The 3,000-square-foot home will be moved from where it sits near the new county building on Nichols Sawmill Road down the street to the corner of Nichols Sawmill Road and Commerce Street.

The move will take place within the next 30 days and cost around $25,000, said 4B committee member Jonny Williams.

Moving the house became an issue in April when the land the house sits on, owned by Magnolia Bible Church, became the site for the church’s new facility.

The home is being donated to the 4B by the church.

When first discussed, 4A and 4B members considered using the home as a visitor’s center or museum, though now they plan to have it house a downtown business that will fit in with the downtown appeal the city is trying to cultivate.

“It will not only fit in with what we’re trying to do down there, but also appeal to the type of businesses we want down there,” Williams said. “It will generate sales tax, help pay for itself and help generate jobs for people there too. It fits the total criteria of what we’re trying to do.”

Williams previously said that one of the reasons the committee wanted to save the house rather than tear it down was “because of the historical nature.”

However, Magnolia Historical Society member and longtime Magnolia resident Celeste Graves said in a letter dated Aug. 14 to 4B President Frank Parker that the house “cannot qualify for a listing as a Texas Historic Building.”

Though the house was built in 1911, it has been remodeled several times “inside and out” over the years, Graves wrote in the letter.

“Even if it was in the original condition, it would have to stay at the present location to qualify for a listing,” she wrote.

Williams said several people have approached him with the idea of putting a business in the house.

“It really serves a better purpose in the downtown area,” he said. “It will generate revenue.”

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