A New York-based nonprofit is continuing to increase its presence and investments in Savannah ahead of the planned acquisition of the historic Kiah House in partnership with the city.
Most recently the Galvan Initiatives Foundation purchased a 3-story residential property at 106 W. Harris St. for $3.2 million on Sept. 1, according to sales records.
The building at Harris and Whitaker Street was built in 1847 and added as a contributing resource within the Downtown Historic District in 1973, according to the Metropolitan Planning Commission’s historic building’s map.
Galvan Vice Vice President Dan Kent did not immediately respond to requests for comment made Sept. 11 about the organization’s plans for the downtown property.
The nonprofit’s subsidiary, Savannah Local Initiatives, is currently based in a building at 219 E Charlton St., which it does not own, according to public records.
In January, The Savannah City Council approved the transfer of 19 vacant city properties to Galvan as part of nonprofit’s plan to acquire the properties and build mixed-income housing in Cuyler-Brownville. In addition to the anticipated $5 million investment developing the former city lots, Galvan also contributed $1 million to the city’s Savannah Affordable Housing Fund for housing improvements, new housing and down-payment assistance.
Galvan also acquired a fire damaged historic home at 2205 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard from the Historic Savannah Foundation, along with an adjacent vacant lot. Then on Aug. 24, the city announced it was teaming up with Galvan to purchase the Kiah House, also in Cuyler-Brownville, from HSF and restore it as a cultural and civic institution.
On Thursday, the Savannah City Council approved that agreement with Galvan, along with the appropriation of up to $500,000, for the acquisition and renovation of the Kiah House.
The house at 505 W. 36th St. in historic Cuyler Brownville was transformed into a community museum in the late 1950s by the late artist and educator Virginia Jackson Kiah and her husband, Calvin Kiah, a former Dean of Education at Savannah State College.
The Historic Savannah Foundation purchased the property in 2022 after the structure had deteriorated as a result of a more than two-decade-old Chatham County Probate Case concerning the estate of Virginia Kiah, who died in 2001.
In May, HSF began marketing the historic Kiah House for sale to a “preservation-minded” buyer with the intention of rehabilitating the dilapidated structure and recognizing the significance of Savannah’s first African-American founded museum.
As part of Thursday’s approved proposal, the city’s Cultural Resources Department and Municipal Archives Department will collaborate to provide inspired programs and exhibits at the restored museum, according to city officials. The total project cost is estimated at $1.2 million, with the city contributing $500,000 towards that cost and securing an interest in the property.
Meanwhile, Galvan has been moving forward with plans for the former city properties in Cuyler-Brownville. The Historic Preservation Commission recently approved Galvan’s plans for four of the properties, which the city recently transferred to the Chatham County-Savannah Land Bank Authority as part of a mixed-income housing development plan. The Land Bank Authority approved the sale of the four properties to Galvan in April. As approved, Galvan will construct three single-family homes on vacant lots on the 700 block of Lavinia Street that would then be sold for $209,000. In addition, Galvan will restore a dilapidated single-family house at 923 W. 40th St. that would be sold for $258,000.
