Developers May Preserve Little Annie's and Benton Building, ADN

The developers will be entering the “Aspen Modern” process developed for preserving post-war buildings. The process is a negotiation where the city may grant concessions in exchange for preservation.The new plan would preserve the existing buildings while developing the lot on the corner in a fashion similar to the original proposal, Bendon said. A formal application detailing a new design has not yet been submitted, but a preliminary meeting on the plans is set before the city’s Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) on Dec. 7.

ASPEN REAL ESTATE - The developers behind the plan to tear down Little Annie’s and the Benton building have had a change of heart, and are now proposing to save the downtown Aspen structures. At Monday’s Aspen City Council meeting, Community Development Director Chris Bendon announced that city staff and Nikos Hecht, the managing partner of the Aspen Core Ventures, LLC development group, have had a “couple of positive meetings,” and that Hecht would voluntarily pursue historic designation of the two 1960s-era buildings. Aspen Core Ventures in August submitted a plan for a 31,000-square-foot mixed-use project for three lots along Hyman Avenue that would replace the two buildings and a vacant parking lot at the corner of Hyman and Hunter Street.
By Curtis Wackerle, November 15, 2011 ADN

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See also, "Community Sentiment Pushes Developers Preservation Consideration",  November 16, 11 ADN

Courtesy of www.LittleAnnies.com