There is something about her. You step into the foyer and the "restoration goggles" (a distant cousin of delusive "beer googles") seat themselves firmly on your nose. Suddenly, the peeling wallpaper, burst pipes, exposed lathe over cracked and fallen plaster recede into the background and all you note is the amazing woodwork, fireplace, cove ceilings and elegant fixtures...just like magic.
I'm not sure what it is about this house...it's not just me, in fact a group of thoughtful, restoration minded neighbors cared for her for over a year while she was vacant. They removed snow, trimmed the bushes, did some repairs and much more to make sure she looked occupied (as looters would likely have stripped her of the lovely details that make her so extraordinary, it's happened to so many houses in this neighborhood). She's an 1897 Victorian by architect James Record on Park Avenue, which had been "designed to be showy like [St. Paul's] Summit Avenue," with its deep boulevards, spacious lots and feeling of grandeur. (from an article in the Star Tribune about Ryan Knoke and Montana Scheff's house one block north on Park Avenue).
Now, through some bizarre twists and turns of fate, I get to live here and find myself compelled to restore her. Thankfully, I'm not alone. My partner Ryan, his mother Carol and her twin sister Cheryl can see her amazing potential as well.
I get what you are saying about that house. I can't seem to stay away from working on bringing her back to her glory days. In fact, today, as I was running some errands, I felt this urge to stop over and rip down some painted over wallpaper. So that's what I did. It was very satisfying.
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