Over the past few months, non-historically significant portions of the Hiawatha Gardens building have been removed and structural experts have assessed the remaining historic dancehall pavilion to be structurally sound. Now, the city is inviting the community to tour the pavilion building.

Tours will take place noon-2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 11, and 4-6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 13, at 10 Old Man’s Trail. All participants should wear masks.

Because of the need for social distancing, groups of 12 people will go through in half-hour increments.

Attendees are required to sign up at bit.ly/hiawathatours and choose a date and time. (Editor’s note: The previous URL confused people, who mistook a lowercase L as an uppercase I.)

Those without computer access may call 648-8284.

Hiawatha Gardens Task Force members will be on-site to provide information about the building’s history and its current condition.

An architect specializing in historic structures and a structural engineer recently inspected the remaining pavilion and provided a brief report to the city. They assessed both the roof and the foundation to be in good condition.

In summary, their report stated, “in general, the existing pavilion building is in good structural shape, considering its age.”

In an October 2020 resolution, Manitou Springs City Council directed the task force to investigate and implement the restoration of Hiawatha Gardens’ historic aspects. The goal is to establish it for community use, including a multimodal transportation hub.

Tour participants will learn what the task force has accomplished to date and what next steps are planned in the near future.