The Big Yellow House is undergoing improvements to its structural integrity and façade to make it more attractive to prospective retail tenants.

“What you see going on out there is a variety of new things” said Steve Brown, a principal with Radius Group Commercial Real Estate, the company in charge of leasing the property in Summerland.

The structure is being restored to “better-than original” condition, Mr. Brown said.

Improvements include a new coat of yellow paint, a parking-lot make-over; structural updates and an addition to the building’s south side.

“He’s just pretty much taking care of the basic stuff,” Mr. Brown said, referring to the building’s owner; Paul Franz, a local general contractor.

The addition to the building’s south side includes an elevator to provide easy access to all floors.

“You want to provide access for everybody,” Mr. Brown said.

Atop the addition is a landing where decking will be installed.

After being listed for more than a year, the building and land were acquired by Mr. Franz in spring 2011 for an amount near that of the listing price of $1.3 million.  The property was in a state of disrepair after standing unoccupied for nearly three years.

The general contractor was attracted to the site because it presents the opportunity to restore a local icon and ”put it back into great working order,” Mr. Brown said.

The well-known property, clearly visible from Highway 101, is zoned commercial and has played host to a number of restaurants throughout its history.

A variety of retailers could potentially set up shop in the iconic, 6,100-square-foot building.

While the space could be used for a number of purposes – a coffee shop, salon, or office space – Mr. Brown said he suspects area residents would like to see a restaurant open at the site.

Those at Radius Group are “consistently” interviewing potential tenants and hope to have a final product for area residents within the next six months.

Mr. Brown said he his colleagues are marketing the space and are open to the idea of “splitting it up into two floors” or allowing a single retailer to adjust the space as necessary.

“We’re open to anybody who’s interest,” he said.

The property at 108 Pierpont Road went into foreclosure in the spring 2010 and was taken over by the mortgage holder in October of the same year.

At one point it had a price tag of just less than $3 million.