rRESERVATION FOUNDATION OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS Officers Linda L. Shields PRESIDENT Janet M. Gibson Vice PRESIDENT, MEMBERSHIP Kimberly Nicastro Vice PRESIDENT, PROGRAMS Elaine B. Hughes SECRETARY Judith A. Harris TREASURER Directors David Bahlman Marcia C. O. Bennett Edward H. Bennett, Ill Paul Bergmann Priscilla A. Billington Susan Dillon Bryant Carol A. Champ Loreen Grieve Susan Halle Arthur H. Miller, Jr. Pauline M. Mohr Alice F. Moulton-Ely Dustin O’Regan Shirley M. Paddock Patricia C. Riess Christine L. Shaw Dan Sutherland Honorary Directors Herbert Geist Gail T. Hodges Lorraine A. Tweed Henry P. Wheeler Sarah D. Wimmer PRESIDENTS OF THE PRESERVATION FOUNDATION Edward H. Bennett, Jr., 1976-1978 Gayle K. Dompke, 1978-1980 Gail T. Hodges, 1980-1982 Herbert Geist, 1982-1984 Lorraine A. Tweed, 1984-1986 Henry P. Wheeler, 1986-1988 Sarah D. Wimmer,1988-1990,1992-1993 Linda L. Shields, 1990-1992 Pauline M. Mohr, 1993-1995, 1997-1999 Richard J. DuBourdieu, 1995-1997 Edward H. Bennett, 111, 1999-2001 Preserl’atio11! is published by The Lake Forest Foundation for Historic Preservation, Box 813, Lake Forest IL 60045 (847) 234-1230 www.LFPF.org Gail T. Hodges, Editor President’s “Teardowns on a Tear,” a recent Chicago Tribune headline proclaimed, the article quoted area builders and developers who pride themselves on having made teardowns mainstream, they believe that the shock effect of teardowns on the public is over and that communities are in an acceptance mode, judging by the number of calls I’ve received, both before this article was published and since, people in Lake Forest definitely do not agree, our March program, which was devoted to the teardown issue, drew one of our largest crowds of the year, teardowns are no longer something that happens in someone else’s neighborhood, we all are seeing the effects of a modest house being torn down and replaced by a house two to three times its size, from requests to tear down historic homes, such as the Gordon Phelps Kelley house at Elawa Farm, to requests to demolish smaller less-significant homes, teardown petitions are now a monthly item on the agendas of City boards, not only does the built character of the streetscape change with teardowns, there is a loss of open space and landscape in the neighborhood as well, Lake Forest was designed to be a “city in a park,” the parklike character of Lake Forest neighborhoods is gradually being eroded, further, when a home worth $500,000 is replaced with a home worth $3 million, the demographics of our community also change, if you, too, are concerned about what some have called “million-dollar tract homes” invading our community, learn more about the process to try to control such development, Channel 17, the City cable channel, broadcasts the Building Review Board meeting on the third Wednesday of each month and the Historic Preservation Commission meeting on the fourth Wednesday of the month, representatives of the Preservation Foundation Board attend the meetings and provide input when needed, you also can check agendas and review the minutes of these meetings by logging on to the City’s web site at cityoflakeforest.com, our City officials need to know that the community supports their actions on matters that could have a serious impact on the visual character of Lake Forest, become informed, and if you have an opinion, share it with your aldermen and City board representatives, get in touch with the Foundation too, the email addresses and phone numbers of our Board members can be found at www.lfpf.org, and be sure to watch our programs, which are broadcast periodically on Channel 17, Linda Shields, please join us at the Foundation, 2nd Annual “Concert in the Square,” a Celebration of Preservation, Sunday, August 18, 7 to 8:30 p.m., Market Square, come join the fun and bring the whole family to Market Square for the Foundation’s 2nd Annual “Concert in the Square” celebration of preservation, the renowned United States Naval Ceremonial Band from the Great Lakes Naval Training Center will again perform a concert featuring American themes and celebrating preservation in our region, the Great Lakes Naval Training Center itself is one of Lake County’s most historic sites, before and after the concert, browse the windows around Market Square, which will feature some of the 