Independence considers selling off 2 beloved historic homes as upkeep costs soar
The city of Independence is considering selling two of the city’s most beloved historical sites in the face of outsized maintenance costs.
City officials could move in the coming months to sell the Bingham-Waggoner Estate and Vaile Mansion, two opulent 19th-century homes, which anchor downtown Independence’s portfolio of historic houses and buildings.
City officials reviewed a historical sites master plan Monday night that proposed putting several city historic sites under a conservatorship and finding private owners for the two large mansions, or else proposing another bond as a funding source to keep the houses in shape.
The city has owned the Bingham-Waggoner Estate since the 1960s and funds its maintenance and refurbishing needs, with the Bingham-Waggoner Historical Society overseeing site upkeep. The 19-acre home was built in the 1850s and is one of the city’s main tourist attractions.
The Vaile Mansion, a French-inspired home built in 1881 and designed by a Kansas City architect, runs on a similar partnership. At one time, the property, which was donated to the city in 1983, encompassed 630 acres, with its grounds still used for an annual Strawberry Festival and other city events.
Now, both could pass out of the city’s hands.
The city worked with PGAV Planners, a St. Louis-based consulting firm with a focus on urban planning, to develop the proposal. PGAV Planners President Andy Struckhoff said Monday night that though the estate, mansion and other historic sites have a lot of volunteers, their engagement isn’t consistent enough to keep the properties running.
“There exists some tension between what the city should be able to do and what the city hasn’t been able to do,” Struckhoff said.
To sell or not to sell?
Selling the estate and mansion, Struckhoff said, would open up resources to stabilize maintenance and staffing needs for the city’s entire portfolio of historic sites. The city currently spends between $125,000 and $150,000 a year on operating costs for historic sites alone, recently sworn-in Independence City Manager Troy Anderson said.
Capital improvements to the Estate and Mansion would cost another $12-15 million, according to city staff, along with $8,000 in outstanding repairs currently needed at each site.
“The current operating situation isn’t sustainable in the long-term,” Struckhoff said.
Struckhoff presented the potential sale of the estate and mansion as a strategic move to bring in more tourism, bolstering the city’s economy over time. At least three of the historic properties currently under city management do not bring in any revenue from tours, Struckhoff said.
A sale would also make it easier for volunteers to contract out improvement work and organize fundraisers without having to go through the city’s procurement process for contracts, which Struckhoff said has been a source of “some frustration and some tension” at the Bingham-Waggoner estate.
“Both [the Vaile Mansion and Bingham-Waggoner Estate] bring with them a lot of history and a lot of energy,” Struckhoff said. “Both have very, very engaged volunteer groups…the idea would be to free them from the challenges of the relationship with the city.”
PGAV referenced several similar historic sites in St. Louis that have come under private ownership or conservatorships in recent years and have come out with larger endowments or significant building improvements.
However, the historical societies behind both properties have taken to social media to share their opposition to a private sale.
“These landmarks are not just buildings; they are the heart of our community’s heritage,” Bingham-Waggoner Estate Board President Steve Euritt wrote on Facebook. “We cannot allow them to be lost to private development or permanent closure.”
Alternative funding methods
If the city does not sell the properties, PGAV also proposed creating a conservancy to manage several of them in the future, essentially putting the buildings in the hands of a new nonprofit organization.
City officials could also consider putting another bond issue to voters in the coming months to help pay for necessary improvements to the buildings, borrowing $12-15 million against future tax payments. A similar bond proposal, which would have put $7 million into the mansion and estate along with the Truman Memorial Building, went before voters last year but did not pass.
However, if the city were to pass a new bond, Struckhoff said, it would be unable to sell any historic sites until the bond amount was fully repaid. This would likely take up to 20 years.
Anderson said that the final plan for the future of the Vaile Mansion, Bingham-Waggoner Estate and other city historic sites will depend somewhat on how the next budget cycle goes. The council plans to revisit the historic site plan within the next six to eight weeks.
Councilmember John Perkins said he’s hoping the council can find a “happy medium” that keeps the mansion and estate running without the city completely losing control of its primary historical sites.
“I think we can all agree what is taking place isn’t necessarily working,” Perkins said. “...I’m not super in love [with] divesting ourselves from these historic sites.”
This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 2:09 PM.
