As part of the effort to update design guidelines for historic structures and districts citywide, preservation planners have posted more draft chapters and draft character-defining features for some of the city's designated historic districts on the project page on the city's landmark preservation website.

 

The current citywide design guidelines, written in 1995, help ensure that proposed projects preserve key historic features and are compatible with the character of designated historic buildings, sites and districts. Updated guidelines will outline a "how to" approach and will provide easy-to-follow charts and graphs so that property owners and design professionals can more easily navigate through the design review and permitting process. For more background on the effort to update the design guidelines, visit our project page.  

 

A complete draft of the guidelines is expected to be released soon. The Landmark Preservation Commission will hold a public hearing on the draft during its regularly-scheduled meeting on July 1 at 1 p.m. in room 4.F.6 at the Wellington Webb Municipal Building, 201 W. Colfax Ave. You may also provide feedback by emailing landmark@denvergov.org. 

Governor John Hickenlooper and Mayor Michael B. Hancock were among the dignitaries who cut the ribbon at Union Station earlier this month. The occasion marked the opening of RTD's underground bus terminal and the start of bus service at the refurbished transit hub.

 

Union Station -- a city landmark designated by City Council ordinance in 2004 -- first opened in 1881 to serve the Union Pacific, the Denver & Rio Grande Western, the Denver, South Park & Pacific and the Colorado Central rail lines. Although it continues to serve as a rail station, its revitalization has showcased the potential of preservation and adaptive reuse by transforming the structure into a 21st century transportation hub that its original designers could never have imagined. Yet, by working hand in hand with Denver's Landmark Preservation team, developers ensured that key character-defining features of the building would remain.

 

Still to come is the completion of The Crawford Hotel, a 112-room boutique hotel on the upper levels of the historic building. The Crawford Hotel is set to open in July, and will be managed by Denver's Sage Hospitality. The hotel is named after longtime preservation advocate Dana Crawford, who led efforts to save the building.

 

For additional information on upcoming events and the history of the Denver Union Station project, visit www.denverunionstation.org. 

In case you missed it, historic preservation was among the topics considered at the State Capitol during the recently concluded legislative session, and preservation advocates were happy with the results. Governor Hickenlooper signed House Bill 1311, the Colorado Job Creation & Main Street Revitalization Act (PDF), bolstering tax credits for historic preservation. 

 

The city's Landmark Preservation planners administer these tax credits for projects in Denver and believe this bill will have a positive impact on commercial properties in particular.

 

Under the previous program, credits for commercial projects were capped at $50,000 (no more than 20 percent of eligible project costs) and as a result didn't generate a lot of interest. By increasing the credit to $2 million for commercial projects, the new law is expected to encourage more adaptive reuse projects for vintage buildings that are vacant and under-utilized. For residential projects, the tax credit is $50,000 for qualifying properties and projects.

 

For more information on how to take advantage of these tax credits to rehabilitate and better preserve your historic property, visit the Resources for Property Owners page on the city's Landmark Preservation website or contact city staff at landmark@denvergov.org. 

3241 Lowell Blvd.

On May 19, the Denver City Council voted 8-3 to designate the Beth Eden Church at 3241 Lowell Blvd as a historic landmark.

The Beth Eden Church was home to one of the first congregations in the West Highland neighborhood. It was designed by Denver architect William N. Bowman, and is the only Tudor Revival style church in Denver. The church is recognizable from its prominent location on Lowell Boulevard, adjacent to the commercial node at 32nd Avenue and Lowell Boulevard. 

In February, the church's owner had applied for a certificate of non-historic status, which would allow for demolition of the building. In March, Historic Denver, Inc. and Friends of West Highland Landmarks applied to designate the building as historic. At its meeting on April 1, the Landmark Preservation Commission recommended historic designation.

Discover Denver Pilot #3:
Streetcar Districts of Globeville and Cole

Discover Denver, a survey to identify historic and architecturally significant structures citywide, has identified its third pilot areas: the embedded streetcar commercial districts of Globeville and Cole. Maps are being finalized and will be posted online soon. Meanwhile, work continues in the survey's other pilot areas: Harvey Park, Park Hill and Berkeley. 

Discover Denver is gathering information about buildings using public records, neighborhood canvassing, academic research, and tips from the public. Findings from the survey will later be accessible online so that everyone can learn about Denver's past -- building by building. Visit DiscoverDenver.CO to learn more about the project, connect with us on Facebook, and view a daily map to see where we'll be surveying on any given day.

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