POLL: Initial Plans Call For Opening Up Kobayashi House

University Place agrees on a concept for what to do with the .

Now, it needs to see the numbers behind the plan.

This week, the University Place City Council heard a presentation on what to do with the house at the 4.8-acre property, which the city purchased five years ago.

According to UP Parks Commissioner Rebecca Vader, the plan involves making the house available for public use by opening up the structure so it provides a cover from the rain. The plan also includes a restroom, fireplace, which most likely would be covered by a gate or door, and electrical outlets.

“It’s more open than the current structure,” Vader said.

(Click on the media gallery to view drawings of the plan)

A handful of educators and residents at Monday’s meeting largely approved the plan, especially the idea of maintaining the property’s natural amenities.

Gabriel Newton, a science teacher at Charles Wright Academy, said the plan provides the two things he would look for if he brought students down to the site: shelter from the rain and a bathroom.

It’s a good way, he said, “to demonstrate native plants, wildlife, salmon,” and other aspects of the property’s natural setting.

For the most part, the University Place City Council indicated that it liked the plan. Mayor Debbie Klosowski said she was concerned about the fireplace and the threat of vandalism.

But the real question is how much the plan will cost the city. Vader and Public Works Director Gary Cooper said they hadn’t estimated how much the plan would cost, as they first wanted to make sure city leaders approved of it.

UP purchased the land for more than $650,000 with Pierce County Conservation Futures grant money, as well as $74,000 out of its own pocket.

Today, volunteers and city staff have turned the property into a natural amenity for the public that includes markers, a trail and a footbridge over the creek.

But the city must decide what to do with the property's home. In 2008, a consultant worked with the city to help produce a master plan for the Kobayashi Preserve. One of the recommendations that came out of those meetings was to demolish the house, turn the house's pool area into a shelter and build public restrooms.

The UP Parks and Recreation Committee agreed with everything except the home's demolition. It recommended the home could remain a public space and that the city could find a caretaker. City officials agreed but couldn't remodel or improve the house because it didn't have the money.

In April, the city entered into a six-month lease with a renter, but a month later, the renter discovered a problem - mold was growing in one of the bedrooms.

In September, about two weeks before the lease ended, a fire ignited in the home's kitchen. The renter was home, and authorities determined it started somewhere near the stove range hood. It resulted in extensive fire, smoke and water damage to the kitchen and the rest of the house, but the city got an $88,122 check from its insurance provider.

The city still wants to offer more parking spaces, convert the house's pool room into a public meeting room and make other improvements.

On Monday, officials told staff to bring a back a plan - with some minor tweaks – that includes a potential price tag for the proposed changes.