BUTTE — An empty lot in Butte's Chinatown district is at the center of a debate over cultural preservation and government transparency after a proposed carwash received approval from the Historic Preservation Commission.
Members of the Mai Wah Society say the site on Mercury Street holds deep historical significance — and they are questioning how the project moved through the approval process.
"This lot is not just a normal empty lot; this is the site of some really, really important history to Chinatown and therefore to all of Butte," Aubrey Bertram, a Mai Wah Society member, said.
WATCH: A proposed carwash in Butte's historic Chinatown is raising big questions about transparency and cultural preservation
In 2008, an archaeological dig on Mercury Street unearthed 65,000 artifacts. In the 1900s, the area was home to Chinese businesses, homes, and a church. The dig, funded by the Urban Revitalization Agency, cleared the way for future development, but the lot has remained empty for decades.
Mai Wah Society President David Stonehocker said the organization's mission is to protect what remains of that history.
"The Chinatowns across Montana are disappearing. People aren't preserving them, and that's our mission to preserve the Chinese history that is related to Butte history," Stonehocker said.
Bertram and Stonehocker say they understand the lot is privately owned and zoned for commercial use, but they are concerned about a lack of transparency after the proposed carwash went through several rounds with the Historic Preservation Commission and never went before the Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners.
"We were expecting the process of an appeal to Council to be followed. Instead, there was this untransparent secondary hearing with the HPC," Bertram said.
In April, the URA — a taxpayer-funded redevelopment program that awards grants and low-interest loans — awarded $150,000 to the owners of the carwash project, John Liston and Selina Pankovich.
Butte-Silver Bow Historic Preservation Officer Kate McCourt said the Historic Preservation Commission approved the carwash on May 5 after considering different designs.
"This original design was accepted and passed through. They will be building it to look like its original design," McCourt said.
Butte architect Stephen Hinick designed the carwash. Hinick also chairs the HPC and recused himself from the vote, but spoke in favor of the project.
"I would never bring something forward that I wasn't confident that I could approve, myself and I've been here and won awards and worked in this business for 44 years," Hinick said.
Hinick described the design in practical terms.
"I'd say the style is really kind of urban...um...urban...I really don't...there is no style to a carwash, okay. What am I supposed to say? This is not the Guggenheim museum, alright? It's a car wash. We're trying to make it as nice-looking as possible," Hinick said.
Mai Wah members remain skeptical of the process.
"I'm hesitant to declare or say that like there was fraud or deceit, but the fact of the matter is that there is the appearance of it, and that is just as damaging as, like, actual nefarious intent," Bertram said.
I reached out to the car wash owners and did not receive a response.
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