Algood City Council approved a resolution Tuesday night to start the process of donating the White Plains Historic Home to the state.
Algood has considered either donating or selling the home to the state, as the city has had financial challenges to make continuous repairs to the home. Mayor Lisa Chapman-Fowler said donating the home to the state would be the easiest, quickest, and best option for the city.
“There are conditions laid out by the state for a donation, and they would have to accept it,” Chapman-Fowler said. “By all indications we have, we think that it would be accepted.”
City Administrator Keith Morrison said donating the house to the state would be a two-year process. Morrison said the state would first evaluate the condition of the home and determine what improvements may be needed before including funding for the property in the state budget.
“They have to know what condition it’s in, what it needs, what’s going to have to be done to get it up to usable status,” Morrison said.
Under the proposal, the state would assume responsibility for major structural maintenance and improvements, while the city would continue handling routine items such as mowing and a portion of the utilities. Morrison estimated the city’s annual upkeep costs at roughly $20,000 or less.
Morrison also told council members that the city would continue operating the site.
“They’re not running the house. It’s still run by the city,” Morrison said. “We can still do our functions and continue to try to raise funds, and actually, they prefer that you try to raise funds to help support it and run it.”
Morrison said the home is typically opened during community events such as the quilt festival, Christmas celebrations, and occasional school tours highlighting the property’s history. Morrison said selling the home to the state would take significantly longer and would not guarantee the property would be acquired.
“That’s a five-year process,” Morrison said. “They’ll evaluate the condition and determine a fair market value before sending back an agreement.”
During that process, the city would remain responsible for any structural issues that arise.
The council unanimously approved a motion to request that the state consider the property as a state historic site through donation, officially beginning the process. The city purchased the property nearly 10 years ago for an estimated $250,000.
In other business, the council approved an agreement with MG Service/Strategic Vision for audit services for the fiscal year 2026. Morrison said the city has used them for three years.
The council approved updating several ordinances in the city’s code book on second and final reading. The new codes come from the 2024 Edition of the International Building Code book. The updates included building codes, existing building codes, fire codes, fuel gas codes, mechanical codes, plumbing codes, and residential codes.