The sounds of construction could fill downtown Ellsworth by spring if all goes as planned.

Concordia architect Eric Johnson was in town this past week with design plans for the inside of downtown Ellsworth’s signature Insurance Building.

Following inspection by directors of the National Drovers Hall of Fame, owners of the historic building, Johnson said he will fine tune the plans and submit them to the Kansas State Historical Society.

The next step is for the state organization to issue a letter to Drovers, giving board members the green light to open the construction project for bids.

“It usually takes two weeks if they’re not busy,” said Johnson, who works for Campbell & Johnson Engineers.

In May, the National Drovers Hall of Fame received its second major grant. The Heritage Trust Fund, which supports properties on the register of historic places, awarded Drovers $69,000 to work on the inside of the Insurance Building. The local organization provided a little more than $17,000 in matching dollars.

A similar grant several years ago, in the form of tax credits, was used to stabilize the roof and restore the building’s distinctive oriel that has looked out over Douglas Avenue for more than a century. At about the same time, Drovers also was the recipient of a major gift from Jack Vanier, owner of the CK Ranch on the Ellsworth-Saline county line.

Johnson said parts of the floor inside the Insurance Building will need to be replaced. The main floor, for instance, must be raised about three feet after it was lowered by a past owner to make it level with the sidewalk. The basement also will be restored for storage of rotating exhibits.

Meanwhile, Dru Richard, a Drovers trustee who will administrator the grant for the organization, said directors hope to kick start a fund drive during construction to raise enough matching dollars to apply for another Heritage Trust Fund grant. It would allow for continued renovation following completion of the current grant at the end of 2021.

Johnson predicted renovation will take several more phases.

Richard said directors still intend to use the building for the National Drovers Hall of Fame, which also will include a theater; however, the focus for now will be on restoration of the building.

“The whole project started with ‘let’s save the building’,” Richard said.