Jennifer became CPI’s Executive Director in 2016 after managing CPI’s Most Endangered Places Program since 2014 Jennifer received her Master’s in Urban Affairs and Public Policy with a Historic Preservation Concentration from the University of Delaware Prior to moving to Colorado she served as the Director of Preservation for the Historic Annapolis Foundation in Maryland. Jennifer believes strongly in the power of place and its ability to activate communities statewide.
Amanda Barker Events & Development Director
Amanda joined CPI as the Events & Development Director in April of 2018. Previously Amanda worked for the Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts (CCLT) serving as the Grant Manager, Programs Director and Executive Director. Amanda ran CCLT’s annual Conservation Excellence Conference for land conservation professionals and directed the membership and public policy programs around Colorado’s conservation easement tax credit program
Kate McCoy Preservation Services Director
Kate joined CPI’s staff as the Preservation Services Director in February of 2022 In addition to her work with CPI, Kate currently serves as the Co-Executive Director of the North London Mill Project Before joining CPI, Kate had been awarded over $800,000 in grant funding over 4 years to support the North London Mill Project, working on grants from SHF, El Pomar Foundation, Gates Family Foundation, Park County Land & Water Trust Fund, J.M McDonald Foundation, CO Division Reclamation, Mining, Safety, Historic Preservation Tax Credits.
Kim Grant
Board & Staff
Colorado Preservation, Inc. Annual Report 2022
Endangered Places Program Director
Kim joined CPI in May 2017 as the Endangered Places Program Director. Kim has 43 years’ experience in teaching, state and local government service, and non-profit development and management. Past positions include the Kansas Main Street Program, Denver Public Library, Lower Downtown District, Inc , Historic Denver, Inc , City of Arvada & the Arvada Historical Society
In addition to the Saving Places Conference, CPI impacts preservation statewide through Colorado’s Most Endangered Places Program, and its Preservation Services Department. CPI’s Preservation Services Director provides technical assistance, training, and project assistance to private property owners, municipalities and nonprofit organizations in Colorado.
In 2022 CPI celebrated the 25th Anniversary of the Saving Places Conference For the first time this conference incorporated an in-person and hybrid online approach plus two days hosted On the Road in San Luis over August.
Attendees registered from every part of Colorado with the largest representation joining from the Front Range District (green) with 100% representation from the counties making up the district. Colorado’s Mountain District (maroon) saw 77% participation followed by the Western District (purple) at 75%.
2022 Conference
Attendance
654 attendees
Least conference reprentation was seen in the Southern District (yellow) at 60% of the counties within that district represented and the Eastern District (blue) at 30%. These areas will be highlighted
Colorado + 17 states + DC + Philippines
54 Counties (69%
Colorado’s Counties)
In 2022, CPI recognized Tim Schultz with the Dana Crawford Award of Excellence for his lifelong leadership in Colorado agriculture, state government, and within Colorado’s Creative Industries. In addition to the presentation of this award, CPI recognized six projects and individuals from across the state
Preservation Trainings
CPI began offering separate advanced preservation trainings in 2019 in response to requests for higher level offerings held on-location in addition to conference offerings. Preservation trainings provide on-site opportunities for individuals of all skill levels Training locations include CPI project and Endangered Places resources.
Reconstructing by Deconstructing: Using Archeological Monitoring & Forensic Investigation
Date: April 1, 10:00am to 2:30 pm
Location: Ludlow Site & Trinidad Cost $65 nonmembers, $50 members
Oftentimes, the secrets underlying how a historic building was constructed, utilized, and possibly modified over time lie hidden away, either behind the building’s finishes or beneath the surrounding dirt In this workshop, we will use the recent restoration of the Death Pit at the Ludlow Massacre Memorial Site to address these issues.
Window Restoration Workshop
Date: June 4, 2022, 10am to 3pm
Location: Saguache Hotel, Saguache Cost $65 nonmembers, $50 members
Join the owner of the Saguache Hotel, Andy Hackbarth, and Window Preservation Alliance member Deep Roots Craftsmen, for a hands-on workshop on window repair & restoration. The workshop will provide a look at some active window restoration work, providing insights and tips for those looking to learn tricks of the trade, and/or wondering where to start with their own historic windows. Attendees will learn about common pitfalls & best practices while being at one of Colorado’s Most Endangered Places, the Saguache Hotel.
