Boulder City Council majority expresses support for Marpa House redevelopment

May 5—Despite significant pushback from University Hill residents, Boulder City Council on Tuesday largely indicated support for the proposal to turn the historic Marpa House into individual apartments.

However, its support was contingent on several new conditions, including lengthier quiet hours and a single address for code enforcement, meant to ensure University Hill residents are protected from the disruption many fear will happen when the building that had been used for group living is redeveloped into 16 three-bedroom apartments. The additional conditions proposed by the Council on Tuesday will supplement those implemented by Boulder's Planning Board when it approved the site review application in February.

While most were supportive of the conditions, Councilmembers Mark Wallach and Mirabai Nagle expressed outright opposition.

"When we've had two years of working on this and the neighbors (are) this upset, to me it sounds like there (are) problems beyond what's being shown here," Nagle said.

Boulder City Council will make a final decision on May 18 when the non-conforming use review is officially up for approval on the consent agenda.

University Hill residents who spoke during Tuesday's public hearing worried about an influx of students at the site and feared the project would change the character of their neighborhood. Many referenced the March 6 riot in which an estimated 500 to 800 college-age individuals gathered near Pennsylvania Avenue and 10th Street in a large outdoor party that became destructive, with people flipping a car and damaging other vehicles and property.

Daniel Haarburger detailed how frightening that event was for those in the area and said University Hill residents have a right to be concerned.

"When things get out of control and there are too many students and not enough people to counterbalance that, it can be pretty disruptive," he said in public comment on Tuesday.

CU Boulder graduate student Alexia Parkos expressed similar thoughts. While Boulder needs housing, converting the historic Marpa House into housing for 48 students would exacerbate the problems on the Hill, she said.

Still, while the hearing largely began and ended with those in opposition, the tone did shift a bit in the middle with more than 10 people in a row sharing their support.

One such supporter was Zach Genn, a CU Boulder student who lives on the Hill. He noted that the divide in Boulder between wealthier homeowners and lower-income residents and students feels larger than ever.

"Like it or not, Boulder is a college town," Genn said. "The students are the ones supporting your small businesses, working for your stores and companies and keeping the economy of Boulder afloat."

The building, at 891 12th St., was built in 1923 to serve as a fraternity house. While the site is currently zoned low-density residential, its use as a fraternity house predated the zoning, according to City Attorney Tom Carr.

In 1973, the building was taken over and converted to housing for members of the Shambhala community. However, according to earlier reporting by the Camera, the group sold the Marpa House in 2019 when faced with a financial crisis amid the fallout of a sexual misconduct scandal involving Shambhala members.

A group of investors led by developer John Kirkland purchased the space for just under $5 million, and the house was granted historical landmark status the following year.

The space has long operated as a non-conforming use since it's been a fraternity house and a boarding house, Boulder's Senior Planner Sloane Walbert said Tuesday. The applicant is looking to expand that non-conforming use by reconfiguring the interior of the site to allow for 16 units with a maximum of 48 occupants, or three per unit. The team intends to restore the building and maintain its historic nature.

The apartments, which are to be called the Ash House, would be the fifth property on the Hill operated by this particular development team.

Councilmembers Wallach and Adam Swetlik both raised concerns that the space would be far too costly for families, CU Boulder faculty or other low-income Boulder residents. However, project consultant Rob O'Dea said he was not prepared to speculate about the cost to rent units in the Ash House.

Boulder's Planning Board outlined a number of conditions of approval, including reduced on-street parking, on-site management, quiet hours, a good neighbor agreement and a marketing plan that must be approved by the city manager before the team can apply for a building permit — that particular condition is one O'Dea said he has never seen the city require.

The Planning Board set quiet hours during which noise is limited to normal conversational speech. The City Council ultimately opted to extend those hours from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. daily. Councilmember Aaron Brockett and Mayor Pro Tem Junie Joseph raised concerns about this, primarily the stipulation that limits noise to normal conversational speech.

"That's really very significantly more restrictive than the overall city code," Brockett said.