Dear editor,
As many of you may know, the Friends of the Bowlus purchased the Warren house east of the Bowlus building. Now they intend on tearing it down to put in a parking lot.
What a waste of $110,000 in donated money. Now they are asking for more money. I am sure a parking lot with landscaping will run another $20,000-$30,000.
I am sure Phyllis Warren would never have sold the house if she knew it was going to be bulldozed. Phyllis spent a large amount of money remodeling the house. I know because I did a lot of the interior decorating for her. She was very proud that she could own a house that had belong to a Northrup.
I cannot continue to support an organization that wants to destroy another house or historical building in Iola just for a parking lot. We have lost too many as it is.
Jim Smith,
Iola, Kan.
(Editor’s note: According to Jan Knewtson, president of the Friends of the Bowlus, no decision has been made in regards to the home formerly owned by Phyllis Warren. “We are considering all the opportunities the property presents,” she said.
A Register reporter will meet with members of the Friends Monday to discuss the hoopla a Facebook page has stoked.)
Dear editor,
Many people may not be aware that Friends of the Bowlus organization that owns the beautiful brick home at 217 E. Madison Ave. (Next door to the Bowlus Center), is strongly considering tearing it down to create a parking lot. This was my Aunt Phyllis Warren’s house for 40 years. They claim it is in disrepair. I can say first-hand that this is not true.
Many times Susan Raines talked to me about Phyllis Warren’s home (Evy Northrup’s house.) She said that is Phyllis would sell to The Bowlus, her house would be well-cared for and live into perpetuity. Everyone connected to Susan reassured Phyllis and family that the house would be saved. In fact, when Lynn and Jack Warren came to remove Phyllis’s household effects, Wade Park (Susan’s friend) came over to reassure them that the house would be taken care of.
I called last night to see if Phyllis was aware her house was to be made into a parking lot. Her granddaughter-in-law, Lynn, said, No, Phyllis isn’t to know anything about her house as it would devastate her.
As soon as the papers were signed, Susan and the Friends of the Bowlus were set to bulldoze Phyllis’s house for a parking lot. Many people were interested in buying Phyllis’s house and still are. A credible person offered to buy the house last week and was turned down by Susan Raines.
