Roanoke City Council agrees to sell historic home to nonprofit – Roanoke Times

The Roanoke City Council has agreed to sell its historic Compton-Bateman House and surrounding 3.4 acres to a small nonprofit that wants to lease the building to a program that serves youth.

Isabel Thorntons Restoration Housing will buy the house for $1 but will be required to spend $868,000 on renovations. Thornton said the money will come from $234,000 in insurance proceeds the city received after a 2011 fire at the house, tax credits from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and various grants for which she has yet to apply.

The circa-1827 house, off Lafayette Boulevard in northwest Roanoke, for decades served as the Villa Heights recreation center but was seriously damaged in the 2011 fire and has been on the market for several years. The council is partial to Thorntons idea to lease the house to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Southwest Virginia, benefiting the community while preserving the houses history.

This is a true win, win, win for everybody, council member John Garland said. Its a win for the old house, its a win for the users of the house and its a win for the community.

While Thornton is still in preliminary discussions with the Boys and Girls Clubs, she said theyve discussed working together with the architect so the house meets the groups needs.

Were both optimistic and hopeful that the partnership will work, Thornton said. Theyre an ideal tenant for the use of the building. They want to serve the community around Villa Heights.

Roanoke Councilwoman Michelle Dykstra is the Boys and Girls Clubs executive director, so she recused herself from participating in the citys vote.

Under the contract, Thornton must begin construction within 12 months of closing, but she said she wont know until March whether she will receive the tax credits.

Construction ideally would begin next summer, according to Thornton, who said she is thankful for how supportive the council has been through the process.

Historic property in northwest Roanoke is just as deserving of preservation and restoration as historic property in any other part of Roanoke, council member Bill Bestpitch said.

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Roanoke City Council agrees to sell historic home to nonprofit - Roanoke Times