A historic log cabin that Hamilton officials hoped could be restored to serve as a residence will have to be torn down because of termite damage.
The city earlier this year asked people to submit proposals to redevelop the cabin, which likely dates to the 1800s. But when three city employees took a prospective developer to visit it, 223 and 225 S. C St., in the historic Rossville neighborhood.
The city’s top building inspector, Ken Rivera, noticed the termite damage and told his colleagues that the building needed to be demolished because it could collapse.
The log cabin until last year was in the hands of the Butler County Land Bank, which takes over properties that have fallen into disuse or foreclosure. The land bank in 2020 transferred the property, along with others, to Hamilton.
Tom Vanderhorst, Hamilton’s executive director of external services, said when the building is torn down, the city will keep logs that have not been destroyed in storage so they can be reused in some way.
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