GREENFIELD — For the first time in the organization’s history, Greenfield Historic Landmarks will honor an entire neighborhood for its efforts to preserve the integrity of the historic structures they call home.
A two-block stretch of East North Street is one of five points in the city’s landscape that will receive awards from Greenfield Historic Landmarks for preservation efforts Sunday.
The 2016 honorees also include two downtown businesses, a family farm and a home built in a mid-century modern style, another first-time award for the organization.
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Greenfield Historic Landmarks celebrates the efforts local property owners take to rejuvenate the old buildings in and near Greenfield. Structures considered for the awards are individual homes or businesses that are considered architecturally significant with owners restoring them to their former glory or working to maintain the structure, officials said.
Groups like Greenfield Historic Landmarks encourage owners of historic properties to take pride in maintaining the buildings and connects them with grants or financial aid to pay for any renovations, officials said.
Since 1983, Greenfield Historic Landmarks has been recognizing the work community members do to preserve the character of historic properties, said Cathleen Huffman, the organization’s president. It works alongside other groups, such as Greenfield Main Street, to achieve a common goal of preserving local history, promoting the research of that history and educating residents.
The organization enjoys recognizing residents or businesses that have renovated or preserved historic buildings to maintain the vintage character of the structure, she said.
More than 10 homes in along East North Street between Spring and Wood streets earned special recognition this year after members of the Greenfield Historic Landmarks got word of the various work the owners had done to better the properties, said Gwen Betor, a member of Greenfield Historic Landmarks.
“It just shows what a group of homeowners can do,” Betor said of the neighborhood. “It feels like small-town America. There’s charm in the front porches, the trees and how the people have taken good care of the homes and upgraded them.”
Keeping Greenfield’s historic buildings in good condition honors the hard work of previous generations while drawing tourism to the area, said Joanie Fitzwater, city of Greenfield zoning administrator.
“That feeling of nostalgia for the American dream is easy to see in downtown streetscapes like we have,” Fitzwater said. “To honor the work of those who came before us is really important.”
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Who: Tom and Sara Joyner
Where: 123 W. Main St.
Award: Adaptive Reuse Award
The owners of Joyner Homes converted a former auto parts store into a design studio, showroom, office and warehouse space for their expanding business. Greenfield Historic Landmarks decided the updated exterior design of the building significantly enhanced Greenfield’s downtown and deserved recognition. The judges also acknowledged the historic charm of two interior walls of the business, which feature exposed brick with rough, uneven mortar, blending old and new.
Who: Lorelei Kolique
Where: 325 W. Main St.
Award: Residential Preservation Award
Lorelei Kolique purchased the 1880 Rader Boyd House at 325 W. Main St. with the intention of developing a designer showcase in which decorators could display and sell their ideas and products in separate rooms of the large house. After extensive restoration, Kolique, a Boston-based preservationist, instead decided to list the house for sale as a single family residence. The house features two entrances, scrolled oak fireplaces and original oak flooring throughout.
Who: Chris Baggott
Where: Griggsby’s Station, 101 W. Main St.
Award: Adaptive Reuse Award
Indianapolis entrepreneur Chris Baggott converted a successful downtown antique store into a gastropub named after a 1904 poem by James Whitcomb Riley. The building, built around 1880, was constructed in the Italianate architectural style, a style popular between 1840 and 1890 in the United States.
Who: Tom and Sally Cone
Where: 404 Hawthorne Lane
Award: Mid-Century Modern Preservation Award
The Cone family will receive a preservation award for the care they’ve given to their home, which was designed in 1954 by architect Donald Dick for Herman and Suzanne Dettwiler. The house illustrates noted architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s concept of using land contours for home design and showcases the Mid-Century Modern style.
Who: Lucilla and the late Glen Boyd
Where: State Road 9, just north of County Road 300N
Award: Farm Preservation Award
The Boyd family has owned and lived on the farm between Maxwell and Greenfield for more than 100 years. The Carpenter-Builder house, now occupied by Lucilla’s granddaughter, was built in 1853 and added to in 1904. The adjacent farm structures include two barns and an unusually glazed brick silo.
Who: Several residents
Where: East North Street between Spring and Wood streets
Award: Preservation certificate
For the first time, Greenfield Historic Landmarks will recognize a neighborhood: two blocks of East North Street. Judges applaud the collective work of those residents who continue to preserve the visual quality of their property. Each resident will receive a certificate.
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Greenfield Historic Landmarks’ annual ceremony takes place at 1:30 p.m. Sunday in the backyard of the James Whitcomb Riley Boyhood Home, 250 W. Main St. In the case of inclement weather, the event will be held at next door at the Riley Home Museum.
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