MY TURN: Save Post Falls' historic Chapin Building

The ninth-largest city in Idaho has the opportunity to share more of its history, America250-ID displays, and other local historic displays from the Chapin Building on the city campus. This site has links to several Post Falls National Historic Register sites and downtown parks with easy access from Interstate 90, and a historic walking tour could be developed.

According to the Idaho Department of Commerce, 25% of the traveling public visit historic sites and museums, read signage, and spend money in our towns. Post Falls has a historic package to develop and to share with ongoing customers, including visitors and students. Our new citizens and children need to be proud of their town.

The 103-year-old Chapin Building has been a drugstore, a grocery store, and a laundromat. For 30 years, it housed the City Police Department and the City Parks and Recreation office. Since 2009, it has been home to Post Falls’ first and only museum.

Through the efforts of the Post Falls Historical Society and its members, past and present, the building has been occupied, with the Society paying the monthly power, water, and sewer costs. Before occupying the building, the Society spent thousands of dollars on interior revisions, electrical and HVAC upgrades, flooring, and window and door replacements. Display cases, window shades, and tinting are part of the package.

With permission from the city, the Society secured a grant from the Idaho Heritage Trust for a gutter restoration and a 10-year IHT architectural historian’s report to maintain the building's historic integrity. Historically, it is sound for maintenance. However, the building developed a severe mold problem due to the city campus's water problems. The Society has spent thousands of dollars to mitigate the mold resulting from this problem. A National Register nomination cannot be completed until we are assured that the building will be maintained.

There was a time when the Post Falls Museum was only a dream, as artifacts and historical materials were given to the Museum of North Idaho for preservation. Those items were not on display, and some of the archival information was incomplete. Our citizens wanted their own museum.

After all, Post Falls started as a village, step by step evolving into what it is today. Sitting between the multi-story City Hall and the four-story new commercial building, the building is a “mini-David” with Goliath neighbors. We have many chapters to the town’s story, but our earliest history and heritage should be preserved and shared at one of the few remaining historic buildings in Post Falls. History is the gift from one generation to the next.

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Kim Brown is a charter member and co-founder of the Post Falls Historical Society