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The beautiful barn is 40' x 108' with a 50' x 60' wing. It
can be dismantled, moved and reconstructed on a new location.
It can remain a barn or be adapted to a new use. Contact the Barn
Lady at this email address for more information.
"Once there were green fields...." now there is pavement, lights,
traffic, and noise.
The claw of death was stopped, but not before it had eaten a
beautiful machine shed that could easily have been saved and relocated.
Where once there was a yard and a garden beside the original Benedict
farmhouse, now there is pavement and a fast food restaurant. Is it any
wonder Michigan has an obesity problem?
By early November, all that remains is a skeleton of the main section of the barn. The final exit is
near.
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It has been nearly four
years since, on an April morning in 2004, when 30+ acres of his farm just
south of Ionia were slated for development into a Wal-Mart Super Center,
I asked Keith Benedict, "What will happen to your barn?" He shrugged and
said sadly, that the barn built by his father in 1922, would likely be torn
down. Like so many farmers he had succumbed to the pressure to sell the
land he loved because, as he put it, "one way or another developers will
get it anyway." Other farmers across this state and nation have stood firm
only to find skyrocketing taxes and new regulations too prohibitive to endure.
Sadly, his story has some additional painful, deceptive twists and turns.
Looking back, I now believe that I was supposed to pass the farm on that
day. Bit by bit, the wheels began turning -- beginning with a call to the
Ionia newspaper to tell them about the impending destruction of this wonderful
barn -- to try to save it and other farm buildings from destruction. The
Benedict farm consisted of three homes (including the original farmhouse
set on massive posts and beams), a gorgeous corn crib, two machine sheds,
(one wood, one metal-sided) lovely old trees, gardens, and fields. Together,
they created a beautiful sight at the corner of Sprague Road and M-66 and
often, as travelers approached Ionia from the south, they were told "You
know you are close to Ionia when you see the big red barn."
But as times changed, so too did farming. Ionia began to expand and stretch
closer to the nearest expressway -- I-9 running from Grand Rapids to Lansing.
Farms nearest town disappeared. Meijers and McDonalds were just north of
the Benedict Farm for a few years but still the farm thrived -- until a
developer came by and worked his wiles, knowing that his offer to the Benedicts
could be recouped multi-fold with Wal-Mart. That transaction has allowed
him to expand his development empire exponentially.
There have been times of great hope, times of deep discouragement, and countless
hours invested in trying to save primarily the main barn but also the corn
crib, which overall, had the most historic value. The developer reluctantly
agreed to give me time to find a taker for the barn as he hoped to save
himself the cost of destroying it. Then, when Wal-Mart sealed the deal for
the land, their representative extended the time frame and said they would
underwrite the cost of dismantling and moving the barn. Now, I am thrilled
to tell you that the barn is at last being saved, that is, the main 40'
by 109' section of it. Siding, roofing and some posts and beams from the
wing and granary sections have also been salvaged to help in the rebuilding
of a smaller version of the main gambrel-roofed barn.
Construction began in January 2008 at Sherman Lake YMCA Outdoor Center in
Augusta, Michigan, some 70 miles south of Ionia, where the new/old barn
will be used for educational programming and the care and keeping of farm
animals. The YMCA's winning proposal was one of several which came in from
across the state to give the barn new life. New life alternatives included
use as a barn much as it had always been, a restaurant youth center, historic
village attraction, gardening center, preschool, event facility, and showplace
for antique automobiles, as well as a community hall within a housing project
constructed solely of adapted old barns.
This project is not something I can take credit for. Many people have had
a hand in bringing this to fruition beginning with the communications department
at Central Michigan University who brought this to public attention through
a documentary shown statewide done by Central Michigan University that showcased
the barn and Wal-Mart's pledge to give it a chance to be saved.
There were the several barn contractors who studied the barn inside
and out and said, yes, it had merit to be given a chance at new life. There were preservationists who suggested the National Trust for
Historic Preservation and the Michigan Historic Preservation Network be
made aware of the barn and asked to lend their expertise and support.
There were letters from the board and members of the Michigan Barn
Preservation Network that reached Wal-Mart executives and convinced them
that good public relations could come of saving this barn.
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There was even a man who only knew of my passion to save it who personally
donated $1,000 to help cover some of the expenses incurred in the quest,
expenses that would consume that and more. There were web designers who
helped update this site. There were the real estate managers within Wal-Mart
Corporation who honored their agreement and even at times, offered words
of encouragement. And there is the barn contractor who moved quickly through
late autumn rain and chill, to get the barn down and moved in the time allotted
by Wal-Mart.
The most important lessons to come from these years are that good can come
when people work together for a just cause and that when you truly believe
in something you must give it your best effort and not listen to the naysayers.
To say "Oh, it will never work," is to ensure that it won't.
The Benedict Barn in its original form, can only live on in the photographs
and memories of time spent inside it that I so treasure. But to know that
one part of it will have new life and that children, most of whom will never
get to know a "real barn" any other way, can enjoy it at the Sherman Lake
YMCA Outdoor Center, makes this Barn Lady very happy. Visit this website
from time to time for updates as the new/old barn springs to life!
The Barn Lady
For more information contact
jan@jancoreyarnett.com.
Michigan's
heritage structures are disappearing to "growth" at a shocking pace. When
a developer tells you that the buildings have been sold or are being saved,
it may be a ploy to get you to back off, assuming all is well.
If you are considering selling your property, insert a "condition of sale"
clause into any agreement before signing anything if you want buildings
preserved.
The Michigan Barn Preservation Network or its website, can provide you with
a hard copy or online directory of barn contractors but does not provide
recommendations. See
www.mibarn.net for more information./ Jan Corey Arnett
The Barn Lady |
