Congress Park Historic Speakers Series 2008

The seventh season of Congress Park Neighbors Historic Speakers series begins in May.  The series is presented by the CPN Historic Preservation and Education Committee.  Lectures run May through October, with a lecture given the last Wednesday of each month.  The lectures are held at Heitler Hall, National Jewish Hospital, at 7 PM, unless otherwise stated.  Lectures are free and open to the public.  Parking is available in the lot on Jackson Street.  Note the date, location, and time change for the October talk.

Lecture topics are chosen to help the owners of old houses in the area learn how to better care for their fine “antique” homes and appreciate the history and architectural style of these homes.  If you have questions or would like to help, please contact Carolyn Van Sciver at 303-377-4913 or cvansciver@earthlink.net.  We always need people to help flyer their block.

                                               The 2008 schedule includes:

May 28, 2008.  Choosing Paint Colors for your Historic house.  Megan Schlegel, the Color People, will guide you through the process of choosing a color scheme for your historic house.  Her presentation, using photos of “the good, the bad, and the ugly” demonstrates how to avoid poor color choices for your home.  Megan encourages attendees to bring a picture of their house to discuss possible solutions to their color dilemmas.

June 25, 2008.  Economics, the Environment, and Your Old House.  With all the talk of sustainable building, embodied energy, and “green” architecture, most of us are totally confused.   Melanie Short, SlaterPaull Architects, will explain what these terms mean, using data and hard numbers, and how it applies to the home owner.  Learn how much energy was built into your house and how much it would take to replace it.  The numbers are amazing!

July 30, 2008.   Historically Sensitive Renovations in Congress Park.  A panel of Congress Park residents will tell how they renovated their historic homes and show pictures of the projects.  Michael Koch proves that you can successfully complete a major remodel in a historic District.  Dave and Alicia Gillis’s Victorian was once a notorious half way house.  Hear their stories and be inspired.

August 27, 2008.    Period Details for Your Kitchen.  Steve Ciancio, The Crafted Home, will cover major aspects of kitchen design, including choosing antique and reproduction fixtures, tile choices, cabinetry options, and accessories - the importance of the details that make a difference.  If you are ready to renovate your kitchen, or still dreaming for the future, this is for you.

September 24, 2008.  Working With Historic Districts and Other Zoning Issues.  Congress Park neighborhood contains two registered historic districts.  How does an owner work with their historic district’s board and what can the board control when you want to make changes to your house?  Hear a panel of experts discuss these and other zoning issues and debate whether more historic districts are appropriate for the Congress Park neighborhood.  What are our options to best preserve the character of our neighborhood?

Tuesday, October 28, 2008, 6:30 PM.  Researching the History of Your Old House.  Join Bruce Hanson, from the Western History library, Denver Public Library Downtown, for this fun, hands on session.  Learn how to use the materials in the Western History Library to search out the history of your house.  Note the change of day, location, and time for this session.  This will be held at the main, downtown branch, of the library at 13^th and Broadway, on the 5^th floor.