Workman house could be saved from wrecking ball
Steamboat Springs — Community members are stepping forward to save the historic Workman house on Yampa Street from demolition.
Hoping the home can be repurposed instead of torn down, the city of Steamboat Springs is offering to donate the home at no cost to a new owner so that the land the home sits on can be converted into a public park.
The city finalized the purchase of the property in January for $610,000 from Leland and Linda Workman.
The city has received five letters of interest for the 101-year-old house.
First Baptist Church wants to put it next to the church and have it serve as emergency housing.
“Basically what we’re looking to do is add this house to our property, update it a little bit, spruce it up some and use it for short-term emergency housing,” pastor Jason Clark said.
He said people who are displaced by fires or who have had housing fall through could potentially stay in the home for a short period of time.
He estimated cost to move the home to church property at $20,000, plus another $15,000 for a foundation.
“We would appeal to the community to help us fix it up,” he said. “We really would like it to be a community project for the community at large.”
Clark said Lorene Workman, a professional cook who lived in the old home on Yampa Street and baked wedding, birthday and special occasion cakes for several generations of families in Steamboat, was a member of First Baptist Church.
She lived in the Workman house from 1945 until shortly before her death in 2009.
“We’d definitely like to see it utilized in a way that would honor Lorene,” Clark said.
Rocky Mountain Youth Corps also has a potential plan to reuse the home.
Youth Corps Executive Director Gretchen Van De Carr said the house could be used as warehouse space or office and conference space for the organization, which gives youth the opportunity to serve in the outdoors.
“We currently are busting at the seams and in need of more office space,” Van De Carr said.
Information on the other three proposals for the Workman house weren’t available this week.
While the city released the names of those who are interested in the home, it is not releasing the letters of interest and their proposals, citing possible proprietary information.
The other letters came from Tyler and Jenny Snyder, Dan Edmiston and Kelly Klawiter.
A message left for Tyler Snyder was not returned this week.
Edmiston said in an email he did not want to publicly discuss his interest in the Workman house.
Contact information for Klawiter could not be found.
An upcoming assessment of the home’s structural integrity and an inspection for asbestos could determine whether it is ultimately reused.
Anne Small, director of general services, said the city may call in a neutral third-party expert to help evaluate the relocation proposals it has received.
“We do have a good deal of interest,” Small said. “Now we just have to see how complex it’s going to be” to move the home.
To reach Scott Franz, call 970-871-4210, email scottfranz@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottFranz10
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