Commission recommends RDA grant for ADA upgrades at Saint Christopher's Episcopal Church

The Boulder City Historic Preservation Commission voted to recommend the City Council approve an RDA historic preservation grant for 812 Arizona Street, Saint Christopher's Episcopal Church, to fund interior ADA accessibility improvements and ADA doors on upper and lower entries.

Staff presented the application and told commissioners that Courtney Mooney’s review, included in the meeting packet, finds the proposed improvements meet the Secretary of the Interior’s standards for rehabilitation. A staff member clarified that the grant eligibility applies only to the chapel portion of the property, not to additional buildings on the site.

Commissioners asked whether the work would impede any future individual National Register nomination. Courtney Mooney, on the phone, said individual listing remains an option and the proposed work would not prevent a future application. Commissioners also noted the church previously received a preservation grant in 2020 for painting and carpet replacement.

A commissioner moved and a colleague seconded a recommendation to the City Council; the motion passed by voice vote. The commission’s action was a recommendation to the City Council rather than final approval.

After the vote, a church representative, Michael Engfer, thanked the commission and said he and his wife ‘‘absolutely love our community’’ and appreciated the commission’s support for the building’s historic character.

The commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to the City Council for final action; staff said the packet materials include the 2020 survey and other documentation supporting the finding that the project follows appropriate preservation standards.