I briefly mentioned a while back that one of our goals for this house was to apply for local historical designation. When a building has historical status, it is protected and all that, but the owners can also apply for the Mill’s Act and get a break when it comes to property taxes. Our taxes are already pretty low, so the main reason I wanted to pursue this designation was to make those custom wood windows worthwhile. Really!
I was in contact with a city planner employee and one of the board members of the local historical society, and after all the back and forth and thinking “restoration” rather than “renovation,” we’ve decided not to pursue historical designation. While I find this home beyond worthy of that status (it’s one of the last examples of Streamline Moderne architecture used for a residence and its integrity hasn’t totally been compromised by vinyl windows and other changes), it’s not realistic for us to apply. The application alone would cost around $1500 (or more) and to ensure that it would be accepted, and passed by the city council, we’d probably need to hire a historian to do the write up. If this were our forever home, then it might be worth it, but alas, we are putting the house on the market this summer.
Isaiah as been busy working on some final projects, so I will be updating the blog with photos of all that. Soon, I hope!
Freerksen Family Fixer-Upper 