Latest News: Freight House Project Receives $14,000 Keystone Preservation Planning Grant
Posted June 5, 2021
We at Discover Lansdale are proud to announce that our civic nonprofit has been awarded a 2021 Keystone Preservation Planning Grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
The $14,310 grant is designated for the planning, promotion, and development of historic resources. Discover Lansdale applied for the grant to help fund construction plans and design documents to prepare for the historic rehabilitation project at the stately stone Freight House on South Broad Street.
The grant is a 50% match; Discover Lansdale is required to fund the remaining half by donations, sponsorships or other means.
"This is pretty exciting for us,” said Bill Henning, who chairs Discover Lansdale’s Freight House Committee. “This project, near and dear to our hearts, has been slow going, but this Keystone grant is a much-needed step toward our goal of preserving and repurposing this historic building for use by the entire Lansdale community."
This year, DL already has repaired the masonry along the Liberty Bell Trail side of the town’s former commerce hub, which was intricately constructed by a local stonemasonry family, using area quarries, in 1902.
We plan to host several volunteer workdays over the summer months to enlist the community’s help to paint and preserve the wooden freight doors and clear the surrounding area. To volunteer, email info@discoverlansdale.org, and visit www.discoverlansdale.org for updates.
And we hope to have final plans completed in time to award contracts and begin interior repair and refurbishment next year. Discover Lansdale plans to apply for further grants to help fund that construction, and we will be seeking donations from the public and sponsorships from area firms to help match those grants.
Discover Lansdale purchased the borough landmark in 2016 to rescue it from the wrecking ball. It is centrally located along the multicounty Liberty Bell Trail, at the entrance of the future Luxor Lansdale development, and across from Lansdale Borough Hall.
The goal is to recreate the Freight House office area as a borough Welcome Center and industrial heritage display site, serving visitors to town and hikers and bikers along the Liberty Bell Trail, and to rehabilitate the freight area for public and private events to help support the Welcome Center’s operation.
“The Reading Freight House is among the most iconic and visible structures in our community, so it’s the perfect place to welcome travelers or anyone just passing through our area,” State Rep. Steve Malagari said in announcing the grant. “Lansdale has a rich history and its own unique personality, so I am hopeful that a welcome center will attract others to the area who will see that.”
The Lansdale Parking Authority owns the land beneath and around the Freight House, and preparations for paving the area are under way.
Earlier coverage is below ...
We at Discover Lansdale are proud to announce that our civic nonprofit has been awarded a 2021 Keystone Preservation Planning Grant from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.
The $14,310 grant is designated for the planning, promotion, and development of historic resources. Discover Lansdale applied for the grant to help fund construction plans and design documents to prepare for the historic rehabilitation project at the stately stone Freight House on South Broad Street.
The grant is a 50% match; Discover Lansdale is required to fund the remaining half by donations, sponsorships or other means.
"This is pretty exciting for us,” said Bill Henning, who chairs Discover Lansdale’s Freight House Committee. “This project, near and dear to our hearts, has been slow going, but this Keystone grant is a much-needed step toward our goal of preserving and repurposing this historic building for use by the entire Lansdale community."
This year, DL already has repaired the masonry along the Liberty Bell Trail side of the town’s former commerce hub, which was intricately constructed by a local stonemasonry family, using area quarries, in 1902.
We plan to host several volunteer workdays over the summer months to enlist the community’s help to paint and preserve the wooden freight doors and clear the surrounding area. To volunteer, email info@discoverlansdale.org, and visit www.discoverlansdale.org for updates.
And we hope to have final plans completed in time to award contracts and begin interior repair and refurbishment next year. Discover Lansdale plans to apply for further grants to help fund that construction, and we will be seeking donations from the public and sponsorships from area firms to help match those grants.
Discover Lansdale purchased the borough landmark in 2016 to rescue it from the wrecking ball. It is centrally located along the multicounty Liberty Bell Trail, at the entrance of the future Luxor Lansdale development, and across from Lansdale Borough Hall.
The goal is to recreate the Freight House office area as a borough Welcome Center and industrial heritage display site, serving visitors to town and hikers and bikers along the Liberty Bell Trail, and to rehabilitate the freight area for public and private events to help support the Welcome Center’s operation.
“The Reading Freight House is among the most iconic and visible structures in our community, so it’s the perfect place to welcome travelers or anyone just passing through our area,” State Rep. Steve Malagari said in announcing the grant. “Lansdale has a rich history and its own unique personality, so I am hopeful that a welcome center will attract others to the area who will see that.”
