photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

A former industrial building of Allen Press at the northwest corner of 11th and New Hampshire streets is shown on July 3, 2024. The new owner of the property hopes to win city approval to demolish the building.

The Historic Resources Commission is recommending the approval of a demolition request for a long-vacant building in the heart of downtown Lawrence, clearing a hurdle for development, but it’s still not known what might be developed on the property.

On Thursday night, the HRC voted to recommend that the city approve the demolition request for the former Allen Press properties on the northwest corner of 11th and New Hampshire streets.

The property at 1041 New Hampshire St., as the Journal-World reported, was recently purchased by Lawrence developer Tony Krsnich. As part of the application for demolition, Krsnich said the site would be used for temporary storage of construction materials for new lofts that are going to be built by his team at 1010 New Hampshire St., right across the street. Those lofts will have 49 rent-controlled apartment units, which will be targeted to people 55 and older with low to moderate incomes.

The demolition request was able to go through the HRC faster because city code officials determined the structure’s condition was “detrimental to the public health and welfare.”

Lynne Zollner, the city’s Historic Resources Administrator, said a code official did a site visit and found mold in the building to the point where visitors needed to get a respirator to complete their inspection. Additionally, there was standing water both on the roof and in the building.

Zollner said city staff is concerned that there is not a plan for what will be built on the lot after demolition, but felt the request could go through because the area has become blighted. Additionally, the city had to provide a recommendation that the plan matches the guidelines for the downtown area.

Commissioner Jeanne Klein said she wanted to make it clear that the city is not setting a precedent of allowing applicants to tear down buildings without a plan to build something new. Other commissioners asked whether it was possible to retain the building’s original “Art Deco” siding since there was no plan in place for the next development.

Scott Brown, a member of the development team, said he and Krsnich have done lots of historical re-developments where they have incorporated much of the old buildings into the new development.

“(I have) affinity towards historic projects and doing what I can to preserve those elements of historic places,” Brown said.

Brown said he and Krsnich had floated the idea of building a mixed-use development with a grocery store at the 1041 New Hampshire St. site, but they are focused on doing what is best for the city since the site has “so much potential for Lawrence.”

Because of the recommendation from the HRC, the request for demolition will go to the City Commission for the next meeting, which will be Aug. 6.