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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.council.regular.20200225 1 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 At 5:00 p.m. Mayor Torre called the regular meeting to order with Councilmembers Richards, Mesirow and Mullins present. SCHEDULED PUBLIC APPEARANCES: Steve Aitken – Audubon International Award Mr. Aitken said this award is near and dear to his heart. He said since 1993, the Aspen Golf Course has partnered with Audubon International for the benefit of the environment. Certification is awarded to golf courses who show a high level of environmental engagement. He summarized the projects over the past 20 years and said that this past week, they received this award from Audubon international for their 20th anniversary. Steve presented Mayor Torre with the award. Mayor Torre asked Mr. Aitken what the next steps are, and he said best practices continue each year. Each day he gets a daily download of information to save water, the use of organic fertilizers, etc. Mayor Torre also mentioned the Mayors Cup tournament coming this spring. CITIZEN COMMENTS: Morris Hogan – Mr. Hogan is the chair of the Next Gen board and said they are launching a survey for the 18-40 demographic to gauge issues and concerns which are limiting this age group to live long term in Aspen. This goes live tomorrow on social channels and on the Next Gen page on the city website. Lee Mulcahy – Mr. Mulcahy said he is very grateful for many things. He said his mom returned from Africa and was the title sponsor at the Garfield County Lincoln Day Republican dinner. It was held at the Hotel Colorado. Mr. Mulcahy talked about his home and read a letter to the editor which was in the paper recently. Bob Morris – He said his first concern is regarding headlines about commercial real estate being handled by several hands in town. He asked council if they have considered the concept of rent control regarding residential and commercial property. He said we are in the area of oligopoly, where our market is being distorted and he’s not sure what we can do about it. It serves us well to consider some possibilities and it’s sad we lost control over Centennial, as it was a major loss to the community. No one is building rental housing for the general population; it’s a necessary evil. Council has significant influence on where this is going. Councilwoman Richards said the state of Colorado forbids any rent control. We are interested, but this is a tough one. Vince Thomas – Mr. Thomas said he’s new to town and doesn’t know about small town politics. He said there’s no one building for the homeless in town. He said that Lee Mulcahy took him in continued to speak in favor of Lee. COUNCIL COMMENTS: Councilwoman Richards said that for those watching, we are coming into the final two weeks for the proposed reforms to NEPA. This is critical to maintain the quality of life in our public lands. 89 percent public lands surround us, and we shouldn’t lose the ability for public comment. This is a critical feature for all of us. Individual comments always hold more weight and please go to regulations.gov and follow the instructions to make your comment. 2 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Councilman Mesirow said Primary season is around the corner. Frustrations are personal and democracy happens with us, not to us. Go to pitkinvotes.com to register or update your address. Mayor Torre said the local phone number to call is 429-2732, if you haven’t gotten your ballot yet. Councilwoman Mullins said to make sure to participate in the census. She said she is also recusing herself from the discussion on the Meadows Institute. Mayor Torre said this weekend at the Wheeler is Mountain Film and tickets are $20.00. On March 4th is a special show with Guster. Tuesday is the last day for Primary voting. AGENDA AMENDMENTS: None. CITY MANAGER COMMENTS: Sara Ott said that Nicole had an announcement. Ms. Henning welcomed Wes Graham into the city clerk’s office as our new deputy city clerk. Ms. Ott said this Saturday at Hops from 2-3 pm, you can stop in and see Senator Donovan and Representative McClusky. There are a few other bill updates, on early childhood education and workforce development, as well as quality. There are some environmental bills at the state level that are continuing to move forward. There is a joint letter from the city and county regarding NEPA, so any member who wants to see that can take a look on our website. BOARD REPORTS: Mayor Torre said he attended the ACRA meeting this morning. CONSENT CALENDAR: Mayor Torre said there are board appointments and draft minutes. We will be appointing Stephanie Janigo on the Next Gen board and Tom Kurt will be returning to the Wheeler Opera House Board of Directors. Councilwoman Mullins motioned to approve the consent calendar; Councilman Mesirow seconded. All in favor, motion carried. NOTICE OF CALL UP – HPC approval for 920 E. Hyman – Minor Development, Relocation, Setback Variations, and TDR – Sara Yoon, Historic Preservation Planner This is a one-story miner’s cabin with an existing addition to the rear of the property. It has a small basement and crawl space. They have triggered relocation criteria because the applicant has chosen to underpin the historic resource and dig out the rest of the crawl space into a full basement. They do not plan to move the existing structure. HPC has approved