variances and major land use
applications are treated.
Partial demolition should not be subject to the same requirements
as full demolition. Partial demolition is typically part of a
development plan and should be included in either the minor or
significant development review process. However, in a situation
where so-called "partial demolition" encompasses a significant
part of the structure, the proposal should be subject to all of
the provisions of Section 24-9.5.
We propose the following changes to Section 24-9.5(c)(5)(i):
"Upon receipt of the recommendations of the Planning and
Development Director, the HPC shall hold at least one (1)
public hearing on its consideration of the application.
Partial demolition shall be exempted from the public hearing
requirement unless the Planning and Development Director
Ihjlrt determines that the proposed demolition involves removal of
a portion of the structure possessing signifie ccordinq
to the standards of Section 24-9.3(a). Notice of the time
an p ace of the a given by the posting of a
sign in a conspicuous place on the premises for which the
application has been made at least ten (10) days prior to
the hearing date, by publication in a newspaper having a
general circulation in Aspen and by written notice sent by
first class mail at least ten (10) days, or delivered
personally at least five (5) days, prior to the hearing
L
ate, to owners of property within three hundred (300) feet
f theproperty in question. A list and stamped preaddress-
d envelopes with the names and addresses shall be supplied
s the names and addresses appear upon plats or records in
he Pitkin County Clerk and R corder's office ando_Dthetax
eQrds of _._ _itkin- --Count.__ The HPC - sfia 1 approve the
application if it meets the standards in Section 24-9.5(b)
(1), if for demolition, and Section 24-9.5(b)(1)(iv)-(vii)
if for partial demolition, suspend action on the application
for a period not to exceed six (6) months if HPC concludes
that additional time is needed to investigate the proposed
demolition or partial demolition, or deny the application if
it does not meet the standards of Section 24-9.5(b)(1) or
Section 24-9.5(b)(1)(iv)-(vii), whichever is applicable."
2
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The other issue of demolition review, raised by City Council and
HPC, is whether demolition review should apply to all inventoried
structures within our two existing districts. We would like to
discuss alternatives to accomplish this review at the April 7th
meeting.
Finally, staff would like to suggest a different definition of
"compatibility". Section 24-9.4(d)(1)(i) (on Page 11) defines
compatibility as follows:
"The proposed development is visually compatible in terms of
design, finish, material, scale, mass and height with
designated historic structures located on the parcel. The
HPC shall also find that the proposed development is
compatible with development on adjacent parcels when the
subject site is in a Historic Overlay District or is
adjacent to a historic landmark. For the purposes of this
standard the term "compatible" shall mean consistent with,
harmonious with, and/or similar to, in the context of the
architecture of an individual structure or the character of
the immediate vicinity."
As you recall, P&Z was concerned that compatibility not imply
that all new building designs should be "similar to" or identical
with historic styles. The new proposed definition reads:
For the purposes of this standard, the term "compatible"
` h�Cr� 4I shall mean consistent with, harmonious with, similar to
and/or enhances the mixture of complimentary architectural
styles, either of the architecture of an individual struc-
ture or the character of the surrounding structures.
sb.92
3
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr., City Manager
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Revisions to Section 24-9, Historic Preservation, First
Reading
DATE: March 23, 1987
SUMMARY: The Planning Office and Planning and Zoning Commission
recommend that City Council approve Ordinance 11, (Series of
1987), repealing and re-enacting Section 24-9 Historic Designa-
tion, on first reading.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION: The Code Amendment before you is an
implementation action in response to the Historic Preservation
Element of the Aspen Area Comprehensive Plan, adopted in October,
1986. The time schedule for amending Section 24-9 has been in
part determined by the Moratorium on Demolition of Historic
Structures to be extended by Ordinance #10 (Series of 1987) to
June 22, 1987. City Council affirmed at a joint work session of
HPC, P&Z and Council on January 13, 1987 and at a subsequent
meeting on February 24, 1987 regarding the Moratorium that it
desires to make final consideration of revising Section 24-9, a
program of incentives for designation historic properties, and
designations on or before the expiration of the moratorium.
ADVISORY COMMISSION VOTES:
The Planning and Zoning Commission has been working on revisions
to Section 24-9 since October, 1986. Four meetings were held to
consider the Code rewrite prepared by the Planning Office and
Code Simplification Consultant. P&Z Resolution #87-2, recom-
mending the repeal and re-enactment of Section 24-9, is the
outcome of P&Z's efforts.
HPC has also been involved in review of Section 24-9. Several
HPC members attended P&Z's sessions on the proposed code amend-
ments and made comments which were incorporated into the Ordi-
nance before you. In addition, a special session of the HPC was
held on March 13, 1987, out of which several other changes were
proposed in HPC Resolution #87-1.
BACKGROUND:
Existing Section 24-9 of the Code identifies procedures and
standards by which structures are designated "H" and by which
development reviews are conducted by HPC for individually
designated structures and for structures in the Main Street and
Downtown Historic Districts. Staff, P&Z and HPC are presenting a
significant rewrite of this section to you in an effort at
streamlining HPC's review procedures for the coming building
season and to address other substantive issues discussed herein.
These procedures are necessary for all structures currently
subject to HPC review and should be reviewed whether or not any
further designations ever take place.
Please note that the attached lengthy ordinance does not repre-
sent new regulations but is replacement for existing code
language. Please also note that this ordinance is not the
incentive techniques, which will be forwarded to you in a
separate ordinance this spring.
PROBLEM DISCUSSION:
1. Intention for Rewriting Section 24-9: The Historic Preser-
vation Plan Element identified two areas that involve amend-
ments to Section 24-9, constituting the top priority imple-
mentation action:
a. Demolition and Removal review.
b. Expiration of HPC approvals (in the event that no
building permit has been issued within eighteen months
after HPC approval).
While looking at these code changes, considering individual
designation and district concepts and working on historic
development guidelines, staff, P&Z and the public recognized that
the entire article on historic designation needed work. The
following concerns were added to the above priority action:
a. Clarification and simplification of the historic
designation and development review standards and
procedures.
1. The format of historic preservation regulations
should be consistent with the code simplification
effort underway.
2. The processes and standards involved should be
clarified for the benefit of applicants and the
reviewing bodies (HPC, P&Z and Council).
E
• •
3. Unclear language, out-of-date assignments of
responsibility, and confusing cross-references
should be removed.
b. The review process should be organized to be relatively
easy for smaller projects and more comprehensive for
complex projects. This would streamline the existing
code which sets forth a single comprehensive process
for virtually all proposals, creating unnecessary cost,
delay and hardship for some applicants.
2. Chief Concerns of Staff, P&Z and HPC: The following is a
brief explanation of the areas that received special
attention in the rewrite of Section 24-9 by staff, P&Z and
HPC. Public comments made at P&Z's public hearings were
also very helpful in formulating the amendments, and were,
for the most part, incorporated in the Ordinance.
Purpose of 24-9 and Standards for Designation:
The purpose of the article, Section 24-9.1, and stand-
ards for designation, Section 24-9.3, both contained vague,
unclear language. We have attempted to better state the
meaning of historic preservation and historic significance.
Administration and Decision -Making Entities:
Section 24-9.2 explains the administration and decision
making entities in the historic designation and review
process. This entire subsection was drafted by the consul-
tant for inclusion in the new simplified code and will be
incorporated as Article 4 of that Code, (which was presented
to you by the consultant). Section 24-9.2(d), the provision
for constitution and operation of HPC, has been taken from
the existing HPC By-laws. Most of the suggestions in HPC's
Resolution 1987-1 pertain to this subsection and reflect the
Committee's concerns on how to better organize their group
and functions. These concerns are relevant as the Committee
by necessity will have to operate in a more formal manner
with increased caseload and more sophisticated review
processes.
Review Standards and Submission Requirements:
The proposed review standards and submission require-
ments for exempt, minor and significant development are
stated in Section 24-9.4. Development exempt from HPC's
review would be approved at staff level. "Minor" develop-
ment would include limited alterations, attachments, and
additions and be reviewed in one step. "Significant
development" would include projects larger in scale than
minor and require a two step conceptual and final review
3
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process.
The current language of the Code allows for exemption for
"no change" by the Planning Office, pre -application review
by the HPC in cases of "minor repair projects" and a public
hearing /final review. Almost every project considered by
the committee is now subject to go through the two step
public hearing/final review. However, in actuality the
Committee spends a fair amount of time determining when a
project should undergo the two steps. The new language
creates more distinct and meaningful differences between the
one-step "minor" and two step "significant" review, correct-
ing this problem.
The main issues raised by P&Z and the public were: (1) how
much authority should be given to the Planning staff and (2)
how can the review process by expedited when the scale and
issues of development are not great? The staff is proposed
to have a limited role in exempting projects from review by
HPC with a minimal of discretion (see Section 24-9.4(c) on
page 10). This approach does not accomplish as large a
transfer of responsibilities to the staff level as some
would like to see. The Code Simplification consultant and
Planning Office position is that it is not appropriate to
give staff open-ended, discretionary power in an area where
there are so many variables and viewpoints as in historic
preservation issues.
Minor development review, explained in Section 24-9(e)(3) on
page 12, allows HPC to approve minor attachments, altera-
tions and expansions no greater than 250 square feet in a
one step review process (no public hearing) allows HPC to
approve multiples and combinations of attachments and
alterations that have a minor cumulative impact, giving the
Committee: discretion to approve a project above what it
presently has for a one-step review process.
Significant Development Review:
Significant development review, explained in Section 24-
9.4(e)(4) (on page 15), consists of conceptual review
(public hearing) and final review. A more complete set of
submission requirements is set forth for the easy under-
standing of applicants and HPC. The current code requires
"Preliminary drawings and other data... sufficiently clear
and explicit," leaving it up to staff and HPC to muddle
through some poorly assembled applications.
Approvals of significant development plans would expire if a
building permit is not granted within 18 months of HPC's
approval of said plan, necessitating renewal review (see
4
Section 24-9.4 (vii) (ee) on page 19). Such "sunsetting" of
approvals is not currently in the code and will allow HPC to
review the proposal as to whether it still is compatible
within the neighborhood, or to see if the neighborhood has
changed since the prior approval.
Demolition and Removal Review:
The proposed demolition and removal review in Section 24-9.5
applies only to historic landmarks and not to non -historic
structures in our two historic districts. Our current
demolition review is grouped with erection, construction,
reconstruction and remodeling activities and applies to all
structures designated and in historic districts. The
present code is vague with regard to what the applicant
needs to demonstrate to justify demolition and what the HPC
needs to consider. Strict review standards (Section 24-
9.5(b) on page 20) and comprehensive submission requirements
(Section 24-9.5(c)(2) (on pages 21-22) would be established
by the new ordinance.
A special provision of this review is that HPC can suspend
action on a demolition application for up to six months (see
Section 24-9.5(c)(5) on page 23). During this time, the
City and applicant have the responsibility to work together
investigating the feasibility of an acceptable alternate
plan, including looking at economic options, moving,
purchase and similar alternatives.
RECOMMENDATION: The Planning Office, Planning and Zoning
Commission and Historic Preservation Committee recommend City
Council to repeal and re-enact Section 24-9, Historic Designation
as that revision reads in Ordinance #11 (Series of 1987), amended
to include the suggestions in the HPC resolution.
PROPOSED MOTION:
"Move to read Ordinance #11, (Series of 1987)."
"Move to approve Ordinance #11, (Series of 1987) on first
reading."
CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDATION:
SB.24.9
5
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr., City Manager��
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Historic Designations and Extension of Moratorium on
Demolition of Historic Structures
DATE: March 18, 1987
SUMMARY: The staff recommends approval of Ordinance 5 and 10 on
second reading.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTIONS: Ordinance 5 (Series of 1987) was
approved by City Council on first reading on February 24, 1987,
to give individual historic designation to eight (8) structures.
At that same meeting, direction was given to the Planning Office
and City Attorney to draft an ordinance extending the Moratorium
on the Demolition and Removal of Historic Structures to June 22,
1987 because the historic preservation incentives program and
code amendments are still being studied and considered. Ordinance
10 (Series of 1987), accomplishing the extension of the Moratori-
um, was approved by Council on first reading on March 9, 1987
PROBLEM DISCUSSION: DESIGNATIONS: The following eight struc-
tures were evaluated by HPC within the top categories (3,4, and
5) and have been requested for designation by their owners:
Elli of Aspen Building,
Aspen Times Building,
Chitwood Building,
Sorensen's Antiques,
333 W. Main Street,
420 W. Francis Street,
215 W. Bleeker Street, and
500 W. Bleeker Street.
The Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended
Council to designate the above listed structures at a public
hearing on February 3, 1987 and follow-up meeting on February 17,
1987.
Recommended Motion:
"Move to approve Ordinance 5 , Series of 1987 on Second
Reading."
•
PROBLEM DISCUSSION: MORATORIUM: Attached also is the Ordinance
10 (Series of 1987), extending the Moratorium on demolition and
removal of historic structures to June 22, 1987.
Recommended Motion:
"Move to approve Ordinance No. 10, Series of 1987 on Second
Reading."
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION:
SB.21
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRII: Robert S. Anderson, City Manager
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Off irY -��
Paul Tadclune, City Attorney
RF: Extension of Moratorium on Oemnl ition of Historic:
Structures
OATF: March 4, 1987
PRFV I i7US COUNC I I_ ACTION: At City Cou n c i I' s regular meeting of
February 23, 3987 direction was given to the Planning Office and
City Attorney to draft an ordinance extending the Moratorium on
the Demolition Of Historic Structures to n1une 22, 3987 because
the historic preservation incentives program and code amendments
are still being studied and considered.
ACTION ITEM: Attached is the Moratorium Ordinance as requested
and a Resolution authori: ing an administrative delay on the
processing of applications for demolition or removal permits for
the one day gap between the expiration of the orignanI morat.oriurn
ordinance and adoption of the ordinance extending the moratorium.
RFCOMMFNDFn MOT 1 ONE, : "Move to read Od i n a n c e No. I—Q , Series of
1987. "
"Move to pass Ordinance No. Q, Series of 3987 on First Read—
ing-"
"Move to adopt Resol ut ion No. Q , Series of 1987.''
SR. 21
RESOLUTION OF THE ASPEN PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
RECOMMENDING THE CITY COUNCIL TO REPEAL AND RE-ENACT
SECTION 24-9 OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE, HISTORIC DESIGNATION
Resolution No. 87 -
WHEREAS, the Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission (herein-
after "Commission") adopted the Aspen Area Comprehensive Plan:
Historic Preservation Element on October 7, 1986 in which the
implementation program included: creating procedures for review
of demolition and removal of historic structures, creating
procedures for sunsetting or extension of HPC approvals, and
study of historic district expansion; and
WHEREAS, the Commission held regular meetings on October 17
and 29, 1986 to discuss historic preservation issues and ap-
proaches, and public hearings on December 2, 1986, February 3,
February 17, and March 3, 1987 to consider revisions to Section
24-9 of the Municipal Code; and
WHEREAS, the City of Aspen is involved in a code simplifica-
tion effort to make the code more understandable; and
WHEREAS, as the discussion of Section 24-9 developed, it
became clear that there are numerous aspects of Section 24-9 that
need clarification, reorganization and procedural simplification.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Commission that it
does hereby recommend that the City Council repeal and re-enact
Section 24-9 of the Municipal Code to read as follows in Attach-
ment A.
Resolution No. 87-
Page 2
APPROVED by the Commission at their regular meeting on March
3, 1987.
ATTEST:
Q
Jd Carney, De y City Clerk
ASPEN PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
By C -
Welton Anderso Chairman
sb.57
ATTACHMENT A
ARTICLE-IV_--HlSTQRTC_QVERLAY_DTSTRICT-AND-HISTORIC_LANDMARKS
Sec. 24-9.1 Purgose_
The purpose of this article is to:
(a) Ensure the preservation of Aspen's character as a his-
toric mining town because of its importance to the
economic viability of the community as an inter-
national ski resort and cultural center.
(b) Promote the cultural, educational and economic welfare
of Aspen through the preservation of historic struc-
tures and areas and the preservation of the historic
character of the community.
(c) Encourage productive and economically attractive uses
of historic structures.
(d) Support the implementation of the Aspen Area Comprehen-
sive Plan Historic Preservation Element.
Sec. 24-9.2 Administrative-and-Decisionmaking_Entities_
(a) General_ There are four (4) decisionmaking entities
that shall carry out the purposes of this article.
These entities are the City Council, the Planning and
Zoning Commission, the Historic Preservation Committee
(HPC) and the Planning and Development Director.
(b) City_Council_ The City Council shall have the
following powers and duties in regard to this article:
(1) Approval of the designation of H, Historic Overlay
Districts and Historic Landmarks, Sec. 24-9.3
( b ) ( 5 ) ;
(2) Review of appeals from decisions of the HPC ap-
proving, conditionally approving, or disapproving
a permit application for development or demolition
of a Historic Landmark or a permit application for
development or demolition in an H, Historic
Overlay District, Sec. 24-9.7; and
(3) Adoption of Historic District and Historic
Landmark development guidelines, Sec. 24-9.4(d)
(2)•
1
•
(c) Planning__and__Zoning__Commission_ The Planning and
Zoning Commission shall have the following powers and
duties in regard to this article:
(1) Recommendation of approval or disapproval of the
designation of an H, Historic Overlay District or
Historic Landmark to the City Council, Sec. 24-
9.3(b)(4).
