Mill Valley Art Center Fundraises To Save Historic Building

MILL VALLEY, CA – A Marin art center is raising funds to preserve a historic building that serves as the centerpiece of its campus.

O’Hanlon Center for the Arts in Mill Valley has raised over $40,000, about half of the projectes costs needed to secure the foundation of the Loft building imperiled by a sinkhole.

The Loft building is a 3-story structure used for classes, rental income for artists, meetings, a summer camp for kids and meeting space for its directors.

The OHCA sits on a 2.5-acre parcel that was the former location of the Freitas Dairy Farm.

A collapsed culvert earlier this year triggered a sink hole.

The building was constructed around a 100 years ago over a creek.

The OHCA spent around $18,000 to stabilize the structure.

The Loft building is currently in use and not at risk of collapse, but all bets are off once heavy rains come, OHCA Executive Director Erma Murphy told Patch.

A permanent fix, which includes building a new culvert to divert the creek will cost approximately $85,000, Murphy said.

"Fixing a sinkhole problem isn’t sexy but this is an important historical building,” Murphy said.

“We must have it fixed once the rains start.”

To donate visit here.