Cheney's historic house on hold

Historic Preservation Commission says more possibilities than funds for Sterling-Moorman

By BECKY THOMAS

Staff Reporter

Cheney's historic house sits empty on the corner of Second and G streets, waiting to become a visitors' center, a museum, a testament to Cheney's blue collar past.

The Historic Preservation Commission has several ideas for using the Sterling-Moorman House, but a combination of bad economic times and a lack of community involvement has made the plans stall.

“It was basically aimed at being an everyman's house museum,” Bettye Hull, chair of the commission, said. “Cheney has always been a working person's town. We wanted to show a slice of life here.”

Hull said hopes for the house include rotating displays from the Cheney Historical Museum, rebuilding the home's carriage house and establishing a welcome center for visitors. A preservation plan was created in 2007 with the help of architect Ernie Robeson.

A grant from the Washington Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation funded the plan, and the commission began conducting fundraising efforts soon after it was completed.

“Actually, since right about the time the economy went south,” Susan Beeman, administrative secretary in the community development department, said.

Engraved bricks, dubbed “Pioneer Pavers,” are for sale to help build a fund for the house's restoration. The bricks, $50 with up to three lines of text, will eventually be installed on the grounds of the Sterling-Moorman house.

The house is eligible for a $87,000 grant from the Washington State Historical Society, and Beeman said the funds would cover much of the planned work; however, there is a “but.”

“We need to come up with $55,000 in matching funds; of that, we have just over $6,000 right now,” she said.

Volunteer work on the house is banked toward the match, and various groups have helped with cleanup since 2008.

Hull said she hoped to have more groups help out, noting that there is plenty of work to do. School groups, community clubs and individual volunteers are needed to clean inside the house and do yard work, she said.

“Hopefully there will be things that people will be interested in,” she said.

While the Historic Preservation Commission currently oversees the progress of the Sterling-Moorman house, Hull said she hoped eventually a community group would form to support the project. For now, though, she doesn't see any grassroots efforts stirring to take it over.

“There's such a small core of people in the city that aren't students. To get them out to do things, there's so many other things going on,” she said. “I know there are more people around, but where are they?”

With spring seemingly right around the corner, the commission is planning a gardening workshop that will focus on historic homes. Hull said she hoped the workshop, planned for late March, will bring local attention to the Sterling-Moorman house plans as well as provide general gardening information for the community. Specific plans for the workshop will be published at a later date.

For more information on the Sterling-Moorman house, fundraisers and volunteer opportunities, visit http://www.cityofcheney.org or go to the community development department, located in the city's utility building at 112 Anderson Rd.

Becky Thomas can be reached at [email protected].