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HISTORIC STRUCTURES 1905 Furry House demolished Phoenix residents, historians dismayed over fifth historic structure lost in seven years By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Nov. 21, 2015 @ 12:01 am By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Nov. 21, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> PHOENIX — Though it flanked the city's southerly end for more than 110 years, a faded green and white farmhouse with a wrap-around porch and big windows has been reduced to a large pile of lumber. Phoenix residents and at least one historian expressed dismay over the loss of a fifth historic structure in seven years. The 1905 farmhouse was one of several homes built by the pioneer Furry family, whose patriarch, Fred Furry, traveled the Oregon Trail as an infant and settled in Phoenix in 1860. It was demolished Wednesday to make way for an apartment complex. Discussions began last summer amid city officials and urban renewal board members of ways to incorporate the historic structure into a "market square" concept for the downtown or for use as a community center. Property owner Wes Norton, who offered the old house to the city last year, was forced to remove it to make way for housing after land-use regulations restricted the amount of usable land on his property. Norton was unavailable to comment on Wednesday but said last spring that he tried a number of ways to avoid demolition. City and urban renewal officials initially expressed interest in the house but abandoned the idea after estimates to relocate and rehabilitate it ranged between $400,000 and $735,000. Mayor Jeff Bellah said he was sad to see the house destroyed, but applauded Norton's efforts to find an alternative. "I do think it is sad to lose such an old building. Urban renewal tried to save it both directly and then by helping a third party move it, but it was just too expensive," Bellah said in a message to the Mail Tribune. "The owner got his demolition permit quite some time ago and then kept looking for somebody to possibly move it." While longtime residents acknowledged lack of funding for restoring the old place, several voiced frustration at the number of historic structures lost in recent years. Historian George Kramer pointed to the loss of the historic Colver House, one of the most significant structures in the state before being destroyed by fire in September 2008, and loss of a historic gas station and the pioneer Rose House, both of which burned over the past two years. Kramer acknowledged the fires were beyond the city's control, but said vacancy and below-market pricing of the Rose House left it vulnerable, while the Colver House had been offered to the city months before it burned. The pioneer Divenny-Steadman House was another structure razed by its owners after being offered to the city for use as a community center. Phoenix Historical Society member Dorothy Cotton was dismayed by the loss of the Furry House, which builders deemed "sturdy and movable." "We knew they were taking it down, but we didn't know when. Nobody had the money to move it. We couldn't find a way to do it and the city wasn't interested," Cotton said. "It's really too bad we keep losing the old houses, but the people that own them aren't interested in fixing them, so it's kind of hard." Society president Dick Crowley and his wife, Margaret, voiced concern with the city's dwindling number of historic structures. Margaret Crowley, whose mother descended from a pioneer family and made headlines when she lost her home in the rebuilding of the Fern Valley interchange, said the losses "just keep coming." "There doesn't seem to be much you can do about it," she said. "People voice their opinions and they still do what they want to, anyway. Seems like an uphill battle trying to save our heritage and so much is already gone." Kramer pointed out that Norton made extensive efforts to find a way for the city to retain the Furry House. "He bent over backwards trying to accommodate the city, which had the opportunity to relocate it and put it on a vacant lot and store it. They chose not to," Kramer said, noting that the city's "unwillingness to preserve historic structures" would affect private investors' willingness to do so. "There was a reason why nobody would restore any of these properties in Phoenix before they were destroyed," he said. "The current administration in the city doesn't value history. I hope that whenever the administration changes, that there is still something left of the city's history." Reach Medford freelance writer Buffy Pollock at [email protected]. By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Nov. 21, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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