Volume 35 Issue 7

Co-Presidents Update

Having spent the last six months stabilizing the organization we have a renewed appreciation for the all of the hard work the Historic Preservation committee chaired by Michael Henry has accomplished over the years. Michael and his committee have thwarted demolition of historic properties, worked with the city to designate a number of historic neighborhoods, and worked with developers to realize the potential of buildings long forgotten and undervalued.  

We also have come to appreciate the valuable work Co-Chairs Brad Cameron and Shayne Brady have dedicated themselves to through the efforts of the Zoning, Transportation, Land Use and Licensing committee. Brad, Shayne and company keep their eye on our community and shift into gear when neighborhoods are threatened with careless or potentially problematic development, mobility projects or when issues such as licensing rules around marijuana and short-term rentals need further explanation to our residents.

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods is very fortunate to have such dedicated members among its ranks including all of the members who sit on these committees and those who volunteer time to email the city or local businesses to further the committees efforts.

Thank you to all! 

Interested in how you can get involved? Become a member now! 

As always, we want to hear your thoughts!
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​Travis Leiker & Mark Cossin
Co-Presidents, Board of Delegates

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New Look, New Attitude!

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods has made many changes this year and our new logo reflects that.

It's the work of one of our talented board members, Karen Pellegrin.

​Watch this space for more of the Planning, Preserving and Improving that Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods is undertaking.

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Driving for Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods:
​Golf Tournament Scores Better than Par

The wonderful Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods supporters at Premier Ventures (Lala's Wine Bar, Govnr's Park Tavern, Marlowe's, Paramount Cafe) have raised and donated $10,277.63 to Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods through the business's annual golf tournament. The golf event on June 6th at Broken Tee Golf Course in Englewood was sold-out.

​We can't thank Premier Ventures enough, especially Mike Plancarte, a former Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods board member, his able business manager, Jessica Mayle, and all of the golfers who participated. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods relies on  members and supporters like Premier Ventures to help us stay vital and healthy.

 "Goonies" under the Moon - Family Friendly Event Aug. 2

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Lala's Wine Bar hosts a Movie Under the Moon to benefit Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods. Bring the whole family.

 Lala's Beer Dinner Is July 27!
Enjoy a four-course dinner paired with four different Odell's beers. $35 per person delivers a delicious menu of: Bacon-Corn Fritters, Sweet Chili-Grilled Shrimp, Smoked Pork Shoulder, and Peaches & Cream Custard. Yum. 6 p.m., Reservations: (303) 861-9463.

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Mayor's State of the City Includes Bold Mobility Plan

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Mayor Hancock gave his annual State of the City speech on July 10 and outlined an aggressive Mobility Plan for the city that will have wide-ranging implications in our neighborhoods.

The Mobility Plan includes ways to accomplish:

• A massive reduction of drivers who commute in cars by themselves;
  
• A significant increase in pedestrian, bicycle and bus commuters;
• Greater deployment of electric vehicles and charging stations; 
• Wider use of smart technology to improve access, cost and reliability for everyone;
• Reducing traffic-related fatalities to zero by 2030.

In addition to the Mobility Plan, the Mayor outlined several other initiatives:

• Increase access to parks and recreation activities for Denver residents. Over the coming year, the city will open a new recreation center near East High School, create new parks along the South Platte River, revive a dormant portion of the city-owned Red Rocks mountain park for camping and other outdoor activities and activities, and launch My Denver Prime to expand discounted access to recreation centers for older adults and senior citizens.
• Fix, repair and improve streets and other essential infrastructure and city facilities. The 2017 General Obligation Bond, up for voter consideration in November, will allow for necessary improvements to roadways, sidewalks, bike lanes, playgrounds, rec centers, pools, libraries, cultural attractions and the Denver Health Medical Center.
• Preserve neighborhood character while planning for the future. Upcoming recommendations from Denveright – a comprehensive citizen-driven planning effort – will guide and coordinate zoning, transit, parks and recreation, and pedestrian and trails plans for the next 20 years. New neighborhood plans and other tools will also help residents chart the future of their communities.
• Keep Denver affordable for everyone. The city will leverage its new $150 million housing fund to create more housing options and mixed-income neighborhoods for all Denver families and residents. The city will be partnering with landlords to open vacant apartments for low- to moderate-income renters. My 2018 budget package will put anti-displacement measures that support longtime families and businesses front and center throughout next year and beyond.
• Enhance our economy to keep Denver competitive and provide good-paying jobs for local residents. Plans will advance over the next 12 months to enhance the Colorado Convention Center, redesign DIA’s Great Hall and create the National Western Center. The NWC is preparing to launch a community investment fund that will provide direct support to residents and small businesses in Globeville and Elyria-Swansea.

