Saving structures from the past
Century-old buildings being restored
By Sean Hart
Argus Observer
Sunday, January 4, 2009 12:00 AM PST
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| Mike McLaughlin, owner of the Vale Hotel and Grand Opera House, shows the ‘jacking package,’ four jacks and massive, intersecting steel beams, in the Vale Hotel that helped alleviate roof sagging from years of water damage and facilitated repairs to the historic structure, which was built in 1908. |
VALE ” A nickel would put a roof over your head for the night at the Vale Hotel when it was constructed in 1908. Now, after repairs were made after years of water damage, the roof is functioning again, and countless nickels ” through fundraising, grants and labor ” have been devoted to restoring the historic edifice and an adjacent structure, the Grand Opera House, built in 1895.
Both buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, according to their owner and Vale Mayor-elect Mike McLaughlin at an open house of the structures Dec. 31, and he believes they are worth the time and effort to restore.
“These two projects are definitely worth saving,” he said. “This is our historical district right here, and we should preserve it.”
In 1994, McLaughlin acquired the buildings from the city, which assumed ownership and the debt incurred from a grant that was squandered by former stewards of the hotel, he said. McLaughlin convinced the city the structures should not be razed for a parking lot, which he felt was unnecessary from his experience as owner of the Rex Theater.
For more than a decade, McLaughlin has put a lot of personal labor into the buildings’ restoration with help from the Drexel H. Foundation.
“Although I do own the buildings, we work really closely together. The foundation is the avenue we’ve used to raise money and fix up the buildings,” McLaughlin said.
The nonprofit Drexel H. Foundation was created to preserve the Vale Hotel and Grand Opera House, with the goal of creating an art center in the buildings to promote youth and family programs within the community. Investments of labor, materials and volunteers have been used to match various grants the organization has procured.
This year, the floors of the Grand Opera House were sanded and restored, stucco on an interior wall and original tin ceiling tiles were repaired and work on the roof was completed. Rooms at the Vale Hotel were also fixed up, with repairs to the floors and ceilings, as well as new paint added.
“It’s hard to see how much work we’ve done,” McLaughlin said inside the hotel. “I always make the joke: I have one of everything at Olsen Lumber (& Paint Co., Vale) in here.”
The restoration is an ongoing process, he said, and a grant from the Oregon Cultural Trust will help provide heating and cooling to the Grand Opera House this year.
“We had to save the buildings from structural defects. ... Now we get to do the exciting stuff,” McLaughlin said, referring to electrical and plumbing infrastructure and finishing interior work in some of the rooms. “It’s getting there, but we’ve got a long ways to go.”
THE DREXEL H. FOUNDATION
‘The Drexel H. Foundation is proud to work hand-in-hand with our local schools to provide cultural experiences, art programs, family workshops and community events,’ Sandijean Fuson, president of the foundation, said in a press release. ‘Our goal is positive reinforcement, which builds pride and self-esteem in each child and brings families and the community closer.’
Annually, the foundation provides a New Year’s Eve open house of the Vale Hotel and Grand Opera House, the Teen Film Project in the spring, the Art Beat on Main Street in May, Art in the Park on Flag Day in June, a free art camp and talent show in August and a children’s film festival in September.
For more information about the Drexel H. Foundation, call Fuson, (541) 473-3470.