exterior fenestrations and material changes and that is to the non-historic part of the addition. Setback variations were granted for light wells. There is 250 square feet of undeveloped floor area left on this property and they would like to put that into a single TDR. HPC supported this. 3 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Councilwoman Richards thanked Sara for the memo. She asked if the property received any benefits of designation previously. Ms. Simon said it received some setback variations, but there was no floor area bonus with this project. Councilwoman Richards said she isn’t interested in the call up. Councilwoman Mullins said she is not interested in calling this up but wanted to say how commendable it is that they did not move this house from the original lot. Whenever there is a 6-0 decision on HPC, it’s very compelling. Mr. True said no motion is necessary, the decision stands. ORDINANCE #02, SERIES OF 2020 – 949 West Smuggler Street, Minor Subdivision – Lot Split Phillip Supino Councilwoman Richards motioned to read; Councilwoman Mullins seconded. All in favor, motion carried. Ms. Henning read the ordinance. Mr. Supino said this is a pretty straight forward lot split proposal on what is a really beautiful property. He summarized the project and said that all plat requirements will be presented at second reading. Applicant – Chris Bendon Mr. Bendon said the presentation next time will be centered around the width of the ROW because it’s a little quirky there. He is surprised there isn’t a dedicated right of way for power plant road. There will be a desire for width. Councilwoman Mullins said she never saw a total square footage in the package. Mr. Supino said it’s 1.4 acres give or take for the whole property. Councilwoman Mullins said she’d also like to know they’ve begun to have a designation discussion with the applicant and an explanation on the building envelope for lot 1. Lastly, she asked why they are changing the lot number names and Mr. Supino said typically, if the fathering parcel contains a structure, we would name it lot 1. Mr. Supino said that Ms. Simon will be having a conversation about designation. Councilwoman Richards asked if they are looking at demolition and Mr. Bendon said he didn’t think so and there are no immediate plans with that home. There is no proposal for historic preservation at the property at this point, but this doesn’t foreclose the conversation in the future. The property owners are aware of the regulations around this. They are also aware of the current set of benefits and because of this, they would need to be enticed into this conversation. Councilman Mesirow said he would like more clarity on, what will become of lot 2 if there is a future designation. He wants more information on the review criteria and the process on what is lot 1 to avoid a scenario of hardship on the lot. Councilwoman Richards motioned to approve Ordinance #02, Series of 2020; Councilwoman Mullins seconded. Roll call vote: Richards, yes; Torre, yes; Mullins, yes; Mesirow, yes. SECOND READING – ORDINANCE #01, SERIES OF 2020 – 620 Gillespie Avenue and 845 Meadows Road, Aspen Institute Amy Simon Jim Curtis brought in a 3-D model for the public and council to view. Ms. Simon said the proposal is to discuss the historic designation of Boettcher building. She said everyone is excited to see that brought forward. They will be talking about the new building for the 4 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Center for Bayer studies. There are some benefits the applicant is asking for, such as, upholding HPC’s conceptual design review, discuss growth management, transportation impacts, parking and some of the public input. Mr. Curtis introduced Dr. Dan Porterfield, who is the current president of the Aspen Institute. He’s excited to be here and talk about the project and attended HPC on January 22nd. He introduced Richard Stettler, Vice President of the Aspen Institute and Becky Ward, who keeps everyone in line. Jeff Berkus is the architect for the Bayer Center. Dr. Porterfield thanked the council. He sees this project as a once in a generation opportunity to create an inspiring permanent resource. Through donors and financial planning at the institute, we can do something now to benefit generations to come. He’s been inspired by the historic role of Herbert Bayer. He gave background on Herbert Bayer designing the original campus. He said it’s a total work of art. Since then, the institute has become an important repository of his work. He showed the original marble sculpture on screen. We need to be good stewards of the campus and give the Boettcher building a proper renovation and designation. The Meadows has always been a gathering place and we are so proud of the heritage and mission. We thank you for your consideration. Bernard Jazzar said he is so honored to be involved in this project. He’s spent 15 years studying Herbert Bayer and has created many exhibitions on his life and art. He has grown to appreciate him more through curators, his family and friends, etc. He showed the campus from 1962 on screen. He talked about the original design of the campus and his love of geometry and explained the Fibonacci Sequence, a beautiful equation. He showed how they used the same equation to create where the Bayer Center will be and the shape of the walkway. He described the design of the new Bayer studies center and how it connects to