We know this house, owned by one family, was built when the family moved out from a Harlem brownstone for more land and a different type of life. As the neighborhood began to expand quickly thereafter, the houses were built with similar care, love, and craftsmanship. As the area matured and houses turned over, many of the houses remained well into the 20th century. As with any well-educated area near NYC, the lots themselves become very valuable and even moreso as owners let their homes fall into disrepair. When houses need more than the typical work, we have a recipe for "knock downs."
Sadly, the house two lots down fell into this category. When we spoke to the neighbors across the street, they remarked how happy they were that we bought and that our house was so beautiful, yadda yadda yadda. When we asked about the house two lots down from us, they said, "It was nice but not of the same ilk of yours or some of the others." Well, that got us thinking, what did the house look like? Was it that badly neglected? Below is the house, as of 2012, via Google Maps.
Our hearts sank when we did this search. It's as nice as ours, moreso in some respects, and deserved saving. When we dug further, the house was purchased and then demolished by an architect! Interestingly, the former owner (her granddaughter) of house we purchased, used this same architect to draw up plans to blow out the back of our house. When the plans proved too costly, the owners sold and bidders came forward. While I rolled my eyes at the idea of writing a letter, it proved important as one of the owners (the estate was owned by a son and daughter after their 106 year old mother passed away in March) did not want to see the house razed.
As soon as we moved into the house we noticed that the fatigued yet beautiful craftsman, stucco exterior house next to us was having an estate sale. My brother and wife and I were excited that we would have a chance to see the interior, talk to the owner, and maybe collect some period appropriate/local ephemera. While we found those things, we also found out some potentially disturbing news. They were selling their house. While we were excited that the house would be rehabbed/restored, we quickly realized it could be disastrous in that the house was bought before it could go to market for all cash. In this neighborhood my gut tells me it is a knock down, despite other owners saying otherwise. While the houses that replace them are nice, I guess, the danger of losing this old, established neighborhood one house at a time is really sad. The house in question is below.
Great piece on the houses around you in danger and those already lost. A preservation district with some sort of authority might prevent some of this, if it existed, but sadly this is the reality when land values rise so high in certain areas. Hoping for the best that the character of your neighborhood remains for many more decades!
ReplyDeleteNick, thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment! My apologies for not getting to you sooner. Oradell had a historic committee at some point in the past according to a neighbor that stopped by, but I do not know more beyond that. My brother is the Chairman of the neighboring town's commission, and it has helped to protect in some respects but not all. Buildings are razed left and right, but it is a start.
DeleteUnfortunately, it takes more than a commission to preserve the history in a town. People must subscribe to a "way of thinking" and realize that these houses and buildings cannot be replaced. After we get settled, it is something that I would like to mention to those in local government.
In fact, just recently did this become a hot button topic right here in Oradell: https://goo.gl/4aNQYj
With time short, it has been hard to keep up. However, I have a post in queue about the history of our house. It's quite fascinating and something that will certainly shed some light on the importance of preserving living history in my small corner of the worlds.