Maple Street homes offer DIY challenge for new owners

Date: 1/17/2012

Jan. 18, 2012

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor

SPRINGFIELD — The city of Springfield is looking for people who can see the potential of some historic homes.

Two of the homes that are being offered for sale for as little as $1,000 were open for inspection on Jan. 10. Robert McCarroll of the Historical Commission explained the brick row houses at 174 and 176 Maple St. were built in 1874 in the High Victorian Gothic style.

Originally built as single-family homes, the four-level buildings were altered over the years, he said. Some have been divided into apartments and used as offices or rooming houses.

The city will select the buyer of the property based on a Request for Proposal (RFP) process, McCarroll explained. There will be a point system in which the application will be judged by the city’s desired use of the property.

McCarroll said the city would like to see an owner-occupied building bought by a person with adequate financing in place and some experience in renovating old structures. Ideally, the two buildings would be returned to single-family use, he added.

If there are two applications judged with an equal number of points, McCarroll said the bid on the property would determine the owner.

The buildings have a $25,000 grant attached to each of them that could be used for exterior repairs, McCarroll added.

The building at 176 Maple St. had a structural issue with an exterior wall in the past, McCarroll explained and the solution was the installation of an I-beam.

The open house drew about 20 people, all of whom were required to sign a waiver of liability to the city before entering.

Inside 176 Maple St., one could see that much renovation had been done over the years and that presently many of the plaster walls and ceilings needed repair. The kitchen and bathroom facilities needed much modernization.

The town house at 174 Maple St. has retained much of its original design detail, historian and preservationist James Boone noted. Although the first floor had been converted into office space, the upper floors still had its original claw-footed bathtub, some gas light fixtures and built-in seats next to a large window.

The RFPs for the Maple Street homes are due Feb. 1 by 2 p.m.

The city is also offering another home for sale across the city at 59-61 Avon Place under the same conditions. The open houses for 59-61 Avon Place are Jan. 19 at 11 a.m. and Jan. 30 at 11a.m. Proposals for this property are due Feb. 15 at 2 p.m.

The RFP packets can be obtained from the Office of Procurement, City Hall, 36 Court St. or they can be downloaded at www.comm-pass.com.