Heritage office seeks Indigenous Commission input on mitigation for planned demolition of 19 West Birch building

Lauren Clementino, heritage preservation officer for the City of Flagstaff, asked the Indigenous Commission on Aug. 7 to advise on interpretive mitigation for the proposed demolition of the building at 19 West Birch Avenue, a malapai‑stone structure that formerly housed city departments including city court, police and fire. The Heritage Preservation Commission approved a Phase 1 cultural resource study and tasked the Indigenous Commission to help identify mitigation that would preserve and interpret the site’s association with Native American civil-rights-era events. The Phase 1 study, prepared by Cornerstone Environmental for the property owner, found the building significant in part because of its connection to an arrest of seven members of the American Indian Movement at a 1972 powwow and to later investigations and court actions that exposed shortcomings in local policing and court practice. Clementino summarized the kinds of mitigation the Heritage Preservation Commission has considered: a Phase 2 record (measured drawings and archival photography), public access to the report through libraries and the city website, interpretive signage or a plaque (potentially with a QR code linking to expanded materials), an interpretive booklet, or on-site or off-site displays. She said the building is not yet approved for demolition; developer plans include a proposed Graduate Hotel (a Hilton-affiliated brand) and the project will require additional design and heritage-review approvals. Why this matters: the study ties the downtown building to a local civil‑rights history that commissioners and community members described as important to preserve in some form if the structure cannot be saved. Commissioners asked for further detail and voted to invite Cornerstone Environmental to present its full report and research to the Indigenous Commission at a future meeting. Clementino said Cornerstone is preparing a Phase 2 report with measured drawings and archival photography and that staff will seek to coordinate with Parks if the commission prefers interpretive materials at Thorpe Park, the powwow site referenced in the report. Clementino also outlined review steps: the Heritage Preservation Commission will later review a certificate of appropriateness for demolition and the new design; if demolition is denied the developer could then apply for a certificate of economic hardship, which could trigger a one‑year stay during which the owner would attempt to sell the property. Clementino cautioned commissioners that listing on the National Register does not itself prevent demolition and suggested that public repositories (the Flagstaff Public Library and NAU’s Cline Library were mentioned) could hold the report and any interpretive materials. Commissioners suggested interpretive murals and collages, QR-linked oral histories, and a short documentary as possibilities for mitigation. The commission agreed to schedule a presentation by Cornerstone and to consider additional mitigation recommendations at a subsequent meeting.