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A spirit that is not afraid

City Council explores final options for Cullars home

The City of Auburn is looking to preserve Auburn's Historic Cullars Home on Aug. 21, 2019, in Auburn, Ala.
The City of Auburn is looking to preserve Auburn's Historic Cullars Home on Aug. 21, 2019, in Auburn, Ala.

Aiming to give the private sector more time, the Auburn City Council tabled their vote on moving the historic Cullars house until their regular meeting on Sept. 17.

While discussing the historic home, Auburn City Manager Jim Buston said recently there have been several individuals who expressed interest in purchasing the home for private ownership.

“We did have a conversation today with two private individuals who were interested,” Buston said. “One dropped out and said he was no longer interested, and we just had a conversation until a little after about 5:20 this evening with the other one.”

The Council faces a Sept. 30 deadline to make a decision and notify the current owner if they choose to buy and move the home. 

Ward 4 Council member Brett Smith motioned to table the discussion until the next meeting in order to give the private sector more time to act and allow the City to consider more options to save the home. 

“I think it would be good due diligence of us that are responsible to explore all the potential private members that could relocate the Cullars home before we take a vote,” Smith said.

Smith, who uses the Cullars home as an office for his law firm, has been heavily involved with the efforts to relocate and preserve the historic home. Smith even started a GoFundMe page to help raise funds to relocate the home.

“The thing about this home, I have had the luxury of living in it for five years, or at least operating it as an office,” Smith said in an earlier meeting discussing the home. “It has such a strong connection to the University and to the town; it seems like a no-brainer to save it.”

It is estimated the Cullars house was built in 1893 for the Cullars family, making the house over 125 years old. The Cullars brothers constructed many buildings both on campus and off in the late 1800s. 

When the original Samford Hall burned down in 1887, the Cullars brothers were contracted to rebuild Samford. The brothers also built Smith Hall, the first women’s dorm, for the University.

According to Linda Dean, who lived in the Cullars home for a time, the Cullars family also provided the land for the Cullars rotation, an agricultural experiment project. The project is the oldest of its kind in the United States and the second oldest in the world.

There has been a significant amount of public interest in saving the home. The home not only serves as a piece of Auburn history, but also holds cherished memories for citizens and alumni, Smith said.

“There are a lot of good memories from alumni to people who worked in the building when it was a coffee shop,” Smith said. “Even when we cut the ribbon for my office, we found out I was having a kid, so me and my wife have that special memory as well.”

Mayor Ron Anders urged any private citizens who have the ability to help preserve the home to come forward now, as the deadline is approaching. 

The home has brought out the passion of many Auburn citizens, but that alone isn’t enough to save the home, Anders said.

“We certainly need everybody’s participation and help,” Anders said. “Brett’s motion has given us all another two weeks, so if you have thoughts or ideas, then it’s time to go.”

Smith said all of the citizens who have contacted him about the home want to save and relocate it. There are some who question whether the City should pay for the home.

“We are going to vote at the next meeting; that is going to happen,” Smith said. “But at least with the two weeks we can look at all the options and hear what everyone has to say first, and I think that’s our duty.”

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