the Boettcher building. Mr. Berkus said he is here to answer questions. Mr. Curtis said that after the February 11th meeting, we heard council and have reworked the affordable housing proposal and went above and beyond code requirements and feel good about it. We’ve spent a lot of time creating this model and we’ve made significant changes to the landscape proposed. We will go back to HPC on March 18th. Ms. Simon described the significant conditions of approval. HPC has always allowed some type of courtesy review and they did conduct a design review. We are making very minor changes to the Boettcher building. We will wait till after the next HPC meeting to record the ordinance because there will still be some changes to the landscaping. Mayor Torre asked for details on landscaping and taking this back to HPC. She said they saw a much more detailed plan of this project with more complication and elements of concern. They asked the applicant to reflect on the campus as a whole and show the natural elements along with the hedgerow, etc. Councilwoman Richards said this is very thorough and she appreciates it. She asked about where the food is prepared. Mr. Stettler said the food is prepared in another building and brought over on heated carts. Food and drink aren’t allowed in the new center. Councilwoman Richards asked if the ordinance is written so that parking will be revisited. Ms. Simon said the application includes representations that there will be additional efforts to find a plan b, but the ordinance is not written to require that. Mr. 5 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Stettler said they will pay the MAA $10,000 a year for the upkeep of that lot. Councilwoman Richards asked if there is additional landscaping planned around the new sheds and Mr. Curtis said he is not proposing to remove the tennis shed or any trees on the backside of the fence. PUBLIC COMMENT: John Sarpa – Mr. Sarpa said he is one of the lucky people who lives in a Herbert Bayer home. He said how lucky we are to honor him in a long-term way. This is a rare artistry in the world, and he is in favor of this. He is glad the applicant heard council regarding the affordable housing. They will take good care of their people and this may be one of their last shining lights building wise. 30 years ago, we sat in this room and talked about this. He does approve of this project and as a council, it’s your chance to leave your fingerprint on the campus for years to come. Jenny Elliot – Ms. Elliot said she is with the Aspen Music Festival and school. She said they have been collaborating heavily on this project and they are in full support. She said the Institute is a great partner and they are very excited about the improvements. Lisa Markalunas – She has been in the neighborhood for 50 years. It’s a beautiful campus and worthy of what has been done to preserve it. She said there will be a certain amount of event creep. All new traffic effects parking and the neighborhood. We have to be a little careful about adding more impacts. There are opportunities for transit use and providing cross town shuttle services which go beyond the ending times. The arch way she likes very much. She encouraged council to opt out of adding the sidewalk. Janice Collins – she wrote an email to council this morning after looking at the new plan. She walks twice a day in the area and said it’s hard to be critical at all. She’s a 55-year resident and said she is questioning the potential relocation of the ditch. That part of the ditch will be shut down due to the new building. She wants to retain the historic ditch or the elimination of sidewalk as she said it doesn’t support the walking street plan. Dick Carter – Mr. Carter said he is an artist and was employed by Herbert Bayer in the 1970’s as a studio assistant. He really supports this project and said it’s a tremendous benefit to the community. He can see how these projects benefit the community in a positive way. He said Herbert would be thrilled with this. To understand and study this man, is very important. Mayor Torre asked Mr. Carter to share on the gate and the landscaping. He loves the archway in that corner and has seen the one in Santa Barbara and loves it. These buildings have a slow drip of people visiting because it’s a small museum. As an impact, this building will be more of a quiet study center. It’s benefits totally outweigh any negative impacts to the neighborhood. John Bennett – Mr. Bennet said he is a board member of the Center for Physics and a co-chair of the Aspen Institute and he supports the project. He said it’s a remarkable addition and adds energy and vitality. He can hardly imagine something more historically appropriate. It’s the spirit of Aspen. This is the birthplace of the Aspen idea and it’s a very exciting idea. It’s growth, and there is no way around that. He’s not a fan of unwanted growth, but this is the right kind of growth and is part of our history. It certainly honors the era of the big bang which created Aspen. It’s fun to walk by and go in to visit. This is his 50th year in Aspen, so he can speak to the needs of a renovation of Boettcher. 