ORANGE : Preservation Group Plans to Save House

The Old Towne Preservation Assn., an 850-member community group, has less than 60 days to raise at least $15,000 to save an 1895 Victorian cottage from demolition.

The City Council last week voted to begin demolition proceedings on the Queen Anne house, on the corner of Pixley Street and Almond Avenue.

Mayor Gene Beyer, who owns property near where the house may be relocated, abstained on the advice of City Atty. Robert O. Franks.

The city, however, will halt that demolition process if the group can move the building before the wrecking ball deadline.

“Get this community mobilized to stand up and be counted,” Councilman William G. Steiner urged the group. “At least to get this (house) moved.”

The city would need to spend between about $9,500 and $14,500 to demolish the building and survey it for asbestos, officials said. Asbestos removal would cost the city an additional fee, said Steve Soto, redevelopment project manager.

The fate of the Queen Anne house, currently owned by the city Redevelopment Agency, has been in limbo since a deal to renovate it as a home for drug-addicted babies fell through earlier this year. It currently sits on blocks, with its bay windows boarded up.

City officials had offered to sell the historic building to anyone who would pay to move it to another site. During a monthlong bidding process, only the Old Towne group formally moved to purchase the house within the bid deadline, offering $1.

But City Council members balked when the group requested a $25,000 grant to help it move the cottage and place it on a foundation. Shannon Tucker, the Old Towne Preservation vice president, then convinced the council that her group could independently raise the money if given more time.

The OTPA already has about $6,000 in pledges, Tucker said, and the group plans to hold fund-raisers in the next two months to raise the rest.

The Old Towne group wants to move the house to La Veta Avenue in the historic Nutwood Tract, restore it to its original condition and sell it, Tucker said.

The group is seeking community contributions or business discounts on supplies and labor to help cut the cost of renovation.