By Jennifer Tangeman
Coordination between the city of Logansport, Century Career Center and the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana may be paying off in more ways than one.
The four-year home rehabilitation program has gained Logansport statewide recognition and recently allowed the city to host the HLFI affiliate meeting. Perhaps more importantly, the work completed by high school students on the city’s historic Tower House property has led to the purchase of the property.
The program began in 2006 to engage building trades students in local renovation work. The students’ first project was completed over the course of three years at the Tower House on Eel River Avenue.
The students completed work on the house’s facade, painted the porch and window frames, installed a half bathroom, tore out unwanted walls and worked with electricians on wiring. They also rebuilt and replaced the roof of the building’s signature tower.
“We do have an offer on the Tower House,” said Todd Zeiger, HLFI Northern Region director. “We have a buyer that is extremely excited about buying the building.”
Zeiger said because the sale had not yet been closed, the buyer’s name and purchase price for the building remain confidential.
Without the help from the building trades classes, Zeiger said, the Tower House likely would have been demolished.
“The partnership allowed us to work on the house,” he said. “That was critical to even keep it standing. The condition of that home was severe distress.”
Zeiger explained HLFI could secure ownership of the historic building but paying for all of the needed work would have been impossible.
“We still lost a significant investment when we sold the house, even with the help of the Century Career Center,” Zeiger said. “The rehab of that house would have been prohibitive without them.”
To complete so much work on the house and interest an out-of-town buyer makes the program in Logansport a promising one, he said.
“This will hopefully provide a catalyst for other renovations in the future,” Zeiger said. “It speaks well for your community and hopefully it will help that forward momentum.”
Zeiger, along with city officials, building trades teacher Kyle Leffert and career center students, had the opportunity to show off their work last week.
“We had participants from all over the state discussing their innovative historic preservation projects and programs,” Logansport plan director Stan Williams said. “It gave us the opportunity to showcase our work in Logansport.”
Zeiger said the career center program had been highlighted at the meeting.
“They were very much intrigued by it,” he said. “It’s what drew a lot of them to the meeting to begin with.
“They liked the program a lot and thought it held a lot of promise.”
Williams and Zeiger both said the project had provided a model for other communities to consider.
After completion of the Tower House project, students started work on the former Greensfelder Building at 315 E. Market St. Contractors have upgraded the facade of the building, and students have started rehabilitating the second floor.
“This has very much been a successful partnership and it’s a model now that we can work with other places to walk them through a similar program,” Zeiger said.
Zeiger said the groups involved with the renovation projects hope to host an open house at 315 E. Market St. this spring to showcase the students’ work.
• Jennifer Tangeman is a reporter for the Pharos-Tribune. She can be reached at 574-732-5148 or jennifer.tangeman@pharostribune.com.
