On Oct. 3, during the First Friday festivities, the Town of Carbondale and its Historic Preservation Commission will answer questions regarding updates, still in the works, to its historic preservation design guidelines for properties within the Old Town Residential (OTR) zone. Additionally, the commission will share a booth with the Carbondale Historical Society at this year’s Potato Day celebration on Oct. 4.
“We’re really hoping that by the time both those meetings happen, we will have some more tangible things to digest and to provide feedback on, not just concepts,” Jared Barnes, the Town’s planning director, told The Sopris Sun.
The project aims to preserve the historic nature of these residential blocks and encourage consistency when new development occurs. The OTR stretches from South 8th Street, between Euclid Avenue and Glassier Drive, to South 2nd street, between Sopris and Garfield Avenue.
“The ultimate goal of the project, I think, is to adopt a new set of design guidelines that would be applicable to this OTR zone district that could help inform architects, property owners and developers of how to design the kind of buildings that are compatible,” said Banes. “Some of the elements that the [commission] has been looking at are things like the siting of buildings on a property [and] massing of buildings.”
The idea for the updates, and the subsequent conversation around them, surfaced in 2022, when the Town amended its Comprehensive Plan. In March 2024, the Town received a grant to update the guidelines and later put out a request for proposals for consulting services. The Town retained the help of Reid Architects, which has helped outline changes to the guidelines through work sessions and a site visit with the commission.
On July 15, the commission hosted an open house for private-property owners within the OTR and gathered input from those residents.
According to the Town’s August newsletter, “Feedback from this meeting generally supported the idea of a mandatory, albeit non-binding, courtesy review for projects while retaining the neighborhood’s creative and unique atmosphere.” The newsletter continued, “Other comments encouraged … right-size scale and massing to maintain the feel of the neighborhood, without being overly restrictive on materials and architectural style, and to consider relaxing the district’s zoning codes to allow a greater variety of accessory dwelling units.”
“The feedback from the community was largely supportive of the efforts. Many of the questions centered on the processes for their property,” added Barnes. “For example, some folks asked: ‘What’s the process that I’m going to have to go through if I want to do an addition, make a change to my house, or, if I sell my house, what’s a future property owner going to have to go through?’”
According to the Carbondale Connect website, a host page for Town projects, drafts of the design guidelines and the proposed code amendments are due by Sept. 15, but the final design guidelines aren’t due until April 1, 2026.
Barnes said he anticipates hearing more from the community during the upcoming meeting opportunities, and is grateful for the opportunity to grow understanding.
“Probably the biggest question is more related to a lack of understanding as to what this project is and how it may or may not affect somebody’s property,” he concluded.
For more information and to engage in the conversation, visit carbondaleconnect.org