A decade after opening South Broadway Manor in Scottdale as a bed and breakfast, Pat Hill has begun transforming a second iconic home a few blocks away. Abandoned and gap-toothed, with two missing porch pillars, the three-story, 115-year-old limestone mansion called Greystone Manor by its former owner, Richard Campbell, has been visited since late last year by waves of craftsmen, carpenters, plumbers and technicians as it is brought back to life. Hill invested about $1 million in South Broadway Manor. She expects she’ll spend more than $2 million on Greystone Manor, restoring the building and furnishing it with pieces appropriate to the period. "I feel like I’m saving a life,” she said. "People love that house.” Hill, who was raised in North Huntingdon, was a fashion model for 40 years, living in an apartment in Manhattan and a home in the Hamptons. She said she sold the property on the New York coast when she purchased Greystone. "I actually started (work on Greystone) before I owned it,” Hill said. "That’s kind of good faith. I mean, we had a lot of money in it even before we did the deal because water was pouring in. The cupola blew off. We started buttoning it up before winter. "I would say this house, other than the stone, is a rebuild of everything.” Hill expects the project might take years. Reconstruction has picked up pace since the purchase became official Feb. 2 and has progressed at such a rate that it could conclude much earlier. She has invested $250,000 so far, she said. The transformed structure will serve as a bed and breakfast — with a new and, as yet, undetermined name — and events site with gathering areas on the first floor, lodging on the second floor and a ballroom for events on the top floor. "What happened with the B&B that I have on Broadway was that I did it in 35 years of dips and dabbles, one room at a time and this and that because it was just a hobby,” she said. "After doing that, it was good practice. And now I’m going to be doing this with five or six trades at once without tripping over each other, and we’ve got them all lined up. So it’s going to go rather quickly.” Work on the home that sits near the center of town is a boon to the community, historical society president Tom Zwierzelewski said. He has assisted in organizing the dozens of paintings, decor accents and furniture left behind when Campbell died. Improvements are occurring at a pace no one expected, he said. "This is a great example that you can save these buildings and you can preserve these things,” he said. "There’s an excitement about it because someone is fixing it up.” Longtime landmark Built beginning in 1905 by Scottdale department store owner E.H. Reid, the house was bought by Campbell in the mid-1960s. Hill’s brother, Jeff, is general contractor for the project and can be found at the site daily. He is focused on the skeletal structure of the building. An electrician and lighting designer, Jeff Hill said it’s important to the family that local contractors are the core resource and experts for the project. A 1950s-era natural gas boiler once again is warming the building. That repair is among dozens of projects impacting every other element of the home — from support beams in the basement to the electrical system and slate roof. Raimondo Masonry Restoration Contractors of Jeannette is returning the soot-laden exterior stone to its original beige — rather than gray — color. The chimneys atop the building are restored even as preparations are made to restore the slate roof. Ritenour Electric of Scottdale is leading the installation of a new electrical system that will replace the original knob-and-tube wiring. Jonathan Fox, another Scottdale contractor, brought pocket doors on either side of the formal entry space back to life. Fox also is likely to restore the staircase leading to the second floor, Jeff Hill said. "It’s close to home,” Fox said. "It’s one of those iconic buildings in the town, and it’s nice to be part of something that’s building back up.” Pat Hill said the location of each bed and breakfast home fits well into the travel and tourism needs of the region. Clients at South Broadway Manor have included visitors to the region’s Frank Lloyd Wright attractions such as Fallingwater, along with skiers headed to Seven Springs Mountain Resort and cyclists traveling the Great Allegheny Passage. Now that her home in the Hamptons has sold, Hill said she expects to return permanently to Southwestern Pennsylvania. "Everyone in town has been so supportive,” she said. "I feel like just the support and the camaraderie is something very special.” Dirk Kaufman is director of newsroom operations for the Tribune-Review. You can contact Dirk at 724-836-6007, dkaufman@triblive.com or via Twitter and help us continue covering the stories that matter to you and your community.