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RTD Wants Your Help and Is Making It Easier to Ride the Bus

Our friend and former area rep on the Regional Transportation District Board, Bill James, alerted us to these items, which come from his "Cherry Creek Perspective" newsletter.

• RTD wants your input for a pass program study.  RTD reports they are committed to providing customers the best transit experience. “As we’ve expanded our bus, rail and specialty services, we’ve identified the need to review our current pass programs. Over the next year, we will evaluate and identify challenges with our pass programs and determine the best programs to meet our customers’ needs. We will be hosting monthly community meetings for public input and invite you to attend. Check out upcoming meetings and learn more about the Pass Program Study.”www.rtd-denver.com/PassProgramStudy.shtml
  
• RTD has made travel on bus and rail more convenient with the launch of MyRide smart cards, enabling customers to pre-load cards with up to $200. Customers will now be able to pay their bus or rail fare with a quick tap and save money on each trip. The new MyRide cards are available for purchase at each of RTD’s five regional sales outlets and on RTD’s online store.  MyRide cards can be reloaded three ways: online through the MyRide account page, at an RTD sales outlet and at more than 50 Safeway and 80 King Soopers stores across the metro area.
  

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Committee Update:
​Historic Preservation, June 26

The Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods Historic Preservation Committee met at the Castle Marne, 1572 Race Street and discussed the following items:

• Kurt Franz of MGL Partners updated the committee on the re-use of Tammen Hall at East 19th Avenue and Ogden for affordable senior housing. Tammen is a designated Denver landmark which has been vacant for 10 years. It had originally been used by Children’s Hospital until it sold its campus to St. Joseph Hospital. In April the Colorado Housing Finance Authority authorized low-income housing tax credits for the renovation project. The sale of Tammen from St. Joseph Hospital to MGL Partners is expected to close on June 29. Then the site-planning and design work will begin. The completion of the project is expected to be in February 2019.
• Mary Starkey, Jeff Bernard and Jeff Lakey requested ideas and comments regarding possible re-use of the Cuthbert-Dines-Starkey Mansion at 1350 Logan, which was designated a Denver landmark in 1997. The 12,500 square-foot mansion has been owned by Mary Starkey and used since 1994 as the Starkey Institute for Household Management. They are exploring possible new uses for the mansion and are discussing a possible adjacent new structure. The committee will have its next meeting on August 28 at 1350 Logan and will continue the discussion.
• Mark Sidell, president of Gart Properties, owner of the “Sports Castle” at 1000 Broadway, and Architect Chris Shears updated the committee on the status of planning for the re-use of the Jacques Benedict-designed structure and also most of the other properties on that block, which are owned by Gart Properties. The castle will probably be the keystone of a mixed-use project. They will share their plans when they become more final.
• Charlie Woolley of St. Charlestown Company (which also redeveloped the Lowenstein Theater and many other Denver properties) shared his plans for the renovation and re-use of the former Abend Gallery at the southwest corner of Colfax and York, which is within the Wyman Historic District. He hopes to have several small gallery and retail spaces. No changes are planned for the exterior of the building.
• Committee members were pleased to hear about plans for re-use of these fine Denver buildings.
• Jim Peiker invited all neighbors to attend the birthday party of the Castle Marne Bed and Breakfast at 1572 Race Street on August 1 from 4 to 8pm, with refreshments and entertainment.

