Santa Fe New Mexican Article:

By: Dennis J. Carroll

Four historic homes associated with the city’s artistic and creative past will highlight Sunday’s annual Mother’s Day Historic House Tour.

One was once occupied by a Santa Fe Trail merchant, another by an architect and preservation activist, another by one of the founding members of city’s vibrant arts community, and the fourth was the home of a master wood-print artist and marionette maker.

All the homes have been through various incarnations depending upon the vocations and idiosyncrasies of the owners or renters at a particular time, said Elaine Bergman, director of the Historic Santa Fe Foundation, which is conducting the tours.

Another reason the four particular homes were selected, Bergman said, is because, “the artists who lived there maybe 70 years ago could walk through the front door today and still recognize the building as their home” because of the special care given to their preservation.

The organization has been conducting the tours on a Sunday in May for more than 40 years. In 2003, the group initiated the event as a Mother’s Day tradition. “There were generations of mothers, daughters and granddaughters who were coming through the homes, so we thought it would be a fitting Mother’s Day event,” Bergman said.

Sunday’s tour homes include: the James L. Johnson house, also known as El Zaguan, a collection of artists’ apartments and studios at 545 Canyon Road; the Gustave and Jane Baumann house and studio at 409 Camino de Las Animas; the Irene von Horvath house and studio at 728 Canyon Road; and the Sheldon Parsons House and studio at 3 and 5 Cerro Gordo Road.

Bergman said the Parsons home is of particular interest because the public has not been allowed inside for at least 20 years.

Sheldon Parsons was a successful New York portrait painter whose work included studies of President William McKinley and suffragette Susan B. Anthony.

According to the Historic Santa Fe Foundation, he moved to Santa Fe seeking relief from tuberculosis in 1913 after the death of his wife, photographer Caroline Reed Harris. In New Mexico, his creative endeavors turned toward landscapes.

He was a founding participant in the creation of Santa Fe as an artist community, and his presence drew other artists to Northern New Mexico.

When Parsons and his daughter, Sara Parsons Higgins, bought the property in the mid-1920s, the site consisted of three adobe buildings on three parcels, Bergman said.

Parsons connected the buildings and built a second story where his studio was located. The property is in the Pueblo-Revival style, identified by its thick adobe walls, narrow, roughly hewed vigas, long portals and narrow interior doors.

The 3,000-square-foot home, which has an adjacent guest house, was most recently purchased in 2000 by John and Linda Dressman, owners of the Santa Fe Indian Trading Co. and Dressman’s Gifts on the Santa Fe Plaza.

The James Johnson home is named after the Santa Fe Trail merchant who bought the Canyon Road property, which included a house and a corral, in the mid-1850s.

The house at 729 Canyon Road, built between 1839 and 1856, was home to Irene von Horvath, an architect and water colorist who purchased the property in 1954 and lived there for 30 years.

Von Horvath is credited with conceiving the idea of the “ring road” that became Paseo de Peralta.

As did the other artists, Von Horvath did much of the carpentry and brickwork for additions to the home.

Gustave Baumann designed his home in 1923 to serve as his studio, home and gallery, according to the foundation. He was known to entertain other artists and family friends at the house with plays he produced for his delicately crafted marionettes.

The foundation acquired the Baumann home in 2008 and has been restoring it for the past year.

Foundation docents will conduct tours of the four homes from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at any of the houses for $5.

Link to Original Article Here

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Today, Stamm houses are still desired for the very same reasons  they were in the past. However, due to the relative small size of some of his houses, people in modern time have wanted to remodel/add on.  Sometimes this has posed no problems, but at others it has sparked controversy. 

Case in point; read the following article in the New Mexican. The neighbors are citing a “no two story” rule. I think that they may also be disenchanted with the “style” of the addition.  You be the judge.

ARTICLE

Second-story addition in Casa Alegre prompts lawsuit

Tom Sharpe | The New Mexican

Battles over architecture are common in Santa Fe’s historic east-side neighborhoods, where building styles are closely regulated by city ordinance.

