Preservation Ohio received the following press release this afternoon. Hearty congratulations to everyone involved.
The Knox Hill Neighborhood Association (KHNA) is pleased to announce that due to the generosity of one of Knox Hill’s Board members, the Historic Chas Winkler House, located at 1855 Knox Street will be saved from the city wrecking ball.
The home is a 4 story 3200 square ft. Second Empire single detached town home with many great original details and has 4 bedrooms. The home has many historic features including a rare original “servants tunnel” at street level. This home is the only home in the Knox Hill neighborhood with this historic feature.
As part of the agreement with KHNA, the exterior of the home will be restored to the Secretary of the Interior standards for historic preservation. As part of the stabilization process the vinyl siding will be removed and the original clapboards will be restored, historically correct doors will be installed, the original side porch will be recreated, the servants tunnel entrance will be restored and gated and the home will have new steps and repairs to the stone retaining wall at the front. Neighborhood Volunteers will be assisting in yard cleanup and landscaping materials are being donated. The home enjoys a dramatic view of the city and Lick Run valley.
Victorian Antiquities and Design/Restoration Consultants will prepare a restoration plan for the project and Cathy Frank, of Comey-Sheperd Realty, has been asked to handle the eventual sale of the stabilized home.
The stabilized home will have a 50-year protective historic deed covenant that requires the exterior to be maintained to Historic standards and it must remain a single family home. The new owner will be responsible for completing the interior restoration within an agreed to time frame.
The 1800 block of Knox Street I experiencing a renaissance, and several restorations are currently underway. The “Save-not Raze” project by Knox Hill encourages the preservation and restoration of historic assets rather than their demolition. Knox Hill believe in the utilization of historic preservation as an economic development tool and represents a time proven approach to neighborhood turnaround rather than city policies of Blight=Bulldozer. This partnership to save property is about residents taking control of their own neighborhood’s direction, and no longer accepting failed city policies.
More information can be obtained by contacting KHNA President Paul Willham at victiques@gmail.com.
