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Executive Committee Meeting Minutes


University Hill Neighborhood Association

Executive Committee Meeting Minutes - Final

The Castle House, August 29, 2019, 5:30 pm—7:00 pm

ATTENDING: Nancy Blackwood, Andrea Clark, Lori Schuyler, Jyotsna Raj, Lisa Spalding, Linda Sparn, Scott Thomas

ABSENT: Stephen Clark, Stacy Silverstein Apple

HRWG REPS: Lisa Nelson in attendance; Callie Weiant and Andrew Shoemaker not in attendance

INVITED GUESTS: Jeremy Moore and Tara Korst of CU’s Office of Off-Campus Housing & Neighborhood Relations

  • NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS UPDATE (Scott Thomas)

  • The enrollment at Flatirons Elementary has increased this year, much to the outreach efforts of the Flatirons PTO

  • Flatirons is planning a Fall event and neighbors will be invited n

  • Neighbors are encouraged to get to know and stay active in the local schools, informing newly arrived resident families of the educational options at Flatirons and Uni-Hill

  • UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO OFF-CAMPUS HOUSING & NEIGHBORHOOD RELATIONS OFFICE (Jeremy Moore, Interim Director and Tara Korst, Coordinator of Neighborhood Life)

  • Neighborhood Ambassador Program

  • four of the student representatives live on The Hill and represent different districts of the neighborhood

  • goal is to build bridges between the students and neighbors through peer to peer input

  • ambassadors are trained in code enforcement by CU staff, the Boulder Police Department and Fire & Rescue; Scott and Lisa represented UHNA to address neighborhood concerns

  • doorhangers and posters are being distributed to educate student residents

  • when students apply for party permits, they are advised of rules and potential issues

  • EC advises that more education is needed and notes that this year has been particularly bad for noise, trash and general misbehavior by student residents

  • Jeremy and Tara discussed with the EC ways to work together to ensure the student residents are good neighbors; they will help address any specific concerns

  • The EC also is working on a tips sheet for neighbors that provides contact information for dealing with concerns

  • HILL REINVESTMENT WORKING GROUP (HRWG) AND ADDRESSING UNIVERSITY HILL HOUSING & NEIGHBORHOOD ISSUES (Lisa Nelson, Callie Weiant and Stacy Silverstein Apple via email)

  • Lisa updated the EC on several HRWG items

  • HRWG is actively working on addressing student resident neighborhood issues by working to identify everyone involved in the student life cycle

  • A more thorough system to address issues and work toward long term changes is needed. There are many tools and resources available however they are not always applied in efficient ways

  • A handout is being developed for Hill residents on enforcement-related issues, options for making a complaint and how best to handle various situation

  • EC will work on coordinating a meeting with the Boulder Police Department for The Hill neighborhood

  • Regarding addressing housing issues and the loss of families on The Hill, Callie and Stacy have contacted Veronica Precella, the CEO of the Boulder Area Realtor Association, and are scheduling a meeting

  • MARPA HOUSE (Nancy Blackwood)

  • Marpa House, a contemplative community at 891 12th Street, recently was sold by Shambhala to an investor group who submitted a pre-application to the City of Boulder Planning Department to convert the historic house into 16 three-bedroom apartments, most likely for student housing

  • Nancy, Stacy and Stephen Sparn met with the City of Boulder’s Planning Department which stated that any change in use of the property will trigger a use review. The neighborhood will continue to have input into any plans for the property

  • A group formed by Stephan van der Mersch and other nearby neighbors is looking into legal recourse and strategies to ensure any use of Marpa House is in keeping with the historic homes in the neighborhood

  • Separately, The City of Boulder Landmarks Board accepted Historic Boulder’s application to designate the structure as a local historic landmark and will begin the designation process. A hearing will be scheduled this Fall for determination

  • Marpa House is a quickly developing situation and the EC will keep neighbors updated through the Listserv

  • The EC reiterated its position as one of education and to keep the neighborhood informed

  • HILL HOTEL UPDATE (Nancy Blackwood)

  • Sarah Wiebenson, Hill Community Development Coordinator, has worked with other city staff and prepared an information packet for city council

  • The packet is informational only. The anticipated next step is to finalize an offer letter and related term sheet with the Hill Hotel Partners, LLP for a public hearing and council consideration.

  • Link: https://boulder.novusagenda.com/agendapublic/CoverSheet.aspx?ItemID=2069&MeetingID=512

  • The “take away” from the parking study is that there will be “spill-over” into the neighborhood from the hotel at times that will need to be addressed. UHCAMC and the HRWG have been strongly supporting the position that the proceeds from the sale of the Pleasant Street parking lot must be put toward a parking structure at the 14th Street lot but the neighborhood will have to make their voices heard as well

  • CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATE FORUM (Lisa Spalding)

  • UHNA EC will coordinate a forum for City of Boulder Council candidates

  • Lisa is spearheading arrangements (reach out to Academy to host)

  • Lisa N. will draft questions

  • UHNA COMMUNICATIONS (Scott Thomas, Linda Sparn)

  • The EC discussed the Listserv and options to ensure easy access to UHNA communications

  • Scott reported that over 300 people subscribe to the Yahoo-hosted UHNA Listserv and Fears if we change to another platform, many of the older residents will lose contact.

  • Also, a downside of other platforms is that they are supported by advertisements, have a cost, or require a person to manage the listserv

  • EC will continue to discuss options. For now, more information will be given on the website (www.hillneighbors.com) ensuring new subscribers understand the process

  • EC also discussed the newsletter which is being finalized at this time for a beginning of

  • Fall distribution. Andrea will collect the text and prepare the newsletter

  • HARBECK-BERGHEIM HOUSE (Lisa Spalding, Linda Sparn)

  • The Harbeck-Bergheim House at 1206 Euclid Avenue is now up for lease. The Colorado Group real estate firm was hired by the City of Boulder to manage the leasing process

  • The City of Boulder Parks & Recreation Department with assistance from the Colorado Group has issued an RFP and posted an update to their website at: https://bouldercolorado.gov/parks-rec/harbeck-bergheim-house

  • An Open House is scheduled for September 18 for parties interested in submitting a proposal

  • UNIVERSITY HILL PUBLIC ART INSTALLATION UPDATE (Nancy Blackwood)

  • Confirmed that the project is moving forward

  • CU Environmental Design students will be constructing and installing the public art piece in the Spring and Summer of 2020. More details to come

Minutes Respectfully Submitted By:

Linda Sparn

Member, Executive Committee

University Hill Neighborhood Association

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