4. Communications - William Gray, Senior Planner
Regarding the survey plan, we are under contract for the grant with the state and the
RFP is officially out. There was recently a meeting to meet with consultants and
there were three interested parties. Proposals are due September 25th.
Mr. Gray has asked council staff to put out a request for new DRB members, a regular
position and an alternate, to replace Darryl Smith and Margy Gullickson. Interviews
should be happening soon. Mr. Gray asked that any interested persons be referred to
him.
Chair Lowenberg asked that Mr. Gray talk about the City Auditorium. The Community
Cultural Collective has been doing all of the fundraising for the renovation, but their
capital expense campaign did not go as well as they had hoped and their expectations
were not met in order to move forward. They were hoping to start renovations in
January, 2024, but they have decided to withdraw from the memorandum of
understanding and will vacate on November 1st. They hope to continue the
conversation with the City. Parks and Cultural Services has no plan to reopen the
facility once it’s been vacated and they have no definitive next steps. Mr. Gray said
he let them know the HPB would be a good resource to include in discussions.
Chair Lowenberg asked how much money was raised. Mr. Gray said he didn’t know,
but will find out. Chair Lowenberg said she was disappointed that this board wasn’t
included in the conversation by the collaborative. This board understands that it is
their job to raise awareness and she would like to see more of a partnership when
discussing the future of the City Auditorium. Mr. Gray said he will reach out to the
Parks & Cultural Services staff to make that connection.
Mr. Gray then talked about the idea of providing education regarding historic
preservation. He recently had a meeting with the Historic Neighborhood Partnership
in relation to the Old North End. They said they have many residents interested in
historic preservation tied to tax credits with their own homes. Mr. Gray said he is
going to contact History Colorado and see if they can come down and do a workshop
on the historic preservation tax credit program.
Board Member Hines asked about the Union Printers Home project. Mr. Gray said he
will find out more information. He thinks they are working on the master plan and on
the submittal to the City, but doesn’t know where that’s at. It’s been 6-8 months
since their presentation and Mr. Gray said he will ask them to come back and provide
an update.
There are no items for next month’s meeting, but Mr. Gray said they will likely have a
work session meeting in October.
5. Consent Calendar
These items will be acted upon as a whole, unless a specific item is called for discussion by a
Commissioner/Board Member or a citizen wishing to address the Commission or Board. (Any items called up for
separate consideration shall be acted upon following the Consent Vote.)
