The Hart Historic Preservation Group (HHPG), the group that oversees the Hart Historic District, met Wednesday, Jan. 14 at 3 p.m. at the Hart Community Center. Leading the meeting were current members of the HEART board (see accompanying article on page 3). Three community members were also in attendance.
Current financials show the group has nearly $43,000 between a regular checking account and a Certificate of Deposit. In the past the city, which owns the property on which the district sits, has provided the finances for the overseer position, while maintenance and upgrades to the district have come from various fundraisers, private donations and visitor contributions at the site. This is somewhat of a unique situation, and the city has expressed they would like to get out from under this financial responsibility.
A community survey conducted early in 2025 revealed the community was overwhelmingly in favor of retaining the property as a historical district if finances could be secured. Many suggestions were put forth, some circulating as rumors, leading people to believe the city was going to give up on the property. That however, is clearly not the case, as evidenced by the proceedings of Wednesday’s meeting. The community can rest assured the intent of the city and the HHPG is to preserve the property for years to come.
The main portion of the meeting included a very interesting presentation by Mears resident, organizer of last year’s car show at the district, and soon-to-be board member of the HHPG, Lloyd Miller. In the past several months, the group has been exploring new ways to utilize the Historic District buildings in hopes of generating enough income to make the location self-sustainable. Miller, who has a passion and an acuity for organizing events, outlined the development of a multi-phase Escape Room attraction. When fully operational, the goal would be for this attraction to generate enough revenue to fund a professional staff (District Operations Coordinator, Escape Room Manager and three paid internships) to care for the entire Hart Historic District campus.
“Having something like this would give people something to do in the winter, not just the summer,” Miller said.
Having enjoyed escape rooms across West Michigan, Miller also believes an attraction of this nature would bring in much-needed income to support the district long-term.
Escape rooms are special themed rooms where groups of people work together to find clues, solve puzzles and complete tasks in order to “escape” from the room within a certain time limit, usually an hour. They have become more and more popular in the past several years. Contrary to what some may think, escape rooms are not locked, and players are able to leave at any time. The fun is in solving the puzzles and tasks together in specially themed rooms or “spaces.”
Miller’s proposal, “The Hart Heist Escape Room and Sustainability Initiative,” was thought-out and provided great detail, from an executive summary and project concept to the financial investment and a staffing model.
The plan would be to transform the now empty train depot building into a three-room narrative journey through Hart’s history. Each year would include the construction of another setting, with each room designed to meet modern safety standards while maintaining an historical feel. To keep people coming back, the themed spaces would change every few years.
“The Hart Heist initiative shifts the Hart Historic District from a model of ‘survival through donation’ to ‘growth through innovation.’ Miller’s report read. “By investing today, we secure a future where our buildings are expertly maintained, our history is vibrantly told and our museum is staffed by professionals - all funded by a self-sustaining model.”
Everyone present was in enthusiastic support of the idea and agreed to pursue the specifics in the weeks to come.
In other business, the group discussed the district’s Guide by Cell audio tours subscription and whether or not to continue with it. HEART Chairman Andrew Mullen wondered if the city might be able to develop an alternative that could be used instead.
The group also discussed the possibility of renaming the area from “Hart Historical District” to “Hart Museum District” or something similar. There seems to be some confusion about the district, as downtown Hart has also been named a “Historical District.” Several names were tossed out. Russ Robbins, former overseer at the district for 39 years, said the original name included “Chippewa Creek” before it was decided to name it the Hart Historic District.
Currently the HHPG is being managed as part of the HEART (Hart Economic and Redevelopment Team) board. Ideally, interested individuals would be asked to form a new executive committee and take over operations separate from HEART. Several people have agreed to serve, and several other candidates are on the list to ask. In the meantime, to align with the organization's bylaws, a temporary board/committee will be appointed, with formal elections to be held in September.
Upcoming events already in the works at the district include various private party rentals, the National Asparagus Festival Taste of Asparagus, the Hart Historic District Car Show and the Music on the Commons concert series being moved from downtown for the summer due to the streetscape construction project.
The next monthly HHPG meeting will be held following HEART’s monthly board meeting Wednesday, Feb. 11, starting at 3 p.m. Anyone with questions or those interested in being involved with the Hart Historic Preservation Board or its subcommittees are asked to contact the city offices at 231-873-2488.
