Owners of century-old downtown Phoenix laundry get boost in historic preservation spat

The owners of a century-old laundry building in downtown Phoenix were dealt a small win when the Phoenix Planning Commission voted to recommend against a historic overlay for their building.

The building, first called Phoenix Laundry and Dry Cleaning and now called Milum Textile Services, located on Seventh Avenue and Van Buren Street, has been in Craig Milum’s family since the 1950s. The Milum family has been trying to sell the now vacant building for years but claim that a finding of historical significance on the site has made the task impossible.

The building was occupied since 1909, according to Phoenix documents. In 1935, buildings were rebuilt using some original material following a fire. The Milum family has operated the industrial laundry on the site for decades until closing it about five years ago.

The Milums had put the site on the market and were trying to sell it for $9.2 million. They and the brokers they hired have testified and written letters to the city saying the historic finding on their site has scared away any potential buyers, rendering the well-located property essentially worthless.

Craig and his wife Marilyn Milum had planned to sell the property and use the proceeds for their retirement, Marilyn Milum said in March.

The historic finding mostly hinged on the architectural style of the ceiling and roof, called a lamella roof.

The roof is held up using tension from boards placed in a diamond pattern, with no supporting beams used to suspend the roof. There is only one other site in the city with a roof of that craftsmanship, the livestock show barn at the Arizona State Fairgrounds.

Commission votes against historic overlay

The city filed for a historic preservation overlay to be applied on the property, which would halt any demolition for a year.

The Planning Commission voted 4-3 to recommend the overlay be denied, with one member abstaining from the vote, saying the commission had not been provided enough information to decide in the case.

In the commission meeting, Kevin Weight, a planner in the city’s historic preservation office said the case was “tough” because the property owners opposed the overlay.

Building could be razed if Council denies overlay

The matter still is required to go before the Phoenix City Council for a final decision, but if the council agrees with the commission, Weight said, there would be nothing stopping the city from issuing a demolition permit and allowing the building to be razed.

The commission serves as an advisory body to the council, but the council does not need to adhere to the commission’s recommendation.

In February, the council upheld the finding of historical significance from the Historic Preservation Commission and denied the Milums’ economic hardship petition on the site.

The Milums had claimed repairs on the site would cost $10 million, but did not provide some of the required documentation, including an itemized list of the needed repairs and their costs. Because those items were not provided, the economic hardship petition was denied.

The council is scheduled to discuss and vote on the historic preservation overlay at its May 1 meeting.

Reach the reporter at cvanek@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @CorinaVanek.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Saga of 1909 Phoenix Laundry and Dry Cleaning building takes a turn