Landmarks Board Approval!

We received approval from the Landmarks Board yesterday to make the alterations to our exterior, thus paving the way for us to get our permits from the city for our construction. What we received today was a signed Landmarks Alteration Certificate (LAC), which is required if you are in a designated historic area and want to make any changes to the exterior of your dwelling. Fortunately, our changes to the exterior are quite minor and my team (builder Joel Smiley and architect Lisa Egger) are very experienced with the process and our meeting with the two board representatives was smooth. I also learned from one of the board members during our meeting that we may qualify for a substantial Colorado state tax deduction under the Colorado State Incentive Tax Credit for Historic Preservation. It can award you up to $50,000 in state tax credit if your project is approved. I am going to get on this right away, although I also learned that if the state is in a financial crisis (it is), the tax credit can be suspended until the state is fiscally healthy.

On the construction side, we discovered white hexagon shaped tiles underneath the vinyl flooring in part of the kitchen and adjacent powder room. It was so exciting to see the original tiles and the original bathroom footprint, which is double the size than we first thought. Seeing this tile floor helps us recreate the spaces that were original to the house and helps us understand how the occupants lived. We now have conclusive evidence of where the bathroom began and ended, and it makes sense that it was a much more gracious space than the awkward powder room that we originally found. We probably will not be able to save the tiles, and the bathroom is moving to another location anyway, but it may help inform tile choices down the road. Hex tiles are one of my favorite materials for bathrooms. Big or small, they are a classic material for period homes.