Last gasp for Hamilton House
The Historic Hamilton House was built in 1908 for the City of Coeur d'Alene's second mayor, now it needs $500,000 to stay here. Photo courtesy.
Today at 2 p.m., the Hamilton House, the potential site for a music conservatory in Coeur d'Alene, will go up for auction.
And if a suitable bid doesn't emerge? Then the house will likely fall.
It would take $500,000 to save the house from the wrecking ball, county officials have said, and as of Monday, Shawn Riley, Kootenai County's director of buildings and grounds, had received no word of a potential bidder.
"Bids are due tomorrow," Riley said during Monday's board of commissioners status update meeting. "There could be somebody out there, but nobody has asked me for a property inspection report."
In June, the county commissioners voted on allowing the Music Conservatory board to rent the property from the county. Still, because of a split vote — two to one, Commissioner Bill Brooks dissenting — leasing was no longer on the table. Since that decision, the conservatory board has been hosting open houses and live concerts to attract donors.
During the commissioners' Tuesday business meeting, potential buyers will present their offer to the board. If there are no candidates, the board has discussed several property options, including razing the building to make a parking lot, building another county office building, or even selling the land.
Commissioner Chris Fillios posed the idea of selling the land to a developer after the house is razed. That could bring in money to finance other county projects, he said. While the county would have to potentially modify the property's restrictions to enact a height limit and parking lot guidance, Fillios said this could be more beneficial to the county.
"We would potentially have to modify the conveyance but basically remove the other restrictions, so if a developer comes in and wants to build six two-story condos, that's fine," Fillios said. "My point is we have projects that are being contemplated, acquired, and built. We could use the money."
Out of concern for the property's neighbors, Commissioner Leslie Duncan disagreed with Fillios's idea and said she would be more in favor of the parking lot because of its minimal conflict.
"Our neighbors are important," Duncan said. "I don't want something to come in that is going to conflict with the existing use."
Duncan also recognized that the house's neighbors have firmly favored keeping the building as is, and any development will likely cause an issue.
The discussion for purchasing the Hamilton House, listed on the commissioners' agenda as the Brown & Just Building, begins at 2 p.m. and will be the last chance to maintain the structure built in 1908. Bids will be accepted until 5 p.m. after which the county will set its date with the wrecking ball if no satisfactory bid is submitted.