2017 Summer Newsletter

1100 Summerfield Drive: 2017 Preservation Foundation Award Recipient photo By cappy Johnston Summer 2017 In 1987, Nancy and Adrian Smith were living in Wilmette and began looking for land in Lake Forest on which to build a new house, Nancy, who grew up in Iowa, was in search of more wide open spaces, Adrian, an accomplished architect at Skidmore Owings and Merrill, would design the new home, After spending time driving around Lake Forest, the couple saw a sign for a new subdivision on Green Bay Road and contacted its developer, Richard Kendler, Although that particular property didn’t suit their needs, Kendler told them he knew a place that was “out in the country,” referring to a 20-acre property on Waukegan Road, a half mile north of Deerpath, They drove up the long gravel driveway to an old house–a large, white clapboard, classic Colonial Revival–sitting about 500 feet back from the street, Mr. Kendler explained to them his plans: He would tear down the house, place a road down the middle of the property, and line it with new houses, “My first thought was, we live in a neighborhood in Wilmette that’s like that now!” Nancy exclaimed, Not exactly what the couple was looking for, but the old house and property were intriguing, They asked for 24 hours to think about it and returned the next day with a proposal to buy the whole property, Thirty years later, the house has been beautifully preserved by the Smiths with only minor structural alterations, The interior is in impeccable condition and, although it’s been rehabbed throughout to accommodate modern living, the improvements are respectful of the home’s original architectural character, Nancy is an accomplished painter and the large first-floor rooms are bright, airy, and perfect for displaying her artwork, She studied art at the College of Lake County and spent three years at the Atelier Neo Medici, a classical painting studio in the medieval town of Monflanquin, France, where she learned the unique, labor-intensive painting technique called “technique mixte,” to create highly detailed, luminous paintings, Adrian is now a partner in his own 2006-founded firm, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, He’s one of the world’s most noted architects and designer of super-tall and mega-tall buildings, including Chicago’s Trump Tower, Dubai’s Burj Kalifa–the world’s tallest building, and the Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia–expected to be the new tallest building when it’s completed in 2020, In an interesting coincidence, the Smith’s house was once the home of another prolific and successful architect who also designed some of the world’s largest buildings, almost 100 years ago, Walter W. Ahlschlager, During the height of his career in the 1920s, Ahlschlager designed many large commercial and residential apartment buildings in Chicago and around the country, including the Medinah Athletic Club, now the Intercontinental Hotel on Michigan Avenue, In 1928 he designed plans for a Wacker Drive building, known as the Apparel Mart, that would have been the largest and tallest building in the world had the plans materialized, This spring the Smiths were awarded a Preservation Award from the Foundation in recognition of their preservation and long-time exemplary stewardship of the home, Their next project? Restoring 830 North Green Bay Road, a neglected David Adler-designed house in the heart of Lake Forest, They’ve had their eyes on the property for many years, “I remember being invited in 1987 to a Lake Forest Women’s Club event being held at the house, which was in wonderful shape at the time, and thinking, ‘I love this house.’ Now I can’t believe we have it.” said Nancy, who explained that they intend to “restore the property and bring it back to Adler’s original architectural splendor,” Although they are still in the process of figuring out how best to utilize the property long term, they hope to find ways to share it with the community and incorporate their love and passion for art and architecture, Right now their main focus is on just getting the property cleaned up–not a simple undertaking, Over the past decade, the house had fallen into significant disrepair, The Smiths purchased the house in early May and have already begun cleaning up the property, including removing years of overgrown ivy from the stone facade, Both have spent almost every day since the purchase working at the house, “Adrian woke up the other day and said, ‘See you later, I’m going to go exercise,’ and I said, are you going to the health club? He said, ‘No I’m going to spend the day at 830 Green Bay.’ We’re both over there doing work every day. It feels great!” said Nancy, 2 Nancy and Adrian Smith, Recipients of a 2017 Preservation Award Take on New Restoration Project 1100 Summerfield Drive Preservation Award Owners: Nancy and Adrian Smith 3 2017 Preservation Foundation Awards This year marks the 27th year that the Foundation has presented its annual Preservation Awards, Since 1991, more than 220 projects have received awards, with recognition to homeowners, businesses, organizations, architects and landscape architects that have demonstrated a commitment to excellence in preserving Lake Forest’s unique historic visual character, Nominations are judged according to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties, The standards relate to the types of treatment undertaken for each property, Preservation – maintenance of an historic property that respects the original character; Rehabilitation – acknowledgement of the need to alter or add to an historic property while retaining its original character; Restoration – depiction of a property as it appeared at a particular period of history; Reconstruction – recreation of vanished or non-surviving portions of a property, A fifth category, Infill, considers the compatibility of new construction in an established neighborhood, This year, awards were earned in the categories of Preservation, Rehabilitation, and Infill, 30 Ahwahnee Road Rehabilitation Award Current Owner: Ed and Marie Pasquesi Project Designer: Scott Straightiff, Architect Original Designer: Stanley D. Anderson, 1927 Standing along Ahwahnee Road, facing east toward the Onwentsia Club golf course, this stately 1927 Stanley Anderson-designed brick and half timbered Tudor is owned by Ed and Marie Pasquesi, the 1975 founders of Pasquesi Home and Garden stores, This heritage property was sensitively expanded with a sunroom addition on the left side of the house, designed by Lake Forest architect Scott Streightiff, 339 Foster Place Rehabilitation Award Current Owner: Charenton Drake Project Designer: William Massey, Massey Associates Architects Facing a potential threat of demolition, this 1958 mid-century modern design by I.W. Colburn was saved when it was purchased by Charenton Drake in 2014, Working with architect William Massey, the house was sensitively rehabilitated throughout, while preserving and reusing many of the original finishes in order to maintain the original architect’s design intent and feel, The Colburn-designed breezeway was finally constructed as well, The collaboration between owner and architect honors Colburn’s original vision and shows the possibilities for preserving historic modernist design, 902 North Green Bay Road Rehabilitation Award Current Owner: Stephanie and John Harris Original Designer: Howard Van Doren Shaw, 1911 This distinctive brick and limestone residence, known as Clinola, was home to three generations of Donnelley owners from 1911 to 2008, before being purchased and rehabbed by the current owners, Stephanie and John Harris, Non-historic additions and alterations to the house were replaced with more historically appropriate improvements and the exterior facades restored, The original south garden room trellis work by Shaw has been preserved and replanted on various occasions, most recently by landscape architect Charles Stick, 4 51 South Mayflower Road Rehabilitation Award Current Owner: Eva and Craig Quackenbush Original Designer: David Adler, 1928 There is perhaps no other residence in Lake Forest that epitomizes the word “landmark” quite like the tower house at 51 South Mayflower Road, Built in 1928 and designed by David Adler as the original service buildings and tower to the Alfred Hamill estate, it was subdivided from the main house in the 1950s and purchased by Eva and Craig Quackenbush in the 1980s, Over the years the owners have rehabbed and transformed the interior into a well-organized single family residence, restored the exterior, and installed extensive landscaping, 800 North Sheridan Road Rehabilitation Award Current Owner: Meredith and Lance Mitchell Project Contractor: The Goebeler Company Project Designer: Lake Forest Landmark Development Original Designer: Stanley D. Anderson, 1927 Owners Meredith and Lance Mitchell, working with Lake Forest Landmark Development and The Goebeler Company, have rehabbed this historically and architecturally significant 1927 Stanley Anderson-designed residence, The project included renovation of the interior, construction of a two-story rear addition, and expansion of the original garage, which was too small to accommodate two vehicles, Not only was the architect’s expansion plan sensitively designed to minimize its impact on the original structure, but the craftsmanship of the new stonework to match the original is outstanding, 111 West Westminster Avenue Infill/New Construction Award Current Owner: Liam and Francesca Connell Project Designer: The Poulton Group Another project of exceptional design and craftsmanship is the newly constructed detached garage at 111 West Westminster, on the main house’s portion of the grounds of the 1928 Nobel Judah estate, now owned by Liam and Francesca Connell, This award for new construction recognizes the compatible new freestanding garage of exceptional quality just east of the house, designed by the Poulton Group to match the manor house in form and materials while stepping down in height, A new courtyard also relates the new building to the striking main house, The garage replaces a non historic structure that was built after the original garage by David Adler was subdivided off in 1946, now 740 N. Green Bay Road, 1090 Edgewood Rehabilitation Award Current Owner: Peggy and Dan Schweller Project Contractor: The Goebeler Company Original Designer: Walter Frazier, 1927 In between a neighborhood of large estate-sized homes on one side and smaller homes experiencing teardowns and major expansions on the other, this home at 1090 