Mansfield couple honored for breathing new life into historic West First Street home

MANSFIELD — Allie Watson took Mansfield City Council on a trip back in history on Tuesday evening.

Watson and her husband, Sam Chamberlin, were among those honored by Mayor Jodie Perry with her latest mayor’s beautification awards.

The mayor’s initiative highlights local business owners and residents who invest time and resources into renovating, decorating and maintaining properties throughout Mansfield.

Watson and Chamberlin were honored for their work on their home at 176 W. First St.

“This has been a labor of love for them over the last number of years. It’s a great example of what we’re looking for on First Street. A lot of the houses there are hit-and-miss whether they’re being invested in or not,” Perry said.

“But they took this beautiful historic home and brought it back to life and then some,” the mayor said.

Watson said John Simpson, the first superintendent of Mansfield City Schools, built the house in 1885 and passed away 20 years later.

“His widow turned it into a duplex side by side. She rented out the other half to school teachers for decades. It was then owned by school teachers,” Watson said.

Watson said her mother purchased the home for $40,000 “back in the day.”

“There were drive-by (shootings) and drug deals happening on the street back then and people were like, ‘Why would you live on First Street? She would say, ‘Look at the beautiful house.’

“She had a vision years before this came about,” Watson said, pointing to one of the photos displayed during the presentation.

“This picture actually was after 14 months without electricity in the entire house. So when you say labor of love, we have blood, sweat, and tears … so thank you,” Watson said.

(Below are other award recipients honored on Tuesday night by Mayor Jodie Perry.)

Other award recipients included representatives from Monarch Surfaces (above left), 320 E. Fifth St., and Roger and Deborah Trent (above right), nominated for work on their home at 388 Fifth Ave. by 6th Ward Councilwoman Deborah Mount.

Monarch Surfaces is located near the former Westinghouse property on the city’s east side. The owners transformed a long-vacant building over several years, culminating in a new exterior mural created by team member Anna Kaiser.

Kaiser designed and hand-stenciled the logo using Meta VR goggles in the summer heat to celebrate the revitalization of the neighboring Westinghouse site.

“This was going along with the celebration of clearing up the Westinghouse property,” said co-owner Darla Schiro. “We wanted to make this a beautification, as well.”

Councilwoman Crystal Davis Weese noted Kaiser was a former student of hers.

“She was always an exceptional student that always went above and beyond,” Davis Weese said.

The Trents’ home exemplifies the standard the city envisioned when creating the program, Perry said. The couple maintains their corner lot with seasonal landscaping and custom woodworking.

“He does all the mowing and I do all the flowers,” Deborah Trent said.

Roger Trent added that he handles all the exterior woodwork projects around the property.

City Council on Tuesday also:

— gave a first read on amendments regarding traffic codes for bicycles, electric bicycles and electric personal assistive mobility devices, including helmet requirements for minors and restrictions on sidewalk riding. A vote on the changes is scheduled Nov. 17.

— approved participation in a multi-district class-action settlement over drinking water PFAS contamination.

— approved updated regulations for the city’s Sewer Assistance Program.

— Agreed to spend up to $125,489 a new Ford F-550 plow truck for the streets and sewer repair department. Perry said the bulk of the funds will come from the sewer repair fund and the cost of the snow plow will be paid for from the streets fund.

City Council’s next scheduled meeting is Nov. 4, one day later than normal due to Election Day on Nov. 3.