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■ Unanimous City Council vote lends security to historic nature of community
BY VANESSA MARTIN
City Council has officially protected a large portion of the Old San Rafael Neighborhood from major construction projects that could compromise the area’s historical significance.
Following a 45-minute public hearing on Feb. 25 the Council unanimously passed Council Bill 41, creating an OD-9 overlay district for 41.1 acres of San Rafael that is bounded by Washington, Downing, 20th & 26th.
The overlay zone does not change the allowed usages in the neighborhood’s pre-existing R-3 and R-4 zones or make current uses illegal.
However, it does restrict what can be built in the future by dictating... for new buildings only... structure size, required setbacks, parking requirements and screening for parking, and requiring that 25% of the property be open space, among other details.
“I am so pleased with the way this application has come forward,” said District 8 Councilwoman Carla Madison, who represents San Rafael, just before the vote. “This overlay demonstrates the perfect balance between preservation and growth and how we want to implement Blueprint Denver. Here is a neighborhood with stability with some fairly large in-fill parcels. This overlay protects but still gives the opportunity for revitalization and regeneration.”
It was almost a year ago that the Old San Rafael Neighborhood
Organization (OSR) and the New Terrace Homeowners Association (900 E.
20th) applied for the OD-9 designation. They had to convince San
Rafael home and property owners to sign petitions not only in support
of the OD-9 designation, but also in support of getting the application
fee waived by the city.
First-time homeowner David Iseli testified before City Council that
when he moved into his San Rafael home, “I didn’t know what overlay
districts or zoning were and Paul (Benington, president of OSR) came to
my door and told me that the neighborhood and the home I invested in
weren’t protected. He gave me some examples of neighborhoods to look at
where this overlay doesn’t exist, where you have a four-story apartment
building next to a single-family house. I am very thankful that we have
someone like Paul, who helped us take this measure to protect our
neighborhood.”
Former suburbanite William Wool testified, “I come from the
suburbs. I hate the suburbs. The city is the place to live because it
is the heart of everything. I’ve met people from all walks of life
here. I have a neighbor who is 95 years old and she has lived in the
same house her entire life. She loves the neighborhood and has seen it
change through everything. In this community we care about and love
each other. We hope you will see that.”
Jason Marsell gave City Council “a quick perspective of a real
newbie. I moved into San Rafael five months ago because it reminds me
of the Garden District in New Orleans, where I grew up.
“I started talking to some of the neighbors and learned there were
potentially events that could change the area. I got involved because I
really want to preserve the architecture, style, culture and feeling of
why I bought into this neighborhood. I implore you to adopt the OD-9
overlay and keep San Rafael one of the best neighborhoods in Denver.”
In total, all 25 speakers who testified did so in favor of the
overlay district, and Senior City Planner Ellen Ittelson with Community
Planning & Development Agency said the Planning Board had
unanimously approved the application and the CPDA staff recommended
approval as well.
When the OD-9 application originally went before the Blueprint
Denver Committee in December, there were some property owners who were
opposed to the application if their property was not excluded.
Since that time, Bennington, Madison, District 6 Councilman Charlie
Brown and others are credited with working with those property owners
to create four separate neighborhood agreements and gain the support of
those who were previously opposed to the zoning measure.
“This is what we want to see, a zoning application with minimal
controversy,” Madison said. “But a few weeks back, before the last
negotiations were made, I have to say I had a little concern about
whether it would pass or not.
“This Council is very aware of property rights. But this overlay
(application) is so true to Blueprint Denver and has so much buy-in, I
have to say that if it couldn’t pass with the opposition of a few, than
I (would be) concerned about how we are going to re-zone the whole city.
“If we can’t re-zone without a little bit of remaining opposition,
then I think we should send the re-zoning task force home right now.”
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