Building owners get look at revised historical district
Staff writer
Ten people came to a meeting Tuesday evening to hear about a project to establish a historical district in downtown Marion.
Ben Moore, owner of Ben Moore Studios in Manhattan, Emporia, and Fort Collins, Colorado, and Christy Davis, owner of Davis Preservation in Cottonwood Falls, shared updates to the proposal that will be submitted to the Kansas Historical Society.
The society will review the city’s application in October and decide whether to designate a historical district — or return questions.
Work began in 2019, but the project was shelved when COVID-19 pandemic protocols prevented required public meetings. City council members picked the project up early this year.
An original boundary proposed in 2019 has been expanded to include some additional properties. The proposed district originally included 44 buildings on Main St. from Walnut St. to 5th St., 3rd St. from Valley United Methodist Church to Marion City Library and adjoining areas.
The boundaries of the newly drawn district include 59 properties considered “contributing” and eight designated as “non-contributing.”
Of the contributing buildings, 17 were built before 1900, 16 between 1900 and 1924, and 13 between 1924 and 1968.
Davis shared an 80-page draft report.
If granted, designation of a historical district would open the door for tax credits of up to 40% to help with repair or improvements.
Former economic development director Randy Collett said property owners often worried what the national historical registry might require them to do.
“That is not the case with this,” Collett said.
Davis said the preservation society probably would not make a final determination at its October meeting.