Angela Brandt and Larry Kline
Havre Daily News
The Havre-Hill County Historic Preservation Commission has appointed Todd Hanson as the new historic preservation officer. Hanson immediately assumed the volunteer role.
He will be working closely with commission members on the budget for the coming grant year and developing new goals for the commission, said commission member Debi Rhines.
Hanson succeeds Keith Doll, who resigned as historic preservation officer in April after several months of conflict with commission chair Lou Lucke.
As president of Norsman Development Group LLC of Havre, Hanson is overseeing the remodeling of the former Heritage Center in Havre. He and his wife, Erica McKeon-Hanson, purchased the former home of the H. Earl Clack Museum from the city of Havre in March.
Hanson said last week the project, which will include a restaurant, brewpub, retail store, banquet facility, art gallery and office space, is running several months behind schedule. After some initial work on the roof, Hanson decided to have workers replace the entire roof, including drains and downspouts. The replacement drains had to be custom-ordered, he said, and that delay - coupled with weather problems - pushed back the project's completion date.
“We're still in there every day working and moving the project forward,” Hanson said, adding that he hopes to have the work completed by next summer.
Hanson also serves on the Havre school board and the board of the Montana Preservation Alliance. Hanson is the executive director of the newly formed Society for the Preservation of Historic Structures, a Havre-based nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of historic structures in north-central Montana.
