Enumclaw gearing up for city hall landmark presentation

Presentation will be held June 24 at the city council chambers

By Ray Miller-Still • May 19, 2022 1:30 pm
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Enumclaw’s City Hall had its first council meeting on Nov. 1, 1921. It was built for around $15,000 — or approximately $230,000 today, factoring in inflation. Photo by Ray Miller-Still
Enumclaw’s City Hall had its first council meeting on Nov. 1, 1921. It was built for around $15,000 — or approximately $230,000 today, factoring in inflation. Photo by Ray Miller-Still

Editor’s note: The date of the landmark hearing has now changed twice, from May 26 to June 24 to June 23. The article has been updated.

Enumclaw’s city hall will soon be one step closer to becoming a King County historical landmark.

Thanks to a 4Culture grant, a presentation arguing the case for the 100-year old building to become an official landmark will be made to the county’s historical landmark commission on June 23.

The meeting will take place in the Enumclaw City Council chambers.

Becoming a landmark allows Enumclaw to access 4Culture grants to help preserve the building.

For example, last year, the city took a look at how much it would cost to restore the entire structure — and decided the approximate $500,000 was too much for its budget to handle at the time.

“We did not believe that a $500,000 cost was advisable relative to all other priorities,” former city Public Works Director Lincoln wrote in an email in 2021. “The Public Works Committee was kept appraised of the approach, and did ask why we did not undertake the whole thing at once. Our recommendation was to restore the south face and determine what the real bid price would be.”

Restoring the south face included replacing the brick paver stairs leading up to the front door.

This was still a pricey project — estimates came in around $215,000 — due to the fact that the specific pavers used were no longer being manufactured (though recycled pavers were available). Plus, to retain its historical look, the mortar used to set the new pavers had to chemically match what was used a century ago.

Future projects may include restoring aged widows, damaged wood, refinishing doors, and preserving exterior walls.

A state grant, awarded early this year, is also aiding the city’s preservation projects.

Editor’s note: The print version of this article cited a now out-of-date timeline for when the presentation on Enumclaw City Hall’s possible landmark designation would be delivered. It was recently changed from May 26 to June 24, in order to give King County more time for research, and it will also take place at Enumclaw’s city council chambers, according to Enumclaw Mayor Jan Molinaro.

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