Saving the Kays House: New committee, new plan

The basement also could be used in a number of ways, according to Milner. Archives, meeting rooms, graduate offices and extended exhibits are all possibilities.

“What’s nice is that it will be very accessible, so as a heritage facility it’ll be great. It’ll be an anchor point.”

When the board of directors made the decision to postpone demolition of the Kays House last spring, a one-year deadline was set in place for restoration efforts. If satisfactory progress is not made, then the Board would see no reason to keep the house, according to Hall.

Yet the ultimate fate of this historic building is still not certain and the April deadline still stands. However, Milner believes the real goal of the board of directors’ deadline is to inspire action in people interested in the Kays House, and motivate them to become active in the raising of both funds and awareness.

“The initial statement was one year and if it is an absolute, ‘everything has to be in place set in one year, that’s very difficult to do. But I think that it was a firm statement of, ‘step up and get out there with fundraising and ideas that make sense.” Milner said. “And I think we’ve done that very effectively.”

“They see that something positive is developing here. But, they own the house. It’s the university’s house. Saving Kays Committee does not own the house, it is owned by the university, so it is ultimately the Board of Trustees decision,” Milner finished.

Paula Miller encourages the committee to stay united and goal-oriented. “I’ve said before that we all have different strengths, but our main strength is that we all love the Kays House and want to save it.”

“It’s not going to be an old house that gets fixed up and then sits there. It’s going to be an old house that’s really going to be a landmark, and it’s really going to be of use to the university and the community,” Milner said.