Colorado Preservation, Inc. Annual Report 2022
JULY 22: Paris Mill, North London Mill, Reiling Dredge, Celebration in Breckenridge
SEPTEMBER 17: Hugo Roundhouse,Wonder View Tower, Roller Rink, celebration in Genoa
Outreach & Events
CPI with University of Colorado Denver Students
CPI with Preserve AmericaYouth Summit Students
CPI AWARDED NPS PAUL BRUHN HISTORIC REVITALIZATION GRANT: $612,000
CPI received an award from the National Park Service’s Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grant to develop a subgrant program to support and stimulate historic preservation projects in Colorado’s rural historic downtowns. The subgrant program aims to broaden support and understanding for preservation by fostering key projects to spur and maintain local property investment, especially among private property owners. Private Property owners, nonprofit organizations, and municipalities are eligible to apply with $612,000 in grant funding available. Awards range from $10,000-$150,000 with applications opening Spring 2023.
CPI SUBGRANT FUNDING
ELIGIBILITY
Properties must be either:
❑ Individually listed on the NR
❑ Eligible for NR listing
❑ Contributing to NR Historic District
❑ Located in a Rural Community (defined as 50,000 or less population)
CONSIDERATIONS
❑ Resource Location
❑ Ownership Type ❑ Urgency
Community Support ❑ Existing or Potential Partnerships ❑ Preservation Incentives
CPI’S RURAL REVITALIZATION SUBGRANT
PURPOSE
Colorado has a strong preservation ethic, but limited funding is available for private property owners; a majority of whom own contributing buildings in National Register Historic Districts. This lack of initiatives demonstrates an urgency for a subgrant program to spark community revitalization in rural Colorado of which there is an abundant stock of nationally significant buildings.
A review of Colorado’s National Register (NR) reveals there are currently over 200 individual National Register listings, of which 50% are within historic districts. In addition to the individually listed resources, there are hundreds of important buildings within rural Colorado that are listed as contributing buildings within historic districts This subgrant program seeks to be a catalyst for positive preservation ethic in rural communities, support local economic development and provide critical funds to important projects statewide.
Colorado‘s Most Endangered Places Program
CPI’s EPP reaches an important milestone in 2022, which marks the 25th anniversary of this important program For 25 years, the program has helped advocate for and save the buildings, sites and places that give communities identity and a distinctive sense of place. By providing awareness, advocacy, and assistance to threatened
Colorado’s Most Endangered Places Program (EPP) began in 1998 to highlight significant historic resources in danger of being lost Each year, nominations are solicited from the public. The program seeks to bring awareness and assistance to threatened sites, buildings, structures and cultural landscapes statewide.
Resources statewide, the program continues to help catalyze local and regional efforts to move sites forward and save them for future posterity. To date, 130 resources have been listed with only seven lost, 50 saved and 66 in various stages of progress. Five previously awarded resources were refocused on for the anniversary year.
2022 PRIORITIZED RESOURCES
In 2022, CPI paused its nominations for listing of new Endangered Places sites for the anniversary year in order to focus on five key sites for prioritized advocacy and technical assistance during the program’s 25th Anniversary. These sites reflect a concerted effort to move forward sites relating to BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) communities and history, as well as sites challenged by difficult rural economic circumstances. These sites include:
Dearfield Farming Colony (listed 1999), Iglesia de San Antonio/Tiffany Catholic Church (listed 2019), Southern Ute Boarding School Campus (listed 2020), Stranges Grocery (listed 2001), and Union Pacific Pumphouse (listed 2005).
THE DEARFIELD FARMING COLONY in rural Weld County is one of the most important early 20th century African American farming colonies that sought to provide opportunities, self-sufficiency and freedom to Black homesteading citizens migrating into the Western United States.
Dearfield was inspired in part by Booker T. Washington and founded by pioneering entrepreneur O.T. Jackson on the plains of eastern Colorado The colony thrived until climatic challenges and the ravages of the Great Depression led to its gradual demise Today only a handful of buildings remain at the site owned by the Black American West Museum, but the museum and its Greeley-based partners, the Dearfield Preservation Committee, have diligently fought to document, interpret and save the site and several recent developments bode well for its future. In 2021, Dearfield received a $498,000 National Park Service (NPS) African American Civil Rights Program grant, to be administered by the University of Northern Colorado Recent legislation was also introduced by Senator Michael Bennett and Representative Joe Neguse to study the possibility of designation as a National Historic Site. In 2021, Colorado’s Joint Legislative Capital Development Committee visited Dearfield to set the stage for a possible legislative appropriation in 2022.
