The grounds are sacred to Steve Kobylk.

His interest in the history and protection of former military reservations such as Fort Casey runs deep.

As the Whidbey Island field representative of the national Coast Defense Study Group, he is always keeping a watchful eye, which isn’t difficult.

“I can see it from the house,” said Kobylk, a resident of nearby Admiral’s Cove in Coupeville.

These days, Kobylk is delighted to see the grandest quarters of the former fort getting an overdue touchup.

Popularly known as the Colonel’s House, the former commanding officer’s quarters on the property of Seattle Pacific University’s Camp Casey Conference Center is receiving some work to its exterior.

Describing it as deferred maintenance, site manager Darrell Jacobsen said the grand, 110-year-old Colonial Revival-style house is getting new fir bevel siding, a fresh coat of beige paint and having its front porch and windows refurbished to further protect the exposed building from the harsh winds that blow in from Admiralty Inlet.

The plan is for the work to be completed by the end of December, just in time for workers tasked with the project to begin thawing out for the new year.

“We just weather up,” said Claud Linn, chief executive officer with Oak Harbor-based Kings-Men Construction, which was hired for the project.

“As the day warms, we remove a layer.”

Linn, who’s worked on other historic structures, marvels at the construction of the two-story Colonel’s House that stands on a hill exposed to the elements.

It was built in 1904 as part of a U.S. military post designed to help protect the entrance to the Puget Sound.

“It’s always a challenge with the age of the home,” Linn said. “The Colonel’s House is World War I vintage so you’re under the microscope of the historical review committee. They pretty much dictate that you replace ‘like kind’ so that’s been our project.”

Complying with such standards under the watchful eye of Ebey’s Landing Historic Preservation Commission, the Oak Harbor construction company has received a thumb’s up from one expert witness.

“They’re doing a great job,” Kobylk said. “If you notice on the front porch, they’re using regional type of wood as well. It’s all tongue and groove. It’s all true dimensional. It’s a great job.”

The project is the first on the house’s exterior in about 20 years, according to Jacobsen.

“This is deferred maintenance, things that needed to be done for years,” he said.

Funds became available for such work after Seattle Pacific sold 79 acres of land to the Whidbey Camano Land Trust, enabling the creation of the nearby Admiralty Inlet Natural Area Preserve.

“Our goal is to get all of the barracks done and the Colonel’s House done in the next few years if we can afford it,” Jacobsen said. “That’s all we’ve planned at this point.”

Seattle Pacific has owned the land that makes up the Camp Casey Conference Center since 1956 — three years after the fort was shut down.

Much of the remaining land that made up the fort is part of Fort Casey State Park.

More than 40 commanding officers with ranks from major to lieutenant colonel took up residence in the house that Seattle Pacific would later call the Colonel’s House.

The university uses it predominantly for leadership retreats and for other special groups.

Each June, the public gets a peek inside during an open house.