Seventh Avenue Gazette
Newsletter of the Seventh Avenue Neighborhood Association
May 2009


WELCOME!

The Seventh Avenue Gazette is a quarterly publication of the Seventh Avenue Neighborhood Association (SANA). We publish this free newsletter in order to keep residents informed about issues and activities in what is one of Denver's greatest and most historic neighborhoods.

Information about the neighborhood is also available at the SANA website. Please feel free to forward this issue on to your neighbors using the "Forward email" link at the bottom of the page. Residents can also sign up via the web site to receive future editions.

If you have questions or comments about the newsletter, please email them to ahodges@cobank.com or tricia@triciapotucek.com.

Assessments: Up In A Down Market?

Like all homeowners across the city, Seventh Avenue residents recently received a letter from the Denver Assessment Division stating the newly assessed value of their properties.

Anyone expecting their assessed values to go down dramatically as a result of the economic downturn is likely to be disappointed. That's because new assessments were calculated based on sales of similar homes that occurred during the 18-month period between January 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008.

Still, if you disagree with the city's valuation of your property, you can file an appeal. However, under state statute, current market data cannot be considered in your 2009 appeal. In other words, the appeal must be based on market data from the 1/1/07-6/30/08 time frame.

The appeal deadline is June 1, 2009. You can file an appeal in a number of ways:

* By mail: Assessor's Office, Attn: Real Property Appeal, 201 W. Colfax Ave., Dept. 406, Denver, CO 80202.
* Online: Visit the Denver assessor's office web site here.
* In person: Call 720-913-4164 to arrange an appointment.

The Assessor will mail a decision regarding your appeal on or before August 31.

8th & Colorado Hotel Project On Hold

8th-Colorado
A 157-room hotel planned for the intersection of East 8th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard is currently on hold due to problems obtaining financing for the project.

Plans approved by the city last year called for a six-story extended-stay hotel on the southeast corner of the intersection, along with 6,000 square feet of neighborhood retail and parking. The hotel, proposed as a Marriott Residence Inn franchise, was initially supposed to open by the end of 2009.

But developer Todd Hager of Denver's Universal Development Company said recently that the economic downturn and related problems in the nation's credit markets have stalled the project.

"It's gotten and more difficult to get financing," he said. "Right now it's on hold."

Hager's company has been involved with a number of successful developments in the city, including the JW Marriott project in Cherry Creek North, the downtown Ritz-Carlton and the renovation of the historic Paramount Theatre.

The 8th and Colorado property was formerly occupied by a video store, apartment buildings and the landmark Annie's Café restaurant. In recent months it has been bulldozed and is now vacant. Annie's Café has since relocated to 3100 East Colfax Avenue.

Denver City Councilwoman Marcia Johnson, whose district includes the development site, said she's confident the site won't remain vacant for an extended period.

"I'm not overly concerned about it because it's such a dynamic corner," Johnson said.

8th Colorado vacant

The development site at the corner of East 8th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard is now a vacant lot.
Is Cheesman Park Going To The Dogs?

Is Cheesman Park going to the dogs?

A Message from Councilwoman Jeanne Robb

That question is clearly on the mind of many neighborhood residents, judging from the emails my office has been getting in recent months about dogs being allowed off-leash in Cheesman.

Public opinion is actually quite divided about this issue. My office continues to monitor every communication we receive, and I am committed to ensuring that the city has the right policies in place to make sure that our parks can be used and enjoyed by all residents.

Here are my responses to the most common questions we get about dogs in Cheesman:

Should people be ticketed for off-leash dogs?

Many district residents want more tickets and higher fines. Others argue that off-leash tickets should be a much lower priority than tickets for not picking up after dogs or for barking dogs. I don't support prioritizing our laws - enforcing some and not others. The city's Environmental Health department is considering increasing fines, particularly for second and third off-leash offenses. To learn more about these proposed changes, please click here.

Is there enough enforcement?

Animal Control and the Park Rangers are stepping up enforcement and giving more tickets. They have issued well over 100 citations in the park this year and will be continuing to enforce as much as possible. With all the calls for service in Capitol Hill, the police cannot devote enough resources to off-leash dogs to solve the problems, although they do ticket when they can.

What can be done about the deterioration of the turf in the park?

There is a large bare spot in the north meadow of Cheesman Park. Our Parks District Superintendent, Juan Marsh, informed me that his staff would be seeding parts of Cheesman this spring. They have fenced off the area in the north meadow and they will place signs in many of the newly seeded areas requesting park users to recreate in other areas of the park.