91 Lake Forest properties which have won historic preservation awards, this exhibit recognizes the contributions to Lake Forest made by property owners whose commitment to stewardship of our historic resources enhances the quality of life for all of us, thank you to Lake Forest Bank & Trust Company, which has graciously provided the desserts and other refreshments for this special preservation event, thanks also to The City of Lake Forest for sharing Market Square for the concert, mark your calendar today, and plan to join us for this historic evening, look for the balloons and the Foundation’s preservation flags in Market Square, and be sure to bring chairs and blankets for casual seating around the Square, watch your mail and the local press for future Foundation programs year ’round, historic homes, large as well as small, are vulnerable to demolition, even with the protections recently enacted by The City of Lake Forest, examples such as those below, which took place in the late 1970s before present ordinances were in place, could still occur without sufficient public support for preserving Lake Forest’s visual character, this Italianate structure from the 1860s was one of the oldest houses remaining in Lake Forest before it was demolished in 1979 to make way for a condominium on Oakwood Avenue, the manor house at “Havenwood,” the magnificent estate of Edward L. Ryerson, was demolished in 1979, when the estate was subdivided into individual lots, only the coach house is extant, views from City Hall: Teardowns in Perspective, some believe that the loss of just one house in an historic neighborhood makes little difference, particularly if its replacement seems to blend in with the neighborhood, is up to date, and maximizes the real estate value of the property, bit by bit, demolition erodes the “real” Lake Forest, its roots and its sense of history, that truly has increased in value as its attributes become more rare, consider the following extract from a City staff summary for a petition that was considered by the Historic Preservation Commission on February 27, 2002, “Tearing down an historic home in the historic district to replace it with a home that meets the ‘needs of modern family living’ is changing the purpose of the term ‘historic district’ from its original intention as a preservation tool—one that promotes the educational, cultural, economic, and general welfare of the City—to a real estate tool promoting the desire to live in a new home surrounded by historic visual character,” by supporting the demolition of this historic home, all the historic districts are at risk of being redeveloped with new homes of traditional style and character similar to what the historic districts once had but have now lost, although this home may not be the finest in the area, it is not one that deserves to be lost from history and replaced with a home that “derives its design and spirit from the historic homes in Lake Forest,” this IS an historic home, why replace it with something that simply “derives” its character from other historic homes, particularly ones thought to be more significant, question: why buy an historic house if you don’t want to live in one, alternatives: don’t buy an historic property if historic preservation isn’t of interest to you, look for creative ways to adapt the historic house to fit your needs, for examples, you need look no further than the Preservation Award winners featured on pages 5-13, trees are important, too, on December 3, 2001, the Lake Forest City Council approved a revised Tree Preservation Ordinance aimed at keeping the “forest” in “Lake Forest,” important definitions include Heritage Tree: any tree having a 25″ diameter at breast height (54 inches from the ground), Protected Areas: areas in which tree protection measures are required, including those with Heritage Trees, 2002 Preservation Awards by Gail T. Hodges, Lake Forest is nationally recognized as a distinctive community with a unique sense of place, three districts, including more than 1,000 structures, are designated National Register Historic Districts, having received the Nation’s highest property honor, six individual homes and one complex of six historic farm buildings are listed individually on the National Register, the Preservation Foundation was founded in 1976, among the purposes