The former Standard Oil gas station at the corner of College Street and Seventh Avenue is once again a pit stop, though of a slightly different kind; and local officials gathered with historic preservation advocates Wednesday afternoon to celebrate the building’s restoration.

The 1921 structure has been converted into public restrooms for adjacent Circus Square Park, but the exterior now resembles its original look as closely as possible.

The ceremony Wednesday was the local kickoff of National Historic Preservation Month, for which there are several events scheduled over the next two weeks.

Historic Preservation Planner Miranda Clements thanked the Landmark Association and other backers of the building restoration for their work and attention to detail.

Warren County Judge-Executive Mike Buchanon admitted he didn’t favor saving the building at first. He was unable to picture how it might successfully be reused, he said. But now that it’s done, he congratulated its supporters for a great addition to the downtown scene.

Historic preservation helps build community character, Buchanon said, a thought echoed by Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman Todd Davis. Such efforts add to the quality of local life, important in recruiting new businesses, he said.

The chamber was naturally “very interested” in what would stand across Seventh Avenue from its own new headquarters, but was reassured when preservationists showed their detailed plans, Davis said.

“Thank you for being good neighbors,” he said.

Mark Dennen, state historic preservation officer and executive director of the Kentucky Heritage Council, said common arguments against saving buildings like the gas station are that it’s too expensive, there’s no real value in saving them and no adequate new use.

All those were objections raised to restoring the Standard Oil station.

It was Dennen, Mayor Elaine Walker said, who alerted the city that it might have to repay a hefty grant used to buy the building if it wasn’t preserved. In thanks for that warning and his support of the project, she presented him with a key to the city.

The building was bought as part of the Circus Square Park site, using a $70,000 grant. But included in that 2003 deal was the right of state and federal preservation officials to mandate its preservation.

The building cost around $150,000 to restore and convert, but most of that came from the unused portion of another state grant that would have otherwise been returned to the state.

Walker also singled out her husband, Dorian, for special praise. She thanked others who worked on the building, too, but said Dorian Walker’s dedication extended to the last-minute effort of having historically accurate Red Crown Gasoline globes specially made, and lobbying the Landmark Association to fund them.

To close the ceremony, Buchanon and Elaine Walker took turns reading parts of a proclamation declaring May as National Historic Preservation Month.

Other local events to mark the month include:

• May 16, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., a cemetery preservation workshop in St. Joseph’s Cemetery behind Kereiakes Park;

• May 16, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., the annual Shake Rag Festival in RiverWalk Park;

• May 19, 5 p.m., a presentation at the Presbyterian Church, 1003 State St., on building restoration and reuse from Stanley Rabun and Richard Kelso from the University of Tennessee School of Architecture;

• May 21, 6 p.m. Landmark Association annual dinner and awards at the Kentucky Library; and

• May 21, Downtown Merchants and Professionals Association evening benefit concert for the Landmark Association and Habitat for Humanity in Fountain Square Park.