The Lansdale Parking Authority owns the land beneath and around the Freight House, and preparations for paving the area are under way.
Earlier coverage is below ...
About Discover Lansdale's Freight House Project
The local landmark, constructed in 1902, served as the commerce hub of the borough for decades. The Freight Station gave local industries and manufacturers rail access to markets all over the region and beyond. In doing so, it (and the nearby Passenger Station) contributed to the growth of the borough as a business and population center in the early 20th century.
For some 20 years the stately stone station had fallen into non-use and disrepair. In Summer 2016 Discover Lansdale had the opportunity to purchase the building as part of an arrangement with the borough's Parking Authority, which wanted the surrounding land to increase the town's available spaces. We are proud to help save this significant part of the town's heritage from the wrecking ball, and invite the community to join us as we bring it back to vibrant life.
On this and other pages we will keep you up to date on the progress at the Freight Station, and let you know how to help. Below find a PDF file of our Nov. 14, 2016, slide presentation; on other pages inside find a history of the building, a feature on the family of stonemasons that built the Freight Station, and more photos and information as the project takes shape.
For some 20 years the stately stone station had fallen into non-use and disrepair. In Summer 2016 Discover Lansdale had the opportunity to purchase the building as part of an arrangement with the borough's Parking Authority, which wanted the surrounding land to increase the town's available spaces. We are proud to help save this significant part of the town's heritage from the wrecking ball, and invite the community to join us as we bring it back to vibrant life.
On this and other pages we will keep you up to date on the progress at the Freight Station, and let you know how to help. Below find a PDF file of our Nov. 14, 2016, slide presentation; on other pages inside find a history of the building, a feature on the family of stonemasons that built the Freight Station, and more photos and information as the project takes shape.
Here's the 2016 presentation in PDF format. It's a large file, and may take a while to download.
| freight_station_presentation.pdf |
Background of the Freight House project
In mid-2016 Discover Lansdale, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) civic organization dedicated to improving the quality of life in the borough, purchased the stately stone structure to save it from the wrecking ball. The historic RR depot at the southern gateway to downtown Lansdale had fallen into disrepair after years of non-use.
We hope to restore it to its former glory, and more — to make it a welcome center for the town, a showplace for the town’s history and growth, and a resource for the entire community for events and celebrations.
Currently we are in the process of removing the flooring, assessing the physical condition of the building and the supports, and determining what repairs will be needed to ensure its structural integrity now and far into the future. This, along with other improvements to come, will be a multi-year effort and an expensive undertaking.
Discover Lansdale is counting on you, and folks like you, to fund this effort. We hope you’ll be among the supporters helping to restore the Lansdale Freight Station as a town jewel. Whatever you can give would be greatly appreciated.
To donate online, just click here and click the “Donate” button, or go to the How to Help page under the Freight Station tab.
Or send your check to Discover Lansdale, PO Box 1112, Lansdale, PA 19446. Please note on the check that your donation is for the Freight House restoration. Every dollar you give will go towards that project.
Your donations are tax-deductible; we will acknowledge donations via email, or if you wish a letter of acknowledgement sent, please click the box on the payment page to allow sharing of your contact information with Discover Lansdale.
Thank You for giving back to our community. As always, Discover Lansdale appreciates your support.
We hope to restore it to its former glory, and more — to make it a welcome center for the town, a showplace for the town’s history and growth, and a resource for the entire community for events and celebrations.
Currently we are in the process of removing the flooring, assessing the physical condition of the building and the supports, and determining what repairs will be needed to ensure its structural integrity now and far into the future. This, along with other improvements to come, will be a multi-year effort and an expensive undertaking.
Discover Lansdale is counting on you, and folks like you, to fund this effort. We hope you’ll be among the supporters helping to restore the Lansdale Freight Station as a town jewel. Whatever you can give would be greatly appreciated.
To donate online, just click here and click the “Donate” button, or go to the How to Help page under the Freight Station tab.
Or send your check to Discover Lansdale, PO Box 1112, Lansdale, PA 19446. Please note on the check that your donation is for the Freight House restoration. Every dollar you give will go towards that project.
Your donations are tax-deductible; we will acknowledge donations via email, or if you wish a letter of acknowledgement sent, please click the box on the payment page to allow sharing of your contact information with Discover Lansdale.
Thank You for giving back to our community. As always, Discover Lansdale appreciates your support.
