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Update to the city's landmark rules heads to City Council
LUTI Committee to hear proposed changes Tuesday
After more than a year of work, the package of proposed updates to the rules that govern Denver's Landmark Preservation Program will be reviewed and voted on by City Council this month. Council's Land Use, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will review the amendments to Chapter 30 of the Denver Revised Municipal Code, the city's Landmark Preservation ordinance, at its meeting this Tuesday and vote on whether to send it to the full council for final approval.

LUTI Committee Review
10:30 a.m., Tuesday, September 10
Council Committee Room (#391)
City and County Building
1437 Bannock Street, Denver


City planners and a volunteer task force began developing the potential changes in March of 2018, meeting monthly for about a year. Over the summer, public events were held throughout the city to give community members a chance to learn about and weigh in on the proposed changes.

Two of the changes involve an update to landmark designation criteria to include culture and an update to the demolition review process. Click the buttons below for more information on these key pieces of the proposal.
I Am Denver: Henderson legacy preserved
The Denver City Council voted in November of last year to designate the home of John Henderson, Colorado's first African-American licensed architect, as a local historic landmark. In July of this year, the plaque went up on the house at 2600 Milwaukee Street, and I Am Denver , a storytelling project by the City of Denver, was there to capture the moment.
A landmark year in local designations
Since August 2018, the last time we reported a new landmark designation in this newsletter, City Council has approved six new local landmarks, including the Henderson House, as well as two new historic districts. Several new applications are currently under review. Check out Denver's newest landmarks and districts below. Click the images to see larger photos.
Denver's newest landmarks & districts
Meyer-Reed-Muraglia House
670 Marion Street
Essex Apartments
630-638 E. 16th Ave.
Henderson House
2600 Milwaukee Street
> Learn more about John Henderson at I Am Denver
Armour Building
5001 Packing House Road
Samsonite House
637 Galapago Street
Cableland
4150 E. Shangri La Drive
vassar school bungalows
Vassar School Bungalows
Historic District
E. Vassar Avenue, Rosedale Neighborhood
River Drive Historic District
West River Drive
Jefferson Park Neighborhood
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National conference coming to Denver in October
Architects, planners, students and preservationists will gather in Denver this fall for as the National Trust for Historic Preservation's premier conference, PastForward. Registration for the three-day event, which is co-sponsored by the City of Denver, is open now.

Visit www.PastForwardConference.org for more information and to register.
Preservation key part of Loretto Heights Area Plan
If you live in southwest Denver, you have likely heard about the Loretto Heights Area Plan, an emerging community vision for the treasured campus that will soon be undergoing redevelopment. City planners have been working with residents, neighborhood groups and other stakeholders to create a long-term vision that will guide what's next for this 130-year-old campus.

The draft plan, which will get its final public hearing and vote by City Council on Monday, September 16, includes the following recommendations for preservation:

  • Preserve and re-use historic structures and features on the Loretto Heights campus
  • Use historic preservation tools like historic designation, preservation easements and historic covenants to support preservation and re-use
  • Determine viable use/re-use options for the historic structures and features
  • Identify and preserve historic character of neighborhoods
  • Complete neighborhood building surveys, possibly as part of the citywide building survey Discover Denver, to identify historically and architecturally significant structures and areas
  • Apply historic preservation tools like historic district designation and conservation overlay districts to regulate design changes in areas of significance
  • Use state rehabilitation tax credits for historically designated properties to assist homeowners with property maintenance and rehabilitation that contributes to neighborhood character preservation
  • Balance new development with existing historic character of campus and neighborhoods
  • Promote new design that is compatible with the historic character of the Loretto Heights campus and surrounding neighborhoods
  • Maintain historic views to and from the campus
Discover Denver surveying West Colfax neighborhood

Denver's partnership with Historic Denver to survey every building in the city continues to make its way through town and is now working in West Colfax. Keep up with the project at DiscoverDenver.co .

The project got a little air time on Next on 9News, with a feature by reporter Jeremy Jojola. Check it out!
About Landmark Preservation
landmark marker
Landmark preservation is an important function of Denver Community Planning and Development . Denver City Council enacted the Denver Landmark Ordinance in 1967 to foster the protection, enhancement, perpetuation and use of structures and districts of historical, architectural and/or geographic significance.
Staff in our Landmark Preservation office and two landmark boards carry out that mission through design review, historic surveys and landmark designations. Staff also assists owners of historic properties by providing guidance and resources for preserving, maintaining and rehabilitating historic buildings and properties. You can learn more about Denver's preservation efforts at Denvergov.org/landmark .