Could an off-leash dog area be added at Cheesman? Could there be off-leash hours for dogs at the park?

About six years ago the Parks and Recreation Department conducted a dog off-leash pilot program. The department concluded at that time that Cheesman would not have off-leash dog hours or an off-leash dog area.

The Department is now embarking on a Dog Park Master Plan. If you have not yet taken their survey or read about their plan, please click here. I will not prejudge the outcome of that public process by taking a position at this time. I have been looking for a good, alternative off-leash area in District 10 for six years to no avail, but I'm not giving up hope on that front. In the meantime, I remain an advocate for Cheesman Park as a well-maintained, clean, safe and beautiful park.

Pipeline Project Will Impact Neighborhood Through June

Traffic and parking in and around parts of the Seventh Avenue neighborhood will be impacted for through June by an Xcel Energy construction project that began this spring.

The utility is replacing old gas pipelines along East 14th Avenue between Harrison and Milwaukee streets. Related work is also occurring on the following streets:

-- Harrison between 13th Avenue and 14th Avenue;
-- Madison between 14th Avenue and 17th Avenue;
-- Cook between 14th Avenue and 8th Avenue;
-- 10th Avenue between Adams and Jackson.

Construction work started in early April. Completion is expected in the fourth week of June, though bad weather could cause delays during the project. The general hours of construction are 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Traffic control devices and "NO PARKING" signs will be placed on streets before work starts. By law, "NO PARKING" signs must be set out two working days before construction starts. If vehicles are still parked in the no parking area 24 hours prior to construction, they will be towed by the Denver Police Department.

Xcel has contracted with K.R. Swerdfeger Construction to manage the project. Project Coordinator Chris Price promises that care will be taken to remove and replace any landscaping, concrete or asphalt that is disturbed during work on private property.

"Because we are replacing an entire section of gas pipeline, we will make temporary repairs to streets and sidewalks until the new pipeline is pressure tested and all natural gas service is transferred from the old pipe," Price says. "Then permanent sidewalk, street and other permanent repairs will be made."

The project is part of a broader Xcel program to replace more than 100 miles of aging gas pipelines in Denver over the next three to five years. Xcel says the pipeline in Denver needs to be replaced because most of it was installed in the early 1900s and has exceeded its useful life. By installing new pipe, Xcel Energy will increase the reliability of gas service and meet the future demands of new and larger customers.

Seventh Avenue neighborhood residents can follow the progress of this project online here. Anyone with questions, comments or concerns about the project can send them to infocolorado@xcelenergy.com.

City May Lift Parking Restrictions in Areas Around University Hospital Campus

Following University Hospital's move from its East 9th Avenue campus, the Denver Public Works Department has proposed removing parking restrictions currently in place in the Seventh Avenue and Congress Park neighborhoods.

The recommendation is to remove the posted time limits from all blocks except those along East 8th Avenue; East 12th Avenue between Cook and Garfield streets; and the area around Teller Elementary School.

For more information about the proposal, including a map of the area showing current restrictions, click here. If you have comments or questions about the proposal, you can submit them to the city here.

Board of Directors
Here is a list of the SANA's 2009 Board of Directors, along with their titles and committee assignments. Click their names to email them directly with questions or comments.

Jim Jehn (President) ........................... Email at jimmaryhome@comcast.net.
Dan Braun (Treasurer) ........................ Email at danbraun@aol.com.
Bruce DeCameron (Landscaping) ......... Email at bdecameron@aol.com.
Deb Golanty (Crime Prevention) ........... Email at golanty@qwest.net.
Jim Hannifin (Zoning and Land Use) ..... Email at jimhannifin@msn.net.
Cathey Hansen (Communications) ........ Email at email@catheyhansen.com
Arthur Hodges (Communications) .......... Email at ahodges@cobank.com.
Erica Jorgensen (Secretary) ................... Email at ericajorg@msn.com.
Alex Orkow (Director) ........................... Email at alexorkow@gmail.com.
Tricia Potucek (Communications) .......... Email at tricia@triciapotucek.com.
Svein Reichborn-Kjennerud (Traffic) ....... Email at sveinrk@aol.com.

SANA Association Dues
If you haven't done so already, please send your membership dues to SANA for 2009.
Dues are $10 for households and $25 for businesses.
Please make your check payable to SANA and send it to:

SANA
P.O. Box 61201
Denver, CO 80206

Thanks!