Edgewood has remarkably managed to maintain its original scale and charm for the past 90 years, The house has been modestly expanded by several owners, most recently by Peggy and Dan Schweller with a sensitively scaled and sited addition off the rear facade, along with removal of non historic aluminum siding, gutters and downspouts and windows and replacement with cedar siding sized as originally, copper gutters and downspouts, and double-hung, true divided-lite windows, 5 1313 Westleigh Road Infill/New Construction Award Current Owner: Drs. Derek and Anokhi Bock Project Designer and Builder: Melichar Architects and Lynch Construction Nestled on a wooded lot with a dense canopy of large trees, this new stone and slate French Renaissance Revival house is both elegant and restrained, The dark slate roof, limestone cornice and quoins, random ashlar stone walls and stained wood doors are all characteristic of the French style, The simplicity of design not only compliments the site, but also does an excellent job being contextually compatible with other surrounding neighborhoods, Villa Turicum and Walden, 1500 North Sheridan Road Infill/New Construction Award Current Owner: Dan and Leighann Bruhn Project Designer: Scott Straightiff In architecture, it’s the small details that matter, Little things like the proportion of a window, or the thickness of a glazing bar can make the difference between a building appearing classic, solid, and timeless, or an unconvincing imitation, Dan and Leighann Bruhn and their architect Scott Straightiff, have created a new residence at 1500 North Sheridan Road, that gets the details right, From the nicely proportioned facade and classical elements, to the correctly sized operable shutters, even gaslight lanterns, This “not too big” house, its materials, details, and landscape are expertly carried out and scaled to fit a narrow building site making the home feel classic, solid, and timeless, 1401 Lake Road Preservation Award Current Owner: Mariclaire and Lowell Dixon Original Designer: Ambrose Cramer, in Adler’s firm, 1932 Project Builder: The Goebeler Company There may be no more recognizable fence in town than the one found along the north end of Lake Road, with its distinctive black and white color scheme and repetitive swag form, Originally associated with the 1928 Adler-designed Bentley house, just to the north, this southernmost section of fencing as a result of subdivision now belongs to 1401 Lake, This segment of fencing has been wonderfully preserved and maintained regularly beginning 35 years ago by owners Marieclaire and Lowell Dixon, working more recently with The Goebeler Company to replace deteriorated parts where necessary to match the original design, 20 Stone Gate Road Preservation Award Current Owner: Prue and Frank Beidler Original Designer: Harrie T. Lindeberg, 1927 If ever there were an example of being a good steward in the long term preservation of a home, it’s embodied in Prue and Frank Beidler and the Beidler family’s ownership of 20 Stone Gate, which has been in their family for almost 90 years, Understated in its elegance and situated in a stunning garden setting, this 1926 Harrie T. Lindeberg-designed house is a smaller version of the tall-roofed French Renaissance style of both the nearby Wyldwoode estate and of the 1928 Onwentsia clubhouse, In recent years architecturally appropriate and historically sensitive improvements were designed by architect Tom Rajkovich with landscaping designed by Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects, including a newer pool and related development sited to the southeast of the house, Congratulations to all of this year’s award winners! 6 LFPF’s Annual Benefit Architectural House & Garden Tour The Preservation Foundation’s Annual Benefit Architectural House and Garden Tour will take place on Saturday afternoon, September 30, 2017 from 1-4 PM with a reception from 4-5 PM The focus of this year’s walk will be Howard Van Doren Shaw and his Associates in the Country Place Era, Please support the Foundation’s work in the community by purchasing your tax-deductible tickets on our website, www.lfpf.org, FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Lake Foresters and Friends of the Preservation Foundation I am honored to accept this office and grateful to the Board and members of the Foundation in their confidence as we move forward in our 40th year, By way of background, I have had a lifelong interest and passion in the restoration of distinctive older homes, My wife and I have lived in two 1920’s homes, restoring them both, Our current home of 33 years was the personal residence of Stanley D. Anderson, noted Lake Forest architect, Following a career in broadcast radio management, I turned to my avocation and became a home restoration contractor, This led to an association with the LFPF Board and being personally involved in several Foundation restoration projects, I had the pleasure of working with our outgoing president, Art Miller, on several of these, Art’s extraordinary knowledge of Lake Forest’s history and architectural heritage has been a remarkable asset to the Foundation, Fortunately, Art is remaining on the Board as Secretary, so his talents, insight, and perspective will not be lost to the organization, The primary