by Jeff Gantert
Have you ever wanted to travel in time? I think I might have found a way! Put on your shoes and walk over to 3927 N. Michigan Avenue and look at history in the process of repeating itself.
Last August, my partner, Brad Bloom, and I finished the construction of the Plum Tree Garden Cottage. We designed the self-contained dwelling unit to be a miniature replica of the main house, which was built around 1910. The plum tree which graces the entrance to the cottage is a Santa Rosa Plum, planted 12 years ago when I first purchased the house.
The cottage measures 18-by-20-feet, a total of 360 square feet of space inside. That may seem tiny, but an open vaulted ceiling creates a spacious feeling upon entering. An elegant staircase, similar to the main house, leads one to a sleeping loft, open to the floor below. We installed old fir flooring recovered from a remodeling job in Southeast Portland, and fashioned cabinets in the kitchen out of plywood and trim moldings. An old, deep sink from the ReBuilding Center and new shiny appliances blur the lines of past and present. A pocket door, used to save space, allows one to enter the bathroom from the kitchen. A large tiled shower, closet, stack washer and dryer and other bathroom amenities are positioned to allow for maximum movement within the bathroom.
The entire project was several years in the making. Brad, who is a builder, first mentioned the possibility of turning the site of an old garage, of which the only remaining vestige was a concrete slab, into a new dwelling unit. We chose the two small houses on Mason Ave. between Michigan and Mississippi Aves. as our inspiration. At that time, the Mississippi Conservation District was just being formed, a collection of houses, diverse in their styles, shapes and sizes. We felt a small structure would complement the garden forming in front and that by replicating the main house, the cottage would enhance the new district. Although the main house was not a "classic" Victorian, we felt its working-class nature had lots of details in its simplistic lines which are not seen in modern day buildings.
As we designed and built our cottage, we knew we could not afford to replicate the main house in its entire simplistic splendor and 1910 materials. We chose to recreate as many details as possible from the main house, even though the materials might not be the same -- details such as the width of the eaves, returns on the gables, trim around the doors and windows and the double shiplap siding, which was uncovered on the main house in 1998, still bearing the original pale yellow paint.
Brad and I are very proud of what we have accomplished. The greatest compliment by far has been from people who say the garden cottage looks like it has always been there. In fact, one person mentioned how nice a remodeling job we had done and was amazed and astonished to learn it was all new construction. A goal sweetly realized!
In the next issue, Jeff will discuss the sometimes rocky road to completion, and the possibilities for other homeowners in the neighborhood to take on similar projects.