TEXARKANA, Ark. -- What started as a controversial demolition proposal more than two years ago became a reality Thursday at 501 Pecan St.
Demolition crews spent Thursday tearing down the Claude Fouke House (aka Joe B. Wilson House), which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The house was built in 1903.
The demolition culminated a 28-month demolition-by-neglect period, which started after an estate sale in late November 2019.
By 2019, the property, owned by Beech Street First Baptist Church, had become financially impractical to maintain, given the degree of upkeep needed. The chances of selling it to another owner were bleak.
The church started considering demolition proceedings, but by June 2021, the Historic District Commission voted unanimously to deny the church permission to demolish the house, even though the church owned the property.
City Manager Jay Ellington said the commission's decision was allowed to be followed by a six-month period during which the city, the public and any other interested parties could make proposals regarding the home's future. However, with none forthcoming, the church moved forward with applying for and receiving a demolition permit from the Public Works Department.
"We went through the proper channels with the city, and by January the city granted us a demolition permit," said a Beech Street First Baptist Church employee, who asked not to be identified. "We had the house for several years, and we used it to hold some meetings and classes."
Nevertheless, Texarkana Museums System Board President Velvet Cool said the demolition comes as a disappointment.
"That house was the last of three similar homes, built sitting in a row, along Pecan Street, and they were all built in that same style,"she said. "All three of those homes were very impressive, but now, with the last one gone, we've now lost a very significant part our architectural history."