BY TRACY LEE TATE
Special to the Times
The Lake Butler City Commission has approved a grant agreement with the State of Florida Department of State Division of Historical Resources for grant funds to rehabilitate the Townsend Building, home of a city rental space on the first floor and the Union County Historical Museum on the second.
The grant is specifically earmarked for the Townsend Building only, with no funds allowed to be used elsewhere. The $49,740 will be used to bring the building into a state with the appearance appropriate for the time it was first built.
Improvements and rehabilitation items include the repair or replacement of the roof to match the buildings historical appearance, a real boon for the city as the roof has sprung several leaks over the past few years. The twelve “modern” windows that were installed in the upper story of the building will be repaired or replaced to match the historic appearance. All doors and windows planned for use must be submitted to the Bureau of Historic Preservation for approval before any work can commence. Also included in the grant is the repair or replacement of the current non-historic flooring to match the historic appearance of the building. Grant funds may also be used for architectural and engineering services to ensure the project is done to historical standards. All work must be completed on or before June 30, 2025.
Motion was made by Commissioner Rondoll Huggins, with a second from Commissioner Annette Redman to accept and sign the grant agreement. The city will stand good for the funds needed for each of the four phases of the project (design, roof, windows and floor) and then, once the necessary documents have been sent in, the state will issue a payment for that phase of the project.
The project engineer will provide required drawings and plans for the restoration of the building, including original plans for the building. Also to be included will be materials lists of items planned to be used in the project. These documents will include documentation of ant changes made to the building, including repairs made including a list of materials used that were used in place of original materials. All of these, along with a copy of the contract with the engineer must be received and approved before the project can commence.
To expediate this approval the contract with ICE (Infrastructure Consulting Associates), a South Carolina company for the project was approved unanimously on a motion from Huggins, seconded by Redman. Also approved was an agreement between the city and Andy Easton and Associates for civil engineering services. Work on the project should begin around the first of 2025.
