![Free Midwest Home Must Be Moved to Avoid Demolition [LOOK INSIDE]](http://townsquare.media/site/675/files/2022/02/attachment-fireplacefeature.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Free Midwest Home Must Be Moved to Avoid Demolition [LOOK INSIDE]
The clock is ticking to try to save a beautiful Dutch Colonial home built in the early 1900s. What's especially impressive is the amount of work that local officials have done to try to guarantee its survival.
If you love the beauty of original wood floors and both pine and oak trim, this is the house for you. And to say the entire situation is unique is a major understatement.
Built in 1910, the home is over 2,000 square feet with a very beautiful and unusual fireplace and gorgeous wood seemingly everywhere. Whoever gets it won't pay a dollar for the house itself. As a matter of fact, the local economic development foundation has secured a grant for work on the home, and that's not all.
The home is located in Lincoln, in north-central Kansas. That's about 7 1/2 hours from Cedar Rapids. According to the Lincoln County Economic Development Foundation (LCEDF), the home was occupied up until a few years ago and they don't want to see it disappear forever.
The house will likely have to be moved before 2022 is over or it will be demolished soon after. It's owned by a hospital that sits across the street from it and is part of future plans. Time is of the essence.
The exterior of the 3-bedroom home has fallen into disrepair, as has the property that sits next to it. You see the outside and think, 'it's unsavable'. Then you look at the interior and are reminded that first impressions are sometimes very wrong.
The Lincoln County Economic Development Foundation says they'll get rid of the mess around the home. They also had a house moving company that has previously moved historic homes take a look. The company says moving the house shouldn't be a problem. The LCEDF has gotten a brand new $30,000 grant that will help with the home's relocation as well as work on the home. There are free parcels of land available within 3 to 4 blocks to move the home to, including a 22,500 square foot lot that's owned by Lincoln County. Finally, a property tax rebate starts at 100%, dropping over a 10-year period.
A local historian has also offered to provide their free assistance in trying to secure the home's inclusion on the Register of Historic Kansas Places. There are 15 properties in the county that are part of the National Register of Historic Places, including five buildings in the city of Lincoln.
Anyone with significant interest in the house can contact Kelly Gourley, the Executive Director of the Lincoln County Economic Development Foundation at lcedfdirector@outlook.com or (785) 524-8954.
The people of Lincoln County, known as the "Post Rock Capital of Kansas" due to its history with limestone, really want to save this place. I hope they get it done.