Council to Decide What's Next for Historic Home

With , the City Council is set in January to talk about what's next for the nearly 89-year-old building. 

The Williams/Swanner House is part of the , bought by the city in 1991. When the council last discussed the property almost two years ago, city staff recommended it ultimately be converted into an event venue that could host weddings.

The idea sparked controversy among private-venue operators who didn’t want the competition.

“Maybe it’s the nose of a chef, but something smells fishy,” wrote John Q. Humphreys, owner of and The Villa, a private wedding-event venue in a letter to the council in January 2010

Humphreys had just opened the Villa, also a historic home-turned-wedding venue, only a mile down the road from the Williams/Swanner House after years of red tape and near bankruptcy.

Two other residents spoke against the idea at the time.

An event venue has the potential to generate higher revenues than a residential rental, states the January 2010 report. Most recently, the house rented for $2,300 a month, but staff believes it could clear $5,300 a month for events.

To prepare the house for the more intense use of public events, the city estimated at the time that it would need to invest a lot of money – though staff did not know exactly how much – to make the building handicapped-accessible, add bathrooms and possibly a commercial kitchen.

The council also discussed the property in 2009, after it spent about $46,000 in refurbishing it to prepare it for a residential rental. At the time, the council decided that a housing rental was not the optimal long-term use of the property.

The council members said historic buildings in town should be used to bring in revenue to the city and be available for public use.

The council will discuss the Wiliams/Swanner House at its Jan. 17 meeting, according to City Manager Karen Brust's latest weekly update.