Association to be honored for restoration work
Had one person never offered his credit card to help fund the group's first fundraiser, an Elgin neighborhood association may never have gotten off the ground -- or have received a coveted state award.
Leaders of the 30-year-old Gifford Park Association, who represent one of the oldest and most influential neighborhood groups in Elgin, are reflecting on their humble beginnings while preparing to receive the prestigious Leadership Award, which will be bestowed by the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois Oct. 27 at the Chicago Club.
Founded in 1971, the council has been instrumental in saving countless architectural and historic treasures throughout the state of Illinois.
Eiliesh Tuffy, director of preservation programs for the council, said Gifford Park's tenacity and creativity over three decades in developing programs that have become citywide initiatives made it a top contender for the Leadership Award.
The Elgin-based group is one of only two recipients from the Northwest suburbs this year.
"The group's submission was originally for its annual house tour, but after our panel took a look at the application, we realized they had accomplished so much more," Tuffy said.
"Their revolving loan fund, which they originally established to fund renovation projects, was very innovative and is something we usually see initiated by municipalities.
"The Great Unveiling projects the group does every year originated in Rock Island, Ill., and shows the group is reaching out and seeing what other successful organizations do to revitalize their areas."
Fran Cella, who has chaired the association's house tour for seven years, compiled the nomination form last year. She said she was shocked when Tuffy called with the news of the pending award.
"I had no idea that she had restructured our application for another category," Cella said. "I was totally flabbergasted and very excited."
Cella said she hopes the award will inspire new residents to continue taking a leadership role in the neighborhood. While the home base of the group -- the Elgin Historic District -- boasts quaint streets and beautifully renovated homes dating from the 1840s, the area still struggles with overcrowding, sluggish home sales on some streets and occasional violence.
No arrests have been made in a late-July gang fight at the intersection of North and College streets that killed Julian Mascote, 18, and Francisco Franco, 21, both of Elgin, and injured three men between the ages of 16 and 23.
The incident was one of six shootings during this past summer in various neighborhoods on the city's east side.
Still, Cella said, the Gifford Park Association has contributed to the renovation of some of the worst properties in the Elgin Historic District.
The projects started in the mid-1980s after former GPA President Mark Herzog financed the group's first house tour on his credit card. With the proceeds from the first several tours, members bought 21 N. Porter St.
The sale of that property also resulted in a modest profit of $2,400 -- the only money the group ever made on a rehab project.
In 1988, the group started rehabbing properties on the blighted North Gifford Street area immediately north of East Chicago Street. The group sold 28 N. Gifford for a loss of $50,000 and 40 N. Gifford for a loss of nearly $53,000.
They also contributed $11,000 toward the exterior renovations of 396 Division St. The association's most recent project, 132 N. Channing, took a direct hit on the group's checking account by $65,385, not counting the proceeds from several city grants.
The association has also unveiled about one dozen architecturally significant homes during its annual Great Unveiling since the mid-1990s. The program eventually went citywide and is now funded through city grants.
Other award recipients Oct. 27 include: the renovation of the Muirhead Farmhouse in Plato Center -- one of only six Frank Lloyd Wright properties in the United States open to overnight guests; the adaptive re-use of the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Powerhouse in Chicago; the Avery Coonley House in Riverside; the Krause Music Store in Chicago; the Water Tower Preservation Campaign in Paxton.
Other recipients include the Wigell-Carlson Residence in Rockford and the Medinah Temple/Tree Studios Block in Chicago. The council's Preservation Project of the Year is the restoration of the Illinois State Capitol-Legislative Chambers in Springfield.
Congratulations:
Congratulations to the nearly 80 runners from Elgin who participated in the Chicago Marathon last weekend. I waited too long to decide what marathon I was doing and ended up in Hartford, Conn., where I competed this weekend. I'll never have the opportunity to say I ran in one of the hottest marathons of all time.