goal of the Foundation is to protect the historic visual character of Lake Forest, This includes not only rehabilitation and preservation, but also new construction or infill that shares contextual compatibility within an established neighborhood, This year we have been pleased to award twelve distinguished homes in these categories, The owners were acknowledged at our May 1 annual meeting and received a handsome cast bronze plaque to display at their homes, As a past member of the Lake Forest Caucus and serving on its executive committee, I’ve heard many people refer to Lake Forest as a “Special Place,” And without a doubt, we do have beautiful homes, streetscapes, parks, open lands, and recreational facilities, But to me, the key ingredient of this “Special Place” is the quality and generosity of its people, Talented, educated, and successful people step forward to give their time, energy, and resources to support the City’s numerous councils, boards, and commissions, But they also support Lake Forest Open Lands, the Library, theatre groups, Forest Park, the Historical Society, the American Legion, Elawa Farm, Dickinson Hall, Gorton, and many other foundations and community events, The Preservation Foundation has asked for and received generous financial support from the community for many of its collaborative restoration projects, including the Walden-Bluff’s Edge Bridge, Ragdale, the entry gates on Deerpath at King Muir and on Waukegan Road at Castlegate Court, Elawa Farm, and Dickinson Hall, This year, Lake Forest is in the final phase of restoring its anchor building across from Market Square, the train station, Built in 1900, it has undergone major grant-and City-funded restoration of the exterior structure including slate roof, copper gutters, re-pointing of the brickwork to original specifications, rehung for life-safety exterior doors, and refurbished windows with the original glass, The Preservation Foundation has spearheaded the fundraising for the restoration of the interior waiting room, Through time and investigation we have discovered not only remnants of the original red octagonal and diamond-shaped tile floor but the original oak horizontal wainscot planking that has been covered over for decades! Needless to say, the scope of the restoration has expanded with these discoveries, We have established a special subcommittee to investigate the potential for raising additional tax-deductible funding from individuals or family foundations and/or corporate grants to complete this final phase, Our goal is to bring back the charm and ambiance to our beautiful 117-year-old train station, If you should have suggestions as to additional avenues we might explore in this funding effort, please call the Foundation at 847-234-1230, I look forward to meeting many of you at our upcoming events and at our Annual Benefit House and Garden Tour, Sincerely, Jim Opsitnik, President The primary goal of the Foundation is to protect the historic visual character of Lake Forest, Jim June Garden Stroll Kk On June 23rd friends of the Foundation enjoyed a beautiful late afternoon gathering at the magnificent historic property of Melissa and Greg Glymann, The property, originally part of the Howard Van Doren Shaw’s Ryerson estate, is bordered by two ravines which provide a dramatic accent to the formal garden and surrounds the exquisite home, David Adler designed the home for Edison Dicks, completed in 1933, The Foundation’s next garden stroll will be August 25 in another beautiful garden, Kk In June 2017, attention turned to the 150th anniversary of the birth of architect Frank Lloyd Wright with a focus on his many works in the Chicago area and Wisconsin, Lake Forest has only one house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright that was built, Mayflower Road’s stunning early 1950s Charles Glore house—one of the master’s best examples in setting, quality of materials, and practicality, Also famous is Wright’s local house that did NOT get built, his 1907-08 Prairie School style proposal for the Villa Turicum estate of Edith Rockefeller McCormick and Harold McCormick, The antiquarian Edith, daughter of the nation’s wealthiest businessman, John D. Rockefeller, chose fellow lover of Italian villa style Charles A. Platt of New York instead for her magnificent but doomed 200-acre estate, The rejected Wright went into a tailspin and mid-life crisis, He left his Oak Park family and sailed for Europe with a client’s wife, further distancing himself socially from Chicago’s power elite of the day, See the recent novel, Loving Frank, When the 1933-34 Century of Progress was held in Chicago he didn’t participate, most likely as a result, Wright’s departure signaled the beginning of the end of the Prairie School, with the most notable exception John Van Bergen practicing in Highland Park, It’s interesting to see though that by the 1980s as lower income taxes and postmodernism in architecture took hold, Wright’s open plan ideas began to reappear in the former service wings of Lake Forest mansions, By the 1960s as the first decline in the high income taxes took hold since the 1930s, some owners of older homes began to redecorate their kitchens for family use, By the 1980s, the changes were bolder with the introduction of the “great