But a resident of an unregulated post-World War II neighborhood on the city’s near southwest side is unhappy with a neighbor’s remodeling project, accusing her of violating deed covenants by building a modernistic second story.

Catherine A. Coulter of 1811 San Felipe Circle last week filed a complaint in state District Court against Samantha Fergason of 1816 San Felipe Circle.

Their houses, across the street from each other, present a contrast in a quiet corner of the Casa Alegre neighborhood.

Coulter lives in an unadorned Pueblo Revival house with an old pew and a few yard tools sitting on the front porch. From the street, it appears that the only major alteration was conversion of the garage into a den — a typical change to many of the tract homes built by developer Allan Stamm in the 1950s.

Fergason’s Territorial-style house also has had its garage remodeled into part of the living space. But last fall, she added a metal-clad second story that looks somewhat like a pre-fabricated home or storage building has been dropped on top of the house and left protruding over the driveway.

Fergason’s front yard also has been decorated with a piece of moveable, modern abstract sculpture and a carved wooden sign for her business, Artwork, which helps artists promote their work.

In an interview this week, Fergason called the dispute with Coulter “unfortunate,” but said she had no trouble getting a building permit for the second-story addition.

“An architect did it,” she said. “Everything was done by the books, for sure. …

“But before I say anything more, I really would like to get some advice because I don’t know the situation I’m in. … I can say, though, I don’t have a business that has people come to it, so there’s no traffic in and out.”

Coulter, who did not respond to messages asking her to comment on her lawsuit, was described in a 2004 article in The New Mexican as a Jemez Springs educator. She and three family members authored Winging It: A Beginners Guide to Birds of the Southwest (University of New Mexico Press, 2004).

According to her pro-se complaint, the subdivision’s 1955 covenants say no house should exceed one story and prohibit outside walls of “unpainted metal,” as well as ban “business conducted for commercial purposes.”

The city Home Occupation Ordinance adopted in 1995 allows home-based businesses in areas zoned for residential use, but only if that doesn’t conflict with private covenants.

Coulter’s complaint says the subdivision’s covenants give homeowners like herself the right “to prosecute any proceedings at law or in equity against the person or persons violating or attempting to violate any such restrictions or covenants, and either to prevent him or them from doing so or to recover damages or other dues for such violation.”

Link To Original Article Here

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Bigger Projects

1) Re-stucco your home: Nearly every home in Santa Fe has a stucco exterior, and ALL stucco exteriors need routine maintenance.  Parapets need re-stuccoing often, and cracks all around the house should be repaired when needed.  For a larger project you can re-stucco your entire home. This will certainly add value to your and keep pesky leaks and drafts out.

2) Remodel your kitchen: O.K., this isn’t the easiest task, but it will increase the value of your home significantly.  It will take a bit of a budget, and it will take a bit of time, but if needed, it is well worth it. If you do enter into a kitchen renovation project upgrade as much as you can.  Home buyers don’t like to see a brand new kitchen will all new appliances, except for the beige fridge from the 1980s.

3) Remodel your bathroom(s): See kitchen (above).  Another good “bang for your buck” project.

4) Install new windows: Green is in, and even if you’re not into that, saving money is! Windows continue to get more and more efficient, saving significant amounts of energy and money in the winter and summer time.  If your budget is low, consider doing this one room at a time.

Smaller Projects

1) Landscape: It is incredible what improvements to the outdoor spaces can do for a home.  Often times just adding a few plants, a few pots, and a tree can make a huge difference.  This is a great way to add significant value and curb appeal without breaking the bank.

2) Maintain your roof and canales: At 7000 feet the sun really can take a toll on your roof. Every year clean debrit off the roof of debris and unclog canales. Repairs on both of these items should be addressed immediately as well.

3) Install a water catchment system: This can be easier than you think.  All around Santa Fe you can buy water catchment cisterns at reasonable prices.  Full blown water catchment projects require burying cisterns and installing pumps, but it is also possible to find portable ones that a hose can be hooked up to.  This is a great way to conserve water, provide irrigation, and add value.

Happy Spring!