(d) Historic_Preservation_Committee_IHPCI_
(1) Powers--and--duties. The Historic Preservation
Committee (HPC) shall have the following powers
and duties in regard to this article:
(i) Recommendation of approval or dis-
approval to the Planning and Zoning
Commission and the City Council of the
designation of Historic Landmarks and an
H, Historic Overlay District, Sec. 24-
9.3(b)(3);
(ii) Review and approval, approval with
conditions, or disapproval of develop-
ment involving a Historic Landmark or
development within the H, Historic
Overlay District, Sec. 24-9.4;
(iii) Review and approval, approval with
conditions, or disapproval of demolition
involving a Historic Landmark, Sec. 24-
9.5;
(iv) Recommendation of approval, approval
with conditions, or disapproval to the
Board of Adjustment on a request for
variance involving a Historic Landmark
or development in the H, Historic
Overlay District, Sec. 24-9.8; and
(v) Recommendation to the City Council of
Historic District and Historic Landmark
development guidelines.
(2) Qualification -for -Membership. Members of the HPC
shall be qualified electors in Aspen and residents
for two (2) years prior to appointment.
(3) Membership__Appointmentt_remov_all_terms_and_
vacancies.
2
(i) The HPC shall be composed of seven (7)
members and three (3) alternate members,
and shall be appointed by the City
Council. Nominations for membership
shall be presented to the City Council
by the Aspen Historical Society and the
community -at -large. Each member shall
hold office for a term of three (3)
years. An alternate member shall attend
all meetings and shall be allowed to
vote in the absence of a regular member.
There shall be no restraint on the
number of terms any member may serve.
Members of the HPC, to the extent prac-
ticable, shall be composed of persons
with expertise and experience in archi-
tecture, landscape architecture, city
planning, history, real estate, finance,
law, fine arts, general contracting,
commerce and industry.
Members shall serve in accordance with
the laws of Colorado and may be removed
before the expiration of their appoint-
ment, for cause, by a majority vote of
the City Council. In the event that any
member is no longer a qualified elector
or is convicted of a felony or an
offense involving moral turpitude while
in office, the City Council shall
terminate the appointment of such
person.
(iv) Members shall serve without compensa-
tion.
(v) At the first regular meeting in August,
the members of the HPC shall elect one
(1) of their members as Chairman and one
(1) as Vice -Chairman. In the absence of
the Chairman, the Vice -Chairman shall
act as Chairman and shall have all
powers of the Chairman. The Chairman
shall be eligible for re-election,
(vi) The Chairman of the HPC shall administer
oaths, shall be in charge of all
proceedings before the HPC, shall decide
all points of order on procedure, shall
transmit reports and recommendations of
the HPC and shall take such action as
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shall be necessary to preserve order and
the integrity of all proceedings before
the HPC.
(vii) The Secretary of the HPC shall be the
City Clerk or his designee. The
Secretary shall keep the minutes, shall
mail notices of regular meetings to
members three (3) days in advance and
notices of special meetings one (1) day
in advance, and maintain the files of
all studies, plans, reports and recom-
mendations made by the HPC.
(viii) Any member of the HPC who has three (3)
or more unexcused absences from regular
meetings during the calendar year may be
subject to removal by the City Council.
An unexcused absence is one in which a
member has failed to give advance notice
to the Secretary that the member will be
either (1) out of town at the time which
the regular meeting is to be held, or
(2) is physically unable to attend the
meeting due to illness.
(4) Staff_ The Planning and Development Agency shall
be the professional staff of the HPC. A represen-
tative of the Planning Office shall be present at
all meetings to provide advice to the HPC. A
representative of the Building Department shall
also be assigned to the HPC to provide advice for
its review of applications for development
pursuant to Sec. 24-9.4, or applications for
demolition pursuant to Sec. 24-9.5.
(5) Quorum_and_necessary_v_ote_ No meeting of the HPC
shall be called to order, nor may any business be
transacted, without a quorum consisting of at
least four (4) members being present. All actions
shall require the concurring vote of a simple
majority of the members of the HPC then present
and voting.
(6) Meetings,_hearings_and_orocedure_
(i) Regular meetings of the HPC shall be
held on the second and fourth Tuesday of
each month. Special meetings may be
called by the Chairman or a majority of
the members.
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(ii) If a matter is postponed due to lack of
a quorum, the Chairman shall continue
the meeting as a special meeting to be
held at the same location within seven
(7) days thereafter or to a date
mutually agreed by the applicant and the
HPC. In case of delays caused by other
reasons, the hearing should be resched-
uled to the next regular HPC meeting.
The Secretary shall notify all members
of the date of the continued meeting and
also shall notify all parties. If a
matter is postponed to more than two (2)
regular HPC meetings after the meeting
for which it was scheduled, due to lack
of quorum, then the application shall be
deemed approved.
(iii) All meetings and hearings of the HPC
shall be open to the public.
(iv) Public hearings shall be set for a time
certain.
(e) Planning__and__Deyeloement__Director_ The Planning and
Development Director shall have the following powers
and duties in regard to this article:
(1) Exemption of development within an H, Historic
Overlay District, Sec. 24-9.4(b);
(2) Approval of minor modifications to a develop-
ment order, Sec. 24-9.6;
(3) Approval of minor modifications to a develop-
ment order for demolition, Sec. 24-9.6; and
(4) Provision of planning and technical assistance
including recommendations to the HPC, the Planning
and Zoning Commission and the City Council in
regard to this article.
Sec. 24-9.3 Designation__of__H,__Historic_Ov_erlay_District_and
Historic -Landmarks.
------------------
(a) Standards_for_Designation_ Any structure or public
site that meets one or more of the following standards
may be designated as H, Historic Overlay District
and/or Historic Landmark:
5
(1) Hietorical_ImQortance_ The structure or site is a
principal or secondary place commonly identified
or associated with a person or an event of
historical significance to the cultural, social or
political history of Aspen, the State of Colorado
or the United States;
(2) Architectural_Importance� The structure or site
reflects an architectural style that is unique,
distinct or of traditional Aspen character;
(3) Architectural_lmQortance_ The structure or site
embodies the distinguishing characteristics of a
significant or unique architectural type or
specimen;
(4) Architectural__Importance_ The structure is a
significant work of an architect whose individual
work has influenced the character of Aspen.
(5) Neighborhood_ Character_ The structure or site is
a significant component of a historically signifi-
cant neighborhood and the preservation of the
structure or site is important for the main-
tenance of that neighborhood character.
(6) Community__Character_ The structure or site is
critical to the preservation of the character of
the Aspen community because of its relationship in
terms of size, location and architectural similar-
ity to other structures or sites of historical or
architectural importance.
(b) Procedure_for_Designationt_Amendmentt__Rescinding_ Any
structure or public site that meets one or more of the
standards in Sec. 24-9.3(a)(1)-(6) may be designated H,
Historic Overlay District and/or Historic Landmark, by
the City Council in accordance with the following
procedures:
(1) Initiation_ A proposed designation, amendment to
a designation, or rescinding of a designation, H,
Historic Overlay District and/or Historic Land-
mark, may be initiated by the City Council, the
HPC, or one hundred (100%) percent of the owners
of the property proposed for designation.
(2) Submission_of_Application_ and_Sufficiency_Rgv_iew_
Before any structure or site shall be considered
for an H, Historic Overlay District or Historic
Landmark designation, an Application for Historic
Designation shall be submitted to the Planning and
Development Director.
(i) The application for Historic Designation
shall include the following:
(aa) a boundary description of the
site;
(bb) a street address and a
description of the structure
or site;
(cc) an explanation of why the
designation is consistent with
one (1) or more of the
standards in Sec. 24-9.3(a)
(1)-(6); and
(dd) any other evidence that
supports the proposed designa-
tion.
Determination_-of___Comeleteness_ The
Planning and Development Director shall
determine whether an Application for
Historic Designation is complete within
ten (10) working days of its receipt.
If it is determined the application is
not complete, the Planning and Develop-
ment Director shall notify the applicant
of the deficiencies in writing. The
Planning and Development Director shall
take no further action on the applica-
tion until all deficiencies have been
corrected or otherwise settled.
(3) Recommendation --- of --- Planning --- and --- Dev_eloQment
Director_ Within ten (10) working days of a
determination of completeness, the Planning and
Development Director shall complete his review of
the application and submit a written recommenda-
tion to the HPC regarding whether the application
conforms to the standards in Sec. 24-9.3(a)(1)-
(6).
(4) HQC_Reoommendation_ The Application for Historic
Designation shall be reviewed by the HPC and a
written recommendation shall be submitted to the
Planning and Zoning Commission within thirty (30)
days of receipt of the Planning and Development
Director's written recommendations.
7
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(5) Planning_and_Zoning_Commission-Recommendation_
[i) The Planning and Zoning Commission shall
conduct a public hearing on the proposed
designation and make a written recom-
mendation to the City Council within
forty-five (45) days of HPC's action on
an Application for Historic Designation.
For a proposed designation of less than
fifty (50) individual properties, a
written notice of the public hearing
shall be published once in a newspaper
of general circulation in Aspen at least
fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing.
A written notice shall also be sent at
least fifteen (15) days prior to the
hearing date to the owner or owners of
the property subject to the proposed
designation. In the case of Council and
HPC initiated designations, written
notice shall be sent by certified mail
as specified . In the case of owner
initiated designations, written notice
shall be sent by first class mail as
specified.
For a proposed designation of fifty (50)
or more individual properties, the
public hearing shall meet the require-
ments of Sec. 24-12.4 of the Municipal
Code.
(6) City_Council-_Review_and__AQQroyal_or_DisapQrov_al_
Upon receipt of the Planning and Zoning Commis-
sion's recommendation, the City Council shall hold
a public hearing on the proposed designation, con-
sider the recommendations of the HPC and Planning
and Zoning Commission, and may designate the
structure or site H, Historic Overlay District
and/or Historic Landmark, if it meets one or more
of the standards in Sec. 24-9.3(a)(1)-(6). The
public hearing shall meet the requirements of Sec.
24-12.6 of the Municipal Code.
(c) Recordation -of -Designation. Upon the effective date of
an act by the City Council designating an H, Historic
Overlay District or Historic Landmark, the Secretary of
the HPC shall notify the Building Inspector of the
designation and shall record among the real estate
records of the Clerk and Recorder of Pitkin County,
Colorado, a certified copy of the ordinance creating
L
the H, Historic Overlay District or Historic Landmark.
The ordinance shall contain a legal description of the
structure or site designated.
(d) Placement_on_City's__Official__Zoning__Mgp. Upon the
effective date of an act by the City Council designat-
ing an H, Historic Overlay District or Historic
Landmark, the Secretary of the HPC shall notify the
Planning and Development Director and the H, Historic
Overlay District designation shall be placed in Aspen's
Official Zoning Map, a copy of which is kept in the
Planning and Development Agency.
(e) Establishment_of__Districts_ There are two existing
historic overlay districts in the City of Aspen. These
districts are the Commercial Core District and Main
Street District. In all cases when districts are
discussed in this section, these two districts are the
only districts to which reference is being made.
Sec. 24-9.4 DeveloQment_in_an_Hi_Historic_Overlay__District_or
Involv_ing_a_Historic_Landmark_
(a) Oyerv_iew__of-_DeveloQment__Rev_iew__in__an__H,__Historic
Overlay_District_or_Invv_olv_ing_a_Historic_Landmark. Any
development within an H, Historic Overlay District or
development involving a Historic Landmark must be
reviewed in accordance with the provisions of this Sec.
24-9.4, unless exempted by the Planning and Development
Director under Sec. 24-9.4(c). If not exempted,
development is categorized as Minor or Significant
Development which must obtain approval of the HPC.
Minor Development review and approval is a one-step
process. Significant Development must go through a
Conceptual and Final Development Plan review and
approval process.
(b) Gengral_Prohibition_ No development shall be permitted
within the H, Historic Overlay District or involving a
Historic Landmark unless:
(1) The development is exempted by the Planning and
Development Director pursuant to Sec. 24-9.4(c);
or
(2) The development is approved by the HPC as either
Minor or Significant Development pursuant to the
procedures outlined in Sec. 24-9.4(e) because it
meets the standards of Sec. 24-9.4(d).
(c) ExemQtion_
9
(1) The Planning and Development Director shall exempt
development from the terms of this section if he
determines that the development consists of
remodeling or expansion of a structure that
creates no change to the exterior appearance of
the structure, and has no impact on the character
of the structure. Development which the Planning
and Devlopment Director shall exempt shall include
but not be limited to : any interior remodeling,
repainting of the exterior of an already painted
structure, choice of color of any exterior
architectural feature, repair of existing archi-
tectural features, and replacement of architectu-
ral features when necessary for the preservation
of the structure. For the purposes of this
standard, the term "character" shall include
height, site coverage, setbacks, siting, massing,
materials, scale of materials, and fenestration.
(2) Prior to initiating any development which an owner
believes to be exempt under the provisions of this
section, the owner shall consult with the Planning
Director to obtain a determination of exemption.
All interior remodeling, repainting of the
exterior of an already painted structure and
choice of color of any exterior architectural
feature shall be deemed by the Planning Director
to be exempt from the terms of this section and a
certificate of compliance with these provisions
shall be issued by the Planning Director to the
Building Inspector within one (1) working day of
the consultation. All repair of existing archi-
tectural features, replacement of architectural
features when necessary for the preservation of
the struture or any other development which the
owner believes is eligible for exemption from the
provisions of this section shall require an
Application for Exemption to be submitted to the
Planning and Development Director in the form
provided by the Planning and Development Direct-
or. The Planning and Development Director shall
determine if the application is complete within
five (5) working days of its receipt. If it is
determined that the application is not complete,
the Planning and Development Director shall notify
the applicant of the deficiencies in writing. The
Planning and Development Director shall take no
further action on the application until all
deficiencies have been corrected or otherwise
settled. Once the Planning and Development
Director determines the application is complete, a
decision whether the proposed development may be
exempted from the terms of this section shall be
10
made within five (5) working days in the form of a
Certificate of Compliance issued by the Planning
Director to the Building Inspector.
(d) Rev_iew__Standards__for__all__Dev_eloQment_in_H,_Historic
Overlay_District_and_all_Dev_eloQment_Involying_Historic
Landmarks_
(1) Dev_eloement_in__Historic_Overlay__District_and_all
Dev_eloement__invv_olv_ing__Historic__Landmarks_ No
approval for any development in the H, Historic
Overlay District or involving Historic Landmarks
shall be granted unless the HPC finds that:
(i) The proposed development is visually
compatible in terms of design, finish,
material, scale, mass and height with
designated historic structures located
on the parcel. The HPC shall also find
that the proposed development is
compatible with development on adjacent
parcels when the subject site is in a
Historic Overlay District or is adjacent
to a historic landmark. For the pur-
poses of this standard the term "compa-
tible" shall mean consistent with,
harmonious with, and/or similar to, in
the context of the architecture of an
individual structure or the character of
the immediate vicinity.
The proposed development reflects and is
consistent with the character of the
"neighborhood" of the parcel proposed
for development. For the purposes of
this standard the term "character" shall
include height, coverage, setbacks,
siting, massing, fenestration, materi-
als, and scale of materials.
The proposed development enhances or
does not detract from the cultural value
of designated historic structures
located on the parcel proposed for
development or adjacent parcels.
(iv) The proposed development enhances or
does not diminish or detract from the
architectural integrity of a designated
historic structure or part thereof.
11
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(2) Additional__DeveloQment___Guidelines_ The City
Council, upon recommendation of the HPC, shall
establish additional guidelines for use by HPC in
the review of all development in H, Historic
Overlay District and all demolition and develop-
ment involving historic landmarks, in accordance
with the procedures in Sec. 24-9.2(b)(3).
(e) Procedure_for_Rev_igw_
(1) General_ Before HPC approval of development with-
in an H, Historic Overlay District and all
development involving Historic Landmarks, an
Application for Minor Development, or Application
for Significant Development, whichever is applica-
ble, shall be submitted to the Planning and Deve-
lopment Director and shall be reviewed and
approved by the HPC.
(2) Initiation_ An Application for Minor Development
or an Application for Significant Development
shall be submitted by the owner, an agent author-
ized in writing to act on the owner's behalf, or
other person having a written contractual interest
in the parcel of land proposed for development.
(3) Procedure for Rev_iew__of__AQQlication__for_Minor
QeveloQment_
(i) Minor Development shall be defined as
follows:
(aa) Erection of an awning, canopy,
sign, fence or other similar
attachments to or accessory
features of a structure, provided
however, that in the process of
erecting said attachments, none of
the original materials of the
structure are destroyed or removed.
Incidental destruction or removal
necessary to erect any attachment
shall not require the development
to be considered significant;
(bb) Remodeling of a structure wherein
alterations are made to no more
than one (1) element of the
structure, including but not
limited to a roof, window, door,
skylight, ornamental trim, siding,
kickplate, dormer, porch, stair-
12
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case, and balcony;
(cc) Expansion or erection of a struc-
ture wherein the increase in floor
area of the structure is two
hundred and fifty (250) square feet
or less; or
(dd) Erection or remodeling of combina-
tions of, or multiples of no more
than three (3) or more of the
following features: awnings,
canopies, signs, fences and other
similar attachments; or windows,
doors, skylights and dormers.
Erection of more than three (3) of
the above listed features may be
defined as minor if there is a
finding that the cumulative impact
of such development is minor in its
effect on the character of the
existing structures. For the
purposes of this section, "charac-
ter" shall include height, cover-
age, setbacks, siting, site
massing, fenestration, materials,
and scale of materials.
