Restoration may be 'logical conclusion' for EC Annex

Eagle Creek Annex committee to meet April 6 at 7 p.m. at EHS

By Evan Jensen

The Estacada News, Mar 25, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009

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“If anything major is done to this building, it’s going to have to go through the county,” said Eagle Creek Annex Committee member Warren Damon. “We would have a lot of paperwork and meetings, and get permission from a review board to go through with any changes to the building. And even if we recommended demolition, it doesn’t mean the county will allow it. This is a historic building, and the county doesn’t really want people to go out and demo old buildings.”

Annex committee members began outlining a cost-benefit analysis for the options being considered for the Eagle Creek Annex to identify the financial impact the district may incur, to make their recommendation. Asbestos abatement will cost the district approximately $18,000, and estimates for demolition have been submitted for around $40,000. If the district chooses demolition and gains county approval, additional expenses would be incurred for fill dirt, gravel for a parking lot and basic maintenance. But if the district chooses to remodel the building, rough estimates for remodeling could top $500,000 for construction, in addition to long-term maintenance and operating costs.

Based on a potential recommendation to restore the building, Annex committee members said the building could become a source of revenue for the district with the right tenants and grant funding.

“One of the options we’re looking at is sort of cobbling together potential uses for the building that could make this an income-producing space for the district,” Bugni said. “A lot of that would depend on grant writing, in addition to the outcome of what the county says in terms of what can be done with the building. It’s looking more and more likely that this could be the most logical conclusion for this building.”

One other option the committee has not considered in detail is donating the building to a special interest group.

“You can still donate it to a special interest group,” Estacada resident Dora Morgan said. “Find five acres to put it on, have Job Corps tear it down and let the special interest group restore it. Someone might want to keep it. It might go outside of Estacada, somewhere in the state or maybe even to Washington, but someone might have an interest in it.”

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