gc
11 September 2003, 09:08 PM
Stalled project upsets E. Dallas neighbors
Owner defends state of 1922 home, but some want city to step in
11:01 PM CDT on Wednesday, September 10, 2003
By FRANK TREJO / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/localnews/stories/091103dnmetparkshouse.9f72a.html
Dallas history greets Heloise Ridgway when she looks out the window of her East Dallas home.
But the view makes her sad.
"It's dreadful, absolutely dreadful what has happened to that beautiful house," said Mrs. Ridgway, referring to a two-story brick home built more than 80 years ago that once was the pride of the neighborhood.
For the last several years, many residents have considered the house an eyesore. The home has been turned into a long-term construction project by the man who bought it in 1999.
Stephen Evans said he bought the house with every intention of restoring it, but he insists that circumstances beyond his control have prevented him from doing that. He still hopes to complete the work.
But residents of the Abrams-Brookside neighborhood, along with city officials, say that Mr. Evans may have made things worse for the aging structure with all the unfinished work. Earlier this year, they joined with Preservation Dallas, a nonprofit organization that works to preserve historic buildings, to initiate the process of having the city's Landmark Commission declare the house a historic landmark.
Mr. Evans disagrees that the house is deteriorating.
"There was a tremendous amount of work done on it from the time I took over the house in May of 2000," Mr. Evans said, adding that no work has been done in about a year because of an ongoing mortgage dispute. "And I think the neighborhood has caused more problems, or some people in the neighborhood, because of these things with the city."
Because the process for landmark designation has begun, the property owner must now go through the Landmark Commission before major changes to the structure can be made.
The city recently went to court to obtain a temporary restraining order to prevent what officials describe as "demolition by neglect" of the possibly historic structure. The order requires Mr. Evans to take steps to protect the house, including installing plywood boards over open windows to protect the house from the weather.
The order also allowed the city to erect a chain-link fence around the property to keep out unauthorized people, particularly children who might be drawn to an empty swimming pool there.
But the situation is complicated because Mr. Evans is embroiled in a dispute with a financial institution. Early last month, the property was foreclosed on, but Mr. Evans retains possession of it and said he would be able to get the property's mortgage reinstated.
In the meantime, the once elegant home stands amid piles of rock, some boarded windows, and several areas of partially completed construction.
Built in 1922, the house originally was the home of Joseph F. and Lucy Largent Parks. The two-story cream-colored brick structure lies atop a slight knoll at the corner of Worth and Paulus streets in the Abrams-Brookside neighborhood, just west of Lakewood Country Club.
At the time it was built, the mission-style home sat on 22 acres and was considered one of the city's showplace residences. A 1924 article in The Dallas Morning News described the elegant interior and design, noting that it was constructed by local craftsmen.
In the mid-1950s, the house was bought by the YMCA and used as a facility by that organization until 1999, when Mr. Evans bought the property.
Mrs. Ridgway, who has lived in her home since 1950, recalled that she and her husband bought the land for their home from the Parks family.
"They were still living in the home at that time, and they had these lots they had planned to have their children build homes on, but some of them didn't do that, so Mr. Parks was selling them," Mrs. Ridgway said.
She recalled Mr. Parks, a prominent banker, coming by her home on many mornings to pick persimmons that grew on large trees on the property he sold to the Ridgways.
"It was a one-of-a-kind house, a grand house, and it is so sad to see what has happened to it," Mrs. Ridgway said. "I'm 84 years old, and I hate looking out my window and see it all tore up."
Seifu Tesfay, another neighbor, said he, too, was concerned with what had happened to the old Parks house.
"That is the entrance into our neighborhood, and it's a dilapidated structure that has had construction going on forever," he said. "It really does not project a very nice image of our neighborhood."
In addition, he said, neighborhood residents have concerns about safety, especially with the possibility that neighborhood children might enter the property and get hurt.
Jennifer Richie, an assistant city attorney, said the city brought the legal action against Mr. Evans because of concerns about safety issues resulting from a number of code violations.
"Mr. Evans was making repairs on the property, but he was doing it in a very slow, practically nonexistent way," Ms. Richie said.
Leif Sandberg, manager of comprehensive planning for the city, said it was unusual, but not unheard of, for the city to take such action against a property owner to protect a historic or potentially historic structure.
"The kind of immediate protection we're looking for in these situations is to have the property stabilized," Mr. Sandberg said.
But Mr. Evans said he had done a considerable amount of work stabilizing the house. He said that despite some open windows, the house is safe from exposure to the weather.
And, he said, he has worked hard on making improvements.
"The house has been totally reframed and the foundation totally shored up," he said. "The further deterioration complaints I do not understand. It's in better shape than when I bought it."
City Council member Veletta Forsythe Lill said she believed both the city and neighborhood residents had exercised more patience than they would have in other cases.
"The community is really eager to see it returned to its former glory and to have it as a single-family structure again," Ms. Lill said, adding that many homes of this quality and size used to be common in East Dallas but have been removed over time.
"In East Dallas we're very protective of our history because we've lost some of that history, and we also know what can happen to a neighborhood when history is preserved," she said.
