SAGINAW, MI -- To some, it's the Charles Lee mansion and stands as an important piece of Saginaw's lumber heritage.

To others, it was the home of actress and local eccentric Rosemary DeGesaro, known for walking her 3-foot-tall pet leopard named Chichu on a leash up and down South Washington.

For that reason, and the lion statues once on the front steps, the striking red brick Queen Anne at 633 S. Washington is known by many as "the cat lady house."

Whatever it's called, the time is coming to say goodbye to the 142-year-old lumber baron mansion located at the edge of Saginaw's downtown.

The Saginaw City Council, in a 4-3 vote Monday, April 25, resolved to demolish the historic though blighted property in order to make room for future development in the area.

Saginaw Mayor Dennis Browning explained why he supported a motion to demolish made by Councilman Michael Balls during the "miscellaneous business" section of Monday's Council meeting.

"With the progress we are starting to see in the city of Saginaw, as much as I'd like to keep some of the historical buildings, many of them need to come down," Browning said. "The opportunity for that particular house has been there for a long, long time."

The decision to demolish the home has indeed been a long time coming.

Using a federal grant in 2011, Saginaw spent $20,000 to purchase the property with the intent to demolish the home. At that point, the home had already sat vacant for several years.

But outcry from historic preservationists and others in the community in 2012 stalled the city's plans to raze the home.

At that point, City Manager Tim Morales said, a group approached city officials with interest in purchasing and restoring the home. But after an initial meeting, the group never moved forward with the plan, Morales said.

"Since that time, as far as I know, we have not been approached by anybody with any real interest to purchase that home and restore it," he said.

Four years later, the home is one of only a handful of remaining homes along the section of South Washington, and by far the most unkempt of any property along the corridor.

On April 19, city leaders toured the home. They were led by Chief Inspector John Stemple, who said city leaders should be aware of the state of the city-owned property.

"We're trying to hold the businesses along Washington Avenue to a certain standard," he said. "I go to a business and cite them because they have some junk in their yard and they point down the street and say, 'What are you guys doing with that property?'"

Get a peek inside the home in this video, taken during the April 19 tour:

Morales said the home, located on a block now almost entirely owned by the city, is in a prime area for future development in Saginaw.

"If the deterioration progresses any more, I worry it will impact further development downtown," he said.

One of the major voices opposing demolition in 2012 was Tom Mudd, president of the Saginaw Valley Historic Preservation Society and a personal friend of DeGesaro's. She died in May 2012.

But before touring the home with city leaders on April 19, Mudd said his opinion had changed.

Though he categorizes the home as an "extremely important" piece of Saginaw's history, Mudd said he understands the need to remove a crumbling eyesore that no one has demonstrated the financial ability and will to save.

"Other cities might do it in better situations," Mudd said. "But I think that's beyond Saginaw right now."

But there are still voices that oppose immediate demolition of the home.

Bill Ostash is a former chairman of the Saginaw Historic District Commission and the owner of a historic home in the city's Cathedral District.

Ostash has been working on an effort to move the home elsewhere and actually has a meeting scheduled on April 27 with Saginaw County Land Bank officials to discuss potential sites.

He was surprised to learn of the City Council's sudden decision on Monday.

"I'm just fed up with City Council," Ostash said. "Some of them have a preservationist mindset and some of them just don't."

The mansion was built by Charles Lee, a pioneer lumberman in East Saginaw whose lumber mill was located nearby.

A history of 633 S. Washington, written by Mudd

The home was purchased at the turn of the century by Dr. Michael Ryan, one of the first resident doctors at St. Mary's of Michigan hospital and DeGesero's father.

Ostash admitted that Council members may not have been aware of his efforts to move the home, and has not yet addressed how the effort might be funded.

"I don't know where this leaves it," he said. "We're trying to do something. We just need a little more time."

The hope, Ostash said, is to move the home to an empty lot nearby that is less desirable for future development projects and to actively seek someone who would be interested in buying and restoring the historic home.

After learning of the City Council's decision, local resident Natalie Davis, who was one of the voices behind the effort to stop demolition in 2012, started a GoFundMe campaign to "Help Save Rosemary's House!"

Councilman Michael Balls said the city has given those interested in preserving the home plenty of opportunities.

"This house has been sitting there and sitting there and sitting there," Balls said. "Sometimes we've got to move on so we can get on."

But others on Council argued they should not so hastily make a final decision about the home.

Councilman Floyd Kloc pointed to an Indiana couple who purchased a nearby lumber baron mansion, the 128-year-old Hill House, after it was listed for sale.

Kloc, who had been elected as the city's new mayor pro tem just minutes earlier, suggested Saginaw should make a more thorough attempt to find a buyer for the home on South Washington before resolving to demolish it.

"I don't want to lose such a historic structure without a valiant effort to save it," he said. "I think it would be a big mistake."

Councilman Demond Tibbs made a motion to postpone consideration of Balls' motion to demolish the property, but it failed in a 4-3 vote.

Voting along the same lines, Council approved the motion to demolish the home in a 4-3 vote.

Voting for demolition were:

Councilman Michael Balls

Councilwoman Brenda Moore

Councilman Larry Coulouris

Mayor Dennis Browning

Voting against demolition were:

Mayor Pro Tem Floyd Kloc

Councilwoman Annie Boensch

Councilman Demond Tibbs

City Manager Tim Morales said most demolition grants cannot be used in the area of town where the home is located, but said money set aside in the General Fund budget for demolitions could be used to raze it.

Morales said he would expect that would happen early in the city's next fiscal year, which begins July 1, and said the city will give an opportunity for historic artifacts or any other valuable items to be removed prior to demolition.

Browning and Tibbs both voiced a desire to ensure a fair chance is given to salvage items from inside.

"If anything can be salvaged out of that house, we certainly want to make every effort that we can to do that," Browning said.

Mark Tower covers local government for MLive/The Saginaw News. Contact him at 989-284-4807, by email at mtower@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.