Coldwater Community Center open house next Saturday
COLDWATER — Kathie Bappert didn't think it would take a ton of work to get the Coldwater Community Center open to the public.
"We thought it would take just a little cleaning and some paint," said the Coldwater Community Center board president.
Nineteen months later, doors will officially open with a ribbon cutting at 11 East Chicago at 1 p.m. April 27. The public is invited.
The community donated more than $100,000 in items, labor, and money to the nonprofit to restore what was first the Beech House and, lastly, Putnam Funeral Home.
The house now meets the code for first-floor public use.
The city purchased the historic 1856 home in September 2020 for a dollar to save it. It is one of three buildings on the city seal.
The council then invested over $120,000 in necessary repairs.
Coldwater Community Center, Inc.
Spearheaded by Bappert, the newly formed Coldwater Community Center, Inc. convinced the city in September 2022 to lease the three-story stucco home for a dollar a year so it could convert it into a multicultural center for Coldwater.
Bappert and the group found the home in worse shape than expected.
The board of directors persuaded the city to spend $20,000 to heat and air condition the first floor and then redo plumbing for bathrooms and a kitchen on the first floor.
Retired city building inspector Ken Fickle installed two new code-compliant bathrooms to replace the smaller broom closet-sized one that existed.
The City Historic Commission approved changing rebuilt doors with panic hardware to open out, which is required for a public building. Donations and volunteers did the work.
"We've had over 1,700 volunteer hours," Bappert said to finish all but the foyer on the first floor for use.
Public use planned
The Center will be available for rent. A fee schedule will go before the board soon.
"This can be the place for music recitals," Bappert said after a $5,000 donation resulted in a grand piano.
"We can hold small family events, birthdays, or groups for cultural presentations (in the large living-dining room once used for funerals)."
The center board will consider its own programs and activities.
The board wants to bring other cultures from the Arab, Hispanic, and the growing Haitian communities together to share experiences.
The Shawarma Station will provide Middle Eastern food at the open house, and the owner agreed to match up to $2,500 in donations.
Future restoration
Visitors will see work still needs to be done. Bappert pointed to the stairs to the second floor which requires $15,000 in restoration. "The cost to restore is much more than new construction," she pointed out. The third floor one held a ballroom.
Board member Jan Storrs hoped the group could restore a floor each year.
Bappert suggested the work may take a decade after the time the volunteers took to open the first floor.
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Bappert said visitors to the beautiful historic home often open their checkbooks after seeing what has been accomplished and what remains.
— Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Coldwater Community Center open house next Saturday
