Saline MI
1-09-2026 4:15pm

Council Could Decide on Davenport Purchase Monday

Saline City Council could buy the Davenport-Curtiss House property for $3 million at Monday's meeting.

City staff has presented two motions for council's consideration, noting that council amend the motions. The first would buy the historic home and property for $3 million. The purchase would come from existing funds. Another second motion would then authorize the city manager and bond counsel to bond to reimburse the general fund.

The alternative motion would be to terminate the city's purchase agreement and authorize the city manager to negotiate an amended purchase agreement, allowing more time for council to study the issue and address concerns.

Council discussed the matter at a work meeting Monday.

Much of the meeting was dedicated to discussing the city's due diligence.

Deputy City Manager Elle Cole noted the Curtiss family has maintained the home immaculately. Community Development Director Chris Atkin presented on the due diligence that was conducted.

"The overall condition of residence and two outbuildings are remarkably good for 150 year-old buildings," Atkin said, quoting a report by structural engineers Robert Darvas Associates.

Council took little issue with the condition of the building. Where there was concern was the cost and the impact on city budget.

The recommended option of purchasing and then reimbursing the general fund with a 25-year bond would cost the city about $200,000 a year. In addition, the city would have to spend $75,000-100,000 to maintain the property.

The city would set up a workgroup to study how the property would be used, potentially to recoup some of the money. Another option that was discussed was taking three years to find a good option for the property and then selling it, after the city has established easements to protect the Davenport-Curtiss House.

Council is split on the issue. At Monday's meeting, it appeared Mayor Brian Marl, and Councillors Janet Dillon and Dean Girbach were supportive of the purchase. Councillors Nicole Rice, Jenn Harmount and Tramaine Halsch expressed reservations.  That would leave Councillor Jim Dell'Orco as the swing vote.

Council Comments

Concerns come back to the budget.

Halsch noted that homes converted to museums generate about $8 per visitor for every $40 spent.

Halsch said a lot of the financial numbers make more sense for a home than they do for a "high-traffic, revenue-generating space."

Cole noted that turning the home into a museum is just of several options to be considered.

Councillor Janet Dillon noted the Davenport-Curtiss House would cost the city $23,000-$29,000 a month. She compared finding revenue sources for the property to the Rec Center deficits. The Rec Center deficit last year was nearly three times higher than the estimated costs of the Davenport-Curtiss House.

"That's a very reasonable amount to adjust the budgets," Dillon said. "We're looking at this but we don't follow the same procedure with the Rec Center. We are constantly using those dollars to subsidize the Rec Center."

Councillor Dean Girbach also compared it to the Rec Center spending.

"Right now we're spending $700,000 a year that's going right out the door because of mismanagement of the Rec Center. Over five years, that's $3.5 that would have been available," Girbach said.

Girbach noted that there are no protections for the house and property if the house is sold to developers.

"The loss of this building would be immeasurable to this community," he said.

Girbach noted that the property could be split into 20 or more lots. At $150,000 a lot, there's value there.

Councillor Nicole Rice said she was concerned by the comments about the Rec Center.

"I'm a little concerned about our inability to see the benefits of a recreation center to the city of Saline. We just continue to bring up the recreation center in every conversation as if it's a negative asset. It's a positive asset to our city, and we're finding money," Rice said.

Rice said the Davenport-Curtiss property is an amazing property.

"But I think when we look at the numbers and when we look at the reality of it, we don't have a plan," Rice said. " It is not the right time to take on another big project that we're going to put a task force together to try to figure out. I am not comfortable with spending this amount of money and having to fight with us every year in the budget cycle when we've essentially given up on doing that for the recreation center."

Councillor Jenn Harmount said she owns a historic home and that it can be expensive.

"There's a lot of expenses with upkeep for the structure," Harmount said, pointing to the roof.

Cole said the roof shouldn't need to be replaced for another 50 years. But if the city owns it, the city must develop a plan to maintain the assets.

Harmount asked how much revenue would be lost from the tax rolls if the city bought the property. Cole answered it would cost the city about $17,000 a year.

During an interview with The Saline Post, Mayor Brian Marl said he's not a mayor who backs away from challenges.

"I would rather make a good faith effort and attempt to turn this into a public asset and amenity, to be enjoyed for years to come, and fail in that attempt, than forgo this opportunity and look back years from now and regret not having aggressively to turn this into something that could tangibly benefit our community for many years," Marl said.

    Davenport Family

    Cole also highlighted the Davenport family's role in shaping the city.

    "It was interesting as I learned about the history of the Davenport-Curtiss Home, how much the family really had to do with urbanizing the City of Saline," Cole said. "Orange Risdon founded the City of Saline and the Davenport family urbanized and modernized our local area."

    She noted the family started the first bank, brought the first library to the community, bought the first fire engine and much more.

    Poll

    A poll in the Saline Posts Facebook Group showed 73 percent of 649 voters were against spending $3 million on the property.

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