Steven Kren knew he found a gem in the Decker Home,
303 S. Glenwood Ave., and after two years of renovations, he could get the
ultimate seal of approval.
Kren appealed to the Springfield Historic Sites
Commission in November 2006, requesting designation of the Decker Home as a
local historic landmark. The commission voted in support of his request,
but before the measure could move forward, the city of Springfield called
for structural changes to the foundation, floors, ceilings, and front
porch.
By July 2007, Kren had replaced the home’s roof
and rebuilt its north and west foundation walls, but he’d also fallen
short of not one, but two completion deadlines. The city shut off his
electricity and water and slated the structure — built in 1865
— for demolition.
After a neighborhood protest and further city
negotiation, Kren was granted a third extension to finish adding support to
the wraparound porch, the second floor, and the brick retaining wall
connected to the basement. Last October city inspectors OK’ed his
updates and canceled the demolition [see Amanda Robert,
“Reprieve,” Oct. 18, 2007].
Now that Kren has resolved the home’s
structural issues, Kip Kolkmeier, head of the registry committee, says, its
landmark application can move forward in the form of a city ordinance.
The commission usually preserves local residences
that are connected to a historical event, figure, or prominent architect,
Kolkmeier explains, or in the Decker Home’s case, ones that exhibit a
significant architectural style. The home reveals Italianate architecture,
featuring a flat roof and a four-square floor plan with front parlors and
rear utility space.
The Italianate-style flourished between the 1830s and
1880s — an early example of Springfield’s architecture that can
be difficult
to locate.
“There are quite a few of these, but not nearly
as many as we’d like,” Kolkmeier says. “Unfortunately,
it’s a vanishing part of our
history.”
Kren says that it’s been his goal to get the
Decker Home on the local historic landmark list.
“I bought it because I was trying to clean up
the neighborhood,” he says, “but when I realized it was one of
the first houses built around there, I wanted to put it back to the way it
was.”
Due to a technicality, it might take some time before
the ordinance designating the Decker Home as a local historic landmark is
approved. Jim Donelan, the mayor’s executive assistant, says that
Kren has pending court fees associated with the case. He’ll recommend
at tonight’s meeting of the public affairs and safety committee that
the ordinance be held until the fees are paid.
Kren plans to pay the balance — in the ballpark
of $2,000, he says — as soon as possible.
“If that’s what I have to do, then
I have to pay them,” Kren says. “I want the city to work with
me, not against me.”
This article appears in Aug 21-27, 2008.