E-mail ftrejo@dallasnews.com
Owner defends state of 1922 home, but some want city to step in
11:01 PM CDT on Wednesday, September 10, 2003
By FRANK TREJO / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/localnews/stories/091103dnmetparkshouse.9f72a.html
Dallas history greets Heloise Ridgway when she looks out the window of her East Dallas home.
But the view makes her sad.
"It's dreadful, absolutely dreadful what has happened to that beautiful house," said Mrs. Ridgway, referring to a two-story brick home built more than 80 years ago that once was the pride of the neighborhood.
For the last several years, many residents have considered the house an eyesore. The home has been turned into a long-term construction project by the man who bought it in 1999.
Stephen Evans said he bought the house with every intention of restoring it, but he insists that circumstances beyond his control have prevented him from doing that. He still hopes to complete the work.
But residents of the Abrams-Brookside neighborhood, along with city officials, say that Mr. Evans may have made things worse for the aging structure with all the unfinished work. Earlier this year, they joined with Preservation Dallas, a nonprofit organization that works to preserve historic buildings, to initiate the process of having the city's Landmark Commission declare the house a historic landmark.
Mr. Evans disagrees that the house is deteriorating.
"There was a tremendous amount of work done on it from the time I took over the house in May of 2000," Mr. Evans said, adding that no work has been done in about a year because of an ongoing mortgage dispute. "And I think the neighborhood has caused more problems, or some people in the neighborhood, because of these things with the city."
Because the process for landmark designation has begun, the property owner must now go through the Landmark Commission before major changes to the structure can be made.
The city recently went to court to obtain a temporary restraining order to prevent what officials describe as "demolition by neglect" of the possibly historic structure. The order requires Mr. Evans to take steps to protect the house, including installing plywood boards over open windows to protect the house from the weather.
The order also allowed the city to erect a chain-link fence around the property to keep out unauthorized people, particularly children who might be drawn to an empty swimming pool there.
But the situation is complicated because Mr. Evans is embroiled in a dispute with a financial institution. Early last month, the property was foreclosed on, but Mr. Evans retains possession of it and said he would be able to get the property's mortgage reinstated.
In the meantime, the once elegant home stands amid piles of rock, some boarded windows, and several areas of partially completed construction.
Built in 1922, the house originally was the home of Joseph F. and Lucy Largent Parks. The two-story cream-colored brick structure lies atop a slight knoll at the corner of Worth and Paulus streets in the Abrams-Brookside neighborhood, just west of Lakewood Country Club.
At the time it was built, the mission-style home sat on 22 acres and was considered one of the city's showplace residences. A 1924 article in The Dallas Morning News described the elegant interior and design, noting that it was constructed by local craftsmen.
In the mid-1950s, the house was bought by the YMCA and used as a facility by that organization until 1999, when Mr. Evans bought the property.
Mrs. Ridgway, who has lived in her home since 1950, recalled that she and her husband bought the land for their home from the Parks family.
"They were still living in the home at that time, and they had these lots they had planned to have their children build homes on, but some of them didn't do that, so Mr. Parks was selling them," Mrs. Ridgway said.
She recalled Mr. Parks, a prominent banker, coming by her home on many mornings to pick persimmons that grew on large trees on the property he sold to the Ridgways.
"It was a one-of-a-kind house, a grand house, and it is so sad to see what has happened to it," Mrs. Ridgway said. "I'm 84 years old, and I hate looking out my window and see it all tore up."
Seifu Tesfay, another neighbor, said he, too, was concerned with what had happened to the old Parks house.
"That is the entrance into our neighborhood, and it's a dilapidated structure that has had construction going on forever," he said. "It really does not project a very nice image of our neighborhood."
In addition, he said, neighborhood residents have concerns about safety, especially with the possibility that neighborhood children might enter the property and get hurt.
Jennifer Richie, an assistant city attorney, said the city brought the legal action against Mr. Evans because of concerns about safety issues resulting from a number of code violations.
"Mr. Evans was making repairs on the property, but he was doing it in a very slow, practically nonexistent way," Ms. Richie said.
Leif Sandberg, manager of comprehensive planning for the city, said it was unusual, but not unheard of, for the city to take such action against a property owner to protect a historic or potentially historic structure.
"The kind of immediate protection we're looking for in these situations is to have the property stabilized," Mr. Sandberg said.
But Mr. Evans said he had done a considerable amount of work stabilizing the house. He said that despite some open windows, the house is safe from exposure to the weather.
And, he said, he has worked hard on making improvements.
"The house has been totally reframed and the foundation totally shored up," he said. "The further deterioration complaints I do not understand. It's in better shape than when I bought it."
City Council member Veletta Forsythe Lill said she believed both the city and neighborhood residents had exercised more patience than they would have in other cases.
"The community is really eager to see it returned to its former glory and to have it as a single-family structure again," Ms. Lill said, adding that many homes of this quality and size used to be common in East Dallas but have been removed over time.
"In East Dallas we're very protective of our history because we've lost some of that history, and we also know what can happen to a neighborhood when history is preserved," she said.
E-mail ftrejo@dallasnews.com