6 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Steve Fallender – Mr. Fallender said he lives across the street. He said the paving of the bus lane is huge for us and neighbors. He likened the dust problem to that of the winter squall a couple of days ago. We appreciate that it is going to happen. The whole team has been responsive to the neighborhood and wants to make sure the conditions on the list, stay there during the HPC meeting and thanked everyone involved. Ms. Simon mentioned more letters that were received today in support of the project. Public comment closed. Mr. Berkus explained the sidewalks and walkways. He would love for the ditch to go down Gillespie, but it would have to be culverted up, and it would be a tiny little ditch. That’s not how the ditches work in the west end and they run north and south. Ms. Simon said that the engineering and building departments both heard feedback on the walkways, and they did consider it worthwhile. Councilwoman Richards asked if staff checked with the water department and the rights and how the ditch is being handled. Mr. Curtis said they did, and the water rights were dedicated to the city in 1992. They’ve requested info and we are providing it currently. We originally had a water feature, but now the Councilwoman Richards thanked everyone and said, in general, she’s in support. She appreciates the affordable housing being adjusted. She said it’s important to separate the MMA activity and traffic they cause. She said the paving is good. She wants a requirement to have a future sidewalk, and she thinks a sidewalk will not be detrimental. She thinks it’s a gift to the community. The art isn’t directly on the corner, but behind some bushes and tells people they are entering something special. All art has some controversy around it. She’s glad they lowered it to meet the scale of the community. She respects and understands the concerns. Compromise is what happens at the table and she’s very happy to support this. Councilman Mesirow thanked them for a wonderful project. He says hell yeah; it’s dead on and it’s on time. He thanked them for getting on board with the affordable housing. The historic designation is wonderful and said he’s happy to support this and the only comment he will make is he thinks the gate is a wonderful celebration of Herbert Bayer’s fire and his works. The interactive art is the best in his opinion. He prefers to see a more welcoming approach. Mayor Torre asked Mr. True about Rachel’s comments regarding the parking and Mr. True said he has some language, which Ms. Simon read aloud. Councilman Mesirow suggested an alternative transit plan and Mr. Curtis said they can add that. Councilwoman Richards motioned to approve Ordinance #01, Series of 2020; Councilman Mesirow seconded. Roll call vote: Mesirow, yes; Richards, yes; Torre, yes. CALL UP OF HPC’S APPROVAL FOR 1020 E. COOPER AVENUE – Conceptual Major Development, Demolition, Relocation and Variation. Amy Simon Ms. Simon said this project involves a minor renovation of an existing miner’s cottage and construction of a new addition. The goal is to preserve the scale of this small Victorian era home. The applicant is proposing an addition behind it and lost 588 square feet of their development rights, but HPC awarded a 250 square foot bonus to try to close that gap. This is the only variation that HPC approved. The project 7 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 meets setback, parking, height and all other dimensional aspects. She pointed out the connector from the new addition to the old cottage and is very important. The addition is quite a bit larger than the resource. The HPC approval was 4-2 in favor and there were two hearings. APPLICANT PRESENTATION: Jamie Brewster McLeod of Brewster McLeod Architects along with David McMahon, owner of the property and Bart Johnson, the client’s attorney. Mr. McMahon thanked the council for their time. He noted that they are in compliance with all of HPC’s guidelines and understands they are here tonight due to neighbor’s concerns and we need to justify the project. Ms. Brewster McLeod said that this isn’t the typical property and there has been a lot of altercation to the exiting building. This property was designated in 1992 and have received 18 of 100 points, where the minimum threshold is 50 points for historic integrity. She showed the front elevation on screen and talked about the existing fencing. She said there was a quick claim deed that was done by the previous owner in 2005. She continued to speak about the existing conditions, elevations and the tree that is in question, which is right on the property line. It has been severely limbed up on the 1020 E. Cooper side. Councilwoman Mullins asked how the quick claim deed affected the property. Ms. Brewster McLeod showed on screen where the property line is now and where it would be with red line on the west side. She showed the sheds and the conditions in the alleyway. She said they would not like to delist the property and gave figures for the property if it were to be multi-family instead of single family. The total HPC approved designed floor area is 2,373 square feet including the historic resource, addition and garage. We are adding 913 square feet or 60% larger existing floor area to the existing site. There are many site constraints and limitations. This is a non-conforming lot size. We want to rectify the existing setback and alleyway encroachments. She said that the parks department deemed the tree on the lot line unhealthy and ok to remove, which Aspen Tree confirmed. She mentioned they held multiple meetings with city staff to make sure they understood and listened to the neighbors, to HPC board members and staff