reynold & eva briggs house

dorris ranch living history farm / springfield, oregon

HISTORY

The Reynold & Eva Briggs House is located in the northeast corner of the Dorris Ranch Living History Park, in Springfield, Oregon, and is currently owned by Willamalane Parks and Recreation District. The house sits upon a small hill in the park, surrounded by filbert orchards on its southeast and western sides. The oldest portion of the house—the two-story volume and its eastern wing—was originally constructed by George Thurston in 1872, and later served as the home of caretakers Reynold and Eva Briggs. It is one of the five oldest houses in the Springfield area and one of the city’s few remaining examples of box construction from the Homestead era. Once vernacular in the Willamette Valley, the house exhibits a Gothic-influenced upright-and-wing style of construction and was expanded in the 1890’s to accommodate the changing needs of its residents. Garage and shed additions were constructed in the 1920's. It has not been occupied or maintained since its last resident, Doug Briggs, left the property in 2009. The state of the Briggs House has declined in the past years, having been subjected to poor weather conditions, neglect, and illegal squatting. The house and the surrounding filbert ranch are owned by Willamalane Park & Recreation District (WPRD).

PROJECT

Willamalane hired Peter Meijer Architect, PC (PMA) in 2016 to explore possible rehabilitation options for the Briggs House. As a preservation planning consultant and junior designer at PMA, my work was to:

(1) perform an updated condition assessment that compared the current state of the Reynold & Eva Briggs House with a previous assessment performed in 2010,

(2) research and design four potential rehabilitation options for the house that addressed the modern needs of the ranch,

(3) develop rehabilitation cost estimates and pro formas for each concept, and

(4) provide recommendations for the execution of the four re-use options.

PMA designed three different programs to yield four potential rehabilitation designs for the Briggs House. These designs are exhibited below. The first and second designs—Options 1A and 1B—exhibit two iterations of event rental and classroom space to accommodate the primary public activities that the park hosts. Option 2 displays a design purely reserved for educational purposes, and Option 3 considers a design that maintains the residential function of the house in case WPRD wanted to lease the building to another individual or organization to occupy.

existing structure

concept 1A: design for event rentals & classroom space

The Briggs House has potential to be converted into a rental and classroom space that would correspond to WPRD’s two primary programs on the ranch, weddings and classes. Such a function would be revenue-producing and would provide frequent public access to the building, allowing for the community to share in its history. During times of reduced rental activity—such as the winter months that are less ideal for weddings—WPRD could primarily host its own classes and workshops that center on an interpretive core to educate students about the history of the house. In times of higher rental activity, WPRD would be able to utilize the building primarily for these rentals and supplement classroom programming when needed in the schedule. 

The Briggs House does not offer enough space to accommodate both rental and classroom programs. Therefore, Option 1A attaches a western wing to the existing building and excavates below that wing to create two new lecture rooms that would each fit a maximum of 50 students. The terrain on the western side of the building would be tapered to accommodate this expansion and provide natural daylighting in the lecture room on the basement level. All rooms and areas approaching the house must be wheelchair accessible and follow ADA standards to meet code regulations for public assembly and educational spaces.

The general program layout of this rehabilitation option is organized so that the western half of the building (the two-story volume and western wing) would be reserved for classrooms and the eastern half of the building (the original eastern ell and 1890’s addition) would serve as rental space. This would allow for rental activities to be hosted while classes are also in session. Option 1A converts the two existing spaces on the first level of the two-story volume into smaller classroom spaces, and the two upper rooms on the second level into administrative offices for the classroom function as well. The 1872 eastern wing and 1890’s living room are converted into two rental spaces, and the 1890’s kitchen is converted into a basic kitchen preparation area (sink and refrigerator, but no stove top or oven) that could serve small rental parties. The existing garage on the northern side of the Briggs House would be removed to display the northern façade of the building where the original entrance used to be.

concept 1B: design for event rentals & classroom space

Option 1B is designed to provide more space to accommodate larger rental parties and classes than Option 1A would, and exhibits the largest alteration to the building’s historic footprint out of all of the options in order to do so. The design intent in this rehabilitation option is to create “flexible” spaces throughout the building that could serve either rental or classroom programming as needed. The spaces in this design are meant to be used for either rental or classroom space at a single time. Like Option 1A, all spaces in this design must meet ADA requirements. Option 1B also experiments with the integration of an inclusive gender-neutral restroom, an important and necessary feat for a historic rehabilitation project. 

The original eastern wing, the 1890’s living room, and the 1890’s kitchen are converted into a main entry and lobby space, a bar and lounge, and a restaurant kitchen to support rental purposes. The lounge and restaurant kitchen are intended to be easily transformed into a culinary classroom and classroom kitchen, respectively. The lower level of the two-story volume has been expanded west of the building to create a large rental or classroom space as well as restrooms that could accommodate either function. The spaces on the upper level of the two-story volume have been converted into a kitchen staff meeting room and office, with the ability to transform the meeting room into a second culinary classroom space.

