Things are looking much better at the Pieper property on the corner of Main Street & McLain, in more ways than one.

By a stroke of luck, I just happened to meet the new owner of the property, Greg Turturro, as he was busy cleaning up the grounds behind the old red cabins.

After I introduced myself, Greg offered to take me on a tour of the main house, so finally, I was able to get inside, see what I had wanted to see for so many years, and was allowed to photograph the rooms as he gave me the tour.

Greg has been working really hard to clean up the area, and while doing so, he began to see the value of the old house, and realized it was not in as bad a condition as he originally thought. There was a room that were added on the East end, and another on the West end that are not worth saving, but the original structure actually is in amazing condition. The plumbing and electrical will have to be replaced, and a new roof, but thankfully, the house can be saved.

Greg started cleaning, scraping up layers of old carpet and wallpaper, and came to the conclusion this house and property has great historical significance, and has decided to leave things as they are, with the hope of trading for another property. He told me the vines on the mud house were trying to destroy the chimney and roof, so he had them removed before they did any more damage. After close examination, Greg believes the mud house could possibly be even older than originally thought, and is actually even more rare than people realize.

Hopefully, Greg can trade this property for another, where he can establish a machine shop. His passion for small engines and his wish for the machine shop is another story.