Alumnus Saves Historic Train Depot
About halfway between the OSU campus and downtown, an
old wooden Southern & Pacific depot stood empty and
alone last year, its younger, fancier stone cousin
already serving elsewhere as a restaurant after two
moves. Other potential buyers wanted to replace the
older depot with something new. But to architectural
engineer Gary Feuerstein,'72, it was a chance to
preserve a building that "characterizes the most
optimistic period in Corvallis and Benton County
history."Beyond the peeled paint, Feuerstein saw a rare example of "Swiss chalet" architecture and a window onto an intriguing chapter in local history. In late 1995 he and partners bought what is thought to be the oldest two-story wood-frame railroad depot standing in Oregon, built in 1887 for the Willamette Valley and Coast Railroad (also known as the Oregon Pacific Railroad Co., its parent company), which built a line to Yaquina Bay in the 1880s.
Three key railroad backers -T. Egenton Hogg, William Hoag (Hogg's brother, who spelled the name differently) and Wallis Nash -- also led the fund drive to build Benton Hall and secure the state agricultural college's place in Corvallis during its separation from church control. Of the three, Nash, who helped mold the college in the late 19th century as secretary on the first OAC board of regents, had the strongest ties to the college. (For more on Nash and the Hogg/Hoag brothers, see the April 1994 and June 1994 issues of the Stater.)
Feuerstein is perhaps most intrigued by T. Egenton Hogg, a colorful yet mysterious promoter who arrived in Corvallis in 1871, managed to raise at least $11 million and possibly $15 million but failed to produce the transcontinental link that would make Corvallis the state's crossroads of commerce. He took Corvallis and investors from New York and England for an exciting but bumpy ride ending in a series of receiverships and, eventually, Southern Pacific ownership. Several million dollars were never accounted for. Commissioned as an "acting master" by the Confederate us Serve Navy after one spectacular success as a privateer, Hogg led an abortive attempt to commandeer an American steamer and was sentenced to death. The sentence was commuted to life and shortened by amnesty to 18 months in Alcatraz and San Quentin. Hogg allowed locals to call him "Colonel" and told them he had been taken prisoner and hospitalized on Alcatraz. Endex Engineering, Feuerstein's firm, is no stranger to train stations or projects of historic proportions. Entex had moved the 1911 depot in 1982-83 to a site on the north end of downtown, where it serves as Michael's Landing restaurant. The firm also worked on the 1985 move of the 1872 Dillard depot to the Douglas County Museum site. Feuerstein and his partners are not afraid to invest their own money into a project and to wait years for earnings. He said this practice buys him a greater measure of control. The depot came with 8.67 acres of land, and the partners are interested in creating a "neo-traditional" neighborhood of pedestrian-friendly streets and mixed residential, retail and light industrial uses. Since this concept will require time- consuming land use changes, they have concentrated on basic preservation work, including a new roof, window repair, floor leveling and foundation work. Existing buildings are resources that should be reused and weaved back into the fabric of a community, said Feuerstein, noting his alignment with the New Urbanism movement in city planning. New Urbanists hold that the mixed-use style of community organization that was common earlier this century can be adapted to save modern cities from sprawl. It may seem strange to hear such talk from an engineer. But it's not so out of character for an engineer whose Web site quotes from Shakespeare's King Henry IV. In Feuerstein's excerpt, the Bard, who lived in a climate much like that of western Oregon, describes a partly completed building as: "A naked subject to the weeping clouds, And waste for churlish winter's tyranny." Early in Feuerstein's career, he grasped a chance to manage restoration of two historic structures owned by Benton County, which was on the leading edge of preservation efforts nationally and in Oregon. Before working as facilities manager for the county, Feuerstein had worked in private firms and had done construction work in and after college. The two buildings were the long-abandoned 1867 Philomath College building, Oregon's third-oldest college building, which was restored for use as the Benton County Historical Museum; and the 1888 Benton County Courthouse, Oregon's oldest active courthouse. "It's impossible not to fall in love with that building when you get to know its status in the community:' Feuerstein said of the courthouse, which has been honored by the U.S. Parks Service and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. When both projects were wrapped up, Feuerstein decided to start a private firm, something a little less structured than working for the county. Endex, formed in 1980, strives to remain close to the construction phase rather than simply working with an architect on the front end. Feuerstein said few other firms of this size (13-14 people) do both mechanical/electrica1 and structural/civil work. Endex has participated in a wide variety of private and public projects, including medical and health care facilities, congregate housing, school, libraries, commercial buildings and energy analysis. Even a partial list of OSU projects is fairly long; right now Entex is working on heating, ventilation and air conditioning for the expanded Valley Football Center. What sets Endex apart is its willingness and even eagerness to do historic preservation, adaptive reuse and other remodel work. Feuerstein said other firms avoid even remodeling because it's less predictable and thus riskier. This year local preservationists honored Feuerstein and business manager David Livingston for adaptive reuse of two adjoining post-World War II buildings in Corvallis: the Toklat building, once a Sears store, and an adjoining building that had served as an Elks hall. The Elks building renovation dispatched a "stupid fake rock" facade; now the buildings feature beveled concrete, nice windows and awnings and a mix of private and governmental use, including the museum's downtown History Center. Endex since 1989 has been housed in a downtown building that was a Chinese laundry in the 1920s. A wood ceiling and some interior brick walls speak softly of its past. The balance of the interior is modern, but the post-World War II facade is a living embodiment of the "cobblers' children have no shoes" proverb. "We went through a design scenario at one point to redo the front, and I guess we never got to it," Feuerstein said. Feuerstein, who chose OSU for its strong reputation in engineering (and to escape 90 inches of rain a year in Aberdeen, Wash.), has two other Oregon Staters in the Endex stable: David Morris, earned a civil engineering degree in 1980, and Hal Spence graduated in 1974 with a degree in landscape architecture. Both enjoy a healthy blend of science and art: Spence sometimes tours with the Sawtooth Mountain Boys, a bluegrass group, and Morris plays accordion in a polka band. by: Rebecca Landis Editor's Note: Endex Engineering has a small but notable connection to the Columbia Gorge highway story on page 14. In 1991, Endex consulted on water and moisture control for the 1922 Vista House, which graces the historic highway. The Oregon Stater October 1996