Submission-of__Ag2lication_ An Applica-
tion for Minor Development shall be
submitted to the Planning and Develop-
ment Director. It shall include the
following:
(aa) The name, and address of all
owners of the property. If
the applicant is not the
owner, the applicant's name,
address and interest in the
property. The owner's
authorization for the applica-
tion to be submitted must be
included.
13
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(bb) The address of the property
and the name of the structure
(if applicable).
(cc) A written description of the
proposed development.
(dd) An accurate representation of
all major building materials,
such as samples and photo-
graphs, to be used for the
proposed development.
(ee) A scale drawing of the
proposed development in
relation to any existing
structure.
(ff) A statement of the effect of
the proposed development on
the original design of the
historic structure (if
applicable) and/or character
of the neighborhood, and why
the proposed development meets
the review standards in Sec.
24-9.4(d).
(gg) Any other information consid-
ered reasonably necessary for
the review of the application.
Determination__of___C�omeietgngae_ The
Planning and Development Director shall
determine if an application is complete
within ten (10) working days of its
receipt. If it is determined the
application is not complete, the Plan-
ning and Development Director shall
notify the applicant of the deficiencies
in writing. The Planning and Develop-
ment Director shall take no further
action on the application until all
deficiencies have been corrected or
otherwise settled.
(iv) Rgg2mmgn4ation_of__Planninq-and_Develoe_
ment_Direct_or_ Once the Planning and
Development Director determines the
application is complete, he shall
complete his review of the application
and submit a written recommendation to
14
the HPC regarding whether the applica-
tion conforms to the standards in Sec.
24-9.4(d).
(v) Rev_iew__ty__HPC_ Upon receipt of the
recommendation of the Planning and
Development Director, the HPC shall
review the application. If the HPC
finds that the application meets the
standards in Sec. 24-9.4(d), and the
procedural requirements of this article,
the application for minor development
shall be approved.
(4) Rev_iew_of_AQQlication_for_Significant_Dev_eloQment_
(i) Significant development shall be defined
as follows:
(aa) Erection of an awning, canopy,
sign, fence or other similar
attachments to or accessory
features of a structure that, in
the process of erecting, causes
original materials of the structure
to be destroyed or removed;
(bb) Erection or remodeling of combina-
tions of or multiples of any single
feature of a structure which has
not been determined to be minor;
(cc) Expansion or erection of a struc-
ture wherein the increase in floor
area of the structure is more than
two hundred and fifty (250) square
feet;
(dd) Construction of a new structure
within an H, Historic Overlay
District; and
(ee) The redevelopment of the site of a
historic landmark which has
received approval for demolition
when a redevelopment plan has been
required by the HPC pursuant to
Section 24-9.5(c)(2)(vii).
Rev_iew___ and --- AQQLov_al--- of__ConceQtual
CeY§122Ment_P1an-
15
Submission--of--Agglication-for_AQerov_al
of_Conceptual-Dev_eloQment_Plan_ Before
HPC consideration of approval for a
Conceptual Development Plan, an Applica-
tion for Approval of Conceptual Develop-
ment Plan shall be submitted to the
Planning and Development Director. The
application shall include the following:
(aa) The name and address of all owners
of the property. If the applicant
is not the owner, the applicant's
name, address and interest in the
property. The owner's authoriza-
tion for the application to be
submitted must be included.
(bb) The address of the property and the
name of the structure (if applic-
able).
(cc) A sketch plan of the proposed
development showing property
boundaries and predominant existing
site characteristics.
(dd) Conceptual selection of major
building materials to be used in
the proposed development.
(ee) A statement of the effect of the
proposed development on the origi-
nal design of the historic struc-
ture (if applicable) and/or
character of neighborhood, and why
the proposed development meets the
review standards in Sec. 24-
9.4(d).
(ff) Any other information considered
reasonably necessary for the review
of the application.
Determination--of-_-ComQietgness_ The
Planning and Development Director shall
determine if an application is complete
within ten (10) working days of its
receipt. If it is determined the
application is not complete, the Plan-
ning and Development Director shall
notify the applicant of the deficiencies
in writing. The Planning and Develop-
16
ment Director shall take no further
action on the application until all
deficiencies have been corrected or
otherwise settled.
(iv) Review_by_HPC_ Upon notification that a
complete application has been submitted
for review, the HPC shall hold at least
one (1) public hearing on the applica-
tion. Notice of the time and place of
the public hearing shall be given at
least fifteen (15) days in advance by
publication in a newspaper having a
general circulation in Aspen. The HPC
shall approve the Conceptual Development
Plan if they determine that the plan
meets the standards in Sec. 24-9.4(d).
(v) Effect ... of ... Appro_val___of--- Conceptual
Dev_el2pment_Plan_ Approval of a Concep-
tual Development Plan shall not con-
stitute final approval of significant
Development or permission to proceed
with development. Such approval shall
constitute only authorization to proceed
with an Application for a Final Develop-
ment Plan.
(vi) Limitation__on__Agprov_al__of__Conceptual
Dev_elopment_Plan_ Application for a
Final Development Plan shall be filed
within one (1) year of the date of
approval of a Conceptual Development
Plan. Unless an extension is granted by
the HPC, failure to file such an
application shall render null and void
the approval of a Conceptual Development
Plan previously granted by the HPC.
(vii) Review_and_Final_Apgroval_of_Significant
Development_Plan_
(aa) Submission_of_Application_for_Final
Dev_elopment_Plan_ Before consider-
ation of a Final Development Plan,
an Application for Final Develop-
ment Plan shall be submitted to the
Planning and Development Director.
The application shall include:
1. The name, authorization for
submission of application and
17
address of all owners of the
property. If the applicant is
not the owner, the applicant's
name, address and interest in
the property.
2. The address of the property
and the name of the structure
(if applicable).
3. A written description of the
proposed development.
4. An accurate representation of
all major building materials,
such as samples and photo-
graphs, to be used for the
proposed development.
5. Scale drawings of the proposed
development in relation to any
existing structure.
6. A statement of the effect of
the details of the proposed
development on the original
design of the historic struc-
ture (if applicable) and/or
character of neighborhood, and
how the details of the
proposed development meets the
review standards in Sec. 24-
9.4(c). Also, a statement of
how the final plan conforms to
the representations made
during the conceptual review
and responds to any conditions
placed thereon.
7. Any other information consid-
ered reasonably necessary for
the review of the application.
(bb) Determination-of_Comeleteness_ The
Planning and Development Director
shall determine if an application
is complete within ten (10) working
days of its receipt. If it is
determined the application is not
complete, the Planning and Develop-
ment Director shall notify the
applicant of the deficiencies in
18
• • 0
writing. The Planning and Develop-
ment Director shall take no further
action on the application until all
deficiencies have been corrected or
otherwise settled.
(cc) Recommendation ... of ... Planning__and
Dev_elopment__Director_ Once the
Planning and Development Director
determines the application is comp-
lete, he shall complete his review
of the application and submit a
written recommendation to the HPC
regarding whether the application
conforms to the standards in Sec.
24-9.4(d).
(dd) Rev_iew_by_HPC_ Upon receipt of the
recommendation of the Planning and
Development Director, the HPC shall
review the application. If the HPC
finds that the Final Development
Plan conforms to the approved
Conceptual Development Plan and the
substantive and procedural require-
ments of this Article, the Appli-
cation for Final Development Plan
shall be approved.
(ee) ExQiration_of__Aeerov_al_ Failure to
obtain a building permit for final
development approval granted by the
HPC within a period of eighteen
(18) months following the commit-
tee's action shall render such
approval invalid. Renewal of a
prior approval may be granted by
the HPC for an additional period
not to exceed twelve (12) months
upon receipt of a written request
for such review from the applicant.
In granting said renewal, the HPC
shall consider whether conditions
in the neighborhood of the applica-
tion or in the community have
changed such that renewal is not in
the best interest of the community.
Sec. 24-9.5 Demolition_of_a_Historic_Landmark_
(a) General_ No demolition and total removal of a Historic
Landmark shall be permitted unless the demolition is
19
approved by the HPC because it meets the standards of
Sec. 24-9.5(b)(1). No demolition of and removal of a
portion of a Historic Landmark shall be permitted
unless the partial demolition is approved by the HPC
because it meets the standards of Sec.24-9.5(b)(4)-
(7). Exempt from the terms of this section is removal
of a portion of an historic landmark which creates no
change to the exterior of the structure.
(b) Standards-for_-Review_of--Demolition_ No approval for
any demolition of a Historic Landmark shall be granted
unless the applicant has demonstrated that:
(1) The structure proposed for demolition is not
structurally sound despite evidence of the
owner's efforts to properly maintain the
structure;
(2) The structure cannot be rehabilitated or
reused to provide for any beneficial use of
the property;
(3) The structure cannot be practicably moved to
another site in Aspen;
(4) A demolition and redevelopment plan is
submitted when required by HPC or for any
partial demolition which mitigates to the
greatest extent practical any impact that
occurs to the character of the "neighborhood"
of the parcel where demolition is proposed to
occur. For the purposes of this standard,
the term "character" shall include height,
coverage, setbacks, massing, siting, fenest-
ration, materials, and scale of materials;
(5) The demolition plan mitigates to the greatest
extent practical any impact the proposed
demolition has on the historic importance of
the structures located on the parcel and
adjacent parcels;
(6) The demolition plan mitigates to the greatest
extent practical any impact on the architec-
tural integrity of a designated historic
structure or part thereof; and
(7) A plan of redevelopment of the site after
demolition is submitted which is compatible
with and/or enhances the historic character
of the immediate area or neighborhood.
20
(c) Procedure_for_Rev_iew_of_AQelications_for_Demolition_
(1) Submission_of_Application_ Before HPC review of
proposed demolition or partial demolition of a
Historic Landmark, an Application for Demolition
shall be submitted to the Planning and Development
Director.
(2) Application -for -Demolition.
An Application for Demolition shall include the
following:
(i) The name and address of all owners of
the property where demolition or partial
demolition is proposed. If the ap-
plicant is not the owner, the ap-
plicant's name, address and interest in
the property. The owner's authorization
for the application to be submitted must
be included.
The address of the property where the
demolition or partial demolition is
proposed and name of the structure
proposed for demolition or partial
demolition.
A written description of the structure
proposed for demolition or partial
demolition and its year of construc-
tion.
(iv) A demolition and redevelopment plan.
The redevelopment plan shall meet the
requirements of Sec. 24-9.4(e).
(v) A report from a licensed engineer or
architect regarding the soundness of the
structure and its suitability for
rehabilitation.
(vi) An economic feasibility report that
provides:
(aa) estimated market value of the
property on which the structure
lies, in its current condition, and
after demolition or partial
demolition.
(bb) estimates from an architect,
21
developer, real estate agent or
appraiser experienced in rehabilit-
ation addressing the economic
feasibility of rehabilitation or
reuse of the structure proposed for
demolition or partial demolition.
(cc) all appraisals made of the property
on which the structure is located
made within the previous two (2)
years.
(dd) Any other information considered
necessary to make a determination
whether the property does yield or
may yield a reasonable return on
investment.
(vii) A redevelopment plan and a statement of
the effect of the proposed redevelopment
on the other structures on the property
and the character of the neighborhood
around the property shall be submitted
in cases when the HPC requires a
redevelopment plan to help the committee
evaluate the appropriateness of demoli-
tion or when the applicant believes the
submission of the Plan will assist in
the evaluation of the proposed demoli-
tion. The statement shall also address
why the proposed demolition and rede-
velopment meets the review standards in
Section 24-9.5(b). The redevelopment
plan shall meet the requirements of
Section 24-9.4(e).
(viii) Any other information considered
necessary for the review of the appli-
cation.
(3) Determination_of__Comelgtgness_ The Planning and
Development Director shall determine if an
application is complete within ten (10) working
days of its receipt. If it is determined the
application is not complete, the Planning and
Development Director shall notify the applicant of
the deficiencies in writing. The Planning and
Development Director shall take no further action
on the application until all deficiencies have
been corrected or otherwise settled.
22
(4) Recommendation___of___Planning... god___Dev_eloQment
Director_ Once the Planning and Development
Director determines the application is complete,
he shall complete his review of the application
and submit a written recommendation to the HPC
regarding whether the application conforms to the
standards in Sec. 24-9.4(d).
(5) Rev_iew-by-HPC_
(i) Upon receipt of the recommendation of the
Planning and Development Director, the HPC
shall hold at least one (1) public hearing on
its consideration of the application. Notice
of the time and place of the public hearing
shall be given at least fifteen (15) days in
advance by publication in a newspaper having
a general circulation in Aspen. The HPC
shall approve the application if it meets the
standards in Sec. 24-9.5(b)(1), if for
demolition, and Sec. 24-9.5(b)(1)(iv)-(vii)
if for partial demolition, suspend action on
the application for a period not to exceed
six (6) months if HPC concludes that addi-
tional time is needed to investigate the
proposed demolition or partial demolition, or
deny the application if it does not meet the
standards of Section 24-9.5(b)(1) or Sec. 24-
9.5(b)(1)(iv)-(vii), whichever is applicable.
(ii) When action on an application is suspended,
the applicant shall work with the HPC to
investigate the feasibility of a modification
of the plans, alternate use of the structure
or site, the possibility of tax relief or
public acquisition of the structure or site
involved, removal of the structure to a
suitable location (when demolition is
proposed), and revision to the redevelopment
plan. Following the completion of this work,
the HPC shall either approve the demolition
or partial demolition application, with any
conditions which may apply, or shall deny the
application.
Sec. 24-9.6 Insubstantial --- Modification___ of__DeveloQment__or
Demolition_AQQroval_
(a) An insubstantial modification to an approved develop-
ment or redevelopment plan may be authorized by the
Planning and Development Director. An insubstantial
modification shall be limited to technical or engineer-
23
ing considerations, first discovered during actual
development and not reasonably anticipated during the
approval process. An insubstantial modification shall
be defined as a change in shape or location of a single
window, awning, door, staircase or other feature on the
structure or use of a material made by a different
manufacturer that has the same quality and approximate-
ly the same appearance as originally approved.
(b) All other modifications shall be approved by the HPC
pursuant to Sec. 24-9.4 or 24-9.5, whichever is
applicable.
Sec. 24-9.7 A2ggal_
(a) Any action by the HPC in approving or disapproving a
development order for development or demolition may be
appealed by the applicant to the City Council within
sixty (60) days of the decision. The reasons for the
appeal shall be stated in writing.
(b) The City Council shall consider the application on the
record established before the HPC. The City Council
shall affirm the decision of the HPC unless there has
been an abuse of discretion, in which case, the
decision shall be reversed and remanded to the HPC.
Sec. 24-9.8 Variances.
The Board of Adjustment shall not take any action on a
variance request for development in the H, Historic Overlay
District or development affecting a Historic Landmark, without
receiving a written recommendation thereon from the HPC.
Sec. 24-9.9 Violations -and -Remedies.
----------------------
(a) Whenever the performance of any act is required or the
commission of any act is prohibited, pursuant to the
terms of this article, failure to comply shall consti-
tute a violation of Chapter 24 of the Municipal Code of
the City of Aspen. All penalties therein contained
shall be applicable.
(b) Any development or demolition ordered by an official or
agency of the City of Aspen within the H, Historic
Overlay District or affecting a Historic Landmark, for
the purpose of remedying conditions found by the
official or agency to cause immediate danger to life,
health, or property shall be construed as not being in
violation of this article.
24
.
�J
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Proposed Revisions to Historic Preservation Regulations
CPublic Hearing)
DATE: February 27, 1987
At the February 17, 1927 meeting PIZ reviewed proposed revisions
to Section 24-9 and directed the Planning Office to make a few
more changes to the document. We have prepared a new draft
incorporating those changes Cusing the "Read Carefully" stamp to
show changes). We have placed the entire document in the form of
a resolution, to facilitate your taking action at this time.
City Council discussed historic preservation at their continued
meeting on Tuesday? February 25th. At that time Nick De Wolf
voiced his opinion that demolition review should be conducted by
the Planning and Zoning Commission, based on an HPC recommenda—
tion with respect to the historic preservation issues. We
believe there is some merit to this idea because land use related
issues are involved in a demolition decision, including impacts
on the neighborhood and economic and real ec nfa-=tors- PIZ
deals morese issues than does
HPC: while HPC is better suited to review historic significancee7
structural stability and rehabilitation potential. The down—
side of this arrangement is that demolition review is I ikel y to
take more time particularly if the procedures for appeal to City
Council (Section 24-9.7) are invoked. In such an instance? HPC,
PIZ and Council might each review a demolition request C3 steps) -
If you agree that PIZ should be involved in demolition review
then we will draft the appropriate language in Section 24-9 prior
to the Chairman signing the Resolution.
RECOMMENDED MOTION: "Move to approve Resolution No. 87—_—
recommending the City Council to repeal and re—enact Section 24-9
of the Municipal Code: Historic Designation.
sh. C_
10C 0 4 -�o
by the fact that the primary business of the Sardy House is
the provision of lodging and therefore first consideration will
always be given to serving the needs of inhouse guests. Four
parking spaces will be provided on -site on a valet parking basis
in the vacated alley to accommodate the possible needs of outside
guests_ To ensure the continued compatibility of Sardy House
with neighboring uses, lunch will not be served on any regular
weekday basis."
Given the above conditions, parking, the one potential problem
identified by you in our pre -application con erence, is a
problem solved. Four spaces will more than eet the Code's
parking requirement for a commercial resta rant establishment
comparable in size to the Sardy House din'ngroom, bar and
kitchen, even making no allowance for ou inhouse guest base. At
the same time, I would like to note tha more often than not,
even with the hotel fully booked, we h e parking slots available.
