Landmarks Board delays action on Galloway building set for demo

The Landmarks Board opted not to act last night on an application seeking to declare a threatened Galloway Village building as a local historic site.

The Galloway Village Neighborhood Association submitted a nomination April 19 seeking the historic site designation for the former Sequiota Store, also known as Treadway’s General Store and gas station, located across from Sequiota Park at 3535 S. Lone Pine Ave.

It was a measure the board was unwilling to take up, however, without seeking comment from the property’s owner, Galloway Village LLC, the development company owned by Mitch and Amanda Jenkins. Under a different entity, Elevation Enterprises LLC, the Jenkinses sought to build a mixed-use development that incorporated the building in question until more than 70% of voters in Springfield defeated their zoning request in a November 2022 citywide referendum.

The new ownership entity, Galloway Village LLC, applied April 29 for a permit to demolish the structure in question.

The board began the meeting by taking action on a trio of historic renovations of residential and commercial properties in the city, with property owners submitting building plans aimed at improvement and preservation.

Then the members got to the Galloway proposal.

In comparing a photo of the property from 2018 to one from this year, member Seva Nix, an architect at nForm Architecture LLC, according to that company’s website, summed up the difference by saying of the building, “This one’s been abandoned and neglected.”

In their application, Galloway Village neighborhood officials described the Sequiota Store as one of the early commercial buildings in the village, and one that reflects the community’s development during the expansion of Ash Grove Lime Works quarry company operations, the industry on which village life centered.

“It served as a vital supply center for quarry workers and families and represents the early commercial identity of this corridor,” the nomination states.

The two-story, wood-frame building was erected in 1929 with living quarters above and ground-floor uses combining a general store, filling station and service functions, according to the nomination. A projecting canopy extended over the fueling area. The nomination states, “The building is a rare surviving example of early automobile-era roadside architecture.”

The application also characterizes the building as retaining its original location, massing and relationship to the roadway, and remaining historically legible within its setting.

Chair John Hawkins questioned some of those assertions, saying he does not think it retains its original massing, with additions made and only part of its original roofline remaining. He added that the board has not heard from the property owner, and if the board wants to make a nomination, that will be important.

“Just because something’s old doesn’t make it historic,” he said. “I think there’s a lot of feelings about this property; some are great, some are nostalgic. I’m sure there’s a lot of memories associated with this property. I also think that we’ve been down this road once in the past. It was at that time met with a lot of hostility. … So here we are again to have the conversation.”

According to past SBJ reporting, City Council in 2019 voted down a historic designation sought by neighborhood residents for the property at 3535 S. Lone Pine Ave. The Galloway Village Neighborhood Association applied for the historic site designation on the Springfield Historic Register without the consent of the property owner, who were the Jenkinses but under the company Elevation Enterprises.

Member Genevieve Henry said that even if the board nominates the property, there is no guarantee it will be saved.

The Landmarks Board website explains that a location determined to be a historic site is deemed worthy of preservation but falls short of significance to merit the higher status of historic landmark. Historic sites may not be demolished or have their exteriors altered unless a certificate of appropriateness or a certificate of economic hardship is granted by the Landmarks Board or 60 days has passed since the date of an application for such a certificate.

Hawkins clarified during the meeting that if the property owners wish to demolish the building, they can move forward.

“It could potentially slow the process a little bit, but it’s not going to stop it,” he said.

Henry offered a motion for historic site designation in the interest of moving the matter forward, but it died for lack of a second.

Three members of the Galloway Village Neighborhood Association were present, and President Melanie Bach offered to answer questions for the board but was denied an opportunity to speak without board approval of the nomination.

Board members who had engaged in spirited conversations about historic home repairs on Walnut Street and a Commercial Street store renovation were more subdued in discussing the Galloway property.

“How does that feel, guys?” Hawkins asked near the end of the discussion.

“Not stellar,” said Henry.

“None of it feels good,” agreed member Bryan Lenox.

Lenox maintained throughout the discussion that the property owner should have the opportunity to come into a board meeting and say something – even if they choose not to – and he noted that he would like to hear from the owner before moving forward on a nomination.

Nix wondered what the board would ask the owner.

“Do we want to know what’s going in its place? Should that sway us, if it’s a parking lot or if it’s something else?” he asked.

While a historic designation would not save a property from demolition, Bach said in an interview after the meeting it could at least delay it, allowing those who care about the property time to take photographs and say goodbye.

She noted that Galloway – a former town of its own, and not just a Springfield neighborhood – has few remaining historic properties. That makes it hard to lose the Treadway building, once a hub of local activity.

She added that the board’s next meeting, set for June 10, may be too late for the structure.