Fundraising efforts continue to buy, preserve Edgewood 'Secret Garden' house
A group of Homewood residents and proponents of historical preservation are continuing to fundraise in hopes of buying and preserving Edgewood's "Secret Garden" house.
The Homewood Alabama Historical Preservation Society was formed in June to attempt to buy the house, which developer Patrick O'Sullivan of Jefferson Construction Company has owned since 2004. O'Sullivan received approval from the Homewood Planning Commission in June for his plan to tear down the house and replace it with five new homes.
The "Secret Garden" home, also called the "Pink House," is located at 214 Edgewood Boulevard and was built in 1921. The property, originally six lots, includes an Italian-style home, stables, a studio and extensive gardens and landscaping.
O'Sullivan's plans for the homes conform to all required city ordinances, and he noted that the planned five lots would each be 60 feet wide, above the 50-foot minimum in the zoning ordinance. A number of neighbors spoke up about the aesthetic, historic and sentimental aspects of the home, but the Planning Commission is not allowed, by law, to consider these aspects when judging whether a development fits within zoning ordinances.
"That's not excessive. That's being reasonable because we could have built on six 50-foot lots," O'Sullivan said.
Homewood history author Martha Wurtele Jones, who established the Historical Preservation Society, met with McBrayer and O'Sullivan after the Planning Commission meeting. O'Sullivan said he is not in a rush to develop the property, as the current tenants have a lease until January, and he is open to receiving an offer for the property.
"We bought the property in 2004 to develop it. We didn't buy it to hold it and hang onto it as a historical site," O'Sullivan said.
In meeting with Jones, O'Sullivan did not set an asking price for the property. However, he said he will consider any offer against the lot value and potential success of building and selling the five homes he has planned.
Jones and the Preservation Society set a fundraising goal of $2.5 million to purchase the property and put money toward future preservation, as O'Sullivan said the home will need "fairly significant repair" to bring it up to modern codes. The Preservation Society has extended its fundraising goal to July 13, in advance of meeting with O'Sullivan in mid-July to present an offer.
Jones said those interested in preserving the Secret Garden house have set up tables at local grocery stores and in Central Park for Thunder on the Mountain, along with selling pink bows to display on homes or storefronts in support of the effort.
She said individual donations of $10,000 and $5,000 have been made, "but we're still taking a dollar or two from anyone who wants to donate." Most donations have been in the $20-$500 range, according to the Preservation Society.
The Preservation Society stated via email that they have passed out upwards of 200 pink bows so far and have 1,500 signatures on an online petition plus 500 on a hard copy version to save the house. Shaia's of Homewood clothing store has offered a $1,000 gift card, to be given to the highest single donor at the end of the fundraiser.
For more information on the fundraising efforts, email Jones at homewoodhistoricalpreservation@gmail.com or look for "Homewood Al Historical Preservation Society" on Facebook. Bows are available for sale at Homewood Antiques and Smith's Variety in Mountain Brook, and the group has set up Paypal donations.