CPI has supported all of these efforts, as well as recent State Historical Fund grants made to the site and looks forward to working with project partners to continue this important progress in 2022
IGLESIA DE SAN ANTONIO/TIFFANY CATHOLIC CHURCH, located along the old Denver & Rio Grande Railroad line in far southern La Plata County, represents the early Hispano settlement of the riverine valleys in the area.
Constructed in 1928, the tiny church was lovingly built by local labor utilizing adobe and stucco materials that have badly deteriorated over time. However, the building has high historic integrity, including its beautiful interior, and is still used during an annual pilgrimage and mass each year in June CPI helped facilitate the development of detailed construction drawings and recommendations for foundation and wall stabilization, funded in part by a State Historical Fund grant, and will work with local site caretakers and stewards to build partnerships and raise matching funds for a full rehabilitation of the building over the coming years
THE SOUTHERN UTE BOARDING SCHOOL CAMPUS (SUBSC), located in Ignacio on the Southern Ute Reservation in far southwestern Colorado, epitomizes the difficult reckoning going on nationally about the dark and traumatic board school era when indigenous children were taken from their families and forcibly assimilated into Anglo-European culture.
same time, the mostly intact campus of buildings provides opportunities for adaptive re-use while also enabling tribal to tell their own story of perseverance and selfdetermination in the face of genocidal policies adopted by the States government. The Southern Ute Tribal Council has tribal members and received positive feedback and preservation efforts and has carried out Brownfields environmental assessments in the Head Start School and Gymnasium and Dining Hall.
was completed by May & Burch Conservation, Inc. to options for preservation of the culturally significant murals in these buildings, which were completed by tribal Sam Ray in the 1930s. CPI will work with the Southern Ute to support these efforts in 2022.
STRANGES GROCERY in Grand Junction helps to tell story of a once thriving, multi-block Italian American community that existed on the southern edge downtown near the railroad depot. Today, the early 20th century building is all that remains of Grand Junction’s “Little Italy.” Listed in 2001, it has recently been purchased by a new owner who plans to carry out a preservation sensitive adaptive re-use project in area that is experiencing rapid new development. Plans include retail and office uses and rehabilitation of beautiful stonework completed by Italian stonemasons in 1909 CPI plans to support these efforts, as well help with mitigation of the impacts of a CDOT highway widening project in front of both the depot and former
UNION PACIFIC PUMPHOUSE in Kit Carson, Colorado was listed on EPP in 2005 but has remained in limbo due to liability concerns by Union Pacific Railroad and lack of funding for rehabilitation The late- 1870s Pumphouse supplied water for steam engines and today stands as Colorado’s only surviving stone railroad pumphouse. The building was closed when UP discontinued the use of steam engines through Kit Carson in 1956. The Pumphouse donated to the Kit Carson Historical Society by UP, but railroad still maintains ownership of the land and is concerned by the building’s proximity to the railroad tracks. CPI will work with UP, Kit Carson Chamber of Commerce, Kit Carson Rural Development, and the Kit Carson Historical Society to determine how these obstacles be overcome and preservation of the historically significant Pumphouse can move forward in 2022.
Nine gold dredge boats operated in the Breckenridge area, scouring the gulches and river valleys for every last bit of gold The Reiling, one of these floating, self-contained gold mine and processing plants, started operating in 1908 and churned out record profits in a short time. Each of the Reiling’s 86 buckets could scoop up five cubic yards of gravel from the streambed Once on board, the gravel flowed through separation screens, mercury-lined sluices and other equipment that recovered the gold. The Reiling sank in its selfmade pond in 1922
Added to the Endangered Places list in 2015, the deteriorated dredge in situ where it met its demise nearly a century prior - consisted of the superstructure and a mostly intact hull. A series of data gathering projects, including underwater documentation and a hydrology study, led to a Preservation Master Plan. With the support of the Town of Breckenridge, Summit County Government and the State Historical Fund, the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance took on the unusual task of preserving a semi-submerged structure at 10,000 feet.
Porter & Associates led the project, with support from Anthony & Associates, Form + Works Design Group, Atkinson Noland & Associates and a hard working volunteer crew. The project consisted of repairs to the dredge deck, bracing the standing superstructure columns, re-erecting portions of the framing between port and starboard sides and installation of borate preservatives All materials came in via helicopter and the pond level was lowered by approximately three feet for the duration of the project.
When Denver Tramway Company Streetcar .04 ended its last run on June 3, 1950, the once glorious era of Denver’s streetcar system ended Streetcar 04 was the last streetcar to operate in revenue service and is the only surviving converted narrow gauge car from a system that once included over 160 miles of track and 250 streetcars. Today it has been beautifully restored, from a near ruinous state that landed it on Colorado’s Most Endangered Places in 2015, through a partnership including the City of Arvada, State Historical Fund, Arvada Urban Renewal Authority, and the Friends of the .04 Trolley.
