Aspen's Armory Hall

City staff and consultants in the summer and fall of 2023 conducted a “test fit,” which is part of concept planning to determine how much square footage is necessary for different types of uses.

Concepts and floor plans were presented at an open house held at the Armory on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023. Over 200 people gathered in the space, formerly known as City Hall, to review preliminary concepts, ask questions of the design team, and provide input.

The project’s current direction is based on extensive public outreach and community engagement, which included two online questionnaires, an open house, two focus group meetings and surveys. Staff heard overwhelmingly that the community needs a place to gather, that the Armory should be the heart of town, a community living room with the ability to eat, experience entertainment, shop or just hang out.

A design contract with CCY Architects was approved in March 2024. Based upon public engagement results, floor plans have been developed, consultations with regulators have occurred, and an initial operational budget based on the proposed programming is in place.

Public Engagement:

The City recognizes the importance of community use as an element of future programming and remodel options.

In 2015, the city initiated an advisory ballot question to gauge the electorate’s preference for the Armory site as a future community use or city offices; the community use narrowly passed. Once again in 2018, the election cycle included a ballot question presenting two locations for a new city hall; the results confirmed a preference for the Rio Grande/Galena Plaza site with a 57 to 43 percent margin.

Looking to the past to shape the future

For many decades, the Armory served as Aspen’s City Hall, though many departments recently relocated to the new city hall facility at 427 Rio Grande Place. The facility currently houses the utility billing and IT departments. As the City of Aspen organization prepares for the next phase of the Armory’s history, we are engaged in community discussions about the future possibilities for the building’s programming use and remodel options, as well as the strategies necessary to achieve proposed goals.

Timeline:
July 31, 2024: Open House at the Armory
August 19, 2024: City Council Work Session for the team to present on design concepts.

January 13, 2025: Council Work Session to discuss key features of the draft land use application and to receive directions on several topics to enable finalization of the application.

February 25, 2025: City Council Meeting presenting resolution that identifies the high-level direction conveyed at the prior work session.

April 2025: Anticipated land use review before the Historic Preservation Commission.

May 2025: Anticipated land use review before City Council.

It is anticipated that construction will start in 2026.