room,” or kitchen/ family room spaces for family living, Parents could supervise visually the homework and play activities of their young families while preparing meals, One notable example from that period is the exquisite Fairlawn house by Delano & Aldrich of New York, 1923—at 965 East Deerpath, This was restored by the current owners beginning in 1988, and the first floor of the service wing was renovated into a kitchen and family/TV room overlooking a new swimming pool to the west, Beyond the pool a garage was added with a staff apartment over it, to replace the original building to the south, subdivided off in the 1950s, An underground tunnel beside the pool leads from the basement to the garage, One of the most significant of the 1920s great houses was updated for modern family living in a compatible exterior style, though with Wrightian open-plan utility on the main level, The staff bedrooms above were preserved to recall the house’s original lifestyle and as guest rooms, 7 Lake Forest’ s Great Houses Renovated Since the 1980s: Kitchen and Family Room Suites Reflect Impact of Open Plan Reforms Introduced by Frank LloydWright and Others Train Station Interior Renovation Update Former service wing of 965 E. Deerpath, renovated to create an open kitchen and family room space, Credit: Palo Drobrik Photography By continuing to strengthen our public-private partnership with the Lake Forest community and The City of Lake Forest, we are pleased to report significant progress toward bringing restoration of the Station interior to reality, While the City continues its work on restroom and life-safety improvements, the Foundation is concentrating on the waiting room and ticket area, Our goal is coming into sight, We’re particularly grateful for a recent $10,000 boost provided by the North Shore Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, plus a $10,000 donation made by a generous Lake Forest resident, which helped put our goal closer to what is needed to complete our phase of the interior with historically-accurate improvements, These donations, added to the Foundation’s $25,000 match, proceeds of 2016 Annual Fund, and other community support, will help ensure the upcoming installation of a terra cotta waiting-room floor similar to the original 1900 flooring, which lasted for nearly 100 years, The total raised so far also provides a start on funding restoration of the waiting room’s recently-discovered horizontal plank wainscoting and the plaster walls above it, In order to complete the wainscoting-walls project, restoration of the waiting room benches, and re-creation of the Station’s original gas-electric power fixtures, an additional $50,000 is required, Donations of every size are welcome, and every donation will make a difference in completing this project “the right way” for future generations, Please stop by the Station and take a look at ongoing work and historic discoveries recently made, Then decide how you can help, You can make a tax-deductible contribution by credit card at www.lfpf.org or by contacting the LFPF office at 847-234-1230 or [email protected], where stock donations can also be arranged, Checks should be sent to the Foundation at 400 East Illinois Road, Lake Forest, Or plan to support the Station by attending our Annual House and Garden Tour coming up in September, Interior photo of Lake Forest train station in 1901 shows original custom lighting and horizontal wainscoting, (Source: Railway Age, February 15, 1901) LAKE FOREST PRESERVATION FOUNDATION 2017-2018 BOARD OF DIRECTORS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Jim Opsitnik President Peggy Pandaleon VP Communications Ingrid Bryzinski VP Development Tom Gleason Laura Luce VP Programs Arthur Miller Secretary Peter Coutant Treasurer DIRECTORS Susie Athenson Lynn Bertram Maureen Grinnell Sharon A. Harvey Linda Liang Debbie Marcusson David Mattoon William McFadden Roger Mohr Elizabeth Moore Fred Moyer Kurt Pairitz Natalie Reinkemeyer Sara TenBroek Lynn Van Cleave Kent Woloson HONORARY DIRECTORS Herbert Geist Gail Hodges Pauline Mohr Shirley Paddock Linda Shields Lorraine Tweed EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Marcy Kerr NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 184 LAKE FOREST, IL 60045 ECRWSS Residential Customer Lake Forest, IL 60045 PRESERVATION SUMMER 2017 – VOLUME 10, NUMBER 2 CONTRIBUTORS: Editor: Peter Coutant, Gail Hodges, Marcy Kerr, Arthur Miller, and Jim Opsitnik PHOTOGRAPHY: Cappy Johnston LAKE FOREST PRESERVATION FOUNDATION 400 East Illinois Road Lake Forest, Illinois 60045 www.lfpf.org Upcoming Events You Won’t Want to Miss Friday, August 25, 2017 Late Summer Garden Stroll Sustainability at Mariani designer Cliff Miller’s 5:30 p.m. ~ 7:30 p.m. Members $20 Non-members $30 Saturday, September 30, 2017 Annual Benefit Architectural House & Garden Tour Tour 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Reception 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Advance tickets $100 Day of event $125 Annual Member Holiday Celebration Sunday, December 4 | 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. elcome to ew oard irectors Susie Athenson Debbie Marcusson David Mattoon Bill McFadden Natalie Reinkemeyer hank you to retiring oard irectors Stephen Bent Guy Berg Judy Boggess