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Earthquake Recovery
History collides with money in preservation
SCOTT WYLAND, THE OLYMPIAN
"You will see some of the buildings lose some of their historic character." -- Steve Cooper, co-owner of Washington Federal Savings building
Originally published Sept. 2, 2001
OLYMPIA -- The historic Nisqually Earthquake could leave a lasting scar on downtown's history.
The Feb. 28 earthquake wreaked at least $13 million in damage on historic buildings, and most repairs have been made with no government aid.
Property owners with too many assets can't qualify for low-interest federal loans, even if their buildings are historic, according to a city of Olympia report.
History at risk?
"I think we've become a little cynical," said Steve Cooper, who co-owns the Washington Federal Savings building, which sustained heavy quake damage.
Both the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Small Business Administration have strict rules for approving low-interest loans, Cooper said.
Without financial help, owners might let their buildings sit unrepaired, Cooper said.
Or they might make the buildings safe and functional again, but forgo restoring some of the original features, he said.
"You will see some of the buildings lose some of their historic character," Cooper said.
The bleakest scenario would be an owner tearing down a building because it would cost too much to fix, Cooper said.
So far, no property owners have made public any plans to raze historic sites.
Ron Rants, partner in The Rants Group, said his firm received no government help to repair the $500,000 in damage done to the Mottman and Reed Block buildings.
"FEMA and SBA absolutely struck out," Rants said. "I'm extremely disappointed in them."
State aid possible
But some help might be on the way.
The state Legislature approved $35.2 million to help repair public buildings that were damaged in the quake.
The money will be administered by the Office of Trade and Economic Development.
State officials must now determine whether the funds can be used to restore historic buildings that are privately owned.
A provision in the Washington Constitution forbids the state from dispensing grants or gifts to businesses unless it's in the public's interest, said Peter Antolin, senior budget assistant to the governor.
For instance, the state might give a farmer a grant to help build a cattle fence near a stream that supplies public drinking water, Antolin said.
But it's unclear whether repairing privately owned historic buildings really serves the public, Antolin said.
The state Attorney General's Office will research the question and will issue an opinion in the coming weeks, Antolin said.
The next step will be determining what criteria an applicant should meet, such as having the building on a historic registry, Antolin said.
Past history lost
The city of Olympia also hoped to receive money to repair historic buildings from Congress and President Bush's discretionary fund, but these efforts failed.
"We've just not seen much help coming," said Olympia mayor Stan Biles.
Downtown lost a large slice of its historic ambience in earlier earthquakes, when property owners felt compelled to raze damaged buildings, Biles said.
Every attempt should be made to avoid losing more architectural landmarks, Biles said.
But, the mayor noted, the problem is that restoring a building doesn't improve its overall value, so owners get no return on their investment. That leaves them with little reason to spend a lot of money on restoration except out of civic duty.
"That's just a lot to ask of a building owner, to eat that investment financially," Biles said.
Big repair bills
Renovating the 87-year-old Washington Federal building will cost Cooper and his partners an estimated $1.5 million.
The building was insured against earthquakes, so all but about $250,000 of the repairs will be covered, Cooper said.
Washington Federal announced last week that it will move the Olympia branch from the historic building to a west-side location.
Bank officials insisted tight downtown parking -- not the building's earthquake damage -- prompted the move.
Cooper said property owners with no earthquake insurance will be in a real bind.
"It has to be extremely frustrating, frightening," Cooper said. "They'll have to take the least expensive way out because they don't have any financial relief."
Cooper said he plans to replace the collapsed terra cotta section at the top of the Washington Federal building with a lightweight concrete.
When glazed, this material is a close match to terra cotta, Cooper said.
Rants said his firm recently repaired the Mottman Building at a cost of $250,000. Located at 101 N. Capitol Way, the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Work has just begun on the Reed Block building, which will also cost $250,000 to repair, Rants said.
Rants said he wasn't allowed to do seismic upgrades on the two buildings because metal bracing would have been visible on the inside and outside, altering the historic look.
"The purists don't want you to do it that way," Rants said.
If the upgrades are installed, the Mottman Building would be removed from the federal registry, and Reed Block would be barred from historic status in the future, Rants said.
Rants agreed that earthquake repairs add no value to a property.
"Is it a good economic decision?" Rants said. "No way."
But he did the repairs anyway for the community's sake, and so his grandkids can see what a building from that era looks like, Rants said.
"You don't want to tear down 100-year-old buildings that have been landmarks in our community," Rants said.
Scott Wyland is a business reporter for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-357-0748 or scottolympian@yahoo.com.
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