FRIDAY HARBOR

Churchill House finds a new home

Photos and story by Sharon Kivisto

Churchill house begins its journey
after more than a century overlooking the harbor.

posted 2/10/2006
With dozens of people watching, a Nickels Bros. crew towed the 114-year-old Churchill House through Friday Harbor. The yellow house was guided onto property owned by Ron Boe behind three other historic homes on Argyle Avenue. Boe and Lynn Danaher hope to develop their adjacent properties together.

The house cornered the corner next to the ferry landing.

Crowds watched as the house moved down First Street.

Heavy beams were used to weigh down
the back before the house started down A Street.

The truck driver manuevered around corners and parked vehicles.

People found various vantage points for the occasion.

For a moment, Churchill House looked right at home between Coldwell Banker and Friday Harbor Center

Parked cars made for narrow clearance on Spring Street.

Ron Boe and Lynn Danaher have plans to jointly develop their individual property.

OPALCO crews moved wires.

OPALCO crews adjusted the street lights to make room for the house.

The house cruises past the health club.

Crews manuever the house between two other historic homes on Argyle.

A downspout was caught by a tree. Another tree was trimmed to give crews room to back the house into its new space.

Workers secured the house on blocks, unhooked the trailer and called it a day.

Churchill House to be moved Feb. 9

posted 2/2/2006
Churchill House, the yellow two-story house which has overlooked Friday Harbor for more than 100 years, will be moved at 2:30 p.m. On Thursday, February 9, 2006. Town of Friday Harbor Historic Preservation Coordinator Sandy Strehlou stated: The Churchill House will rise from her historic location and move gracefully (we hope) to her new home on Argyle. The route will take approximately 30 minutes as the building travels down First Street, turning uphill on Spring Street, and finally down the home stretch on Argyle. As bittersweet as the move is, it is an historic occasion. Come if you can, and do wish her luck on the journey and in her new life.

Churchill House may have new home

Churchill House has been a familiar sight at the corner of First and A Streets for more than 100 years.

posted 1/5/2006
The yellow house at the top of the ferry landing may soon have a new home. Friday Harbor Historic Preservation Coordinator Sandy Strehlou says Ron Boe is willing to move the house to one of the lots he owns on Argyle Avenue. "There are a lot of details to work out, but it is the best shot (at saving the historic building)," she said.

There is a three-week deadline to move the house before a building project on the site begins. The cost of moving the two-story house from First and A Streets to Argyle is estimated at $48,000. Preparing the foundation and site work is estimated to cost $38,000. Other logistics and costs include moving power lines out of the way.

One obstacle which likely can be avoided is applying to the town council for a height variance. Boe will appear before the town's Historic Preservation Review Board on Jan. 11 to present his plans for the building. If the building qualifies under the HPRB incentive progam, it would be allowed to exceed the town's 27-foot height limit by eight feet.

Details about the building, including when the various additions were constructed are included in an architectural analysis of the building. Property owner Charles Thomas volunteered to pay for the review done by architectural historian Boyd Pratt, according to Strehlou. She would like to collect the same type of information on all of the historic buildings. After reading the report, Thomas is interested in including some of the information in his new building along with directions to Churchill House's new location.

Some of the costs might be offset if the county Land Bank purchases a historic preservation easement on the building. There are no plans yet to do so, but the Land Bank has bought similar easements in the past.

The house was originally occupied by N.E. Churchill and his wife, Sarah Jane McKay Churchill. According to information from the HPRB, the home was beautifully furnished and gardens cascaded over the rock outcropping.

Churchill was born in Pennsylvania in 1852. After studying engineering, he spent the next 15 years "hopscotching west". He tried his hand at farming, managing mills, working on railroads. His chronic seasickness put an end to his steamboating career in Puget Sound.

In his 30s he opened a grocery store in Edison and found success. He later opened the San Juan Trading Co. in Friday Harbor. With his business partner M.R. Noftsger Churchill owned warehouses, wharf, the Bay View Hotel and other real estate.

After her husband died, Sarah took in boarders including Lopez Island students who attended school in Friday Harbor. After her death, the house became the Kellogg Rooming house.

In recent years, it has housed art studios, hair salons, restaurants, quilt shops, lawyer's offices and more.

While Strehlou is cautiously optimistic the move will work out, she said, "I've learned not to count my chickens before they hatch."

New buildings planned for Churchill Square site

posted 08/16/05
The familiar sight of the big yellow farmhouse overlooking the ferry terminal will soon be history. The new owners - J & Y Ventures and Charles Thomas - plan to build two new buildings in its place. A hearing on a variance regarding placement of the required open space will be held at the Town Council meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, August 18, 2005 in Town Hall.

Churchill Square building is actually on two separate lots. The lot bordering Harrison and A streets is in the downtown core where there aren't any lot coverage limitations. The second lot is not in the downtown core and is subject to a 70 percent lot coverage limitation. In this case, 1,500 sq feet of open space would be required.

The owners would like to develop the two lots together. If allowed to do so, the 1,500 sq. foot open areas would be the rock outcropping and an area in between the two proposed buildings. The siting of the open area would provide a walkway connecting Sunken Park and A Street. The plans call for six units each with its own deck.

While development plans are moving along, Town of Friday Harbor Historic Preservation Coordinator Sandy Strehlou said Thomas is trying to find someone who wants to move the house to another location. San Juan County Land Bank will discuss the house again at their Land Bank Commission meeting August 19, 2005 at 8:30 p.m. downstairs in Islanders Administration building.

The house was originally occupied by N.E. Churchill and his wife, Sarah Jane McKay Churchill. According to information from the historic review board, the home was beautifully furnished and gardens cascaded over the rock outcropping.

Churchill was born in Pennsylvania in 1852. After studying engineering, he spent the next 15 years "hopscotching west". He tried his hand at farming, managing mills, working on railroads. His chronic seasickness put an end to his steamboating career in Puget Sound.

In his 30s he opened a grocery store in Edison and found success. He later opened the San Juan Trading Co. in Friday Harbor. With his business partner M.R. Noftsger Churchill owned warehouses, wharf, the Bay View Hotel and other real estate.

After her husband died, Sarah took in boarders including Lopez Island students who attended school in Friday Harbor. After her death, the house became the Kellogg Rooming house.

In recent years, it has housed art studios, hair salons, restaurants, quilt shops, lawyer's offices and more.

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