There Goes the Neighborhood
Some apparent good news about my extended neighborhood. Someone bought one of the historic old mansions on Summit Ave. (one originally owned by a son of empire builder James J. Hill) and fixed it up:
At 25,000 square feet, with 10 fireplaces, a 90-foot center hall , an indoor pool and a 3,000-square-foot ballroom, this house is massive. The Nicholsons paid $1.7 million for the house, and spent "more than that" to renovate it, Nancy said. "Dick decided not to do a partial job, but to preserve everything for the next 100 years. He said, 'Let's do it correctly.' "
Nancy Nicholson had her own "epiphany" while standing in the ballroom, she said. They would buy the house, restore it and share it with the city by hosting fundraisers and events. "It was a perfect opportunity to give something back," she said.
It does sound perfect. Some rich folks get a beautiful house and the city gets a landmark restored by the benevolence of said rich folks. And they’re not even demanding government subsidies for it. Everybody wins. Looks like the renovated house has even started to attract the attention of celebrity bloggers, based on this JB Doubtless sighting:
... just last month, she noticed a car parked in the portico drive, a few feet outside her front door. She looked inside and was startled to see a couple eating fast food, peering into the house.
I was prepared to whole-heartedly welcome the Nicholsons into the neighborhood as ideal citizens. Then I read this:
..they decided to give the house a name: Dove Hill. Hill for the family and the location, Dove for Dick and Nancy's affectionate habit of "cooing" at each other.
I’ll give them until the end of the month to vacate the property, then I start picketing. We can't have people like this running down the property values.
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