And while Aspen Street immediately ad' cent to the Sardy House
is used by commuters, library users d shoppers during the day,
and sometimes is without free spaces during the afternoon, it is
virtually never crowded with parked cars in the evening. Also
regarding the potential for a parking or traffic problem arising
from our operation of the Sardy House, it should be noted that
only ten to twenty outside guests will make a busy night for us,
and many, if not the majority of these, can be expected to be
pedestrians - given the fact that at present there are nearly
four hundred tourist pillows within two blocks of the Sardy House,
a number soon to approach five hundred with completion of the
Jerome.
In conclusion, I believe
comply with the zoning c
objectives and purposes
even as I believe the
execution, has proven o
land uses and a bene it
Thank you and hap
`�s application should be found to
de and to be consistent with the
of the Code and the Office zone district,
rdy House project, in its design and
be most compatible with its surrounding
to our community as a whole.
new year.A
Sincerely,
Daniel D. Delano
General Partner, North & South Aspen Associates
cc: Mr. Paul Taddune
• � --T. 'q1t . N. ate
MEMORANDUM � 1 a q — - I
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Glenn Horn: Assistant Planning Director
E:ehrendt Subdivision Exception: Condominiumization
DATE: February 26, 1957
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
APPLICANT: Michael Behrendt.
APPLICANT'S REPRESENTATIVE: Rich Luhman.
LOCATION: Lots N 1 G- Block 46/3 2 W. Hyman Avenue-
SIZE: 6,000 square feet
ZONING: R-6 Residential.
APPLICANT'S REQUEST: Michael Behrendt, the owner of a four—ple
located at 322 W. Hyman seeks a subdivision exception for the
purpose of condominiumization. The applicant also requests an
exemption from the condomini.umizat ion requirement in Section :0-
2Cb) that units be restricted to six month minimum leases with
no more than two shorter teancies per year.
SITE DESCRIPTION: The subject site is located just to the east of
the St. Moritz Lodge. Michael Behrendt is the former owner of
the St. Moritz lodge. In 19 the City approved a lot split
which legally separated the four —plea from the St. Moritz. In
spite of the lot split, there still remain two staircases from
Unit 1 of the four—plex which crosses the property boundary from
the four —plea to the St. Moritz. Occupants of the four —pie
share the pool faci I ity with the St. Moritz- and the units have
been managed through the St. Moritz.
APPLICABLE SECTIONS OF THE MUNICIPAL C0DE: Section 20-22 of the
Municipal Code states requirements with which an applicant rust
comply. In summary, the requirements are:
a• Fxisting tenants shall he given written notice when
their unit is offered for sale and a ninety —day option
to purchase their unit or first right of refusal to
purchase.
h. All units shall he restricted to six month minimum
leases with no more than two shorter tenancies per
I i
Sec. 24-9.10 Definitions."'
c
Character means the height, site coverage, setback, massing,
fenestration, materials, and scale of materials. H,
Historic District and Historic Landmark development guide-
lines shall be established to give further explanation of
the qualities that compose character.
Demolition means the act of demolishing a structure.
Development means the carrying out of any building activity,
or the making of any material change in the appearance of
any structure, except demolition. Development includes
remodeling, erection, alteration and redevelopment.
Exterior architectural feature means the architectural
style, design, and general arrangement of the exterior of a
structure, including but not limited to the texture,
materials, windows, lights, signs, and other fixtures
appurtenant to a structure.
Neighborhood means the area adjacent to or surrounding a
Historic Landmark characterized by common use or uses,
density, style and age of structures and environmental
characteristics.
H, Historic District means a site or area designated by the
City Council as an H, Historic District under the provisions
of this Article.
Historic Landmark means a structure designated by the City
Council as a Historic Landmark under the provisions of this
Article, either within or outside of an H, Historic Dis-
trict.
Partial demolition means the act of demolishing part of a
structure.
Site means one (1) or more parcels with one (1) or more
structures.
Structure means anything constructed, installed, remodeled,
or portable, the use of which requires location on a parcel
of land. It includes a movable building, used either
temporarily or permanently. Structure also includes walk-
ways, paths, fences and signs.
25
« � S
A G E N D A
ASPEN PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
February 17, 1987 - Tuesday
5:00 P.M.
City Council Chambers
1st Floor
City Hall
REGULAR MEETING
I. COMMENTS
Commissioners
Planning Staff
II. MINUTES
January 6, 1987
January 20, 1987
III. NEW BUSINESS
A. Wheeler Opera House View Plane
IV. PUBLIC HEARING
A. Mountain View Residential GMP Conceptual Subdivi-
sion/Rezoning/Street Vacation (Hearing to be continued
to March 17)
B. Proposed Revisions to Historic Preservation Regs.
V. ADJOURN MEETING
A.COV
a-- •
u
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Proposed Revisions to Historic Preservation Regulations
DATE: February 13, 1987
----------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
P&Z reviewed a proposed draft of Sections 24-9 Historic Designa-
tion on February 3, 1987. The public hearing was continued to
the February 17, 1987 meeting.
Attached is a revised draft of Section 24-9 with changes made in
response to P&Z's comments and public review comments. Signifi-
cant changes in this draft are noted with the "Read Carefully"
stamp. Staff will be prepared to discuss at your meeting the new
language drafted by the Planning Office and Code Simplification
consultant.
sb.044
E
•
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr., City Manager ill
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office A
RE: Historic Designations and Moratorium on Demolition and
Removal of Historic Structures
DATE: February 12, 1987
SUMMARY: The Planning Office, P&Z, and HPC recommend approval of
Ordinance �_ (Series of 1987) on first reading, giving indivi-
dual historic designation to eight (8) structures. We also recom-
mend adoption of Resolution _(Series of 1987) deleting 46
structures from the Moratorium on Demolition. Finally Council
should decide at this meeting or a subsequent meeting prior to
March 22nd whether or not to extend the 6 month Moratorium on
Demolition of Historic Structures.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL AND PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION ACTIONS: The
Historic Preservation Element of the Comprehensive Plan was
adopted by P&Z on October 7, 1986. The two highest priority
implementation programs in the Element were demolition and
removal review and study of historic district expansion. A 6
month Moratorium on Demolition of all structures on the Inventory
of Historic Sites and Structures was adopted by Council on
September 22, 1986. A joint work session of the Council, P&Z and
HPC was held on January 13, 1987, to develop a strategy on
designations, the Historic Compatibility Overlay District,
incentives, and level of development review. At that meeting it
was decided that the preferred approach was for individual
designations in conjunction with an incentives program. The
concept of a new overlay district was terminated at that time.
BACKGROUND: Based on the decisions you made at the January 13,
1987 meeting, the Planning Office pursued the following strategy:
1. The HPC performed a technical evaluation of all of the
structures on the Inventory of Historic Sites and Structures
which are not now designated to determine if they would qualify
for individual designation. Evaluations were done at four
neighborhood meetings in which property owners were invited to
bring information on the history of their structures and altera-
tions made to the structures to help the Committee make evalua-
tions.
2. These evaluations were brought to the Planning and Zoning
Commission on February 3, 1987. Structures evaluated in the
lowest 2 categories were recommended for deletion from the
moratorium and from any further consideration for designation.
All the other structures on the Inventory will be evaluated
(following the formulation of an incentives program by the City)
later for possible individual designations.
3. A decision was made by P&Z, HPC and staff to not pursue
designation of any structures at this time unless:
a. the owner requests designation; and
b. HPC evaluates the structures in its top three categor-
ies.
4. A decision was made by P&Z, HPC and staff to stop the public
hearing process on designation until an incentives program can be
developed.
5. Staff will return to you in phases over the next several
months to:
a. propose incentives
b. re-evaluate structures for consideration of designa-
tion.
6. Staff needs a decision on extending the moratorium on the
remaining structures to give us time to complete this work
without risking demolition of any of the 130 structures not yet
recommended for designation or removal from the list.
PROGRESS REPORT: Explained in more detail below is the progress
made in the evaluations of individual structures and code amend-
ments.
1. Evaluations: HPC held four neighborhood meetings (January
14,15,21, and 22, 1987) to conduct technical evaluations of the
historic significance of each structure being considered for
designation. A follow-up meeting was held on January 27th to
conclude the evaluation process.
Structures were scored by the HPC according to the following
standards:
0 - Structure was incorrectly placed on Inventory and is
actually neither old nor reconstructed.
1 - Structure is old, but has been so drastically altered
to not be easily recognizable as a Victorian or mining
era structure. Its situation in the neighborhood
typically has minimal historic influence because the
neighborhood has been substantially rebuilt with new
structures of a larger scale, or the structure is badly
deteriorated.
2 - Structure has been altered in a way that has negative-
ly affected its historic architectural integrity.
Typically, the structure cannot be associated with any
2
important historic person or event, and is merely
representative of a miner family home environment.
Neighborhood influence is also not significant because
the structures historic qualities have become nominal.
3 - Structure has been altered in a way that negatively
affects its historic architectural integrity; however,
the structure retains some historic significance
because of particularly distinctive historic structural
elements and/or its contribution to the historic
character of a neighborhood. In a few cases, the
structure has been associated with an historic person
or family.
4 - Structure has been altered in a way that is considered
compatible with the original architecture; and the
historic character is preserved. Structure typically
has strong positive influence in the neighborhood's
historic character and may be associated with important
historic persons or events. In all cases, structures
were in their original location, to the best of staff
and HPC's knowledge.
5 - Structure appears to be unaltered or has been carefully
restored/reconstructed. In some cases, structures were
rated in the 1980 Inventory as excellent or exceptional
rather than notable. Typically these structures are
very good representatives of an historic architectural
style and craftsmanship, and have a strong positive
influence on the neighborhood's character structures
evaluated as 5's may also be associated with important
historic persons or events.
It should be noted that qualitative discretion was involved in
the evaluation process to balance the level of alterations, the
neighborhood's present fabric and character, and historic
association. Following is a tabular summary of the evaluation
process:
Summary of Historic Evaluations
Neighborhoods 0 1 2 3 4 5 Total
West End #1
West End #2
Shadow Mt.,
Main St. & C.C.
East End &
Smuggler Area
Total
0 5
7
4
7
3
26
2 6
14
13
13
5
53
0 5
8
12
13
9
47
**
7 21 13 9 2 0 52
9 37 42 38 35 17 178 ***
3
u
Aspen Institute structures should be in a special category
wherein HPC would have the opportunity to review and make
comment prior to any change. The structures included in the
Academic Parcel: Boetcher Hall, Paepke Auditorium, and
Seminar Building; and in the Meadows Parcel: Health Club,
Restaurant, marble garden, and geodesic dome.
** City Shops should be in a special category wherein HPC would
review in the case of a demolition application only, and not
alterations.
*** HPC still has four structures to evaluate on 2/24/87.
2. Code Amendments: On December 2, 1986 P&Z reviewed proposed
code amendments to Section 24-9 of the Municipal Code, Historic
Designation. Further discussion was held on February 3 and
February 17, 1986 and with recommendation for adoption now
scheduled for March 3, 1987. The Planning Office and Code
Simplification Consultant have been working with the P&Z and HPC
to come up with a more understandable version of this code
section. The revision does not put in place the incentives
program; instead it simply cleans up HPC's existing review
procedures and sets new standards affecting demolition of
historic buildings. It is scheduled to come to Council for First
Reading on March 23, 1987.
ACTION ITEMS:
1. Individual Designation of Eight Structures: The following
five structures were evaluated in the top range (4 and 5) and
have been clearly requested for designation by their owners:
Ellie's, Aspen Times Building, Chitwood Building, 333 W. Main
Street, and 420 W. Francis. On February 17, 1987 the HPC and P&Z
both recommended designation of three (3) additional structures
for which the owners requested designation and pursuant to the
February 3rd public hearing. They are: Sorensen's Antiques, 215
W. Bleeker, and 500 W. Bleeker. Sorensen's Antiques and 500 W.
Bleeker were rated 4, while 215 W. Bleeker was rated 3. It would
be appropriate to move forward on designating these eight
structures at this time.
Advisory Committee Vote: The Planning and Zoning Commission
unanimously recommended Council to designate the above listed
structures at a public hearing on February 3, 1987 and follow-up
meeting on February 17, 1987.
Recommended Motion:
"Move to read Ordinance (Series of 1987).
"Move to approve Ordinance (Series of 1987) on First
Reading".
4
2. Deletion of Non -Significant Structures from Moratorium on
Demolition: 178 structures in total were evaluated by the HPC
for historic significance (not including the Aspen Institute
structures, City Shops, and four structures as referred to in the
table on page 3 above). 46 of those structures fell into the two
lowest categories (0 and 1) . The Planning Office, P&Z, and HPC
believe that these structures have either no historic signifi-
cance or very minor historic significance and should be removed
from the Moratorium on Demolition. Furthermore, it is clear that
these 46 structures should be given no further consideration for
historic designation.
Resolution f' (Series of 1987) would remove the 46 struc-
tures from the demolition moratorium.
The following table summarizes the status of our historic
inventory:
No. of Structures
Total structures
on Inventory
& Moratorium
271
Designated Structures
(as of
today)
87
Structures to be
designated
8
Structures to be
deleted from
Moratorium
46
Undesignated Structures
subject
to Moratorium
130
Total structures
remaining on
Moratorium
(Designated and
Undesignated)
225
Advisory Committee Vote: On February 3, 1987 P&Z voted unani-
mously to recommend that the 46 structures evaluated 0 and 1 be
deleted from Ordinance 41 (Series of 1986) , Moratorium on
Demolition.
Recommended Motion: "Move to adopt Resolution (Series of
1987) .
3. Extension of Moratorium: The 6 month moratorium will end on
March 22, 1987 if not extended. Unfortunately, the evaluations
process, code amendments and incentives program have taken a much
longer time than expected.
We concur with Council's decision not to move forward on designa-
tions until an incentives program has been developed, in hopes of
avoiding entirely the issue of mandatory or City -initiated
designations, in favor of voluntary designations by owners who
recognize the benefits to the community and to themselves of the
program. In support of this program,the following historic
preservation legislative agenda has been proposed:
March 23 - 1st Reading of Revision to Section 24-9
April 27 - 2nd Reading of Revision to Section 24-9
5
n
LJ
April 13 - 1st Reading of Historic Preservation Incentive
Programs Phase I
May 11 - 2nd Reading of Historic Preservation Incentive
Programs Phase I
June 22 - 1st Reading of Historic Incentives and Designa-
tions Phase II
July 27 - 2nd Reading of Historic Incentives and Designa-
tions Phase II
This time table suggests that the moratorium will need to be
extended by approximately 130 days. If Council is not ready at
this time to act on the Moratorium then extension must be
considered within the next month or we risk the possibility of
another "run" on demolition permits as was experienced last fall.
We recognize that there will be some added inconveniences created
for property owners by extending the moratorium. It is likely
that several exemptions will be requested on a case by case basis
during the extension period. However, on balance, we believe
that extension is in the best interest of the public, and
recommend that you direct us to return at your next meeting of
March 9 with a resolution extending the Moratorium on Demolition
to 7/27/87.
CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS:
6
•
A G E N D A
ASPEN PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
February 3, 1987 - Tuesday
5:00 P.M.
City Council Chambers
1st Floor
City Hall
REGULAR MEETING
I. COMMENTS
Commissioners
Planning Staff
II. PUBLIC HEARINGS
A. Moses Rezoning/Subdivision Exception
B. Individual Designation of Historic Structures
C. Proposed Revisions to Historic Preservation Regs.
III. ADJOURN MEETING
A.COV
13
0
I _V1i1W. a9ii 7 1
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
Historic Preservation Committee
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Historic Designation and Code Amendment
(Public Hearings)
DATE: January 29, 1987
BACKGROUND: On December 2, 1986 P&Z reviewed proposed code
amendments to Section 24-9, Historic Designation. A public
hearing was held on December 16, 1986 for consideration of
historic designation of individual structures. Both public
hearings were tabled to February 3, 1987.
A joint work session of City Council., P&Z and HPC was held on
January 13, 1987 to develop a strategy regarding individual
designation, the Historic Compatibility Overlay District,
incentives program and levels of review. It was clear from that
meeting that Council and the appointed bodies preferred individu-
al designations, but only in conjunction with the incentives
program. The concept of a new overlay district was terminated at
the meeting.
HPC held four neighborhood meetings (January 14, 15, 21, and 22,
1987) to undertake a technical evaluation of the historic
significance of each structure being considered for designation.
A follow-up meeting to conclude this evaluation was held on
January 27, 1987.
PROBLEM DISCUSSION: The HPC evaluated in total 178 structures
that were identified on the 1980 Inventory of Historic Sites and
Structures as updated in 1986 and which are not now designated.
Following is a description of the evaluation process and a
summary of the results.
A. Evaluation Process: Section 24-9.3 establishes the stand-
ards that historic structures and sites must meet in order
to be designated, including: historic importance, architec-
tural importance and geographic influence. In evaluating
the structures HPC used the 1980 Inventory, recent photo-
graphs, information on structural alterations and history
given by property owners and recommendations from the
Planning Office. Most of the buildings looked at were in
the notable category of the 1980 Inventory, which is the
lowest of the three identified categories.
Structures were scored 0 to 5 according to the following stand-
ards:
0 - Structure was incorrectly placed on Inventory and is
actually neither old nor reconstructed.