defined by its charter is helping to preserve this distinctive character and to ensure that new development would be compatible with the City’s historic visual character, that is why each year the Foundation recognizes property owners who exemplify outstanding stewardship of Lake Forest’s historic buildings and landscapes, this year, twelve awards were presented at the Foundation’s Annual Meeting on April 28, 2002, new this year were awards given for landscapes that preserve and enhance the community’s founding vision of being “a city in a park,” landscape awards, Gorton Community Center Commission, Gorton Community Center, landscape architects Don Fiore and Lisa Fiore, adaptive re-use awards Carol and Bob Angell 1934 Architect David Adler, City of Lake Forest Dickinson Hall 1930 Architect Edwin Hill Clark 2000-2001 Architect Charles P. Riesterer, infill award Jim and Di Stebbins 2001-2002 Architects Mclean Strassburger & Associates, neighborhood awards Clifford Milton Leonard Farm Meadowood Dairy Complex 1923-1926 Architect Ralph Varney Landscape Architect Jens Jensen, David and Melinda Rohrbach, John Tomeis Date Unknown Architect Alfred Granger, heritage awards Mr. and Mrs. J. G. Krakora 1900 Architect Attributed to Pond and Pond, Mr. and Mrs. Wesley Clark 1860(?), 1870 Architect Attributed to Rufus Rose, preservation awards Pauline and Roger Mohr 1929 Architect Wolcott and Work Landscape Architect Ralph R. Root, Margo and Richard Martino 1929 Architect Puckey and Jenkins Landscape Architect Frans Lipp, restoration award Ted and Marcia Bennett 1902 Gates from George A. McKinlock House “Brown Gables,” scenes from the June 22 Members Only House Tour, membership update by Janet M. Gibson, Vice President, Membership, members enjoy June 22 House and Garden Tour, nearly 200 preservationists and 54 docents attended the “Stanley D. Anderson Re-visited: Deerpath Hill Estates Architectural Walking Tour” on June 22, proceeds of tour to restore Deerpath Hill Estates gates, what the Preservation Foundation does, everyone can help preserve the special character of Lake Forest by joining the Preservation Foundation, what do you receive from membership, please join us, upcoming members’ events include a monthly program, the annual Holiday Party, and the Foundation’s annual members-only House tour, THE PRESERVATION FOUNDATION GUIDEBOVK A Perfect Gift, the Foundation’s Guidebook to National Register Properties, Lake Forest, Illinois, 2d Ed., includes information on the first two Lake Forest Districts elected to the National Register of Historic Places and on five properties listed individually on the National Register, the Guidebook is available in local bookstores and shops, and at Gorton Community Center, for $15, if you believe in preserving Lake Forest’s character for future generations, you SHOULD become a member, THE LAKE FOREST PRESERVATION FOUNDATION Box 813, Lake Forest, Illinois 60045, I/We want to help preserve the historic character of Lake Forest, please enroll me/us in the selected membership category, In Memoriam Anthony Mitchell Ryerson 1918-2002, Foundation Directors were saddened to learn of the death in April of Anthony M. Ryerson, member of the Board from 1984-1999, Tony brought reason and humor to Board discussions and was a tireless fundraiser as chairman of the committee to save and restore the Walden/Bluff’s Edge Bridge, Tony’s roots in Lake Forest were lifelong, born at “Rathmore” on Stone Gate Road, the home of his maternal grandmother Mrs. Ambrose Cramer, he shared many years with his paternal grandparents, the Edward L. Ryersons, who made their home at “Havenwood,” Tony served Lake Forest in a multitude of ways, including as Alderman on the City Council from 1948-1954, and as Chairman of the Finance Committee and the Public Affairs Committee in the early 1950s, we were honored to share his friendship and his talents, Street, City, Telephone, State, Zip, Member-Annual Dues $35, Sustaining Member-Annual Dues $250, Contributing Member-Annual Dues $50, Patron-$500, Sponsor-Annual Dues $100, Life Member-$2,500 or more (No annual dues required), I/We would like to work actively with the Preservation Foundation, contact me/us about volunteering, The Preservation Foundation, an Illinois 501(c)(3) public foundation, is open to all who share its goal of progress through preservation, 10/02.