A meticulous rehabilitation project was carried out by Michael Pannell, Wasatch Railroad Contractors, and Kevin Murray of Empire Carpentry, with the guidance of architect Gerhard Petri and Anne McCleave of the State Historical Fund. The groundwork for the project was laid by Stephen Padilla of the City of Arvada who secured grant funding to get the project going But none of this would have happened without the dogged determination of Wally and Susie Weart who saved the .04 by purchasing it from the Forney Museum of Denver back in the late 1990s. Help was also provided along the way by the Denver Rail Heritage Society, operators of the Denver Trolley
The Friends of the .04 Trolley played a huge role in acquiring information about the history of the trolley and secured important artifacts from the original streetcar used in the restoration The Denver Tramway Streetcar 04 will now be on display in Olde Town Arvada based on plans developed by Britina Design Group and the Arvada Parks & Urban Design Division, with site construction to commence in spring 2022 along Grandview Avenue, where travelers on RTD’s Gold Line commuter rail will pass by, much as commuters did in the first half of the 20th century.
Community Involvement
The EPP receives significant support from History Colorado’s State Historical Fund, which has awarded grant funding for the program since the program’s beginning. Since 2017, CPI has received sponsorship of the program from Alpine Bank whose community commitment is demonstrated through sponsorship of EPP Weekend Workshops. Critical support of these funders and many others ensures the continuation of the EPP into the future.
The Endangered Places Program is paid for in part by a History Colorado State Historical Fund grant.
Preservation Services
Highlighted 2022 Projects Include:
Granite Hotel & Stage Stop (Lake County)
Historically known as the Commercial Hotel, the Granite Hotel & Stage Stop first operated as a stage stop during the 1860s and 1870s on a stage road between Cañon City and Leadville on the Barlow & Sanderson Line. By 1881, an additional wing was added, which became the the Commercial Hotel providing lodging and meals for commercial travelers and tourists It functioned as a hotel until about 1911. We received a mini-grant in 2022 to produce construction documents for the interior of the hotel wing We received a general grant in 2023 to do site work to address grading, rehabilitate the foundation, floor and roof framing, and exterior walls, and remove a structurally unsound lean-to shed addition The owners, Huckleberry River Ranch, LLC are committed to specifically marketing this BIPOCowned resource to urban BIPOC communities and partnering with organizations that serve them Colorado Preservation, Inc. offers critical preservation services to non-profit and public entities and private property owners in Colorado. Services include project planning and development, grant writing and management, and National and/or State Register nomination assistance CPI works to match projects with funding sources such as: History Colorado’s State Historical Fund, the National Park Service, the Gates Family Foundation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the Colorado Department of Transportation.
Saguache Hotel (Saguache County)
Beginning in 2019, CPI has supported the new private owner of the Saguache Hotel, an anchor building in downtown Saguache, by serving as grant manager and fiscal sponsor for State Historical Fund (SHF) grants to restore the building. In 2021, the restoration of the roof was completed by Deep Roots Craftsmen and Conklin Roofing, with architect Scheuber+Darden. A second successful SHF grant application was secured restore the building’s windows, doors, and porch. A new grant was awarded for masonry work in the October 2022 SHF grant round. The owner, Andy Hackbarth, envisions the building being a cultural and entertainment hub and hotel with housing in a region (San Luis valley) that is attracting visitors and new residents. The restoration of the Saguache Hotel will spur revitalization and preservation efforts along the 4th street commercial area and the Saguache Downtown National Historic District.
Project Updates
Briggsdale (Weld County)
The New Deal Era Land Utilization Project Headquarters located near Briggsdale, is a USFS partnership project. Following the Dust Bowl, the Headquarters was a demonstration site for soil conservation techniques aimed at alleviating rural poverty and restoring the economic vitality of the agricultural industry. Set within a homestead parcel from the 1920s, the site is listed on the National Register (1936-1941 period of significance) and consists of four historic buildings (house, shop/warehouse, garage, & root cellar)
In 2021, CPI worked with the USFS and Form+Works Design Group to develop construction documents for the Main House. That work is complete and a grant for construction was awarded in early 2023 With funds matched through the Great American Outdoors Act, the USFS aims to rehabilitate the interior and exterior of the building as a recreational rental and venue for historic interpretation of the area.
Lafayette Head Home/Ute Indian Agency (Conejos County).
