PORT ANGELES — The building obviously has seen better days.
Its insides are gutted, and rust and blotches of faded paint and metal have become as much of an accent to its facade as the art deco features that makes the 1930s-era structure so unique.
Exactly what shape the building at 215 S. Lincoln St. — the city’s former fire hall, council chambers and jail — is in and how much it may cost to repair it may soon be known.
The Port Angeles City Council has agreed to spend $25,000 on a study that would provide an estimate on how much it would cost to put the building — the centerpiece of a proposed historical district — back into use.
Along with being a historical landmark, the building has been eyed as the new location of the veterans center.
Next week, the Clallam County commissioners will consider throwing in another $15,000 for the study, which is expected to take about two months.
Dissension
Approval of the study at the council’s Tuesday meeting wasn’t unanimous. Mayor Dan Di Guilio, citing concerns that the price tag is too much, was the lone dissenting vote.
“I felt it was way too much money,” he said Wednesday.
“We have other priorities at this point,” Di Guilio added.
“I understand the logic . . . it’s not the time, I believe, to spend that kind of money.”
City Councilwoman Cherie Kidd, who has championed the creation of a historical district since before she was elected more than three years ago, said she thinks the money is worth it.
“It’s our next step,” she said. “We have to assess the needs of the building so we know what to do with it.”
Kidd began proposing that the building be repaired and kept as a historical landmark in 2007, when the city put it on its surplus list.
City Hall chose to try to sell the building after determining it would cost too much to keep.
City staff members couldn’t recall Wednesday how much the repairs were anticipated to cost.
But County Administrator Jim Jones, who toured the building at the time with city staff, said the repairs were projected to cost between $800,000 and $1 million.
“That assumed there were no structural problems that couldn’t be easily rectified,” he said.
Jones said the county was supportive of the historical district when it was proposed four years ago and remains onboard.
If the state Governor’s Advisory Council on Historic Preservation approves the creation of a historical district — which would also include the Museum at the Carnegie, the Clallam County Courthouse and Veterans Memorial Park — the city could seek grant funding to preserve the building.
The advisory council was to make a decision last week, but its meeting was canceled due to snow.
Kidd said the meeting may be held March 16.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