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Committee Update:
​Zoning, Transportation, Land Use, June 7

The committee met  7 p.m. at 1201 Williams St. in the 19th floor party room. It had a jam-packed agenda.  The next meeting is scheduled for August 2 at 7 p.m. at the same location.

• Update about East Colfax Avenue Streetscape Plan- A plaza is being proposed for on Park Ave. & Humboldt St. The Plan proposes to activate the Colfax corridor with walking traffic, especially. The Plan envisions creating distinct civic, creativity and performance hubs along the corridor. Events such as Artifax and the marathons would continue. This Plan proposes a traffic study for Park Ave. Franklin St. and East Colfax to address the hazardous conflicts among pedestrians, auto-users and bicyclists. The Colfax Business Improvement District has asked Denver Public Works to conduct a traffic study and look at the feasibility of rerouting traffic onto Franklin Street to pick up Park Avenue. Contact Frank Locantore, Executive Director of East Colfax Improvement District for more information; 303.832.2086 or [email protected]
  
• Neighborhood Planning Initiative addresses neighborhood plans across the city that over 15 years old or non-existent. Neighborhood Plans are proposed to be grouped by statistical areas. The Plans will be prepared based on the age of existing plans. The East-Central area will include the Capitol Hill, Cheesman Park, Congress Park, Uptown, West City Park and South City Park neighborhoods. Many of the neighborhood plans in CHUN boundaries qualify as priority because they are so old. For example, the Capitol Cheesman Park Neighborhood Plan was completed in 1993. The city will create a task force of 15 appointed members. The first task force meetings are mid-July. A consultant will be hired to create the plans and incorporate themes from Denveright planning. The city will emphasize community engagement during this planning process including public meetings and focus groups. Stay tuned to CHUN updates because we will be having meetings about our neighborhood plans. For more detail about this effort contact Mr. Curt Upton, the Project Manager for this initiative at: [email protected].
  
• Denver School Board (DPS) will be adding 45 more auto parking spaces for a total of 110 spaces to Morey Middle School at 840 E 14th Ave, in Capitol Hill Neighborhood. This school and grades from the former Byers School on South Pearl Street will be merging into the Morey building. Morey will hold 6-12 grades and a projected total of 1100 students. Members remarked that students come cross town to attend this school and that DPS is proposing the use of RTD bus passes.
  
• Marijuana Codes have been updated to allow for the creation of Marijuana Social Consumption Clubs within city limits. The city formed a committee to create new codes from the voter approved 2016 Initiative 300. Conditions of receiving a license include notification to Registered Neighborhood Organization (RNO) & the RNO must consent to allowing these uses for a set period of time, in an enclosed building space. The new codes and state law do not allow for the combined consumption of liquor and marijuana. There are one thousand foot buffers from places where children congregate; these clubs are not allowed in residential zoned areas. A special license for 10 or fewer events are permitted, but liquor cannot be present or consumed. These clubs are not allowed in existing marijuana retail stores or grow houses. For more information see Inter-Neighborhood Cooperation’s website and or the city’s information.
  

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Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods Will Play a Role in New Marijuana Social Use

The City of Denver's Dept. of Excise and Licenses has posted the rules for acquiring a permit for allowing social consumption of marijuana and plans to begin issuing permits by the end of August. In order to to apply for a permit, applicants must receive approval from a registered neighborhood organization such as Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods.

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods expects to receive license applications and Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods Zoning, Transportation, Land Use & License Committee will be reviewing these applications, following its existing liquor application protocols. You can view the new regulations.

The rules were formulated after extensive work by a committee with representatives from the marijuana industry, the city and neighborhoods, including Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods. Denver’s Excise and License Department held a Public Hearing on the 13th of June to gather public comments about the proposed rules. More than one hundred persons attended this meeting.

​Comments included those about the use of existing liquor license application protocols, odor migration concerns, second-hand smoke, use of marijuana on patios that are too close to residences. Proponents argued that the proposed  regulations are too restrictive, licenses are too costly, and that liquor consumption should be allowed.

