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Newsletter - Building Community
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Harry Thomas Community Center at Lee House
benefits from volunteers, donations
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SEATTLE—January 16, 2006—An energetic
group of volunteers converged on the Harry Thomas Community Center
at Lee House today. By the time they left, the proud old house,
which is the only original house left standing at NewHolly, was
ready for the next stage of its restoration.
More than a dozen volunteers from
CityYear, along with several from Seattle Housing Authority, used
the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday to tear out old lath and plaster
preparing the house for its new wall surfaces, electrical work and
plumbing. |
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Volunteers and donations are
helping restore the Lee House at NewHolly |
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As the volunteers dug in with prybars and hammers, one CityYear
volunteer commented, “I view this MLK holiday as a day on,
not a day off.”
As the volunteers
systematically pulled the old lath from the walls, two by fours and
other structural features emerged. One exciting surprise was the
discovery of the original building permit inside the front living
room wall. According to Carter Hart, the project’s lead volunteer,
“We knew that the house had been built before 1920, but we didn’t
know exactly when. Now we know that construction began in 1907, an
entire decade earlier than we thought.”
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Knowing that
original date, the committee in charge of the Lee House renovations
can now say that their goal is to restore the building to full
functionality before it reaches 100. In order to do that, the
committee has the goal of raising $50,000 to supply the fixtures and
furniture that is needed. Polygon
Northwest, one of the builders building homes for sale at NewHolly,
is donating labor and materials to complete the exterior and
interior work, and the landscaping. “Polygon’s contribution is
incredibly valuable,” said Hart. “Without their help, this would be
a very difficult goal to meet.” |
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City Year volunteers helping restore the Lee House |
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Most recently,
Polygon has been working on installing the building’s new windows.
While the window frames themselves are vinyl rather than wood, the
style is reflective of the original window style. Polygon also
recently completed the foundation for the soon-to-be restored front
porch. |
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Eventually, the two ground floor rooms
will be used as small conference and meeting rooms for neighborhood
groups and NewHolly residents. The upstairs will consist of four
small offices that will be made available for rental to neighborhood
businesses or non-profit organizations. |
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When the work is complete, the Lee House will
be restored to its pre-WWII grandeur. |
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The Lee House was originally the home of the
family of Seattle police officer Charles Lee for more than 20 years.
When World War II efforts expanded, the City needed the land to
build housing for defense workers and the Lee family had to leave
their home. Although the property was used for defense worker
housing, the house itself remained intact as a community hall. In
the 1950s, Seattle Housing took over Holly Park and used the Lee
House to serve the community's needs.
If you are interested in donating to the effort to restore this
historic house, would like to sign up for a volunteer work party or
need further information, please call Carter Hart at (206) 615-3525.
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