6:30PM City Council meets tonight at City Council Chambers. They will hold a public hearing on the 2020 Operating Budget and Capital Improvement Plan.
City Staff will ask Council what they should do next regarding the Astor House. Here’s a refresher course on the building’s history. It was built to serve as a hotel in 1867–nine years before Colorado became a state. It served as a hotel or boarding house until 1972. At that time, the city bought the building with the intention to demolish it, to turn it into a parking lot. Citizens resisted this plan and voted to preserve the building. The Golden Landmarks Association worked for decades to preserve and manage the building, and many old Golden families donated their antiques to furnish it. The City took over managing the Astor House Museum a few years ago. They closed the museum for some necessary structural work, and while it was closed, they sold the furnishings and knocked out the interior walls. Now the building is unusable for any purpose.
Earlier this year, the City went through a behind-the-scenes process of trying to sell the building to a private party. That approach was met with considerable animus from preservationists, history-lovers, the Historic Preservation Board, and the citizenry in general. Staff is now asking City Council whether they should continue trying to negotiate a sale; solicit proposals from non-profit organizations; or just let the building sit for two more months until the newly-elected Council is in place.
Several new factors have come in place since the earlier attempt to sell off the building. The Historic Preservation Board has reminded the City of their role in this decision. The Golden Civic Foundation has indicated their willingness to invest in the building, provided that it stays in the public domain. The Golden Urban Renewal Authority is offering to put a sizeable amount of money into finishing the building to make it usable again. And a coalition of interested groups has formed to organize public outreach, to see what the citizens of Golden want to do with the Astor House. See the meeting packet to learn more about tonight’s topics.
Other Thursday Events:
11:15AM Wee Create at the Library
12:00PM Golden Chamber’s Lunch & Learn: Demystifying CBD with Ambary Gardens
2:30PM Learn about Google Docs at the Library
3:00PM The War on Salt at Natural Grocers
5:00PM Family Game Night at On Tap Credit Union
5:00PM Bring Your Own Beer Home Party at Natural Grocers
5:30PM Drop In Tech Help at the Library
5:30PM Shelton Elementary School Kindergarten Open House
6:15PM Cooking Class – Classics go Vegetarian at Earth Sweet Botanicals
6:30PM City Council Regular Business Meeting
7:00PM Dinosaur Ridge After Dark: Bones & Brushes Painting Dinosaurs
7:00PM Golden Voices Concert at the Hillside Church
7:30PM The Trivia Factory at Smiley’s
Thursday Music:
5PM Pete Weber at Over Yonder Brewing
6PM Jenny Shawn at Buffalo Rose
6PM Dave Frisk at Dirty Dog Roadhouse
6PM Music by the Mesa – The Acoustic Mining Company at New Terrain Brewing Company
7PM Howard Dlugasch at Mountain Toad Brewing
7:30PM Dave Booker at Golden Moon Speakeasy
8PM Karaoke at Rock Rest Lodge
9PM Karaoke at Ace-Hi Tavern
