Post-Gazette photo Robert Householder at the home and restaurant at 111-115 S. Main St. in Zelienople that received a Heritage Award for renovation by Historic Harmony.

By Len Barcousky, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Robert Householder believes supporting historic renovation on Zelienople's Main Street not only makes aesthetic sense but also makes environmental and economic sense.

His latest project, a new facade for the 1930s structure that houses the Kountry Kitchen restaurant, has won him his second Heritage Award from Historic Harmony, a nonprofit preservation association. In a previous life, the building housed an Isaly's restaurant.

Alan Miles and Beth Nicklas, of Jackson, are this year's other Heritage Award winners for their restoration of an early 19th century bank barn at their home on Textor Hill Road.

In 1999, Mr. Householder won a Heritage Award for his renovation of the former First National Bank of Zelienople into "The Corner Building." The landmark structure on North Main Street, which dates to 1906, had been boarded up, and the project included replacement of 48 windows. The former bank now is home to an insurance agency and computer store.

A Zelienople resident for 43 years, Mr. Householder has been involved in renovation projects for the past quarter century. An appealing downtown helps hold a community together, he said.

Kevin Adams, owner of the Kountry Kitchen, gave Mr. Householder approval to fix up the building at 111-115 S. Main St. Work included removal of the facade and the addition of a porch to the adjoining residence.

Mr. Householder retired in June as owner of The Village Shop, a women's clothing store on Main Street in Zelienople. He owns four properties in the borough and plans to construct a fifth building on a vacant lot next to the Kountry Kitchen.

Mr. Miles, and his fiancee, Ms. Nicklas, live in a restored farmhouse that won a Heritage Award for its former owners, Don and Nancy Perine. This year, Mr. Miles and Ms. Nicklas received their own award for renovations they made to the bank barn on their property.

Restoration work was extensive, including the replacement by Amish workers of a 61-foot-long beam. The 14-inch-by-14-inch support was hand-trimmed from the trunk of a pine tree growing on their land, Mr. Miles said.

Their property is known as the 1830 Ziegler-Peffer farmstead, named for the early families that built it and worked the surrounding land. Samuel Ziegler was the son of Abraham Ziegler, a Mennonite farmer who bought what had been Harmonist Society properties in 1814. Harmony was settled in 1805 by members of the communal Harmonist Society.

"I think we have the nicest bank barn in the Tri-state area," Ms. Nicklas said. While the main beam and most of the siding had to be replaced, much of the frame was in good shape.

A two-story bank barn is a common site in areas settled by German and Swiss farmers. Built into a hillside, the lower level is protected from temperature extremes while wagons have direct access, via a natural ramp, to the upper level.

	Post-Gazette Alan Miles and Beth Nicklas at the mid-19th century barn they restored, which received a Heritage Award for renovation by Historic Harmony. Click photo for larger image.

Members of the Peffer family were farmers and grain merchants who lived on the farm through most of the 20th century.

"We found a family journal and some other neat things," Ms. Nicklas said. "On the inside of the barn, we found chalk marks and scratches on the wall -- probably to keep track of grain and flour sales."

Historic Harmony maintains and opens to the public several historic buildings and a museum in Butler County. It began presenting Heritage Awards in 1991 and has presented 94 awards since then, according to organization President John Ruch. Eighty-one have been given for preservation and restoration projects, while the remainder have gone to individuals and organizations that have encouraged appreciation for local history. No award was given this year for history appreciation.

The bulk of the honors have been awarded for projects in Harmony, Zelienople, Jackson and Lancaster, but winners have come from communities in other parts of Butler and Beaver counties.

"The basic idea of the awards to encourage preservation, restoration and renovation," Mr. Ruch said.

"What we look at are properties that have been preserved or restored to a state that is close to their original appearance," Mr. Ruch said. "We also look for quality renovations that bring back a deteriorating property. Those projects bring real benefit to neighborhoods."

Historic Harmony seeks nominations from the public and from members of its board in November and December. The awards are presented in February during the organization's Harmoniefest.

Nominated properties do not have to be on state or national registers of historic buildings and do not have to be a minimum age, he said.

Historic preservation efforts can bring broad benefits, Mr. Ruch said.

Twenty years ago many properties in Harmony were rented out by absentee landlords and were deteriorating, he said. When the borough created and later expanded a historic district, property owners faced new rules on exterior changes.

"When people realized that nothing untoward could be developed in their neighborhood, owners started to invest in their properties," he said. Many renters were replaced by owner-occupants.

In Zelienople, the emphasis is on keeping and restoring what remained, he said.

Mr. Householder agreed.

"My goal is to continue to make improvements to Main Street," he said, thanking the Zelienople-Harmony Area Chamber of Commerce and other downtown property owners for supporting restoration efforts. "We are making progress together," he said.