Contact Ryan Bolton and Matt Desmond

1) A new heating system was installed throughout the house. The old in-ceiling radiant heat was ill-conceived and fairly nonfunctional. Therefore, we installed 7 new Myson radiant heaters throughout the home.  This entailed ripping up some flooring, troweling into some of the adobe, and adding a brand new boiler and hot water heater. With three new digital thermostats, the house is now warm and cozy.

2) Additional electrical outlets and cable lines were trowled into the adobe walls and then plastered over.  This brought the house up to date and created a great media room.

3) The bedroom was completely renovated.  A Murphy bed was taken out, and a cove for a real bed was created. The washer and dryer and an armoire were also moved out to create more space.

4) New cabinets were built in the kitchen, and a space was created for the washer and dryer. A concrete countertop was custom made to accommodate the cabinets.

5) The entire interior of the house was painted. The paint certainly needed updating as some of the previous colors really detracted from the homes character.

6) All of the floors were refinished and stained. The same stain was used throughout the house to create continuity between rooms.

7) Little clean up projects happened in nearly every room.  Ceilings and Vigas were oiled, dampers were put on all three fireplaces, and touch ups were performed all over the place.

Check out the video below.

To watch the progress of the entire project, click on any of the links below.  It’s amazing how much has changed in such a short amount of time!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Worried that you will now go through withdrawal from a lack of updates on the house?  Don’t despair, we are planning on continuing posts that follow the furnishing and decorating of the house.  Currently, drapes are being made, a bed is being fabricated, chairs and a sofa are on order, and all of our eyes and ears around Santa Fe are looking for some great vintage pieces to fill the space. Updates may be a bit less frequent, but we’ll keep you in the loop.  Until then, Cheers!

Contact Matt Desmond and Ryan Bolton

This adobe home features an upgraded kitchen with stainless steel appliances,  a large master bedroom, a warm and inviting living area with a kiva fireplace, and a beautifully detailed bathroom. Coved ceilings with skylights, plaster walls, and a enclosed outdoor courtyard add to this wonderfully appointed home.  The unit will make a great Santa Fe escape and can be rented short term. Exquisitely furnished, this home is  available fully turnkey.

For a detailed tour of the home, check out the video below.

If you or anyone you know is interested in seeing this home, don’t hesitate to email or call.

Contact Matt Desmond and Ryan Bolton

1) The painting is finished!  Every room has received up to three coats of new white paint, and it’s amazing how different the house looks with all white on the walls.  The rooms feel significantly larger, the floors and ceilings really pop out, and the level of elegance in the home has risen significantly. All of the great details and characteristics of the home are now even more noticeable.

2) All of the new Myson heaters are fully installed and in working order.  Three different digital and programmable thermostats have been wired as well. The house is now warm and cozy!

3) The new cabinets in the kitchen have been installed.  This includes the installation of the washer and dryer and the new concrete counter top.  The concrete was still setting today when we filmed, so over the next day or two the guys will buff it up to bring the color out.

4) The floors have all been sanded and prepped for staining. Previously, the floors were  multiple shades and will now take on a darker stain that will match the vigas above.

5) In general, the guys have cleaned the place up a bit.  The ceilings and vigas have been wiped down and oiled, and many of the little messes here and there are now gone.

 All of the contract work should be finished in the next week.  We will then go into the design phase of the renovation which will entail the installation of window coverings, the building of specific furniture pieces (i.e. the bed), and the entire decorating process. Check back in for updates soon!

Contact Ryan Bolton and Matt Desmond

Rancho Calabasas; an immaculate, private, & unrestricted compound consisting of a main house, 2 guest houses, & your own private spa! An ideal property for a family compound or retreat. Perfect for entertaining w/separate guest suites for family or staff. Lushly landscaped grounds, a stream, waterfall, & Koi pond, & multiple outdoor entertainment areas, all on 5 filled acres. This Santa Fe oasis can be available turn-key including art, bronze sculptures, antique wagons, & furniture

Listing Details Are Here!

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Check out the Youtube video below:

 Contact Ryan Bolton and Matt Desmond