By Sheila McLaughlin
The Cincinnati Enquirer

LOVELAND - A historic but mold-ridden and dilapidated Cape Cod house that was headed for demolition will get a second life as a visitors center and laboratory promoting river conservation.

After months of negotiations, the city on Tuesday approved the sale of the Bronner House along the bike trail at Nisbet Park to DeVol Construction Services.

As part of the agreement, DeVol will pay about $14,000 in interest and a down payment - or about one-fifth of the $72,990 asking price - as long as the company allows Little Miami Inc., a river conservancy organization, to have a teaching laboratory and exhibits there rent-free for the next decade.

"The value to the city is getting the house rehabbed, getting a public use for the house for at least a 10-year period in terms of the visitor center and the river lab," City Manager Fred Enderle said.

"The visitor center obviously has an economic development value to the city in terms of helping to be an information center not only for the river, but the city in general - for the people on the bike trail," Enderle said.

Company owner Jeff DeVol, who plans to move his construction office to the Railroad Street site, said he expects to complete the renovation of the house, which dates to the late 19th century, by next summer.

A river lab where school groups can conduct simple river-quality tests and see exhibits on river wildlife will open in 600 square feet of the space.

Visitors to Loveland also will find tourism information on places to see, stay and eat, said Eric Partee, executive director of Little Miami Inc.

The house most recently had served as storage for city records, which became infested with black mold after a water heater burst in the basement.

The city expects to spend about $40,000 to copy the files to microfilm. DeVol said he will gut the building to remove the mold contamination.

Officials began looking at plans for the structurally questionable building last year after finding out that renovating it for the city's use would be too expensive because of restrictions in the flood plain, Enderle said.

That left the city two choices, he said: sell the building (which was worth about $60,000), or tear it down.

Mayor Donna Lajcak was one of three on council who wasn't sold on the Bronner House deal.

Giving up the land would limit future expansion of Nisbet Park or of city offices, she said.

"I'm not against anyone in particular," Lajcak said. "The real objection is that we will not have control of the property."

E-mail smclaughlin@enquirer.com