Moffet Street Olivia Building Gets Much Need Restoration

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This is so exciting, history is coming back to life in downtown Joplin. The Olivia on Moffet Street is getting a much-needed restoration.

Downtown Joplin Alliance
The Olivia, located at 320 S Moffet, has been vacant since the mid-2000s when it was deemed uninhabitable by city codes. After going through several prospective developers and various ownership, the 1906 structure was suffering severe decline due to roof damage when the Downtown Joplin Alliance’s newly formed Endangered Properties Program Committee chose the Olivia as its first property of focus in Summer of 2020. After a fire in December 7, the urgency became even more time-sensitive.
We brought in Bob Campbell, LLC, a Kansas City structural engineering firm who specializes in historic structures to assess and report on the viability of the building after the fire. After that report showed the structure was intact, the EPP Committee began working with community groups, interested parties, city leadership, and prospective developers to find a path forward for the historic building.

Serving as a non-profit conduit, we were able to accept donation of the property, then transfer the property with covenants that require rehabilitation to the Secretary of the Interior Standards and ongoing maintenance of the property to the Bykota REI group. In addition, the city was able to offer a reimbursement matching incentive of $250,000 which is important because it requires the developer to keep to a schedule which completes the roof by mid-June and completion of the project by March 2023.
The project is the first of the Endangered Properties Program. Through the EPP committee, DJA can be proactive in making something happen with long-vacant, underutilized and distressed properties. The program’s mission is centered around downtown’s historic buildings and finding adaptive reuse for them.

We are thrilled to have played a role in creating a path forward for the Olivia. With the city’s oversight and the rehabilitation covenants attached to the deed, we feel the long awaited restoration of the Olivia is a win-win for the city and the neighborhood and will happen in a timely manner.

And while the work is just beginning for Bykota/Blue Haven, we look forward to celebrating the grand re-opening of this Joplin landmark with them and the community in March of 2023!

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