Save the Medford Elks Building

by Pete Belcastro.
I am quite honored to represent the Elks Grand Lodge as they sell the assets of the now defunct Medford Elks after a 105 year run.  Those assets include the Elks Temple Building in downtown Medford.  This building is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places.  For decades it served as a center of Medford social life with thousands of members and a building to host it all in.  Now it sits empty.
What should happen to this building?  Can it be re-purposed into something the community can be proud of again?  Or will it be demolished and replaced with a parking lot or some other function?
These are the questions Medford residents need to answer in the coming weeks as the Elks Building and property is for sale.  The asking price is $1.25 M.
There are many potential uses of the building including food services, entertainment, mixed development, offices, etc.  It contains 28,700 sq ft, three floors, two full bars, six bathrooms, lots of storage spaces, chambers, library, commercial kitchen and large rooms.
There is a big incentive to renovate historic building — the 20% investment tax credit.  Combined with other historic building incentives and property taxes frozen for 15 years, the buyer of the Elks will have incentives to make the renovations complete.
The building was designed by Frank Chamberlain Wright, no relation to Frank Loyd Wright, he was a local architect and was a charter member of the Medford Elks in 1909.  He also designed the Medford City Hall that sat across the street from the Elks from 1927 to 1963.
Our community needs to support and encourage developers to purchase and renovate, re purpose  but keep the Medford Elks Building in our community and return it as the crown jewel of downtown Medford it once was.
Check out the MLS listing #2958397.  Call me for more information. 621 7036.