LEBANON — The city is revisiting the 2-year-old effort to turn a downtown block into Bicentennial Park.

        The Planning Commission will meet Wednesday to continue work on its recommendation for the block bound by Cherry, Mechanic, Mulberry and Main streets.

        A gazebo and some parking have been installed in the past year, but Lebanon's new administration and council — installed in late 2001 — are rethinking the park layout.

        “As the bicentennial nears, that piece of land becomes more important,” Councilman Norm Dreyer said of the city's 200-year celebration, which peaks in September.

        The main issue is what to do with the city-owned house at 5-7 Cherry. The last council had decided to build the park around the house, which dates to the mid-1800s, and renovate it for offices or other uses.

        However, City Engineer Scott Brunka estimates renovation would cost $200,000, and even the pro-preservation Lebanon Conservancy Foundation says the Queen Anne house is not historically significant.

        “I think most if not all of council agrees the Cherry Street building should be torn down,” said Mr. Dreyer, chairman of council's Area Development Committee, which asked for the commission's recommendation.

        But the Conservancy, which spent $15,000 painting and making other upgrades to the house, opposes razing it.

        “It's like tearing another section out of a quilt,” Conservancy treasurer Jerry Miller said. “It's part of the whole picture.”

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