The garage addition has been expanded north of the building to create a large second classroom that can be subdivided with an operable wall to create two smaller, more private rental spaces (labelled as the bridal and groom staging areas in the plan drawing for Option 1B). The floor level in this northern space would be elevated to sit on the same level as the rest of the main building.

The new outbuilding southeast of the main structure would serve as a large activity space that could accommodate farm-to-table dining for rental purposes, and be used as either a cafeteria or spacious indoor classroom for an educational function. An outdoor victory garden is included between the expanded Briggs House and outbuilding in this rehabilitation plan to contribute to the kitchen for farm-to-table dining, to serve culinary classroom purposes, and to center the entire design around organic farming. An outdoor activity space would sit east of the new outbuilding to be used for rental activities (such as a dance floor for weddings) or educational purposes (such as an outdoor classroom space for students).

concept 2: design for classroom space

Option 2 offers a rehabilitation plan that supports a more consistent programmatic use of the Briggs House in comparison with the mixed-use options for a rental and classroom space. With this option, a regular schedule of classes could be held throughout the year. Option 2 is also designed to minimize the need for construction in the rehabilitation plan because the building would not need to be expanded as much as it would if it were to accommodate two new functions instead of one. 

Option 2 expands the lower level of the two-story volume and excavates below to avoid great alterations to the historic footprint. The two new spaces that this expansion creates provide for two large classrooms that would be able to accommodate 50 students. This rehabilitation option would also incorporate two smaller classrooms on the eastern side of the building where the original 1872 wing and 1890’s living room currently stand. The existing 1890’s kitchen would be converted into a culinary classroom that includes a smaller kitchen area on its southern end. The upper spaces in the two-story volume would be converted into two offices that could serve as a teachers’ lounge or for administrative use. A porch would be added to the western exterior façade of the 1890’s addition to mimic the porch that wraps around the northern and eastern façades of the current building.

concept 3: design for a residential curatorship program

Option 3 provides a rehabilitation plan that retains the property’s original residential function and exhibits the least amount of alteration to the building’s historic footprint in comparison with all other options. Part of the design intent for this option is to preserve the Briggs House as much as possible in order to maintain its historic integrity. Due to its level of preservation, the Option 3 rehabilitation plan for the Briggs House would contribute well to the “living history” of Dorris Ranch. 

Option 3 increases the space within the Briggs House just enough to accommodate a modern-sized family without significantly altering the historic footprint. The design does this by removing the garage addition to expand the original historic parlor north of the existing building, and by removing the kitchen shed to make way for a new addition on the southern end of the building. The lower level of the two-story volume would contain two bedrooms and a 5-foot by 8-foot full bathroom. The existing dining room would be converted into a family room and the existing 1890’s kitchen would be converted into a dining room. The current living room would retain its function in the new design, and a new kitchen and ½-bathroom would be incorporated into the new southern addition. The upper rooms in the two-story volume would be converted into a single master bedroom space with a walk-in closet and full bathroom. A porch that mimics the existing porch of the Briggs House would be added to the western façade of the 1890’s addition.

resident curatorship program

Option 3 would not produce revenue through Dorris Ranch’s typical program activities like the other rehabilitation options would. However, it could alleviate WPRD of the financial burden that accompanies a rehabilitation project, and would provide the opportunity for an eventual income by way of a resident curatorship program. 

A resident curatorship program is a program in which tenants are given the opportunity to live in a historic property rent-free under the condition that the tenant restores the property in coordination with national preservation standards, continues to maintain the property over time, and opens the property to the public to provide community benefit a minimum number of times per year. Currently, the most established resident curatorship programs in the United States are located on the East Coast in Massachusetts, Maryland, Delaware (no longer active), and Virginia. Other states, such as Connecticut and Indiana, have attempted to develop their own programs or have made unique variations of the program to fit the specific needs of their historic properties.

Resident curatorships are typically between 20 and 30 years in length, and sometimes even last a lifetime. Most resident curatorship programs require applicants to prove their financial capability to afford all expenses associated with the rehabilitation of the property (renovation and maintenance costs, insurance, property tax, etc.). The reasons why resident curators commit to the financial obligation and time that come with rehabilitation projects can range from a simple love of historic preservation to the opportunity to live in a house in an area that would otherwise be unaffordable for them. 

As it currently stands, the Briggs House is not in a condition in which WPRD would be able to lease it for house rental income without first having to perform major rehabilitation on the buildling. A resident curatorship program would provide a long-term alternative that would alleviate WPRD from the financial burden of having to rehabilitate and continuously maintain the house. Maintenance of the land surrounding the Briggs House could be incorporated into the tenant’s rental agreement for a resident curatorship program, which would also alleviate WPRD from having to maintain a portion of Dorris Ranch property. In addition, a resident curatorship program has the potential to eventually create income for WPRD in the form of continued maintenance work after the property has been fully restored.