Two city projects win recognition from the Historic Preservation Commission

Posted: Sun, Dec 13, 2020 2:45 PM

Court Street

The Decorah Historic Preservation Commission is publicly commending the City of Decorah for the recent Court Street rehabilitation project and for the

preservation of the Locust Road stone cave.

The Court Street brick paving is part of the National Register of Historic

Places' Decorah Commercial Historic District. As part of the project to repair the street, City Engineer Jeremy Bril and City Manager Chad Bird showed the Historic Preservation Commission several drafts of the planned project.

Said Commission member Mark Branum, "Every day I walk by Court Street and notice how beautiful are both the design and the execution. The work models the kind of care that we hope for with all the properties in the Commercial Historic District."

The City of Decorah also won praise for taking special care to preserve the human-made stone cave on Locust Road during that street project. "A less historically-minded community might easily have erased this physical reminder of Decorah's past," said Commission member Adrienne Coffeen.

The removal of vegetation and debris has made the cave more visible and has generated new curiosity about the cave's history. The DHPC is making a new attempt to research the cave's origins and uses, and would appreciate receiving relevant anecdotes, documentation and
photographs. Information can be sent to DHPC chair Mark Z. Muggli (mugglimz@luther.edu; 612-720-5795).