The Brown House Event Center needs community support through the COVID-19 crisis.
According to the Santiam Heritage Foundation, this is a crucial time for the historic Charles and Martha Brown House. Since 2000, when the restoration of the Brown House was started, this project has been overwhelmingly supported by the community, said Wendy Stone, SHF president.
“We need the community to support us, again, specifically in the Change of Use required by the city of Stayton and Marion County,” Stone said. “Throughout the past 19 years the house has never been changed from ‘private residence use’ to ‘public use.’ We are now in the midst of that process.
“For a decade, the Brown House stood empty and suffered significant deterioration to become a prominent eyesore,” she added. “The Santiam Heritage Foundation was formed to address the perceived emergency of its imminent razing.”
Stayton’s landmark Queen Anne residence was built in 1903 on a major corner on Ida Street and First Avenue, and called “one of the finest in the county” in the Dec. 19, 1903 edition of The Stayton Mail. By the time SHF took it over it had fallen victim to neglect, vandalism and weather, which – combined – nearly destroyed the elegant house.
Around 2000 the home was purchased by the Stayton Cooperative Telephone Company with a view to building a new structure on the property. Within the year, SCTC sold the house to SHF at no profit, and two years later the foundation was successful in getting the house listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
“We have worked for the past 19 years to return it to the beautiful icon seen today,” Stone said. “Even though the house is zoned Commercial, we have never completed the process required by the City and Marion County to get a Change of Use from Residential to Public Use space. As we near finishing the restoration, we need to complete this process so we can use it as originally planned, as a space for people to make new memories through public and private cultural events and to use the second floor for rental offices so we can be self-sustaining.”
The Change of Use process triggers some standardized requirements by city and county governments, including public parking, emergency lighting, stormwater management, traffic studies, sidewalks, roads and easements, according to SHF.
“While we have been fortunate to receive many grants, donations, and volunteer time donations to get where we are, there are no grants available for most of the Change of Use requirements,” Stone said. “Some of these would be very expensive to complete. However, the city and county ordinances do allow for some varied options on how these requirements are met.”
SHF urges people to write an email or letter explaining why you believe the Brown House is an asset to Stayton that is worth preserving. What does that mean to you? What experiences have you had with the restoration? What would the loss of the Brown House mean to the community?
Send an email, however brief or detailed, to [email protected], or send a letter to SHF, P.O. Box 161 Stayton, OR 97383.
