One of Oxford Village’s historic buildings is getting a facelift, and part of it will be paid for by the Downtown Development Authority (DDA). The decision sparked some debate on the board.

Last week, the DDA board voted 4-2 to award $11,500 in grant money to John Burt Realty at 15 E. Burdick St. for improvements to its facade and awning.

The project is expected to cost approximately $95,000. The DDA is supplying $10,000 for the facade work, plus $1,500 for a new awning. The plan is to cover three of the building’s four sides with a cut-stone facade and HardiePlank, a fiber-cement siding, according to DDA Executive Director Glenn Pape. The side facing Red Knapp’s American Grill would be painted.

DDA Board Member Elgin Nichols applauded John Burt Realty for its willingness to make such a large investment.

“Not many of the businesses I know of really make that kind of a commitment,” he said.

But, not everyone on the DDA board was pleased with the plan.

Village President Joe Frost, who serves on the DDA board, voted against awarding the grant because he didn’t like the idea of covering the original brick on a historic building. When it comes to historic preservation, he said the “best practice” is to leave original material “exposed.”

The John Burt Realty building was erected in 1942 and originally served as a Kroger grocery store. It’s listed as a contributing resource on downtown Oxford’s application for the National Register of Historic Places.

To be a contributing resource, a property must have been around during the district’s historic period of significance, which for downtown Oxford began in 1876 and ended in 1968, and it must still possess a majority of the architectural features that exemplify that era.

Frost said it’s “unfortunate” that the original brick has been repeatedly painted over, “but at least you can see the historic material.”

DDA Chairman Pete Scholz noted the existing brick is “deteriorating” and “crumbling” in a lot of places.

Pape added those “numerous layers of paint” are what is “holding the brick in place.”

“The bricks in several places are completely disintegrated and there are voids,” Pape said.

From a property rights standpoint, Frost said John Burt Realty is “100 percent able to do” whatever it wants with regard to the facade. There are no local rules or regulations that say otherwise in this case.

However, because taxpayer money is being expended to help fund the project, Frost believes the work needs to be in keeping with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties. Covering original material is not in keeping with those standards, according to Frost.

“That’s my stance on it. It’s just my two cents . . . We need to ensure that it follows the standard,” he said.

Frost would rather see the original brick repaired and have new material added where needed, then repaint the building. “I think it could be done for far less (money) and in keeping with what’s already there,” he said.

He reminded his fellow DDA board members that the facade grant program is meant to encourage downtown property owners to take the “right” approach when it comes to improvements, a path that “sometimes does cost more.”

But, “in this case, it’s costing more to do a contemporary approach,” Frost said.

Other DDA board members disagreed with Frost and favored what was presented.

Scholz said the building maybe historic in terms of sheer age, but “it’s never looked outstanding by any means.”

“I think anything he does to that building is going to be a huge improvement,” he said.

“I think it would be advantageous to the village to have a nice looking building such as this,” Nichols said.

“This looks a lot nicer,” said DDA Board Member Sue Oles.

Scholz liked the idea of the grant money being awarded to a local business that’s “been here for quite a while” and “paid their dues” as opposed to a newcomer who’s approaching the DDA with their “hand out right away.”

DDA Board Member Nicole Ellsworth also voted against the grant. She expressed concern over the dollar amount and that the money will be used for “upgrading” a building, “not preserving” it.

“Are we going to get to the point where we’re paying for everybody’s renovations?” Ellsworth asked.

Scholz noted any downtown property or business owner can apply for facade and awning grants to “fix up” their building. He said the higher dollar amounts are meant to offer more incentive to take advantage of the program and make improvements.