to make sure they were compliant with all guidelines and changes. She explained all changes and restoration they were making to the historic resource. She showed the buildings to the east and west and their mass and scale. She said they are in full compliance with the proposed fence. She addressed neighbors concerns regarding the fence and the tree. They are asking for city council to uphold HPC’s decision from the December 11th meeting. Councilwoman Richards asked for above grade floor area and square footage. Ms. Brewster McLeod said the floor area is 2,373 square feet and square footage is 2,809. The total above and below grade square footage is 5,244 square feet. PUBLIC COMMENT: Patrick Rawley of Stan Clauson Associates – Mr. Rawley said he was the land planner for this project, and he is here as a representative for Buck Carlton, a resident of 1012. His unit is the one mostly impacted by the 6-foot privacy fence from his dining room window. He said no one wants to rob the owners the ability to create a family home, but we are dealing with a historic resource that is being overshadowed. He said the resource should be the focus of the property and it’s getting lost. He goes back to comments saying the proposal is half baked. We need to take a step back and look at the ingredients going into this proposal. He feels they should pull some mass off of the north, articulate and bring the height down to have a much more successful project. 8 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Kristy – She said she lives at 1024 E. Cooper. She wants to see them do a nice project. She doesn’t want the trees taken away; she loves the greenery. She’s also here speaking for Baron Concors who said they did not approve the removal of the tree and the drip lines need to be protected. Mr. Concors has sent numerous emails and has gotten no response. Kristy said the tree is on the majority side of their property. She said they have had no communication with the new buyers about this and they still care about this tree. Mr. True said the tree is an issue. It is straddling the property line, so it become a problem when trying to remove it. He doesn’t know what the solution is right now, other than the design not encroaching on the drip line. Ms. Brewster McLeod said they are looking at options to work around the tree. Councilwoman Mullins suggested mitigation of this tree. Councilwoman Richards thanked the applicants and said she can see how they tried to be responsive and she appreciates the challenges on site. She thinks some details could be refined. One of the major issues for her is the height of the addition gable because it seems out of proportion. These design requests aren’t about one neighbor, she feels it benefits the neighborhood and the community so it’s worth the extra effort. Maybe you can find a work around for the tree and the fence. Let’s try to work together. This is our chance to ask HPC for a little more. Councilwoman Mullins said this is so tough. She has history on HPC and knows the architects, but she’s kind of with Rachel on this. She doesn’t want to settle. She said the tree isn’t great looking and there should be some deal you can make for a newer and better-looking tree, some sort of compromise. The design changes are a tremendous improvement however, and she doesn’t feel the historic resource is overshadowed. To allow something to go ahead with so many conflicts makes her feel uncomfortable. She would like to see some of these issues resolved. Councilman Mesirow appreciates what the applicants have done. He appreciates that it’s going to be a lived-in home. It’s really important to give authority to our boards, but hearing Ann speak about this and having come from HPC, he is taking those comments with some weight. He looks forward to seeing this get approved with more cohesion in the neighborhood. He doesn’t feel the scale and character are being preserved. Mr. McMahon asked how many times we have to keep going through this and how much money do they need to spend until people are happy. Councilwoman Richards appreciates that and said maybe the code needs to be adjusted and they are questioning whether HPC should have these final decisions. She feels that since the board wasn’t unanimous, it’s a reason to send it back to them. Mayor Torre said this is really difficult. It’s a lot of pain for them to go through as well and don’t take it lightly. He finds that since they have complied with the guidelines, the tree and the fence aren’t the real issues at hand, but he will remand it back to HPC. He feels for them and thinks they’ve done a lovely job. Another discussion with HPC could go a long way. 9 REGULAR MEETING ASPEN CITY COUNCIL FEBRUARY 25TH, 2020 Mr. True suggested the motion that says to remand the application to HPC for a re-hearing for resolution #21, Series of 2019. Councilwoman Mullins motioned to approve; Councilwoman Richards seconded. Councilman Mesirow said this is frustrating and costly, but after stepping back, it’s the insistence that we listen to one another to engender the sense of community. Sometimes you have to walk slow to run fast. All in favor, motion carried. Ms. Ott said on Thursday evening at the Aspen Chapel will be a meeting for Water Place Phase II to meet with the neighbors. Councilwoman Richards motion to adjourn; Councilman Mesirow seconded. All in favor, motion carried. ______________________________ Nicole Henning, City Clerk