BENTONVILLE -- The restoration of a historic home off North Walton Boulevard is exactly what city leaders were looking for when they cast development visions through area-specific plans, said Troy Galloway, director of community development.
Sam Morrison, a longtime resident, and his family are restoring the exterior of his home at 902 N.W. Second St. The 4,000-square-foot, two-story home sits on the corner of Northwest Second Street and North Walton Boulevard.
Web Watch
The North Walton Boulevard Enhancement Plan can be seen online at www.bentonvillear.c….
Source: Staff Report
The City Council adopted the North Walton Boulevard Corridor Enhancement Plan in February 2013 to improve access management, improve aesthetics and establish a balance of residential and commercial development, according to the city's planning website.
The plan calls for the "rehabilitation of exterior facades of existing buildings."
"What the Morrison family is doing with that property is exactly what we hope will happen all up and down that corridor," Galloway said.
Morrison's family knew the city wanted to revitalize the North Walton Boulevard corridor and saw restoring the home playing a role in that, said Robert Brown, Morrison's son-in-law.
"It would be nice to have the house looking as good as we can," he said.
The home was built in 1881 during the Reconstruction Era after the Civil War. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Maxwell-Hinman House in 1988.
Morrison bought the 133-year-old house in 1964, did some work on it and moved in in 1968.
Morrison said he knows little of the structure's history. He's spoken with a couple of previous owners who didn't have any information either, he said.
The outside walls are three bricks deep and 16 inches thick. The inside walls are a solid 13 inches thick, Morrison said.
"All together it's a very sturdy old house," he said.
Benign neglect over the last 20 years has yielded needed restoration, Brown said.
"It's not really an effort to change things significantly, but just to get things back in good repair," he said.
Cracks have creased the masonry, and weakened grout has released bricks, Brown said. Work will include repairing damaged places and sealing and painting the exterior.
A lot of attention also will be directed to the front Italianate-style porch, Brown said.
Rotten wood created by water leaks left unattended created a hole in the roof that will be repaired, he said.
"It's minor stuff, but it's essential stuff, too," Morrison said. "We don't want to change the character of the house."
Work is expected to cost between $40,000 to $45,000 and take about two months to complete, Brown said.
A family friend is the contractor who will hire subcontractors who have worked on historic buildings, he said. Work that will require scaffolding could begin any day, he added.
"It's just been a number of years since much was done to the outside so there's a lot to fix up," Brown said.
"It'll be here another 100 years if it's not torn down," Morrison said.
Mayor Bob McCaslin, who is friends with Morrison, said he's elated Morrison and his family want to preserve the house.
It could serve as motivation for other projects to be done and help ignite a spirit of fixing up and cleaning up North Walton Boulevard, he said.
"That's contagious once it gets started," McCaslin said.
NW News on 05/31/2014