Gateway Redevelopment Group Davenport, IA

Davenport’s Historic Jipp Home and Grocery Receives State Grant

STRUCTURE ONCE UNDER THREAT OF DEMOLITION WILL FIND NEW LIFE AS ARCHITECTURAL RESCUE SHOP

March 18, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

( DAVENPORT , IOWA ) The Gateway Redevelopment Group (GRG) announced today that it has received a $49,150 matching funds grant from the State Historical Society of Iowa (SHSI), Historical Site Preservation Grant (HSPG) program.

The grant was awarded for the restoration of the Jipp Home and Grocery at 730/ 732 Gaines Street in Davenport . Of 19 eligible applicants the GRG’s project was one of seven to receive funding by SHSI. “We are grateful to the State Historical Society of Iowa for giving us this chance to complete the restoration of this important historic building” said GRG President Jack Haberman . The group has already begun seeking the matching funds required by the HSPG grant.

The grocery was built by German immigrant Christian Jipp in 1868 and was one of the first retail businesses to progress up the hill from the riverfront and is a symbol of the growing Davenport of the 1860s. Jipp lived with his wife and three daughters in the back of store until the house was added in 1878 and operated the grocery until 1906. It continued as a private home and grocery until 1958 when it was converted to a Laundromat and rental house. In the early 1980’s it closed and was vacant for more than 20 years.

The structure was slated for demolition in 2004. Emergency funding from the SHSI and Riverboat Development Authority, contributions from United Neighbors and Alcoa Employees & Community Credit Union, plus over $7,000 in private contributions from caring neighbors allowed the GRG to stabilize the structure. After being boarded up for more than 20 years it was removed from City’s demolition list last December.

Upon restoration, the Jipp Home and Grocery will house the Architectural Rescue Shop . The shop will be operated by GRG volunteers and will be used to collect, restore, preserve, and sell old architectural items. The shop will not only provide Quad Citians restoring historic homes with quality architectural items but will reduce the waste going to our area landfills. Profits from the Shop will be used to offset operating costs and create funding for other endangered properties in the District.

The Gateway Redevelopment Group is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, formed by neighbors interested in saving abandoned structures in the Hamburg Historic District. The Jipp Home and Grocery is the group’s first project.

For more information contact Jack Haberman at 563-326-3290 or marionjack@peoplepc.com.


Davenport’s Historic Jipp Home and Grocery Receives State Grant *STRUCTURE ONCE UNDER THREAT OF DEMOLITION WILL FIND NEW LIFE AS ARCHITECTURAL RESCUE SHOP* March 18, 2005 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ( DAVENPORT , IOWA ) The Gateway Redevelopment Group (GRG) announced today that it has received a $49,150 matching funds grant from the State Historical Society of Iowa (SHSI), Historical Site Preservation Grant (HSPG) program. The grant was awarded for the restoration of the Jipp Home and Grocery at 730/ 732 Gaines Street in Davenport . Of 19 eligible applicants the GRG’s project was one of seven to receive funding by SHSI. “We are grateful to the State Historical Society of Iowa for giving us this chance to complete the restoration of this important historic building” said GRG President Jack Haberman . The group has already begun seeking the matching funds required by the HSPG grant. The grocery was built by German immigrant Christian Jipp in 1868 and was one of the first retail businesses to progress up the hill from the riverfront and is a symbol of the growing Davenport of the 1860s. Jipp lived with his wife and three daughters in the back of store until the house was added in 1878 and operated the grocery until 1906. It continued as a private home and grocery until 1958 when it was converted to a Laundromat and rental house. In the early 1980’s it closed and was vacant for more than 20 years. The structure was slated for demolition in 2004. Emergency funding from the SHSI and Riverboat Development Authority, contributions from United Neighbors and Alcoa Employees & Community Credit Union, plus over $7,000 in private contributions from caring neighbors allowed the GRG to stabilize the structure. After being boarded up for more than 20 years it was removed from City’s demolition list last December. Upon restoration, the Jipp Home and Grocery will house the Architectural Rescue Shop . The shop will be operated by GRG volunteers and will be used to collect, restore, preserve, and sell old architectural items. The shop will not only provide Quad Citians restoring historic homes with quality architectural items but will reduce the waste going to our area landfills. Profits from the Shop will be used to offset operating costs and create funding for other endangered properties in the District. The Gateway Redevelopment Group is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, formed by neighbors interested in saving abandoned structures in the Hamburg Historic District. The Jipp Home and Grocery is the group’s first project. For more information contact Jack Haberman at 563-326-3290 or marionjack@peoplepc.com.

Gateway Redevelopment Group, Davenport, Iowa