Minneapolis - Saint Paul Home Tour: NOMI Highlights and the Endangered Hewson House

Today I checked out a few houses in the 2011 Minneapolis - Saint Paul Home Tour and it was an awesome experience!  The tour celebrates city living and home improvement inspiration and covers a wide range of houses and neighborhoods within the city limits.  The best part of the tour?  It's FREE!  The tour is self guided and will be going on through tomorrow, Sunday May 1st from 1pm-5pm. 

You can preview the 55 homes on tour here and even select the ones you want to see by theme or location.  I wanted to make sure I got to see some of the houses being restored in North Minneapolis since this area is close to my heart (I love efforts to help revive this area).  I also wanted to select a few that were in the Historic Preservation theme because when it comes to old homes I can't get enough of the historic charm! 

I went through 8 homes total today, but since this post could get obnoxiously long I'd like to focus on 2 of my favorite NOMI properties and what might be the one of most attention grabbing homes on the tour- the Hewson House. 

North Minneapolis here we go...

1906 Neoclassical/ Greek Revival 4-Plex

I started my adventure at a recently renovated 1906 Greek Revival 4-plex in Old Highland. Edwin Schumacher and John Fena spent a year renovating and preserving this beautiful historic aparment building.  My favorite part about this one?  You can take a look at their website and see some of the crazy work they did on this place! I just love demolition action!

 The kitchen in each unit looks absolutely stunning!  I loved the island, stainless steel appliances, and that subway tile!  Although this kitchen is new, they tried to maintain that 'old' look for the unit.  I think it turned out perfect.

The same goes for the bathrooms which still maintain that old feel.  Did I mention that I absolutely love the tile work they did in here?  I think we may have the same black and white tile in our bathroom.

Each unit also has it's original built-in in the dining room. It is such a special touch!

Another unique touch is that each spacious unit has a front and back porch, complete with AMAZING skyline views of Minneapolis.  This is a very lovely property for future tenants!

1911 Bungalow

My other favorite on the tour was this completely renovated 1911 Bungalow in Fowell.  I just loved the Mission style wrap around porch that overlooks the large, private front yard that sits atop a small hill.  This home feels less like Urban Living, and more like a cottage in the countryside.

Here is a look from the porch.  The fieldstone and exposed wood beams on the porch maintain so much character.  I loved this home, and I hadn't even stepped inside yet.

Inside, this classic bungalow was equally as charming.  The original windows, feildstone fireplace and wood beam ceiling added so much warmth and charm to this house.

I also stopped at 3915 Lyndale Ave N, 400 31st Ave N, 2201 Ilion Ave N, and 636 Elwood Ave.  All of which are worth a look.  Simply beautiful homes and a couple were even for sale too! Also, a fun fact I learned today- no resident in North Minneapolis lives more than six blocks from a park, how cool is that?

Now let's shift from NOMI onto the Whitter neighborhood for the Hewson House tour.

The 1905 Prarie Style Hewson House

I'm surprised I didn't know about this historical house at all before the tour, it has quite the story and was almost torn apart in 2009. 

The previous owners were trying to rehab this historic property and fell victim to the housing crisis resulting in the foreclosure of this amazing home.  Shortly after, the home made headlines when an estate sale was planned and the home was to be stripped of it's 'parts' before demolition.  Thankfully it was haulted by city officials at the last minute.  However, a ceramic tile mural valued at $150,000 was stolen from above a fireplace mantel- crazy!

The home was nominated by the Whitter Alliance and chosen by the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota as one of the 10 Most Endangered in 2010.  It also has been nominated for local Historic Designation.

Here a a few photos of the interior of this massive 6,200-square foot, 3 level house.  The main level is very much in-tact and is completely restored.  It was so beautiful and grand.

The second and third levels of the house are in need of a lot of work. It was pretty heartbreaking, it has so much potential to be beautiful again!  I also have to add, each level had 2 sets of staircases, I almost got lost in this huge house!

 

Holy moly, did I count five fireplaces?  I might have missed a couple too!

The Hewson House is currently listed for sale for $295,000.  This really seems like a bargain for so much house! Who ever buys it will indeed be in for a major project, but they will be in for the reward of saving a historic property.  I hope the Home Tour brought the right person along to save this place (Alex said that it's just a tad out of our renovation budget).

If you are in Minneapolis I hope you get out to see some of the homes on the tour tomorrow!  There will also be a TON of NOMI open houses, be sure to get out and see some of these gorgeous homes and neighborhoods!

********

Okay, wa-wa, back to the pillow project for the radiator cover, see you tomorrow!