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Important Public Meetings Coming Up

Cherry Creek Area Greenway Implementation Plan - Second Meeting, Thursday, July 27
Check out conceptual drawings of the proposed improvements to the Greenway and hear all about them. Meeting held at 158 Fillmore St., 4th Floor (Parking available in attached garage - validated during the meeting). Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with presentation, followed by questions and comments and discussion.

A consortium that includes the Cherry Creek Area Business Alliance, the City of Denver Parks & Recreation Department and the Greenway Foundation wants your input on ideas for improving and enhancing Cherry Creek and making it more accessible.

​The area in question is Colorado Blvd. to University Blvd. and Sixth Ave. to Cherry Creek Drive South.

Additional comments can be offered online through August 17.

Citywide Stream Management Plan - Public Meetings Scheduled July 20, August 2
The Urban Drainage Flood Control District and the City & County of Denver want to hear from you about citywide stream management strategies. Discuss how streams are managed in Denver. Two of four meetings remain.

• July 20, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Thomas Jefferson High School 3950 South Holly St.
• August 2, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Barnum Recreation Center, 360 Hooker St.

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ANCA Bringing Climate Concern to Neighborhood Level

Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods has been a partner in and strong supporter of the Accelerate Neighborhood Climate Action (ANCA) program since its Denver beginning in February of 2016. The program sponsored a booth at the 2016 People’s Fair. As the months progressed, increasingly widespread concern about what we know to be irreversible climate change has made all the more urgent the need to take the decisions affecting climate change to the family and neighborhood level. 

The ANCA initiating committee of 10, including professional facilitators, city agencies, residents, and Metro State University professors and students—all volunteers—continue to meet bi-monthly in five action teams to move the program into its next phase of expansion.  As of this printing we are celebrating the following significant 2017 accomplishments:

• On May 13th South City Park (SCP) held the first neighborhood-level Forum.  Led by facilitator Sunny Walker, 22 participants reached consensus on five categories of climate action in the coming year. Libby Comeaux was the neighborhood organizer of the event; plans are underway for a follow-up meeting at the Museum of Nature and Science this month.
• Also in May, ACNA made a  presentation  to INC (Inter-Neighborhood Cooperation) by ANCA committee member Parry Burnap, supported in attendance by Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods INC rep Jim Slotta. INC has pledged its full support to the program as it expands from Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods to neighborhoods across Denver.
• Three more Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods either have targeted Fall Forum dates or have planning committees on board:  Cheesman Park, the Green Team in Congress Park, and the Care for Our Common Home Committee at Saint Ignatius of Loyola Church in City Park West.

 
The defining qualities that make an ANCA Forum uniquely effective are:

1. Planning committees work for a month prior to the event to recruit broad neighborhood representation in the action planning;
2. Each Forum features three components--a vision for their sustainable neighborhood,  a challenge statement representing the current reality there, and action plans with implementing steps and participant assignments;
3. These proposed action plans will be networked on a website, promoting topical follow-up across the city.  The program was influenced by the national Accelerate 77 Program of the ICA-USA that has worked since 2013 in all of the Chicago neighborhoods and continues to provide leadership training. (See their websites for more information.)

For more information on how you can get involved in your Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods Climate Action Forum, contact Jim or OliveAnn Slotta at [email protected].

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Public Meetings

July 25, 9 a.m. at the Webb Building, 201 W. Colfax Ave., Room 2.H.14. Appeal of denial of a permit to erect an addition at 1201 E. 7th Ave. that will increase the existing excess building coverage of 62 square feet for a total of 2,739 SF (37.5% or 2,415-sqf permitted), in a U-SU-B1 Zone.
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July 25, 10 a.m. at the Webb Building, 201 W. Colfax Ave., Room 2.H.14. permit to erect a 6-foot fence on a retaining wall that will be less than 50% open at 4 feet above the lowest grade, and will exceed the maximum allowed height of 4 feet beyond the Primary Street facing Primary Structure façade, in a U-RH-3A UO-3 zone

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