Built in 1885 and listed as an Endangered Place in 2021, the Lafayette Head Home/Ute Indian Agency was integral to the founding and early history of Colorado An early settler to the San Luis Valley, Head was appointed as Special Agent to the Ute and Jicarilla Apache tribes in 1859, serving for 9 years His home in Conejos was the agency headquarters. It was a weigh station for the enslavement of Native American women and children. Architect Ronald Rael now owns the property and is dedicated to preserving the building and tell the history of the site as a cultural resource. He is a descendant of the families who accompanied Head to the Valley and has strong ties to the area. We received a grant in early 2023 to complete an archaeological survey of the property. We are applying for a planning grant to nominate it to the National Register.
Project Updates
San Luis State Bank (Costilla County)
Built in 1892, the San Luis State Bank was the economic nerve center for farmers, ranchers, local business people, and everyday folks in the San Luis Valley. The bank folded during the depression and the building was a dry goods store and had other uses until the 1980s when it was abandoned. It is in a prominent location on Main Street. Ronda Lobato and her daughters, incorporated as Lupine Luna, LLC plan to transform the distressed building into affordable housing, a speakeasy, and a drop-in center for local youth. We were awarded a mini-grant in early 2023 to do as-built drawings, construction documents for critical elements, and structural stabilization. That work is nearing completion. We were awarded a general grant to do roof rehabilitation on the badly deteriorated south section of the building, materials testing, adobe investigations, and a set of comprehensive construction documents.
Iron Buildling (Lake County)
Built at the end of the Magic City period that marked Leadville’s silver boom, the Iron Building sits on the corner of Harrison Avenue and E. Sixth Street in Leadville. William Fearnley, a printer, commissioned Jones & Jones Construction and Martin Turpin & Saum Masonry to erect the building in 1893 as a residential and commercial center, functions it still serves today with five retail stores and eleven apartments. We received a mini-grant this year to produce construction documents with the aim of completely restoring the historic character of the building’s exterior As you can see from the photos, historic windows and storefronts have been covered over with painted plywood, some to obscure drop ceilings. We plan to apply for a general grant in April 2024 to do the work to rehabilitate all the windows and storefronts.
Preservation Projects
… Gallery & Activities
The Preservation Services Program supports CPI’s mission by working with non-profits, public and private owners to guide and inform historic preservation projects. We do this by providing technical direction, ideas, connections, coordination, and information for project planning, contracting, funding options and incentives, and exploring adaptive reuse possibilities. In addition to gratis project coaching, CPI’s Preservation Services Program specializes in four main areas of either grant-funded or fee for service assistance:
• Grant writing for historic preservation projects
• Grants administration to ensure that deliverables and financial obligations are met
• Project management where CPI remains involved for the duration of the project
*Projects are selected based on a number of criteria, including involvement with the Endangered Places Program.
Pantall/Stevens School
Sioux Cabin at Arrowhead
… Active List
Anheuser-Busch Building Lake County
Arrowhead Lodge & Cabins Larimer County
Briggsdale Main House Weld County
Fox Theater-–Huerfano County
Garcia Ranch Potato Barn Conejos County
Granite Hotel & Stage Stop Chaffee County
Green Garage Hinsdale County
Huerfano County Courthouse Huerfano County
International Archaeology Day
Iron Building Lake County
JG Evans Barn El Paso County
Kropf Mercantile Crowley County
Lafayette Head Home/Ute Indian Agency Conejos County
Our Lady of Guadalupe Church Las Animas County
Saguache Hotel Saguache County
San Luis State Bank Costilla County
Pantall/Stevens School Logan County
Temple Aaron Las Animas County
Well Hotel & Taproom/Bloom Block Las Animas County
Preservation Easements
CPI holds five easements on historic properties throughout Colorado. Easement inspections are scheduled annually, and improvements requested as necessary.
Windsor Hotel, Del Norte
Rehder Block, Steamboat Springs Shenandoah Dives Mill, San Juan County
Hugo Roundhouse, Hugo
Temple Aaron, Trinidad
2022 Supporters
$10,000 and Above
Alpine Bank
Bob Musgraves and Joan Prusse
HistoriCorps
History Colorado's State Historical Fund
National Park Service
White Construction Group
Moye White LLP
Palace Construction
RATIO Design
Reichert, Marianne
Robin Theobald Family
Sangre De Cristo National
Heritage Area
Donald Woods
Hoehn Architects PC
James Hewat and Thuy Thi Doe
Ken Urbanek
Lisa and Tom Evans
Margaret A. Frank Fund at The Chicago Community Foundation
