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In
2001, with the support of SCFD and Historic Denver’s many friends,
our organization became a national leader, placing Denver at the
forefront of the preservation movement. We expanded our efforts
to preserve neighborhoods, city buildings, schools, and, for the
first time, places of worship. We increased and improved our educational
programming at the Molly Brown House Museum. We produced a new series
of videos on Denver’s history. Last, but not least, we brought new
players together to develop a unified vision for saving Denver’s
historic structures.
This exciting
work would not have been possible without increased support from
the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD). Our SCFD
grant award was $35,000 in 2000 as a nonprofit organization eligible
for Tier III funding. Our funding jumped to $168,000 in 2001 as
we were eligible for Tier II funding. Historic Denver was able to
enter Tier II based on its annual operating budget of $871,000.
Historic
Local Districts
The year 2001 held many major accomplishments for us. We celebrated
two long awaited local historic districts, Baker Neighborhood and
Downtown Denver. Historic Denver spearheaded these unique preservation
efforts. Armed with “Historic Baker!!! Yes” buttons and an organized
testimony, Historic Denver and the Baker Neighborhood presented
their case for landmarking to City Council in November 2000. Thanks
to Nancy Widmann, survey consultant for the project and many others,
the high quality of the nomination and thorough preparation led
the way to success.
After the Baker
triumph, it was time to present the Downtown Denver Historic District,
the first noncontiguous local historic district to be submitted,
to City Council. The landmark for the Downtown District targeted
43 structures for protection. To make our case, we brought together
key stakeholders that included the National Trust of Historic Preservation,
the City and County of Denver, the Downtown Denver Partnership and
downtown Denver property owners. The efforts paid off in 2001.
Awards
The International Downtown Association (IDA) honored the visionary
Downtown District with a merit award in planning. The National Trust
for Historic Preservation honored the District by giving Mayor Wellington
Webb the 2001 Hohn H. Chafee Trustees’ Award for Outstanding Achievement
in Public Policy. In addition, it honored Historic Denver by inviting
our staff to present “innovative solutions for historic preservation
in commercial districts” at its 2001 national conference. Brad Segal
accepted on behalf of Historic Denver.
Colorado Preservation,
Inc. gave 2001 State Honor Awards to Historic Denver and its partners
for creating the District. The Downtown Denver Historic District
came about after years of collaborative work. Historic Denver’s
process for creating the District is a model in negotiation and
teamwork which many other cities are interested in replicating.
Additional
awards received in 2001 include:
- AIA
Denver awarded Kathleen Brooker and Historic Denver the Phil
Milstein Award for community service.
- The National
Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors for
our “Legacies” project-a series of videos scripted by Historic
Denver and produced by Channel 8.
- In its Best
of 2001 issue, Westword honored me with the title
“Best Protector of Downtown Denver.”
- Our newsletter
editor Joey Porcelli received a Top Hand (first place) Award from
the Colorado Authors’ League a second place from the Denver
Woman’s Press Club for her work as writer/ editor of Historic
Denver News.
Publications
In addition to publishing our quarterly newsletter, the Historic
Denver News, Historic Denver and the Molly Brown House Museum
published Cast in Stone: The Molly Brown House Revealed by
Elizabeth Owen Walker in 2001.
FaithAction
Our staff is proud to be working on FaithAction, a Historic
Denver program formed in 1999 to preserve Denver’s sacred places.
FaithAction is currently guiding two congregations in the Cole neighborhood
to save their buildings, and it continues public awareness efforts.
Historic
Denver Events
To serve the Denver community, Historic Denver sponsored several
memorable events in 2001. Among these were:
- Historic
Denver Week In May, 2001, Historic Denver week included a
workshop on how to renovate an older home, “The Jewels of Highland
House Tour,” a visit to the home of architects Tim and Kris Hoehn,
the Historic Downtown Denver Walking Tour, a walk through the
Auraria campus, a tour of the Ball Park Neighborhood and the popular
“People and Steeples” tour of Denver’s most glorious churches.
- Sculptured
House In July, we took guest up to Genesee for a look at John
J. Huggins remarkable renovation, The Sculptured House. “Modernism
is Optimism—Preservation is Progress” was the theme of this fundraiser.
The Sculptured House designed by visionary Charles Deaton in 1963
in one of Colorado’s most visible and famous landmarks. Huggins
graciously lent us his home as Historic Denver supporters danced
to the music of Swing Street and ate delicious food prepared by
Alex Brooks Fine Catering. Paula Arnold of Newberry Brothers donated
the flowers. Over $50,000 was raised in support of HD’s programs.
- Historic
Denver House Tour Last fall, The Historic Denver House Tour
showcased Denver’s Montclair Neighborhood. The Tour featured homes
ranging in architectural style from Romanesque Revival to Queen
Anne; from Wrightian to the uniquely Denver TB House. Thanks to
William J. Hansen and Thomas J. Noel, fascinating historic facts
added to the tour experience.
- Historic
Denver’s Annual Dinner Even in these subdued times, many supporters
of Historic Denver gathered at the Brown Palace Hotel on November
6 to honor those who have made this community a better place through
their commitment to historic preservation. The 31st
Annual Dinner was a great success. Our big thanks to the Presenting
Sponsor for the evening, Colorado Business Bank, for their generosity.
Thanks also go out to: Corporate business chairs Kathy Kaley and
Kevin Hein, Dinner chairs Margy Anderson and Nancy Parker, Master
of Ceremonies John E. Moye, Photographer and Author Robert Castellino,
Bouquets, our “official” florist, Photographer Paul Andrews, and
Historic Denver’s Board of Trustees. Corporate tables included:
Andersen, Citywide Banks, Coughlin & Company/ David Owen Tryba
Architects, CRL Associates, Dorsey & Whitney, Holland &
Hart, McClain Finlon Advertising, Sherman & Howard, Silversmith
& Cohen Properties, St. Charles Town Company.
Future
Projects
Historic Denver is collaborating with business owners and residents
in the Ballpark, North Country Club, and East Washington Park neighborhoods.
Working with RTD and the Lower Downtown District, we are proposing
a vibrant display on Colorado’s history for the pedestrian tunnel
at Union Station. And, we are devising a “Passport Program” for
youth and families to visit firehouses across Denver.
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