The Denver City Council delayed a vote on a proposal for a contentious historic designation but not before another round of testy exchanges that have marked the debate over the property of an influential landscape architect.
For nearly a year, heirs of the S.R. DeBoer property in south Denver and the neighbors who live around it have been involved in a dispute over the preservation of several buildings.
Neighbors are proposing a historic district over the objections of DeBoer’s family, which has sought to sell the property to a developer.
But Monday night, council members learned that there may be a compromise in the works.
DeBoer’s family agreed to have one of the buildings designated as part of a historic district.
“While our family continues to object to designation of any of our properties, we understand the historical significance of our grandfather,” DeBoer’s grandchildren wrote in a letter to the council.
The plan was endorsed by Historic Denver’s Steve Turner, “in the spirit of compromise,” he said.
“If that comes to pass, we will consider this a preservation victory,” he added.
Neighbors who proposed the historic district asked for time to consider the latest proposal.
But even delaying a decision on the deal for a week brought out passionate comments.
“If there ever was a textbook definition or example of a hostile landmark designation, this is it,” said Councilman Charlie Brown, who suggested a delay could thwart the deal.
But Councilwoman Kathleen MacKenzie was in the majority when she said a week-long delay “does not seem extreme.”
“It seems to me very reasonable to hold it for one week to give the applicants … a chance to absorb this very recent information,” she said.
The council will take its first vote on the issue Monday.
Staff writer George Merritt can be reached at 303-954-1657 or gmerritt@denverpost.com.
