City Council tours Lockmaster’s House and considers extending lease with Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club | News, Sports, Jobs

Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club member Paul Lewis (right) talks about the renovations the club has been doing on the Lockmaster’s House on Front Street as Ward 2 Councilman Bret Allphin (left) listens during a meeting of the Marietta City Council’s Public Lands and Buildings Committee Monday night. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

The Marietta City Council toured a historic building it owns on Monday and discussed renewing a local organization’s lease on the building.

During a meeting of the Public Lands and Buildings Committee on Monday evening, Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club Vice President Paul Lewis gave council members and city officials a tour of the Lockmaster’s House, located near the Marietta Armory on Front Street.

The building is owned by the city and, according to Lewis, the club pays the city $1 for the lease and is responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the building.

Lewis showed the ground floor of the building, talked about some renovations the club has done, and explained some of the historical items the club displays there.

One of these items is a wooden bicycle wheel hanging on the wall.

Paul Lewis, vice president of the Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club (left), leaves the Lockmaster’s House on Front Street after giving council members a tour of the building to show them the renovations the club has completed. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

“It’s one of the original bicycle wheels made long ago at the Montgomery Street bicycle factory.” said Lewis during the tour.

Harley Noland, city councilman and chairman of the Public Buildings and Grounds Committee, said the factory was a huge wooden bicycle wheel factory that spanned both sides of Front Street.

According to Lewis, the Lockmaster’s House was built in 1899. Due to its vulnerability to flooding, the building has limited use, but the club uses it for meetings, projects and sometimes things like bike safety and maintenance demonstrations.

“The walls and these (floors) and so on were replaced by the club,” Lewis told the tour participants. “We hired a contractor to come over and number all the floor joists in the basement where there is flooding. Volunteers from the club brought the 2x4s and 4x4s and the big beams here and put this structure together under the direction of this contractor.”

Noland asked Lewis how much the club spent on the building.

Paul Lewis, vice president of the Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club (center), discusses some of the historical items the club owns in the Lockmaster’s House during a tour of the building, while Mayor Joshua Schlicher (left) and Bret Allphin, Marietta City Council District 2 councilman (right), listen. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

“The club spent … about $14,000, including contractor fees,” said Lewis.

According to Lewis, club members also provided free volunteer labor for repairs.

“The majority of the $14,000 was spent on the basement… the city had concerns about the foundation and we hired an engineering firm to look at it,” said club member Mark Vonkennell.

According to Lewis, no utility work has been done to the building and there is no plumbing, bathroom or water heater. There were lightbulbs in the ceiling that were on during the tour.

Noland asked Lewis if the club had any long-term plans for the development or use of the building.

Bret Allphin, Marietta City Council District 2 councilor (left), and Mitch Dimmerling, city director of budget and procurement (right), look at the lock keeper’s house during a tour of the Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

“Well, that’s a good question.” said Lewis. “Of course I would say yes. I have been talking to (city development director) Geoff Schenkel for some time and of course we are also interested in the (American) engineering firm Structurepoint, which will be submitting the (city’s) RAISE grant application.”

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation website, the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant is a discretionary grant program for surface transportation infrastructure investments that will have significant local or regional impacts.

According to Lewis, he spoke with some people at American Structurepoint who are currently writing the city’s grant application, and they suggested that renovating Lockmater’s House could be a possible project that could be included in the grant application.

“We try to be realistic about what is possible here, because you never know when flooding will occur,” said Lewis. “So we always felt like we wanted to completely renovate the outside of the building. It’s a historic building in Marietta. It needs to be renovated primarily on the outside.”

He said that there are some things in the building that need to be repaired, such as a window. He also said that the club does maintenance on the building.

The Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club leases the Lockmaster’s House, the interior of which is pictured, from the City of Marietta and has completed some renovations inside the building. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

Vonkennell asked if the city was interested in developing the Lockmaster’s House.

“Not off the cuff”, Mayor Joshua Schlicher, who took part in the tour, said:

Vonkennel then asked if anyone else had expressed interest in the building, and Noland said no, not to his knowledge.

Noland asked if the club wanted to continue the lease and Lewis said that it did and that the club was happy with the terms of the lease.

After the tour, the council and administration members returned to the Marietta Armory for a meeting and continued to discuss the lease extension.

The Marietta Rowing and Cycling Club leases the Lockmaster’s House from the City of Marietta and has completed approximately $14,000 in renovations, mostly in the basement. Pictured are the steps leading down to the basement. (Photo by Michelle Dillon)

Fourth District Councilwoman Erin O’Neill expressed concerns about the building’s insurance, as the building is owned and insured by the city.

“Can we put something about insurance in the rental agreement?” She asked, expressing concern that the city could be held liable if someone was injured in the building.

Lewis said the club had “a certain financial depth” and he “I wouldn’t be surprised” if they could raise some money, depending on how much it is.

Noalnd asked Schlicher to check with the insurance company to see what the share would be for the building and said he would send the information to Lewis to see if he would agree.