Cabin fever in Willow

WILLOW— A group of Willow-area residents are holding steadfast in keeping the original Willow Community Center right where it is.

The Mat-Su Borough filed suit against the Willow Historical and Wildlife Foundation (WHWF) last October, asking a court to force the WHWF to move the community-built log cabin off borough property. The suit also seeks legal fees.

At question is an original 40-foot by 60-foot log cabin built by residents in 1960, the year after Alaska gained statehood. According to WHWF vice-president Jim Huston, those residents raised the needed funds for building supplies and constructed the building at great hardship on leased land from the state.

As the municipality grew, a new community center was constructed in 1985, as well as an adjacent public library in 1992. To complete the project, officials made a decision to relocate the center several hundred feet from its original location to its present.

Among the borough’s concerns are structural integrity and insurance issues. But Huston said that in addition to meeting all safety and insurance requirements, volunteers cleaned the site and hauled gravel to complete the existing parking area.

Another rumor, that the building sits unused, is also false, Huston said, adding that it remains open with utilities for the public to use at will and has been since it was built. The plan is to turn the center into a museum dedicated to the community, its founding, growth and importance, he said.

In 2006, Willow Area Community Organization (WACO), which had ownership of the center, sold it for $1 to the WHWF, a federally recognized nonprofit organization. The sale was contingent upon the center never being given away or sold and if the WHWF should ever cease to exist, the center’s ownership would revert back to WACO.

That arrangement fit the bill for all involved until the lawsuit. WHWF has secured an attorney acting on its behalf at no charge.

In that suit, the borough gave WHWF until last September to move the building off borough-owned lands. Patty Sullivan, Mat-Su Borough public affairs director stated in an email that the borough “…sued to remove the Willow cabin from borough owned land because they have no permission to be there.” Sullivan acknowledged discovery in the court case is proceeding.

Court documents filed by the borough’s legal counsel back that up, but other than stating WHWF members “…never obtained permission from the borough to keep the Willow cabin on borough property (and) neither WACO nor the Willow Historical Society have any current agreements with the borough reference the Willow Cabin…”, the suit doesn’t mention why borough officials are pursuing the case.

In a Nov. 30, 2016, letter from Mat-Su Mayor Vern Halter and District 7 Assembly member Randall Kowalke (whose district includes Willow) to the presidents of both WHWF and WACO, the borough said it has funds to continue ongoing renovation of the structure with one caveat.

“We wanted to let the people of Willow know that the borough’s offer to renovate the (center) still stands…the borough has funded money for this renovation project. It was and still is contingent on both WACO and (WHWF) quitclaiming any interest in the building to the borough…,” the letter stated. In other words, the borough wants ownership of the structure.

Since that time, WHWF members have successfully petitioned the Alaska Historical Commission (AHC) to consider its eligibility for placement on the National Registry of Historic Places registry. In a July 28, 2017, letter, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer Joan Antonson said at a July 17 meeting in Anchorage, the AHC “…determined that the (center) is eligible for the (registry) for its association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history…“…the (Mat-Su Borough) is one of our historic preservation partners, and its historic preservation commission reviewed the nomination package and determined the building is eligible…”

However, the letter also stated, “…the borough, which owns the land under the building at its current location, sent a letter objecting to listing the property…”

The letter did not explain the borough’s objection.

An e-mail sent to the borough on Wednesday asking a number of questions, including the reason(s) for the borough wanting the building moved, or whether any possible agreement to keep the center at its current location could be worked out. A response wasn’t received by press deadline late Thursday afternoon.

“Bottom line,” said Huston, “the people want the building to stay where it is and retain its historical status. Our elected officials want the building to be moved. Although they are legally right, is it morally wrong to ignore the wishes of those who have elected them to office? It is our since hope that the borough reconsider their position, drop the lawsuit and stand behind those who put them into office.”

Contact reporter Chris Ford at 352-2270 or chris.ford@frontiersman.com