|
Neighborhood Home Seeking Landmark Designation (7/21/10)
The concrete house at 2340 S. Josephine St. designed and built by architect Eugene Groves in 1932 is on track for Denver local landmark designation. The Landmark Preservation Commission voted unanimously on July 20th to forward the application to City Council with a recommendation for approval. City Council will give final consideration to the application at a public hearing on August 16th. This small house sits back nearly 30 feet on a large 4 lot property. Named the "Holland House" (after original owner Mary Holland), it features a unique concrete dome - there aren't any others like this in our neighborhood!
Eugene Groves designed only four homes in the Denver area, each one featuring fabulous, somewhat quirky, elements. The owner of the home in University Park is thrilled that her house is being considered for this honor. Landmark status not only protects the house from being demolished, but it also makes it eligible for significant tax credits and grants to help fund work on the structure.
To learn more about this wonderful home, you can review the application.
City Councilman, Charlie Brown, Makes an Offer University Park Won’t Refuse: If the neighborhood raises $1,000 dollars for additional playground improvements, Charlie Brown will match it.
The neighborhood raised $173 dollars during the Playground Grand Reopening Party. “The progress toward the $1,000 match is fantastic. We are confident the neighborhood won’t let a penny of Charlie’s generous offer go unmatched,” said University Park Mothers Club President, Jennifer Engleby. Please send donations in the form of a check made out to UPCC, and designate it for Playground Renovations.
Checks can be mailed to Jennifer Engleby, 3401 East Asbury Avenue, Denver, CO 80210. For more information, e-mail park@uparkmoms.org.
Update on coyotes in the neighborhood from Ashley DeLaup, Wildlife Ecologist for Parks and Recreation (ashley.delaup@denvergov.org)
May 20, 2010: Coyote pups are now starting to venture out of their dens, so family groups are watching closely for any potential danger to their offspring. Be extra cautious in or near natural areas or in areas you know they have had pups before when walking dogs, if they think you are too close they will often show themselves and may raise their fur and hiss. Typically they won’t really follow but may watch until you leave area. Once they feel the threat is far enough away they should disappear. If a coyote seems unusually resistant to hazing that means pups are probably close and for now its better to just leave the vicinity. By July, the pups will be big enough to travel and coyotes will go back to using their whole territory.
The coyotes are also staying pretty close to pups at this time so you may either not see them at all or see them more often depending on the den location. This means they are hunting CLOSE TO HOME, they may give up preferred prey if it is farther away and take advantage of whatever is close by including small, unattended pets. Keep close tabs on small pets especially after dark.
And finally, coyote pups do not look like the adults, but can be mistaken for puppies, some one brought me one already this year. If you see a “lost” brown puppy- leave it alone if possible! If it is in an unsafe location with no adults apparent you can move it to a safe spot nearby, loosely secure it under a milk crate or laundry basket and leave it. An adult can easily find and retrieve it. Mom or babysitter is probably close by and will retrieve it once people are gone.
UPark Elementary Launches New Website
UPark Elementary has launched a new website at www.uparkelementary.com.
The new website has a comprehensive up-to date calendar, faculty and staff contact info, weekly bulletins and notices, lunch menus, a discussion forum, and information about fundraising, year-round enrichment programs, PTA, CSC, and much more. The website is simple to use, whether you are looking for information, actively posting information, or joining a discussion forum. Because of its ease of use, there are plans for teachers and students to post information about their classes on the website. We also will be using the website to market our school to prospective families with school-age children.
The site will allow us to use less paper, communicate more effectively, and archive all of our important information. Please visit our new website and let us know your thoughts. (4/7/10)
Denver Compost Collection Continues
While Denver can no longer offer compost collection at no cost, the city is able to continue this service for a fee of $87 annually to selected residences. Only homes currently participating in the composting pilot are being invited to continue service. Additional households will be invited to participate if space becomes available.
If you are not currently a compost customer, but would like to participate in the program, check the Website or call the city for more information. If you are a composting customer, payment must be received by April 15, 2010, in order for your service to continue. If payment is not received, your compost cart will be retrieved in April.
For more information about the program, visit their Website at: (updated 4/6/10) (back to top)
DU’s Community News is now available on-line at http://du.edu/today
(updated 4/6/10) (back to top)
Dog Park Master Plan Recommendations
Dog Park Master Plan Recommendations have been posted. Click to review the Dog Park Master Plan Recommendations. Please send questions or comments to denverdog@denvergov.org. (back to top) (updated 2/23/10)
2010 SPRING STREET TREE PROGRAM ANNOUNCED
Details of Program can be found here. Trees are $25 each for Denver residents and deadline for applications is February 15.