1 - Structure is old, but has been so drastically altered
to not be easily recognizable as a Victorian or mining
era structure. Its situation in the neighborhood
typically has minimal historic influence because the
neighborhood has been so substantially rebuilt with new
structures of a larger scale, or the structure is badly
deteriorated.
2 - Structure has been altered in a way that has negatively
affected its historic architectural integrity.
Typically, the structure cannot be associated with any
important historic person or event, and is merely
representative of a miner family home environment.
Neighborhood influence is also not significant because
the structure's historic qualities have become nominal.
3 - Structure has been altered in a way that negatively
affects its historic architectural integrity; however,
the structure retains some historic significance
because of particularly distinctive historic structural
elements and/or its contribution to the historic
character of a neighborhood. In a few cases, the
structure has been associated with an historic person
or family.
4 - Structure has been altered in a way that is considered
compatible with the original architecture; and the
historic character is preserved. Structure typically
has strong positive influence on the neighborhood's
historic character and may be associated with important
historic persons or events. In all cases, structures
were in their original location, to the best of staff
and HPC's knowledge.
5 - Structure appears to be unaltered or has been carefully
restored/reconstructed. In some cases, structures were
rated in the 1980 Inventory as excellent or exceptional
rather than notable. Typically, these structures are
very good representatives of architectural styles and
craftsmanship, have a strong positive influence on the
neighborhood's historic character and may be associated
with important historic persons or events.
It should be noted that qualitative discretion was involved in
the evaluation process to balance the level of alterations, the
neighborhood's present fabric and character, and historic
2
• 0
association. Evaluation was a tough job! When property owners
or representatives were hostile because of concerns over the
implication of designation, rather than offering information
about the structures, evaluations became even more difficult.
Nonetheless, the Committee strived to be objective and consis-
tent. Following is a tabular summary of the evaluation process.
Summary
of Historic
Evaluations
Neighborhoods
0
1 2
3 4
5 Total
West End #1
0
5 7
4 7
3 26
West End #2
2
6 14
12 13
5 52
Shadow Mt.,
Main St. & C.C.
0
5 8
12 13
9 47 **
East End &
Smuggler Area 7 21 13 9 2 0 52
Total 9 37 42 37 35 17 176 ***
* Aspen Institute structures should be in a special category
wherein HPC would have the opportunity to review and make
comment prior to any change. The structures include the
Academic Parcel: Boetcher Hall, Paepke Auditorium, and
Seminar Building and the Meadows Parcel: Health Club,
Restaurant, Marble garden, and geodesic dome.
** City Shops should be in a special category wherein HPC would
review in the case of a demolition application only, and not
alterations.
*** Two structures must still be evaluated: 423 N. 2nd Street
and an old house on A.C.E.S. property.
B. HPC Follow-up on the Historic Evaluations Neighborhood
Meetings: The HPC had the opportunity to look at Aspen's
historic resources in more detail than ever before, as well as to
meet with many residents of Aspen to discuss historic preserva-
tion. As a result, the Committee has learned a great deal about
changes that have occurred to historic structures and issues of
designation, neighborhood changes, and appropriate review
standards. HPC members will each write issues papers which will
be the basis of further discussions during February and March.
We would expect to schedule a joint HPC/P&Z work session after
the papers have been written so you can jointly consider the
issues they uncovered.
C. To Designate or Not to Designate (Recommendation): As you
know, Council has given staff, HPC and P&Z direction that
3
individual
designations should
not proceed without
the incentives
program for
the structures.
We need to give
time for
the
incentives
program development
and code amendments
to Section
24-
9 to catch
up. HPC has completed its technical
evaluation
of
structures
and the next step
becomes the combination of
the
related elements
and political
decision -making.
The Planning Office believes that it would be highly inappropri-
ate to move forward on any mandatory designations before the
incentives program is developed. Only those structures whose
owners have clearly requested designation and which have been
evaluated in the top range (4 and 5) by the HPC should be
considered at this time. They are: Ellie's, the Aspen Times
Building, Chitwood Building, 333 W. Main Street, and 420 W.
Francis.
Staff also believes that it is obvious that structures in the
lowest two categories (0 and 1) of HPC's evaluations have no
historic significance. They should not be further considered for
designation and should be removed from the list of structures
subject to the Moratorium on Demolition. There are 46 such
structures listed in Attachment A; and photographs of each will
be available at your meeting.
After this action, the public hearing should be closed. When HPC
and P&Z are ready to go forward on designation with incentives,
all owners of structures finally considered will be renotified of
the subsequent public hearing. It cannot be overemphasized, that
when the remaining structures are considered (127 structures) we
would expect further removals to occur from the list based on the
historic values involved and the owner's desire or lack of desire
to be designated. We expect the incentives program to strongly
influence owner decisions at that time. We hope to have an
incentives program ready for review in a couple of months.
D. Revision to Section 24-9: Attached is a draft version of
Section 24-9, Historic Designation. The Planning Office and Code
Simplification Consultant have prepared this revision. Changes
from the existing text are primarily procedural. They clarify
roles, designation standards and procedures and provide develop-
ment and demolition standards and procedures. This revision does
not put in place the incentives program. Lest you be alarmed and
dismayed at the size and complexity of this version, please
compare it to the existing regulations of Section 24-9. Staff
believes that this version is much more clear and makes for
simpler procedures to follow.
It is likely that you will not have time to go through the entire
draft tonight, and staff recommends that the public hearing and
discussion be continued to your special meeting of February 10 or
regular meeting of February 17, 1987.
4
•
•
RECOMMENDATIONS: The Planning Office recommends the following
motions:
(1) "Move to recommend individual historic designation of
Ellie's, 101 S. Mill Street; Aspen Times Building, 310 E.
Main Street; Chitwood Building, 100 S. Mill Street; 333 W.
Main Street; and 420 W. Francis Street at the request of the
owners."
(2) "Move to recommend Council to delete the structures listed
in Attachment A from Ordinance _ (Series of 1986), Morator-
ium on Demolition."
(3) "Move to close the public hearing on consideration of
individual historic designation of structures identified on
the 1980 Inventory of Historic Sites and Structures as
amended in 1986."
(4) "Move to continue the public hearing on revisions to Section
24-9 Historic Designation to February 17, 1987.
A
11
•
ATTACHMENT A
List of Structures Evaluated by HPC
To Not Have Historic Significance
(Scoring 0 or 1)
Neighborhood: West End
831
W.
Bleeker
Score: 1
726
W.
Bleeker
Score: 1
120
N.
Fifth
Score: 1
716-718
W. Hallam
Score: 1
610
W.
Francis
Score: 1
209
E.
Bleeker
Score: 1
205
W.
Bleeker
Score: 1
213
W.
Bleeker
Score: 1
203
E.
Hallam
Score: 1
305
W.
Hallam
Score: 1
327
W.
Hallam
Score: 1
407
W.
Hallam
Score: 0
421
W.
Hallam
Score: 0
Neighborhood: Shadow Mt., Main St., and C.C.
101
E.
Hopkins
Score: 1
205
W.
Hopkins
Score: 1
325
W.
Hopkins
Score: 1
706
W.
Main
Score: 1
709
W.
Main
Score: 1
Neighborhood: East End and Smuggler Area
935
E.
Cooper
Score: 1
801
E.
Hyman
Score: I
1020
E.
Hyman
Score: 1
1022
E.
Hyman
Score: 1
1031
E.
Hyman
Score: 1
625
E.
Hopkins
Score: 1
624
E.
Hopkins
Score: I
719
E.
Hopkins
Score: 1
718
E.
Hopkins
Score: 1
720
F.
Hopkins
Score: 1
811
F.
Hopkins
Score: 1
819
E.
Hopkins
Score: 1
120
N.
Spring
Score: 1
600
E.
Bleeker
Score: 1
220
Puppy Smith
Score: 0
230
N.
Spring
Score: 0
390
N.
Spring
Score: 0
470
N.
Spring
Score: 1
720
Bay
Score: 0
930
King
Score: 1
i
925
King
Score:
0
935
King
Score:
1
101
N. Park
Score:
0
170
N. Park
Score:
0
980
Gibson
Score:
1
990
Gibson
Score:
1
920
Matchless
Score:
1
930
Matchless
Score:
1
sb.30
ii
h
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
Historic Preservation Committee r�A�_
THRU: Robert S. Anderson, Jr., City Manager
FROM: Alan Richman, Planning and Development Director IL \
Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Historic Preservation Work Session
DATE: January 6, 1987
The Planning staff, along with our Code Simplification Consul-
tant, have developed an approach toward resolving the many
questions which have arisen with respect to our initiatives in
historic preservation. We propose to lead you through a working
session at your meeting on January 13 at 5: 00 P.M. which we
believe can effectively allow you to reach consensus among
yourselves and provide direction to the staff.
The exercise we propose is not easily explained in memo form, but
should be easily followed at the meeting. In order that you will
be prepared for the meeting, we ask you to consider the follow-
ing
1) There are two types of activities which are of concern
to us in historic preservation, these being development
(i.e., additions to, modifications of or a new con-
struction) of structures and demolition (partial and
complete) of structures.
2) There are two forms of development or demolition which
can take place, these being to structures on our
historic inventory or to structures not on the inven-
tory, but which fall within the boundaries of the
proposed district.
3) There are three concerns relative to development or
demolition of an inventoried or non -inventoried
structure, these being the length and form of the
review process, the type of standards and guidelines,
and who will be eligible for incentives (economic and
land use) to compensate for the new regulations.
The first thing we want to determine with this exercise is
whether you have the same regulatory purposes for the non -
inventoried versus the inventoried structures, particularly as
0 •
regards the standards for review and the incentives programs. If
so, then we believe that it will not be necessary for us to
pursue designation of individual structures, as the same purpose
can be served by a district. If, as we suspect, the standards
and incentives are different between inventoried versus non -
inventoried structures, then a list of designated structures will
be needed.
Presuming for the moment that both a list and a district will be
needed, we will next try to obtain your direction on the extent
of the resource we will be protecting; that is, how big the
district will be and how aggressively you wish to pursue designa-
tion of the "notable" structures. At this point we feel that
some of the notables are clearly deserving of designation, while
others just as clearly have been altered and are not significant.
The issue, therefore is, to determine a strategy for those
structures falling in the middle which neither clearly are worthy
or unworthy of designations.
As a final item, we will be prepared to present to you our
research and recommendations with respect to incentive/compensa-
tion programs in order to raise your comfort level on implement-
ing the strategy on which you reach consensus.
Please feel free to contact either of us if you have any ques-
tions or comments prior to the meeting on the 13th.
AR.019
2
MEMORAMMM
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Alan Richman, Planning and Development Director
RE: Historic Preservation Regulations
DATE: January 2, 1987
The Planning staff, along with the City Code Simplification
Consultant have been spending considerable time revising the
draft of the Historic Preservation Regulations which was presen-
ted to you last month. While we have made considerable progress
on this project, we have reached an impasse due to the need for
some policy direction on the review procedure. Therefore, we
will be unable to present the regulations to you until after your
joint work session with City Council and HPC, scheduled for
January 13. We recommend that you table tonight's public hearing
to February 3, which is the next available regular meeting date.
We may request that you hold a work session prior to that date
depending on the progress that we make with rewriting these
provisions and depending on the results of the work session. As
the situation becomes clearer, we will advise you accordingly.
L
RECORD OF -PROCEEDINGS
PLANNING AND ZONING DECEMBER 16, 1986
Meeting was called to order at 5:00 p.m. by Welton Anderson.
Roll call was taken with Ramona Markalunas, David White and Roger
Hunt answering. Jasmine Tygre, Mari Peyton and Jim Colombo
arrived shortly after.
COMMISSIONER'S COMMENTS
There were none.
PUBLIC BEARING / HISTORIC PRESERVATION CODE AMENDMENTS
Welton announced to the large number of people present that the
public hearing scheduled for this meeting is going to be tabled
until after there is a work session in City Council with P&Z and
HPC. There had been a number of comments made by the public at
the last meeting which sent the Planning Office back to the
drawing board in its approach toward this whole thing. Further
work is being done in regard to incentive, the extent of the
overlay district, the houses to be designated historic and the
wording and general organization of the ordinance. He told
everyone that no action would be taken on this matter until after
public hearings scheduled after the first of the year.
Alan Richman told the audience that this public hearing is being
tabled at the direction of City Council so that City Council, P&Z
and HPC could all meet together and reassess the direction they
are taking to make sure they are all in agreement about the
proper direction on this historic preservation program. The key
dates for everyone to be aware of are January 6, 1987 with the
P&Z. At that date we hope to have some draft regulations. The
regulations are now being reviewed by the consultant trying to
make them more understandable.
Then on January 13, 1987 there will be a joint meeting between
P&Z, HPC and City Council. That meeting really is for those
three groups to talk with each other and determine what the
overall direction they would like to propose is and what direct-
ion they would like to give staff. He said he didn't know if
public comments would be taken at that time.
February 3, 1987 is the date scheduled for the actual review data
of the designation of the 185 structures. We have been out
taking pictures of those structures and studying them to see if
it makes sense to designate any or all of them. He asked if
anyone had information pertaining to any of the structures, the
Planning Office needs to know that and would use it in making
decisions on historical designation.
He said we are not anxious to designate structures which have no
historic integrity. A lot of feelings are being voiced about
what designation means. Designation is not as onerous as many
make it out to be. An educational handout is being developed in
the Planning Office to explain what it means if your structure is
designated. Designation only means a structure is subject to
review by the HPC. An example is the Glidden House on Bleeker.
This was a designated structure and was taken down to its very
timbers, reconstructed and added onto.
Because a structure is designated does not mean you don't have
any rights. But it does mean a lot to an individual in terms of
whether the property is easily saleable or whether it can be
added onto in the future. If we designate your house we do
understand we have a responsibility to come up with a positive
compensation type of program to award you for the fact that your
house is designated. If anyone has any ideas about how to award
we want to hear it. We don't want this to be a negative program
or infringe on the rights of anyone. What we are trying to do is
preserve the historic resource that we think makes this community
a special place to be.
Welton then informed the audience before opening for public
comments that the board would not be making any decision on
anything tonight. But if anyone had any comments about the
philosophy of the overlay of the historic districts, the individ-
ual designation, or the changes in the zoning and streamlining of
the review procedures, the Board would be happy to hear those
comments.
Paul Taddune pointed out that the Planning office is not in a
position at this time to unilaterally take a house that is on the
list off the list. But that if someone had a house that was
designated which they felt should not be designated they would
have to appeal to the Planning Office. If the Planning Office
was in agreement then they can make a recommendation to the HPC.
Alan said if the HPC does not recommend a structure then that
structure is not designated according to our regulations.
Welton then opened the meeting for public comment.
Debbie Segwin, 203 East Hallam, asked how do you get the Planning
Department to make note of your structure.
Alan said that it was only this afternoon that we really came to
the conclusion that the 185 structures should be evaluated
individually by the HPC. And that her house was on the evaluat-
ion list at this point.
Debbie then said she did not understand what it means to her
house if it is declared historic designation or historic overlay.
Alan explained that there two things that the HPC and the P&Z are
considering. One is the historic compatibility overlay district.
2
The other is the individual historic designation. The historic
compatibility overlay district is essentially the Aspen Townsite
and the early additions to it. It is most of what we know as
Aspen. The way we are looking at it now structures that are in
that district, the new buildings, that happen to sit next to a
historic building would be reviewed for three things. That is
massing --how big the building is, siting --where does it sit on
the lot, and materials. It is really more of a compatibility
review for compatibility with the neighboring historic
structures.
He said the big thing that is different about individual designa-
tion as opposed to the district is demolition review. If a new
structure in the overlay district is to be demolished, that is
not a problem. It is not subject to review by the HPC. However
if an individually designated structure is to be demolished, that
is subject to review by the HPC. The direction we are trying to
take with that demolition review right now is not to say you
cannot demolish a victorian structure. That is not reasonable.
There may be no economic value in the structure. But if we do
find that it is a valid usable structure, we may want to assist
you in moving that structure to another site. We may want to
look at public compensation to purchase that structure or the
entire site. All a review does is give us an ability to look
over your shoulder and say before you demolish that structure,
give us a chance to save it for the future for the rest of the
community. It does not say you can't do anything.
We have lost about 20 of these structures in the past 6 years
which is about 10% of the inventory that we had designated 6
years ago.
Norma Dahl, Snow Queen Lodge, said they were designated notable
several years ago. They just put a lot of money and effort into
a new addition. What I am concerned about is I am not sure I
want to be designated under the historic overlay if it says we
don't like the colors you painted or something like that.
Welton explained it has nothing to do with colors --only approp-
riateness.
Alan also explained color is not a review criteria.
Norma then asked about their being designated notable and others
were designated historic.
Welton explained the catagories as being: notable historic,
excellent historic and exceptional historic.
Doug Allen asked what is going to happen on January 6.
Allan Richman said at the end of this week we will get back a new
draft of Chapter 24-9 which is the historic preservation regulat-
ions. Staff will be reviewing it for about a week and will be
3
presenting it to the P&Z on the 6th. It will be ready right
after the first of the year for public review. What it does is
it takes the existing historical preservation process and simpli-
fies it. We hope it does nothing more than that. Since we are
going to have a lot more structures under the purview of the HPC
we want a process that is clean and simple.
Doug then asked if color is regulated.
Allan said color has been an area of discussion but not in HPC's
guidelines for review. City Council made it clear that color was
not something they were interested in regulating.
Eloise Elgin suggested that the designation of houses be broken
down into increments of 20 and invite the owners of those 20 to
meetings so that they have something to say about what is happen-
ing.
