Marble Falls commission clears way for historic home's re-zoning

By CHRIS PORTER • Daily Tribune Staff

MARBLE FALLS - The historic home of a former Confederate Army officer could find new life as an office building, thanks to the actions of Planning and Zoning commissioners late Thursday.

Developers Charley Dickey and Steve Hurst say they plan to maintain the 119-year-old Badger House on Avenue N as an historic centerpiece to future development in the original township area of Marble Falls.

“We want to diversify the use of the land while preserving the historical significance of the property,” Dickey said.

That diversification could include small shops or even condos, a prospect that already is raising concerns among area preservationists.

“My first question is ‘Why?’ We have many places in Marble Falls where condos can be built,” Carol Calsyn of the Burnet County Historical Commission told the city panel. “If that beautiful landscape is touched, we will have lost part of our history.”

Dickey and Hurst asked the commission to re-zone the property from residential-duplex to mixed-use, which allows for a variety of low-density functions.

The request was approved unanimously.

The home was built by Marble Falls co-founder Brandt Badger in 1888, and he lived there until his death in the 1920s, according to Calsyn. The Badger family owned the home until 1943.

Dickey said his company, Renaissance Partners LLC, plans to convert the eight-room house into office space for himself and at least two lawyers. The company is in the final stages of purchasing the 2-acre spread, which encompasses a city block.

Even so, Dickey said he was still fighting rumors that developers intended to completely clear the property.

“I’ve heard rumors that the property was going to be torn down, and I want to put that to rest,” he said.

While that may be the case, Calsyn said she had heard other rumors.

“Mr. Dickey did not address the rumors that we have been hearing, that there are going to be condos built on the property around the Badger House,” Calsyn told the commission.

Hurst, who also oversees the La Ventana development in south Marble Falls, assured the commission that preservation of history is one of the company’s primary goals.

“The mixed-use zoning will allow us to create other uses on the property,” he said. “Right now, if someone wanted to buy the property, they could come in and build duplexes, and they wouldn’t have to come to the city for permission.”

While the future use of the property could include condominiums, Hurst said any plan will take the historic significance and preservation of the structure into account.

“We want to do something fiscally responsible that preserves and enhances the structure and the courtyard,” he said. “We would be happy to work with the historic commission on this.”

Possible uses of the property include several small shops along the lines of Old Oak Square, with the Badger House as a centerpiece, Hurst said. Condominiums are another possibility.

“We will come up with a use that balances and protects the property,” he said.

Dickey said the company plans to maintain both the building and the historic furniture within.

“We’re buying the house as-is,” he said.

Calsyn and the historic commission are championing a proposed ordinance that would protect dozens of historic Marble Falls homes from demolition by developers.

The law, which was drafted by the commission, would create a historic district around parts of the city, setting up additional criteria that builders would have to meet before remodeling or demolishing a historic housing stock.

Calsyn said the current law allows for anyone to obtain a demolition permit and start tearing down a building within 24 hours, regardless of the building’s age or historical value.

The proposal will likely be examined by a new comprehensive plan committee that will be created next year, according to Interim City Manager Judy Miller.

The Marble Falls City Council will discuss final approval of the re-zoning at their Oct. 22 meeting.

chris@thepicayune.com

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Marble Falls commission clears way
for historic home's re-zoning