“Our main goal is preserving the character defining features of each of these buildings,” said Mike True, president and COO of the Fort Vancouver National Trust. “It’s much more complicated than just building a new structure.”
Beginning early next year, the city of Vancouver will renovate five historical buildings in the West Vancouver Barracks. The project will remodel 32,000 square feet for residential, commercial, retail and art functions. The city is gearing up to purposefully plan and execute the renovations by Spring 2016.
The anticipated cost of the construction, historic preservation, permitting and design is $6.1 million. Funding will come from a combination of sources, including a $1 million grant from the state of Washington and from general obligation bonds. The bonds have little to no risk to the taxpayer since they will be repaid from the property’s income, according to True. Financing will also come from a $1 million equity fund that has been filled with surplus revenue from the site’s existing residential buildings.
“Fortunately, there’s enough positive revenue to fund even the worst case scenario,” said True, of any unexpected construction costs that arise.
The largest building to be renovated will be the two-story Artillery Barracks, which has an additional 20,000 square feet of vacant space. The building will continue to serve 300,000 Vancouver residents and visitors with about 100 events every year.
While common areas will remain open to the public, the bulk of the building will be leased as commercial office space to private businesses.
The Infantry Barracks, which is just over 8,000 square feet, will be renovated to house 12 residential units with six on each floor. There is high demand for such units.
“It’s a very cool project,” said True. “We have a lot of interest from people about wanting to live on the historic site and the units are open to any community member who wants to rent one.”
When preserving older buildings, having residents often helps keep them intact through regular upkeep, heating and cooling. Many of the West Barracks buildings still have their original wood floors and tin ceilings.
“The number one goal of the renovation of the historic site is to preserve these buildings,” said True. “The way to do that is by using them.”
True explained that the second goal is sustainability. While some of the buildings will be zoned for commercial and residential use, the Quartermaster and Dental Surgery buildings (a total of over 3,300 square feet) will primarily facilitate art, educational and hospitality-related uses.
“Often without significant grant funding, it is more difficult to make those uses long-term sustainable,” said True, “but we are working toward a balance of financially sustainable uses that also support the public use.”
