Keep the celebration going

For five years, local philanthropist and woodworker Dick Schwab has hosted weddings and charity events in handcrafted round wood and stone barns on his rural Johnson County property.

He even built a large barn on his farm off Sugar Bottom Road to accommodate the special events of friends, neighbors and non-profit groups - he calls it Celebration Barn.

Schwab, a board member for several local charitable organizations, doesn't make money off the venue - he usually asks users to write a check instead to one of his favorite charities.

Between those payments and the fundraisers Schwab has hosted, Schwab estimates he has helped raise about $300,000 for local charities in the past five years.

Schwab has chosen a powerful and unique way to give back to his community: Creating beautiful spaces for meaningful events and making them open to the public.

But when Schwab's conditional-use permit - which allows him to host events on his property - came up for renewal this year, the Johnson County Board of Adjustment initially denied his application.

Although many neighbors support Schwab's enterprise, some others have complained about the traffic generated by those events, which can hold up to 300 people. Between setup and tear-down, some events generate at least some traffic for an entire weekend.

Earlier this month, the board relented, voting to allow Schwab to hold events he's already agreed to through October - to the great relief of brides and grooms only weeks or months away from their event.

What happens after October is anyone's guess - Schwab hasn't yet submitted his request for 2012. He told us this week that he wants to talk with his neighbors first.

We hope they can come to an agreement that will alleviate neighbors' concerns, yet allow Schwab to continue to hold small private and charitable events at Celebration Barn.

Last fall, Johnson County Supervisors approved a plan for Schwab's new commercial venture: Celebration Farm, a five-acre site on Highway 1 and Morse Road between Iowa City and Solon.

That venue will include a double barn and wood frame barn as well as a smaller building that might also be used for events. It should be open this fall.

But Schwab still would like to use Celebration Barn to hold a few fundraisers and events for neighbors and family.

“In no way do I want to make this a commercial operation out here,” he said of the barn. “It's a structure of utility and beauty.”

One for which interested parties should work to preserve, ensuring that the community benefits from that beauty, and Schwab's generosity, for years to come.