Alan agreed that that was a very sensible suggestion. In looking
at the structures individually we would want to do something of
that nature.
Manard Dahlyard said he has lived here all his life and owned his
house for a long time. And does not see where you have the right
to tell us it has to go on the historical list. That is up to us
to say that. You are taking our rights from us. By putting it
in the historical if we put it up for sale --I have my house up
for sale and this is one of the reasons why I am doing it --is
that you are stopping a sale for our houses. I don't have
anything to say about it, it's my property, I pay the taxes on it
and it has been in the family since 1917 and now you are coming
around and telling me it has to go in a historical district.
That is not right, you are dictating to us.
Ray Bates, 819 East Hopkins, said he does not want to be in the
historical district. There is no reason for it. Who is going to
decide whether our structures are going to be in or not. Are you
going to take my word that I don't want in it? Or are you just
going to put me in it. Can you do that? What makes it
historical?
Welton told him yes. Some of the qualities for architectural
designation are whether there were people of historical signifi-
cance who lived in the house initially, geographical influence,
and how it relates to the rest of the neighborhood, its relation
to historic people or events.
Ray then said that he is completely surrounded by condominiums
and that no one asked him if he wanted some open space. They
just went ahead and built and they are still doing it.
Welton said if your structure falls within a historical district
something like that could not happen again because anything built
around a house like yours will have to be reviewed so that it
4
•
doesn't block your view.
Alan said the final decision on historical designation is made by
the City Council. They are the final body that has to adopt or
not adopt the ordinance designating structures. Right now we are
working with the HPC and the P&Z Commission. They will make a
recommendation to the City Council who will make the final
decision.
Mary Martin a member of HPC said she is in favor of the historic
overlay of the old townsite. One of the reasons we are looking
at this overlay is so that the old houses wont be surround-
ed by condominiums.
Buzz Dopkin, 816 East Cooper, wanted to know what precedent is
there from our cities or what basis is there that you really can
set up a committee to do this and that it has to be followed
through.
Paul Taddune answered that historic designation and historic
designation procedures are in place in every major city in the
country which has been in existence for more than 75 years. It
is a very common zoning technique. Historic preservation regula-
tions have been challenged in New York City where the regulations
have been upheld. This is principally in connection with the
proposed demolition for alteration with the Penn Central Train
Station. This was a case that was very controversial and
received a lot of national news attention.
The concept is not unique. Whether or not the criteria, the
standards, the particular houses ought to be individually design-
ated --those are all determinations which have to be made with
regard to the facts.
Buzz Dopkin then asked are you going to set up your own criteria
or are you going to be using some proven methods which are going
to be fair to everyone.
Paul said in most instances the current historic preservation
provisions could be improved. We have an opportunity in this
regard in the sense that we have on board land use consultants
who are now looking at the entire landuse code and evaluating
whether or not it should improved, altered, coordinated, consoli-
dated, integrated, simplified, etc. I have instructed them to
start working toward revising the code of the historic preservat-
ion regulations. They have national experience and we are hoping
that we can rely on them from some of their experience.
Richard Pabst asked if the city is considering providing incent-
ives to the owners for being designated historic.
Welton said there are a lot of ideas along these lines and the
Planning Department is open to suggestions. We would take the
input from people.
5
Paul Taddune warned that, until city council puts these incent-
ives in place, anyone who had historic structures should not
presume at this point that those incentives are available at this
time. None of these regulations have been installed. No
decision has been made with regard to compensation.
Alan Richman said the City Council has given clear direction that
incentives have to be a part of this program in order for it to
be successful. We are continuing to investigate this part of the
program. Any input from the public will be welcome. Every
meeting will be a public hearing. We will not do anything and
then let you know about 2 months later.
Dieter Bibbig, Park Avenue, said it seems you are taking on a big
job going for these 185 houses. You are going to have to hire
more people. Maybe you should just have everybody get a building
permit before a house gets demolished. So if somebody gets a
building permit you say don't demolish it, we are going to buy
it. Then other people who maybe look like they need help with
their house, approach them and maybe help them. Then leave the
others alone because they seem to be doing pretty well so far
with keeping their houses up. This way it won't be such a big
job.
Jim Boyd asked if there was any information available to the
public which would show why a particular structure was chosen for
designation.
Welton said there is a page of information and a photo on each of
the houses on file in the Planning Office which merits it for
inclusion.
Steve said this was first done in 1980 and is not complete in all
cases.
Catherine Lee, 124 West Hallam, asked if anyone on the P&Z, HPC
or the Planning Office owned any of the 185 houses.
Mary said her house and the Mayor's house was designated a long
time ago. And that she and her husband were opposed to it at
that time and it was automatically designated. This is a fair
solution to the whole thing. If you stop and think you have a
lovely house now and nobody is going to change your house.
Nobody is going to do anything to you. But if across the street
somebody wants to build a massive duplex, if it is zoned for
duplex then it has a review process. You are not going to be
affected by this except that there is an overlay over the old
townsite to keep what we have as much as possible within the
confines of what it was --a victorian town.
Catherine then asked what qualifies a person to be the judge or
the arbitrator and delegate what is victorian and what isn't.
I.
•
Welton told her the people who would be doing the reviews are the
HPC. They have a certain set of guidelines that are applicable
to historic structures and guidelines applicable to new struct-
ures in historic districts. We have had historic districts on
Main Street and in the commercial core for 8 years.
Georgeann Waggaman said the reason people were informed so early
is that we are in the process of making these decisions. We are
not trying to surprise people. We are trying to protect people
like Ray from having so many structures around his house it has
destroyed his value because it has been overwhelmed. We are
trying to protect people like you from that happening in your
neighborhood. We don't have all the answers. And we are not
trying to throw anything over on you after the fact. Anyone can
join the HPC. We have 3 vacancies now.
Paul Taddune said there are written guidelines for anyone who is
interested in historic designation to refer to in the municipal
code. These are not being invented at this point, they already
exist.
Welton then called upon the gentleman in the back in the center
to identify himself.
Bill Stirling, Mayor of Aspen, stated that this was the first P&Z
meeting he had come to in the last 3 and 1/2 years. But that he
felt so strongly about this particular issue that he did want to
come. Fundamentally he felt that what his motivation is as an
elected official and as a citizen is to save the old buildings
but be fair. That is quite a challenge for us. But that is what
everybody who has any kind of position of responsibility is
attempting to do here. For us as a town as opposed to a town
like Keystone or Vail, the past is our hallmark. It kind of sets
the standard for us and leads us into the future.
We need to have respect for that past and a lot of reverence for
it because it is what sets us apart. It is what makes Aspen
distinctive. It is part of what makes people come here both to
live and to visit. For a long time now people have only been
paying lip service to this caricature and slowly the inventory of
victorian homes is eroding. I do not like lists and am not
particularly enthusiastic about being on a new list. That is
what this inventory is trying to clarify. It is another list.
For me the problem with a list is it is intentionally discrim-
inating, it has onerous aspects to it and it has inequitabilities
to it.
To me the most fair thing is what we have been doing in two
districts in the town now for almost a decade and that is the
historic overlay. All of Main Street has a historic overlay and
all the downtown commercial core has a historic overlay. So it
doesn't matter whether you are a new or an old building in those
two historic districts, every time you want to do something to
the structure, you have to come in and have a review process.
7
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Historic Preservation Code Amendments, Individual
Designation of Structures and Historic Compatibility
Overlay District
DATE : December 11 , 1986
At the request of the City Council, all action on historic
preservation code amendments and individual designations of
structures should be tabled. Council has scheduled a joint
Council, P&Z, and HPC work session for Janua_ry__13_,_ 1987 to
discuss designation of the historic inventory and establishment
of the "Historic Compatibility Overlay District". The public
hearing scheduled for the December 16, 1986 meeting of P&Z and
HPC for consideration of individual Historic designations should
be opened and tabled to February 3, 1987. The Overlay District
need not be continued, since as we have previously indicated to
you, it cannot go forward due to notice problems and awaits the
revisions to Section 24-9.
The proposed code amendments to Section 24-9 are being revised in
conjunction with our code consultant and the City Attorney and
will be presented to the Planning Commission at the January_6_,
1987 regular meeting.
sb.345
S ` •
VA .4
TO: Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission
FROM: Steve Burstein, Planning Office
RE: Historic Preservation Zoning Code Amendments - Public
Hearing
DATE: November 26, 1986
INTRODUCTION: Attached are proposed amendments to Section 24-9
Historic Designation, Section 24-3.1, definition of duplexes,
Section 24-3.2 adding two detached dwellings to the list of
conditional uses when duplexes are a permitted use, and Section
24-2.1, creating the HC, Historic Compatibility Overlay District.
The public hearing scheduled for tonight is for the purpose of
considering these zoning code text changes, which are necessary
to implement the proposed new district and the designation of all
historic structures identified on the 1980 Inventory as updated
in 1986. The intent of the Code amendments is also to streamline
the HPC review process, develop review procedures and criteria
for demolition and removal of historic structures, provisions for
anti -neglect, and provisions to sunset HPC approvals after
eighteen months.
A joint public hearing of the HPC and P&Z is also scheduled for
December 16, 1986 to consider the actual designation of the 185
individual structures with H, Historic Overlay and (if we can
accomplish the required public notice) to establish the bound-
aries of the Historic Compatibility Overlay District. That
public hearing will give the HPC and Planning Commission and the
public the opportunity to consider more specifically which
structures should be designated and what areas should be incor-
porated into the Overlay District.
Incentive programs are still being considered by staff as well as
the HPC and P&Z and continue to be a key element in the entire
strategy for historic preservation revisions. Complicated
programs such as Transfer of Development Rights will take some
time before proposed zoning code amendments are ready for formal
consideration. We have placed this work item on the 1987
Planning Office work program. You will note that one incentive
program, two separate structures on parcels permitting duplexes,
is before you tonight as a code amendment.
BACKGROUND: Briefly, the historic preservation code revisions
have their inception with the Historic Preservation Plan Element
and Ordinance 41 (Series of 1986) 6 month Moratorium on Demoli-
tion and Removal of Historic Structures. In the Plan Element
demolition and removal review and historic district expansion
were the two top priority implementation actions. The moratorium
was called for by City Council because of the concern that
undesireable and inappropriate demolition of historic structures
might occur during the time we are developing regulations.
The Planning Commission and Historic Preservation Committee have
held several meetings to consider the issues and develop ap-
proaches for review and incentive programs. At the joint meeting
of P&Z and HPC on November 6, 1986 there was a consensus of both
groups that the designation of individual historic structures and
creation of a large district is the preferred approach.
PROBLEM DISCUSSION:
A. Procedural Revisions to Section 24-9: Section 24-9 has been
reorganized and partially rewritten to follow the general
approach of the Code Simplification effort underway. Please
note that most of the material proposed to be included in
the new Section 24-9 is already part of our Code. Please
refer to your copy of the Code when reviewing this material.
Some of the important changes proposed are:
1) Organizing the section to be consistent with other
sections and easier to follow containing purpose,
authority, designation, development review, violation
and remedies, role of Board of Adjustment, and defini-
tion subsections.
2) The procedures for designation and review are stated
more simply and follow the steps in consecutive order.
3) Submission requirements and review standards are listed
in an outline format. -
4) The procedural distinctions between a minor applica-
tion, conceptual review application and final review
application are more clearly defined.
B. Substantive Revisions to Section 24-9: Some of the important
substantive changes include:
1) The purpose statement includes reference to the Aspen
Area Comprehensive Plan, the concept of protecting
community character, and greater emphasis on economic
considerations.
2) Standards for designation include "community character
influence."
3) Deleted from the procedure for designation of H,
2
u
Historic Overlay Districts is a required joint HPC-P&Z
public hearing, replaced by separate public hearings.
Council's hearing is to be consistent with that for
other zoning map amendments (Section 24-12) , that is,
Ordinance adoption.
4) The Planning Director or designee would have somewhat
increased authority to exempt projects from HPC review
through the "minor application" process.
5) The HPC would have increased authority to give final
approval at the conceptual stage, without need of a
public hearing and second meeting.
6) Demolition and removal review is given its own sub-
section, and the submission requirements and review
standards are more specific. The option of suspending
action on a demolition or removal application in order
to explore alternatives is expressly stated. The
authority to disapprove an application remains in
effect from the 1975 Ordinance.
7) A separate subsection for the development review of
erection, construction, reconstruction and remodeling
(not demolition and removal) has been created for the
Historic Compatibility Overlay District. Included in
this subsection is:
a) Exemption procedure, defining a 300 foot radius
around the property of individually designated
historic structures as the area for which develop-
ment review is subject to HPC review.
b) The process is parallel to review activities in
the Historic Overlay District, in terms of the
minor application (Planning Director sign -off) ,
conceptual review (1 step) , final review and
public hearing, timing, modifications and appeal.
c) Submission requirements are less extensive than
for historic structures.
d) Review standards pertain only to the massing,
siting and materials of a proposed improvement.
Demolition and removal in this district is not
subject to review.
8) An anti -neglect provision has been added to ensure that
historic structures do not fall into a state of
disrepair, which may lead to a claim that demolition is
necessary.
3
9 0
C. Amendments to Section 24-3.1 and 24-3.2: These amendments
would allow, upon conditional use approval by P&Z and final
approval by HPC, construction (or conversion) of a second
detached dwelling unit on the property of a designated
structure zoned for duplexing. The property owner would be
given an option for expansion that might better save the
historic integrity of an existing residence. The FAR,
setbacks and other area and bulk requirements would still
apply. Conditional use procedure and criteria allows the
P&Z to make a case -by -case analysis of a proposal to ensure
the Commission is satisfied that such development if
compatible. HPC likewise reviews each proposal for confor-
mance with its standards for preservation.
An addition amendment to this definition for purposes of
Code clarifications is proposed to take care of recently
identified problems in what constitutes a common wall for
duplex purposes.
D. Amendment to Section 24-2.1: This simple amendment creates
the HC, Historic Compatibility Overlay District.
RECOMMENDATION: The Planning Office continues to have reserva-
tions about the large overlay district approach. We feel that
given the exemptions and limited review standards (massing,
siting and materials) the Historic Compatibility Overlay District
is more manageable. However, we are not satisfied that the there
is great enough need to require this action; and we fear that the
primary function in the local historic preservation review
system, preservation of significant historic structures, may be
diluted or worse, dissolved. We, therefore, do not recommend
adoption of the HC Overlay, or the creation of the regulations to
administer this overlay.
The other proposed procedural and substantive changes to Section
24-9 appear to make the section easier to read and should help
the process function more evenly and expeditiously. We recommend
approval of these revisions.
Staff also recommends approval of the amendments to Section 24-
3.1 and 24-3.2, allowing for two separate structures on the
property of a designated historic structure when a duplex is
allowed by zoning.
SB.004
0
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO HISTORIC PRESERVATION REGULATIONS
Article IX. Historic Designation
Section 24-9.1 Purpose
The purpose of this article is to:
a) Promote preservation and continued existence of
historic structures and sites.
b) Ensure that new construction does not diminish the
community character, as it has been established by
historic structures and compatible new development.
c) Promote the educational, cultural, economic and general
welfare of the public by preserving historic struc-
tures.
d) Encourage productive and economically attractive uses
of historic structures and maintain the economic
viability of Aspen.
e) Support the implementation of the Aspen Area Comprehen-
sive Plan.
f) Establish standards and procedures for the construc-
tion, reconstruction, remodeling, demolition and
removal of structures and combination of structures
within legally designated H, Historic Overlay District.
Section 24-9.2 Authority
a) Creation
There shall be established an historic preservation
committee with seven (7) regular and three (3) alter-
nate members all appointed by the city council. The
\ composition of the committee shall include members with
\v expertise in the fields. of design, architecture,
history, real estat4'A'W ea*0Taw. The alternates shall
attend all meeti ngs11� and be allowed to vote in the
absence of a regular ember.
b) Power and Duties?
The powers and duties of the committee are hereinafter
prescribed and include, in part:
a) To make recommendations to the Planning Commission
and the City Council on the designation of H,
Historic Overlay Districts and to provide support
material necessary to justify such designation;
b) To review and render decisions on individual
building permit applications within H, Historic
Overlay Districts.
c) Staff
The planning director or designee of, shall be assigned as a
liaison to the historic preservation committee and be in
attendance at all meetings. The planning director or
designee shall also be delegated the authority to exempt
applications from the historic preservation committee's
review for minor activities as described herein. A repre-
sentative of the building or zoning department shall also be
assigned as a liaison to the committee and be available to
give advise and pertinent information to the committee. The
city clerk or designee shall serve as the secretary to the
committee.
d) Quorum and Necessary Vote
A quorum of the Committee shall exist when four regular or
alternate members are present.
e) Meetings, Hearing and Procedure
Regular meetings of the committee shall be held on the
second and fourth Tuesdays of each month, and shall be
conducted according to the by-laws of the committee as
adopted by resolution of said committee.
Section 24-9.3 Designation of H, Historic Overlay Districts
a) Standards for Designation
Structures, combination of structures, sites or areas
to be included within an H, Historic Overlay District
shall be evaluated and considered based on the follow-
ing standards:
1) Historic Significance: The structures, combination
of structures, site or area:
a) Has character, interest or value as part of
the development, heritage, cultural charac-
teristics of the City of Aspen, the State of
Colorado or the nation;
b) Is the site of an historic event with an
effect upon society;.
c) Is identified with a person or group of
2
persons who had some influence on society;
d) Exemplifies the cultural, political, econo-
mic, social or historical heritage of the
community;
e) By its preservation, promotes the health,
safety or welfare of the present and future
inhabitants of the community.
