The city of Crestwood is taking bids to see what it could cost to move a 200-year-old historic log cabin from Affton to the Historic Sappington House in Crestwood, doubling the number of Sappington houses at the site.
The nonprofit Sappington Foundation has raised nearly $100,000 to move the house, but no one really knows what it could cost since a similar log cabin move has not been done that often.
In March, aldermen approved a nonbinding letter of intent 5-0 to move the cabin after new owner Jim Freund offered to donate it if the city covered relocation. John Sappington was a cousin of Thomas Sappington, whose 1808 brick home is the centerpiece of Sappington House Museum.Freund has given the city until Aug. 1 to move the cabin or has threatened to sell it to a buyer outside St. Louis County.
A 200-year-old cabin is one step closer to possibly making the move to Crestwood after the Board of Aldermen approved an ordinance last week for an engineering firm to study what it would require to transport the cabin from Affton.
The 1816 cabin once owned by Joseph Sappington at 10734 Clearwater Drive is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Aldermen voted 6-2 April 20 to contract with consultant Case Engineering to review what would be involved in transporting and moving the house.
The study does not commit the city to actually moving the cabin to the Historic Sappington House Museum, 105 S. Sappington Road. The nonprofit Sappington House Foundation will cover the consultant fees which are not to exceed $26,000 using private donations the foundation has deposited with the city.
Crestwood will welcome new Ward 1 and Ward 4 aldermen after the election Tuesday, including longtime Public Works Board member Jesse Morrison, who ran unopposed for a three-year term representing Ward 1.
Morrison, a six-year member of the Crestwood Public Works Board, was set to win election to the Ward 1 seat in the municipal election Tuesday, after The Call went to press. Outgoing Ward 1 Alderman Mimi Duncan did not file for re-election.
“It’s just an extension of the volunteering side” of serving on the Public Works Board, Morrison said of his decision to seek elected office for the first time. “I’m genuinely curious about how things work on a local government level. Reading newspapers gives some insight … but I want to be a little more involved.”
Crestwood has a new zoning code approved by the Board of Aldermen earlier this year that changes how the city handles zoning issues.
Aldermen unanimously passed the revamped zoning code Jan. 12, the culmination of an ongoing project since 2018 between the city and planning firm Peckham Guyton Albers and Viets.
The Planning and Zoning Commission formally adopted the draft ordinance from PGAV last year, beginning with the sign code.
The most significant revisions change zoning powers and create a special zoning district along Watson Road, known as the “Watson Road Overlay.” The new overlay district will apply to zoning for the redevelopment of the former Crestwood mall site proposed by Dierbergs and McBride Homes.