IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa City and the University of Iowa have worked out a deal that will preserve a 177-year-old house and provide space for the university’s Nonfiction Writing Program. The Gazette reports that new location would be part of a “writing neighborhood” near two other historic buildings that house the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and Iowa’s International Writing Program.

A general view of the Sanxay-Gilmore House is seen, Tuesday, July 28, 2020, in Iowa City, Iowa. The city of Iowa City plans to give the property to the University of Iowa in exchange for a campus commitment to move the historic house to a new site, where it would be renovated and become home to the University of Iowa Nonfiction Writing Program. (AP Photo/Ryan J. Foley)

The city is offering the $1 million piece of property, which is currently a parking lot, at no cost to the university. But a city assessment put the cost of moving and renovating the Sanxay-Gilmore House at over $1.23 million. University officials say the school plans to cover those costs with a “substantial gift.” Officials declined to give details on the donation.