2) Architectural Importance: The structure or
combination of structures:
a) Portrays the environment of a group of people
in an era of history characterized by a
distinctive architectural style;
b) Embodies the distinguishing characteristics
of a significant or unique architectural type
specimen;
c) Is the work of an architect or master builder
whose individual work has influenced the
character of Aspen;
d) Contains elements of design, detail, mater-
ials or craftsmanship which represent a
significant architectural style.
3) Community Character Influence: The structure,
combination of structures, site or area:
a) Because of being part of or related to a
square, park, neighborhood or other distinc-
tive area should be developed or preserved
according to a plan based on an historic
cultural or architectural motif (including
the motif of successive contemporary styles
within some neighborhoods) .
b) Due to its unique location or singular
physical characteristics, represents an
established and familiar visual feature of
the Ci ty.
b) Procedures for Designation
1) Evaluation by Historic Preservation Committee f\
Structures, combination of -structures, sites or
areas to be considered for designation of an H,
Historic Overlay District shall be evaluated by
3
the historic preservation committee according to
the above stated standards. Whenever, in the
opinion of the committee, a structure, combination
of structures, site or area meets the standards
for designation, the committee shall contact the
owner and, if possible, secure the owner's written
consent for each designation. Following this
contact, the committee may proceed by adopting a
resolution stating its findings of historic
significance, architectural importance, and
community character influence and its recom-
mendation to the planning and zoning commission
for designation. If the historic preservation
committee is not in receipt of the owner's written
consent to such designation, the committee's
resolution shall state why the committee feels
designation should proceed without such consent.
2) Evaluation and Public Hearing by the Planning and
zoning Commission
At a public hearing described herein, the planning
and zoning commission shall evaluate proposed
designations of H, Historic Overlay District, to
structures, combination of structures, sites or
areas with respect to:
a) Its relationship to the Aspen Area Comprehen-
sive Plan;
b) The effect of designation upon the surround-
ing neighborhood; and
c) Such other planning considerations as may be
relevant to the proposed designation.
The public hearing shall be scheduled at a time,
date and place certain for proposed amendments to
the zoning district map designating, amending or
rescinding an H, Historic Overlay District. A
written notice of said hearing shall be published
once in a newspaper of general circulation in the
City of Aspen at least fifteen (15) days prior to
the hearing and a written notice shall be sent
first class mail at least fifteen (15) days prior
to the hearing date to the owner or owners of the
property included within said amendment. The name
and address of the owner or owners used shall be
as they appear upon plats or records in the Pitkin
County Clerk and Recorder's Office and on the tax
records of Pitkin County.
4
3) City Council Designation Public Hearing
Upon receipt of the historic preservation commit-
tee's resolution and the planning and zoning
commission's recommendation on the proposal to
designate a structure, combination of structures,
site or area as an H, Historic Overlay District,
city council shall hold a public hearing for
consideration of an ordinance meeting the require-
ments of Section 24-12.6 of the Municipal Code.
H, Historic Overlay Districts, as designated by
the city council through adoption of ordinance,
will be classified for zoning purposes by the
existing zone district designation plus the suffix
nH n
c) Recordation of H, Historic Overlay District, Designa-
tion
Upon the effective date of an amendment designating a
structure, combination of structures, site or area as
H, Historic Overlay District, the planning director or
designee shall notify the city building inspector of
the official designation. The secretary of the
committee shall also record among the real estate
records of the clerk and recorder of Pitkin County,
Colorado a certified copy of the ordinance designating
specified property within an H, Historic Overlay
District, as a structure, combination of structures,
site or area for preservation,_ which ordinance shall
contain a sufficient legal description of the struc-
tures), site or area designated.
d) Rescinding or Amending Designation
The designation of a structure, combination of struc-
tures, site or area as an H, Historic Overlay District,
may be amended or rescinded by following the same
procedures under which the original designation was
made.
Section 24-9.4 Development Review for A Structure and Combination
of Structures within Designated H, Historic
Overlay District
a) Procedure
No building permit shall be issued for erection,
construction, reconstruction, or remodeling of struc-
tures designated H, Historic Overlay District unless
given approval or conditional approval by the historic
5
0
preservation committee,
from the committee review,
provided for belowx NJ ,. ik'll
planning director exemption
or approval upon appeal as 1
1) Minor application: The planning director is
authorized to determine from the submission of
preliminary drawings and building specifications
that no change or a minor change to the exterior
FQ_RS appearance of a structure or combination of
structures will result, having no impact on the
historic or architectural significance of the
structure. Upon such determination, the planning
director may exempt the applicant from the
conceptual and final reviews with the historic
preservation committee and shall notify the
building department to continue to process the
building permit in accordance with appropriate
regulations.
2) Conceptual Review Application: In cases where
significant exterior changes will result, the
planning director or designee shall notify the
committee promptly of each application received
and shall set a meeting date for conceptual
review. In cases of minor repair and alteration
projects in which it is determined by the commit-
tee from the submission of required materials that
the project complies with all development review
criteria and a final review stage would be
redundant and unnecessary, the committee may grant
final approval or conditional approval at the
conceptual stage. All other applications shall be
processed through the final review application
stage following conceptual review, as described
herein.
3) Final Review Application and Public Hearing
Requirements: In cases where final approval is
not given at the conceptual review stage the
following procedures shall apply. The historic
preservation committee shall hold at least one
public hearing, notice of the time and place of
which shall be given at least fifteen (15) days in
advance by publication in a newspaper having
general circulation in the City of Aspen. If the
exhibits submitted for the conceptual review are
deemed inadequate for holding a public hearing and
for forming a clear idea of the proposed work, the
committee shall postpone action until adequate
exhibits have been submitted. After such public
hearing, the committee shall:_
0
a) Approve, or approve with conditions, the
application; and the building inspector shall
then continue to process the building permit
in accordance with the provisions of this
Code; or
b) Disapprove the application and the building
inspector shall deny the building permit.
Recommendations of approval, di sappr ov al or conditional
approval shall be noted in the minutes of the proceed-
i ngs .
b) Submission Requirements
Applications submitted pursuant to this Section shall be
filed in triplicate with the Planning Office (upon forms
prescribed by the historic preservation committee or in a
letter) including at least the following information:
1) Names and addresses of all owners of the property. If
the applicant is not the owner, the applicant's name,
address and interest in the property.
2) Address of property and name of structure (if appli-
cable) .
3) Written description of proposal.
4) Accurate representation of all major building mater-
ials, such as samples and photographs.
5) Statement of effect of the proposal on the original
design of the historic structure and/or character of
neighborhood.
6) Scale drawings of the structure or structures.
7) Details as appropriate to fully document the proposed
changes.
c) Review Standards
The historic preservation committee shall consider the
following standards in review of applications within H,
Historic Overlay District:
Whether the proposed change is compatible and compli-
mentary in design with the designated historic struc-
tures and sites on the property and within the neigh-
borhood. The Committee may promulgate guidelines and
dards.to u n in making any such decisions.
w�.�n►�flot J ,j 7
2) Whether the designated structure, site or area posses-
ses architectural, historic and community character
significance that would be greatly diminished or lost
due to the proposed change. D�te�M,��l brt4 c,,.it, rt (3A+ J 1) the
st„I"i btS�.ink I•Sc.t:..`L`t_9.3.
d) Timing for Review and Expiration of Approvals
1) The Historic Preservation Committee shall conduct
conceptual review within thirty (30) days after
submission of a completed application. Provided that
the applicant has filed all submission materials deemed
adequate for a public hearing, final review shall be
scheduled no more than 45 days after conceptual review
has been completed.
2) Failure to obtain a building permit for a Bevel oFment
approval granted by the committee within a period of
eighteen (18) months following the committee's action
shall render such approval invalid. Renewal of a prior
approval may be granted by the committee for an
additional period not to exceed twelve (12) months upon
receipt of a request for such review from the appli-
cant. In granting said renewal, the committee shall
consider whether conditions in the neighborhood of the
application or in the community have changed such that
renewal is not in the best interest of the community.
e) Modifications
1) Minor Modifications: Minor modifications in an
approved application may be authorized by the planning
director or designee of upon application for such
review. The planning director shall utilize the review
criteria of Section 24-9.4 (a) (1) in determining whether
or not the amendment is minor.
2) Major Modifications: All other changes to an approved
application may be made only after development review
approval is received from the historic preservation
committee pursuant to Section 24-9.4.
(f) Appeal Procedures
Any action of the committee
in disapproving or
conditionally
approving an application
may be appealed
to the City
Council. Any action of the
Committee so appealed
shall not
become effective unless and
until approved by
the Council.
Appeals shall be submitted in writing to
the planning
director or designee within 60 days of the
committee's
decision, stating the reasons for the appeal.
The planning
director or designee shall
present the appeal
to the city
council which may:
0 •
1) Grant exceptions or waivers from the provisions of this tL,Oa
article when required to prevent a substantial hardship n`" ,�JC�Iriu
to the effected landowner or injury to the public; or—�°��t��{�ti�v��
C -AV7:47_ C
2) Explore all means for preserving the historic structure
or site including, but not limited to, the feasibility
of a modification of the plans or alternate private use
of the structure or site which would substantially
preserve the original character thereof, or the
possibility of tax relief or public acquisition of the
structure or site involved.
Section 24-9.5 Demolition and Removal Review for a Structure and
Combination of Structures within Designated H, Historic Overlay
District
a) Procedures
No building permit shall be issued for demolition or
�;'A
removal in part or in whole of structures designated H,
Historic Overlay District unless given approval or
Q
conditional approval by the historic preservation
committee or approval upon appeal as provided for
below: f 1AA �,..+ dGl►.4;�i;, 4µ"n-1.�,r,c
�"'
P1.,,,,t..nri�,, °u >at�,I t. ezenp IP
V 1) rt;.Jr Q'p��c.i �a . l �j 1i
✓I t#kU-�I�a. ftW�f✓.y J•I^A��I {)tin• Mfl�•y d�,t,�a{J�o�th icf
Sr'c+Jrc
� Conceptual Review Application: The planning
61 rCw�rw� ,(�
(,"
director or designee shall set a meeting date for
""N
A4A ont"tA
conceptual review by the committee, at which time
fkk,,t",..k4ftIJr
the committee will review the application accord-
ing to the standards and criteria of this section.
dItkA'w"
All applications for demolition or removal shall
be processed through the final review application
stage following conceptual review, as described
herein. _..
2) Final Review Application and Public Hearing
Requirements: The historic preservation committee
shall hold at least one public hearing, notice of
which shall be given in a newspaper having general
circulation in the City of Aspen. After such
public hearing, the committee shall:
a) Approve, or approve with conditions the
application; and the building inspector shall
then continue to process the building permit
in accordance with the provisions of this
Code; or
b) Suspend action on the -application for a
period not to exceed six (6) months, during
which time the applicant shall work with the
committee to investigate the feasibility of a
modification of the plans, alternate use of
the structure or site, possibility of tax
relief or public acquisition of the structure
or site involved, removal of the structure to
a suitable location (when demolition is
proposed) , and revision to the redevelopment
plan.
3) Final Consideration: When the committee has
suspended action on the application as allowed by
subsection (2) (c) above, and has concluded its
investigation of alternatives and revision to the
development plan, the committee shall:
a) Approve, or approve with conditions the
application; or
b) Disapprove the application; and the building
inspector shall deny the building permit.
Recommendations of approval, conditional approval
suspension of action or disapproval shall be noted in
the minutes of the proceedings.
b) Submission Requirements
Applications submitted pursuant to this section shall
be filed in triplicate with the Planning office (upon
forms prescribed by the historic preservation committee
or in a letter) including at _least the following
information:
1) Names and addresses of all owners of the property.
If the applicant is not the owner, the applicant's
name, address and interest in the property.
2) Address of property and name of structure (if
applicable) .
3) Written description of proposal.
4) Statement of effect of the proposal on the
original design of the historic structure and/or
character of neighborhood.
5) Year of construction of the historic structure.
6) Report from licensed engineer or architect
regarding structural soundness of any structures
on the property and their suitability for reha-
bilitation.
10
•
7) Economic feasibility report:
a) Estimated market value of the property in its
current condition, and after demolition.
b) Estimate from an architect, developer, real
estate agent or appraiser experienced in
rehabilitation as to the economic feasibility
of rehabilitation or reuse of the existing
structure on the property.
c) All appraisals obtained within the previous
two years by the owner or applicant.
d) Any other information considered necessary by
the historic preservation committee to make a
determination as to whether the property does
yield or may yield a reasonable return to the
owners.
8) Statement of proposed redevelopment of the
property.
c) Review Standards
The committee shall consider the following standards of
application for demolition or removal of structures
within H, Historic District Overlays:
1) Whether the designated structure, site or area
possesses such architectural or historic signifi-
cance, or contributes so greatly to the community
character that its demolition or removal would be
a detriment to the public interest. The committee..
may promulgate guidelines and standards to rely
upon in making such decisions.
2) Whether the building is structurally sound and can
practically be rehabilitated and reused.
3) Whether rehabilitation and reuse is economically
feasible.
4) Whether the proposed redevelopment is compatible
with surrounding historic structures and the
neighborhood character.
5) Whether the structure could feasibly be moved to
another site within the City of Aspen. :
11
•
•
d)
�-N\,,-Nye
qJ
Timing for Review and Expiration of Approvals
The same provisions of Section 24-9 .4 (d) shall apply to
applications submitted under this subsection.
Modification
The same provisions of Section 24-9.4 (e) shall apply to
applications submitted under this subsection.
Appeal Procedures
The same appeal procedures of Section 24-9.4 (f) shall
apply to actions taken pursuant to this subsection.
Section 24-9.6 Development Review for a Structure and Combination
of Structures within Designated Historic Compati-
bility Overlay Districts
a) Procedures
No building permit shall be issued for erection,
construction, reconstruction and remodeling of struc-
tures located ithin designated architenctural compat-
ibility overla districts unless giv approval or
conditional app oval by the historc preservation
committee, buildinv department or pl nning director
exemption from committee review,, or appeal upon
approval as provided below. Provisions of this
subsection shall not, however, in any case apply to a
structure or combination of struct res designated H,
Historic Overlay District.
1) Exemption /
(a) Upon determination by the planning director
or designee that 'a /building permit for
erection, construct' n, reconstruction and
remodeling of stru res is requested on
property located mor ton three hundred feet
from the closest property line (lot line to
lot line) , of 6n H, istoric Overlay
District such development activity shall be
exempt from the provisions of this section.
A letter of the determination of exemption
shall be submitted by the planning director
or designee to the building department prior
to the issuance of a building permit.
(b) Demolition and removal of structures in the
Historic Compatibility Overlay District shall
be exempt from the review procedures of this
12
se cti on.
2) Minor Application: Should the Planning Director or
designee determine from the submission of prelim-
inary drawings and building specifications that no
change or a minor change hav' g no impact on the
exterior appearance and char cter of the compati-
��� bility overlay district and the closest historic
overlay district, the planni ' g director may exempt
the applicant from the conc ptual and final review
with the historic preservat on committee and shall
notify the building depa, tment to continue to
process the building permit in accordance with
appropriate regulations.
3) Conceptual Review Appl cation: In cases where
significant exterior c ange will result, the
planning director or designee shall notify the
committee promptly of ach application and shall
set a meeting date for conceptual review. Final
approval may be grante by the Committee upon the
determination that the project complies with all
architectural compatibility review criteria and a
final review stage would be redundant and unneces-
sary.
4) Final Review Application and Public Hearing
Requirements: In cases where approval is not given
at the conceptual review stage, the procedure
stated in Section 24-9.4 (a) (3) shall be followed.
b) Submission Requiremen s
An applicant for historic compatibility review shah_
file an application in triplicate with the Planning
Office including at least the following information:
1) Names and address 's of all owners of the property. If
the applicant's of the owner, the applicant's name,
address and inte est in property.
2) Address of property and name of structure (if appli-
cable)
3) Description o proposal.
4) Accurate re resentation of all major building mater-
ials.
5) Scale drawings of the structure or structures.
13
6) Statement of this ffect of the proposal on the
community character of the neighborhood and speci-
fically in regard o the closest historic overlay
district and all designated structures and sites
therei n.
c) Review Standards
The historic preservation committee shall consider the
following standard in review of applications within the
historic compatibility overlay district:
1) Whether the pro sea massing, siting and materials are
compatible with and complimentary to the designated
historic struc res and sites in close proximity to the
structure and r review and the character of the
neighborhood. The committee may promulgate guidelines
and standards to rely upon in making its decisions.
d) Timing for Review and Expiration of Permits
The same provisions of Section 24-9.4 (d) shall apply to
applications submitted under this subsection.
e) Modifica ion
The sam provisions of Section 24-9.4 (e) shall apply to
applic tions submitted under this subsection.
f) Appe Procedure
The same appeal procedures stated in Section 24-9 .4 (f)
shall apply to actions pursuant to this subsection.