For applications, visit www.theparkpeople.org, or call 303-722-6262. Tree pick-up is April 17. (back to top)
Grocer Cards to Support UPark PTA
Grocery cards for use at King Soopers, Safeway, and Sunflower Market can be purchased at University Park Elementary School. If you buy your groceries with our grocery cards, the store will donate 5% of your purchase to the school – at no cost to you. To purchase grocery cards, please stop by the school office, or call Terri Allsup at 303-550-0831, or e-mail terriallsup@gmail.com. (back to top)
Observatory Park Playground Final Plans
The final concept plan for the renovation of the Observatory Park playground has been posted. This playground project is part of the ‘Better Denver’ Bond Program, approved by Denver residents in 2007. Construction is expected to be complete by mid-2010. (back to top)
Plans for University Boulevard high-rise taking shape
Richard Chapman
February 18, 2009
Two hundred high-end rental apartments above three restaurants, a coffee shop and a boutique food market on the ground floor of an 11-story building.
That’s developer Phil Caplan’s vision for what is now being called the Shops and Apartments at Observatory Place, a bold transformation of the southeast corner of Evans Avenue and South University Boulevard.
Gone as soon as late fall would be the structures there now, in particular the two-story, red-brick Wesley Apartments at 2100 S. University and the five properties directly south that the developer owns. In their place — and open as soon as late 2010 — could be a high-rise apartment containing a food emporium on the order of Whole Foods, Marczyk’s, Tony’s Market or Cook’s Fresh Market. All are under consideration, Caplan says.
“We want the best combination of restaurant and retailer we can find,” he says, noting that he already has four letters-of-intent from restaurants eager to open in the building.
“I’m more worried about filling up the apartments than the retail,” he quipped during a Feb. 11 briefing before the University Park Community Council. Neighbors peppered Caplan with questions reflecting concerns from how the project would affect parking and traffic to whether Caplan could land a Trader Joe’s store for the site.
The developer patiently answered all queries, noting that the project still has a lot of unknowns. Chief among these is financing, which is not in place yet, and design, which is envisioned to be masonry, glass and “as much brick as we can afford.”
The building design is being put together by Shears Adkins of Denver, the architectural firm that designed University Lofts on the northeast corner of Evans and University.
Also unclear is the scope of the project. Caplan and partner David Elowe have acquired six lots on University, from the Wesley Apartments south to the former Pioneer Apartments at 2156 S. University Blvd. The contract to buy Pioneer fell through, Caplan said, but it is being renegotiated.
As that unfolds, key decisions are being made. Among these is that the project will not be designed as student housing. It will be higher-end rental units marketed to “young professionals, couples, DU faculty and staff, empty-nesters and seniors.”
Units will be 70 percent studios and one-bedrooms and 30 percent two-bedrooms, with rents in the $1,700 to $1,900 range. Residential parking will be on three interior floors above the retail shops, with 100 retail parking spaces below ground. The main entrance will be from the alley between Josephine Street and University Boulevard.
“This is totally flexible, drawings on a computer,” Caplan emphasized. “But we’re gonna do the best we can to make it look nice.” (back to top)
Prairie Park (Land along Buchtel Boulevard Trail) Update:
Fences have recently been erected in Prairie Park. The "good" grass is inside the fences for protection. Outside the orange fences there will be grading, revegetation, berms, and some crusher fine pathways. The black plastic fencing is to keep the dirt from blowing and the fox den area is being handled very carefully. (back to top)
Public Art Installation
Learn more about the public art installed at the corner of University and Evans. Read More.
(back to top)
Renovations to Chamberlin Observatory Nearing Completion
Imagine a time when Denver’s mass transit system consisted of horse-drawn streetcars; The Denver Post didn’t exist; Colorado’s population barely exceeded 400,000; automobiles were merely an eccentric hobby; women’s right-to-vote was 30 years in the future; telephones were a rarity; and, airplanes were viewed as folly.
Against this backdrop, forward-thinking individuals at the University of Denver initiated the design of the Chamberlin Observatory in 1888 and opened the building for astronomy instruction in 1894. While the Observatory still boasts its original 28-foot-long refractor (lens type) telescope -- installed by a Boston lens maker -- other parts of the building have not fared as well over the past 120 years.
The much-needed renovation has included reconstruction of 40 windows; restoring doors; tuck-pointing; replacing gutters, downspouts, and roof flashing; and, installing a new fire alarm system. This portion of the work was funded by the State Historical Fund, which awarded a $200,000 grant in January 2006 for the project. Matching funds were provided by the University of Denver ($65,000), University Park Community Council's Chamberlin Observatory Restoration Committee ($13,000), and the Denver Astronomical Fund ($10,000). In addition, the University of Denver has contributed another $116,000 to pay for upgrading the electrical system, replacing lighting, refinishing floors, painting the interior, and replacing the south balcony railing.
Chamberlin’s renovation will ensure that University of Denver students, the University Park neighborhood, and many others will continue to enjoy -- well into the future -- the many learning opportunities and traditions afforded by this magnificent landmark.
Perhaps a century from now, those who have the good fortune to experience the Observatory’s benefits will find our 2008 lifestyle as difficult to fathom as it is for us to imagine life in 1888.
(back to top)
|