Section 24-9.7 Violations and Remedies
a) Remedying Dangerous Conditions
In any case where the building inspector, health
officer, fire department or any other duly authorized
office or agency of the City of Aspen shall order or
direct the construction, reconstruction, remodeling,
repair or demolition of any improvement or any other
necessary action to a structure, combination of
structures, site or area designated as an H, Historic
Overlay District, for the purpose of remedying condi-
tions found by said agencies to be immediately danger-
ous to life, health or property, nothing contained in
this section shall be construed as making it a viola-
tion for any person to comply with such order or
14
9 •
committee. Any such department, agency or officer
shall give the committee as early notice as practicable
of the proposed or actual issuance of any such order or
directive.
b) Anti -Neglect (y►D�� v
The owner or owners of a structure or combination of �a��
�^ ��_ ^A structures individually designated H, Historic Overlay
District shall not permit such historic structure to i�
fall into a state of disrepair which may result in the
deterioration of any exterior architectural features so
o re clude or tend to produce in the judgment of the
Commission a detrimental effect upon the character of
the historic districts or upon the life and character
of the historic structures, or which could lead to a
claim that demolition is necessary for public safety
and reasonable use of the-prope_-ty
t, c) Compliance w the Provisions of this Article
Whenever, by the provisions of this article, the
performance of any act is required or the commission of
any act is prohibited, failure to comply shall consti-
tute a violation of Chapter 24 of the Municipal Code of
r"" ` %. the City of Aspen and all penalties and remedies
therein contained shall be applicable.
Section 24-9.8 Role of the Board of Adjustment
a) The Board of adjustment shall not act on any variance
or exception pertaining to property within an H,
Historic Overlay District, without first consulting and
obtaining the written report of the historic preserva-
tion committee. No appeal shall lie to the Board of.
Adjustment from any of the decisions of the historic
preservation committee.
Section 24-9.9 Definitions
a) Remodeling: Any act or process which changes one or
more of the exterior architectural features of a
structure, combination of structures, site or area
designated as an H, Historic Overlay District.
b) H, Historic Overlay District: Any structure or improve-
ment and its surrounding environs, a group or combina-
tion of structures, sites or areas and their surround-
ing environs designated for preservation as an H,
Historic Overlay District, under the provisions of this
article.
15
0 •
ii• 1
c) Exterior architectural feature: The architectural
style, design, general arrangement and components of
all the outer surfaces of a structure or improvement,
including but not limited to the texture and materials,
and to the type and style of all windows, lights, signs
and other fixtures appurtenant to said structure or
improvement.
d) Improvement: Any building, structure, place, work of
art or other project constituting a physical betterment
of real property or any part of such betterment.
16
w
•
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE ZONING CODE
ALLOWING TWO DETACHED DWELLING UNITS
ON PROPERTY ZONED FOR DUPLEX USE
Section 24-3 .1 (f) (2) Two -Family dwelling (also known as a
"duplex"):
A detached principal building containing only two (2)
dwelling units sharing a common wall comprising no less than
twenty (20) percent of that common wall between both
dwelling units or sharing a common ceiling or floor, in
whole or in part connecting two (2) dwelling units. The
common wall between the units shall be one of the principal
walls of the structure and not an accessory design feature;
l` therefore a breezeway or similar feature shall not be
considered to consitute a common wall. One unit of the two-
family dwelling cannot contain less than thirty (30) percent
of the total floor area of the other unit.
Two detached one -family dwellings on properties containing
individually designated historic structures that meet all
area and bulk requirements of the Section 24-3.3, will be
considered to be a duplex, if granted conditional review
approval by the Planning and Zoning Commission pursuant to
Section 24-3.3 and final approval by the historic preserva-
tion committee pursuant to Section 24-9.
Section 24-3.2, Permitted and Conditional Uses:
In the following zone districts listed in Section 24-3.2, there
shall be added to the conditional use table "Two detached one -
family dwellings for structures which have received historic
designation":
Residential R-6 ,
Residential/Multi Family,
Commercial C-1 ,
Office O, and
PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE ZONING CODE
CREATING THE HISTORIC COMPATIBILITY OVERLAY DISTRICT
Section 24-2.1 add "(a) (29) HC, Historic Compatibility (Overlay)
•
MEMORANDUM
TO: Aspen City Council
THRU: Bob Anderson, City Manager
FROM: Alan Richman, Planning Office
RE: Historic Demolition Moratorium Ordinance (No. 41) Public
Hearing
DATE : September 16, 1986
-----------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Planning Office recommends your final approval of
Ordinance No. 41, Series of 1986. We also are providing you with
some of the results of our research to date so that you feel more
comfortable with the alternatives which may be proposed to resolve
this issue.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION: Council adopted this Ordinance on
September 8 on first reading and also adopted a companion resolu-
tion imposing an administrative delay on processing demolition
permits during the time between first and second readings.
BACKGROUND: On August 25, the Council adopted Resolution No. 25,
Series of 1986, endorsing the Historic Preservation Element of the
Aspen Area Comprehensive Plan and identifying as its highest
priority implementation action a Code amendment to provide for a
public review procedure prior to issuance of a demolition permit
for any historic structure. The Planning Office has been collect-
ing information to implement this Code amendment for the last 4-6
weeks, and has only recently identified some alternatives which we
believe will accomplish Council' s intent. During the time in which
this research has been ongoing, at least two structures have been
demolished (Marquand House on Lake Avenue and 407 W. Hallam) while
two others (Farny House, Bayer House at 240 Lake Avenue) have
received demolition permits. The purpose of the moratorium,
therefore, is to provide adequate time to evaluate our historic
inventory and develop the proper review procedure without risking
the loss of any additional portions of the resource.
PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION: The problem which Aspen faces with respect
to its historic structures is not a unique one. Since many other
communities have faced the threat of demolition of historic
structures, we have searched for examples of other ordinances
addressing this problem. Our principal findings from this survey
are as follows:
1. A tool commonly used by other communities faced with demoli-
tion permit requests is to condition the granting of a permit
1
on a six month delay until it can be effective. The purpose
of the delay is to give the government and other civic bodies
an opportunity to find other beneficial uses for the structure
without having to react in an emergency atmosphere, including,
but not limited to moving it, having another individual
purchase it, compensating the owner to preserve it, or similar
incentive techniques. It is likely that we will propose such
a tool for use in Aspen, possibly using the Historic Society
as the intermediary between the government and the owner.
2. It will be important for us to offer incentives to owners of
historic buildings to compensate them for the new regulatory
approach. Options being used in other communities which we
would like to investigate including transfer of development
rights, facade easements, tax credits and fee reductions.
3. We will need to establish criteria for the review of a
demolition application. Issues to address would include
whether or not we can actually prohibit demolition, what
importance we can place on economic value of the structure and
whether structures in different categories (i.e., excellent
vs. notable) should receive different forms of attention.
4. We need to work with our Code Simplification Consultant to
properly integrate the new review procedure into our regula-
tory program.
ALTERNATIVES: Given the problems we are facing, we can envision
several possible alternative solutions. Based on the way in which
our Code is presently written, it is apparent that the first
decision we must make is to define what resource we are trying to
protect. The reason for this conclusion is that once we decide
which structures will be designated and/or included in historic
districts, the Code already requires they be reviewed by HPC for
their demolition or alteration. At the present time, this resource
includes 84 designated structures. Some of the alternatives which
you could follow to expand the inventory of structures which are
subject to review are:
1. Designate the Aspen Townsite and early Additions thereto as a
historic district.
2. Proceed with a policy of mandatory (rather than the current
voluntary) designation by the City of those structures on our
historic inventory; or
3. Proceed with mandatory designations by the City of some of
those structures (i. e. , exceptional and outstanding but not
notable) on our historic inventory.
Following is a preliminary review of these alternatives so that you
can see some of our thinking. We would expect to expand this
2
analysis as an issue paper to be presented to P&Z and HPC in
October.
The designation of the Aspen Townsite and early Additions is an
alternative which has the appeal of insuring that all structures in
the designated area will be protected, without concern that the
inventory we have compiled may miss structures which are of
importance. However, there are the following problems with this
approach:
o The Code will need to address a method of exempting non -
historic structures from the review procedure.
o Unless the exemption procedure is properly written, many
homeowners will be faced with time consuming review until
they can alter or demolish their structure.
o There are a number of structures outside of the Townsite
(for example, the structures on Matchless Drive in the
Smuggler Area) which are on our inventory and will not be
covered by this district alternative.
The other two alternatives, having the City designate all or a
portion of the inventory, have the advantage of directly addressing
those structures which the City feels are deserving of protection.
We are presently surveying the entire community to insure that our
inventory is up-to-date and that no significant structures are
missing. In this work, we have discovered that since 1980, 18
structures which were on the inventory have been demolished, 32
structures have been significantly upgraded while another 30
structures have had minor changes (such as adding a dormer and the
like) . We have also found the following comparison of structures
on the list to those designated:
SUMMARY OF HISTORIC STRUCTURES INVENTORY AS AMENDED*
Exceptional
23
Total,
18
designated
or 78%
designated
Excellent
36
Total,
25
designated
or 69%
designated
Notable
206
Total,
41
designated
or 20%
designated
Contributing
6
Total,
0
designated
or 0%
designated
Total
271
Total,
84
designated
or 31%
designated
* Please note that during the 1986 survey, staff has
identified four structures (3 notables and one excellent)
which have been added to the inventory, 3 which have been
deleted due to their condition and 18 due to their having
been demolished and four which have been upgraded from
one category to another.
The above information indicates that a substantial portion of the
inventory still remains undesignated, and undertaking either
mandatory designation procedure (particularly if the notable
3
•
•
category is included) will protect a much larger portion of our
resource. Using this approach in conjunction with identification
of limited new historic districts where there is a concentration of
historic structures and retention of existing districts may turn
out to be the strongest and fairest approach to historic preserva-
tion we can employ.
RECOMMENDED MOTION: "Move to adopt Ordinance No. 41, Series of
1986. "
Uwe
4
1980 INVENTORY OF HISTORIC SITES AND STRUCTURES:
1986 UPDATE
AREA ADDRESS
LOT
BLOCK
Commercial Core
310 E.
Main
N,
0
79
330 E.
Main P,
Q,
R,
S
79
303 E.
Main
A,
B
80
305 E.
Main
1/2B,
C
80
307 E.
Main
D
80
101 E.
Main
H,
I
80
302 E.
Hopkins
K
80
308 E.
Hopkins
M,
N
80
316 E.
Hopkins
0,
P
80
309 E.
Hopkins
C
81
300 E.
Hyman
K,
L
81
314 E.
Hyman
N
81
328 E.
Hyman
Q,
R,
S
81
100 S.
Mill
A,
B
87
406 E.
Hopkins
K,
L,
M
87
204 S.
Mill
A,
B
88
208 S.
Mill
A,
B
88
203 S.
Galena
G,
H,
I
88
209 S.
Galena
88
426 E.
Hyman
88
432 E.
Hyman
88
413 E.
Hyman
C
89
423 E.
Hyman
F,
G
89
303-309
S. Galena
G,
H,
I
89
420 E.
Cooper
0
89
506 E.
Main K,
L,
M,
N
92
104 S.
Galena
A,
B,
C
93
130 S.
Galena
K,
L,
M
93
533 E.
Main
G,
H,
I
93
530 E.
Hopkins
Q
93
532 E.
Hopkins
R
93
534 E.
Hopkins
S
93
506 E.
Hyman/
210 S.
Galena
K,
L
94
501 E.
Hyman/
3 0 4-3
0 8 S. Galena
A,
B,
C
95
312 S.
Galena
K,
L,
M
95
501 E.
Cooper
A,
B,
C
96
529/531
E. Cooper
96
405 S.
Hunter
96
Main Street
604 W. Main R, S 24
612 W. Main P, Q 24
616 W. Main 24
• 0
1980 Inventory of Historic Sites and Structures:
1986 Update
Page 2
AREA ADDRESS LOT BLOCK
Main Street
Continued
West End
633
W.
Main
A
25
627
W.
Main
B
25
611
W.
Main
F, G,
H,
I
25
510
W.
Mai n
30
500
W.
Main
R,
S
30
527
W.
Main
C
31
400
W.
Main
R,
S
37
430
W.
Main
K,
L,
M
37
332
W.
Main
K,
L
44
328
W.
Main
L,
M
44
320
W.
Main
N,
0,
P
44
333
W.
Main
A,
B
45
211
W.
Main
F,
G
52
205
W.
Main
H,
I
52
132
W.
Main
K,
L
58
122
W.
Main
M,
N,
0
58
135
W.
Main
A,
B
59
125
W.
Main
C,
D
59
128
W.
Main
P, Q,
R,
S
66
Paepcke
Park Gazebo
67
202
W.
Main
L
73
208
W.
Main
M
73
216
W.
Main
N,
0
73
201
W.
Main
A,
B,
C
74
221
W.
Main
D,
E
74
229
W.
Main
F
74
165
S.
Monarch
74
706
W.
Main
Q,
R
18
734
W.
Main
K,
L,
M
18
709
W.
Main
G
19
505
N.
8th
2
834
W.
Hallam
K,
L
10
831
W.
Bl ee ke r
12
920
E.
Main
14
715
W.
Smuggler
E,
F
15
716
W.
Francis
O, 1/2P
15
712
W.
Francis
1/2P,
Q
15
700
W.
Francis
R,
S
15
610
W.
Smuggler
Q, R,
S
20
610
W.
Francis
Q
21
609
W.
Smuggler
G
21
1980 Inventory of Historic Sites and Structures:
1986 Update
Page 3
AREA ADDRESS LOT BLOCK
West End
Continued
421 N. 5 th
629 W. Smuggler
522 W. Francis
500 W. Francis
(& Carriage House)
501 W. Smuggler
513 W. Smuggler
533 W. Francis
523 W. Francis
319 N. 4 th 1/ 2
434 W. Smuggler
406 W. Smuggler
400 Pl. Smuggler
H, I 21
A, B 21
M, N 27
S 27
H, I
F, G
A, B
D
G, H, 1/ 2I
K, L
P, Q
R, S
515 N. 3rd/401 W. North 9,10
432
W.
Francis
420
W.
Francis
421
W.
Hallam
407
W.
Hallam
403
W.
Hallam
320
W.
Hallam
334
W.
Hallam
327
W.
Hallam
323
W.
Hallam
305
W.
Hallam
K, L, M
N, 0
l/3 C, D, E
G
l/ 2 H, l/ 2 I
333
W.
Hallam 1/ 2A,
233
W.
Hallam
219/215
W. Hallam
229
W.
Hallam
214
W.
Eleeker
233
W.
Bleeker
217
W.
Bleeker
215
W.
Bleeker
213
W.
Bleeker
205
W.
Bleeker
124
W.
Hall am
100
W.
Hallam
131
W.
Bleeker
129
W.
Bleeker
121
W.
Bleeker
500
W.
North
515
Gillespie
639
N.
Fourth
1/ 2
M,
N
1/2
K,
L
A,
B,
C
D,
E
G,
H,
I
1/2B,
C,
D
A,
B,
C
E,
F
1/2D,
1/3E
N,
0,
P
A, B,
1/3C
1/2D,
1/2E
1/2E,
1/2F
1/2F,
1/2G
H,
I
1/
3 L,
M
Q,
R
A
B
D,
l/ 2
E
18, 19,
20
4,
5,
6
9,
10
27
27
28
28
28
33
33
33
33
34
34
36
36
36
42
42
43
43
43
44
50
50
50
50
51
51
51
51
51
56
56
58
58
58
99
99
99
�J
1980 Inventory of
1986 Update
Page 4
AREA ADDRESS
Community
Church
Hal 1 am
Lake
Historic Sites and Structures:
LOT BLOCK
101
E.
Hallam
A
65
105
E.
Hallam
B,
C
65
123
E.
Hallam
C,
D
65
133
E.
Hallam
F,
G
65
131
N.
Aspen
H,
I
65
100
E.
Bleeker
K
65
110
E.
Bleeker
M
65
126
E.
Bleeker
Q, R
65
134
E.
Bleeker
R,
S
65
216
E.
Hallam
K,
L
71.
222
E.
Hallam
M,
N
71
232
E.
Hallam
Q, R,
S
71
203
E.
Hallam
B
72
223
E.
Hallam
E,
F
72
200
E.
Bleeker
K,
L
72
214
E.
Bleeker
N,
0
72
232
E.
Bleeker
R,
S
72
209
E.
Bleeker
C,
D
73
227
E.
Bleeker
F,
G
73
218
N.
Monarch
A,
B
78
212
N.
Monarch
A,
B
78
202
N.
Monarch
K, L,
M
78
514
N.
3 rd
A,
B
40
301
Lake
40
525
N.
2nd
R,
S
40
423
N.
2nd
H,
I
41
229
W.
Smuggler
A,
B,
C
48
225
W.
Smuggler
D,
E
48
234
W.
Francis
K,
L
48
202
W.
Francis
R,
S
48
201
W.
Francis
1/2E,
G,
H
49
414
W.
Smuggler
A -I
55
120
W.
Francis
N,
0,
P
55
126
W.
Francis
1/
2L,
M
55
135
W.
Francis
A,
B
56
123
W.
Francis
1/2B, C,
D,
E
56
330
W.
Gillespie
4,
1/2
5
91
314
W.
Gillespie
6,
1/2
5
91
405
W.
Gillespie
6,
7
100
701
N.
Third
7,
8
100
714
N.
3rd
1,
2
102
•
MEMORANDUM
T0: Aspen City Council
THRU: Bob Anderson, City ManagerAID
FROM: Alan Richman, Planning Office
RE: Moratorium Ordinance and Resolution
DATE: September 8, 1986
The attached Ordinance and Resolution was prepared by my Office
and the City Attorney at the request of the Mayor. The Mayor
will be requesting that you add this item to your agenda on
Monday in response to the recent loss of a historic structure to
demolition and the need to insure that this does not happen again
until the City addresses this issue comprehensively. we will be
available at your meeting to answer any questions you may have
concerning this item.