Help Healy Project Save the Orth House!
Donation protected
The Healy Project, whose mission is to preserve TP Healy-built structures, needs your help to fight the legal battle to preserve the Orth House at 2320 Colfax Ave S. $5,000 has been raised as a retainer for the attorney filing suit, but more is needed.
A demolition permit has been issued for the historic Orth House, help the Healy Project stop it!
Theron Potter Healy, a master builder in Minneapolis, MN built at least 250 structures in the growing city from the 1880's to the 1920's. Healy's work was re-discovered in the 1970's, and no Healy structures have been demolished since that unfortunate era of "urban renewal" and landfill expansion.
The Healy Project, www.healyproject.org, was founded to help educate the public and preserve the remaining Healy architecture, roughly 120 structures survived the "new is better" vision some in the city of Minneapolis continue to embrace. Find the Healy Project on Facebook as well!
2320 Colfax Ave S in Minneapolis, also known as the Orth house after the original owners, was built by Healy in 1893, and represents a turning point in style, heavily influenced by the Worlds Fair and the massive economic downturn that ended the popularity of the queen ann style which Healy had mastered. The house was declared a historic resource by the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission, Zoning and Planning, and the city council, and has served as a boarding house for several decades. The house is the single remaining structure built by Healy in the turning point year of 1893. An investor who purchased the property some years ago on speculation after a fire in the upstairs area would like to sell the property to the highest bidder. Unfortunately the highest bidder is a developer who will demolish it in favor of high end apartments, losing this piece of architecture forever. The owner has received offers for above market value from buyers who would renovate the structure, including Nicole Curtis of HGTV & DIY, but the developer's offer is over 50% higher than market driven by the economics of a couple dozen high end apartments and the associated cash flow. A few weeks ago, the owner managed to convince the new Zoning and Planning committee and the new city council to support his scheme for demolition of a historic resource, focusing on the fire in the 1990's which damaged the upstairs and oddly on the 1895 fire which was repaired by TP Healy himself! The Healy Project has filed a lawsuit to bring to light all of the facts surrounding the situation, and prevent the demolition of the Orth House. Lawsuits are expensive. We ask that you contribute what you can to help preserve this home for future generations of Minneapolitans, and keep well over 200 tons of debris out of the landfill. It is important to save the Orth house, and important to stop what could become another long string of losses in terms of the historic architecture that really defines this part of Minneapolis.
More information about the house can be found here:
www.healyproject.org
Preservation Alliance
http://www.mnpreservation.org/2013/04/08/help-save-the-historic-edward-orth-house/
Nicole Curtis offers assistance
http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/25314913/popular-hgtv-star-fights-to-save-historic-minneapolis-home
A demolition permit has been issued for the historic Orth House, help the Healy Project stop it!
Theron Potter Healy, a master builder in Minneapolis, MN built at least 250 structures in the growing city from the 1880's to the 1920's. Healy's work was re-discovered in the 1970's, and no Healy structures have been demolished since that unfortunate era of "urban renewal" and landfill expansion.
The Healy Project, www.healyproject.org, was founded to help educate the public and preserve the remaining Healy architecture, roughly 120 structures survived the "new is better" vision some in the city of Minneapolis continue to embrace. Find the Healy Project on Facebook as well!
2320 Colfax Ave S in Minneapolis, also known as the Orth house after the original owners, was built by Healy in 1893, and represents a turning point in style, heavily influenced by the Worlds Fair and the massive economic downturn that ended the popularity of the queen ann style which Healy had mastered. The house was declared a historic resource by the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission, Zoning and Planning, and the city council, and has served as a boarding house for several decades. The house is the single remaining structure built by Healy in the turning point year of 1893. An investor who purchased the property some years ago on speculation after a fire in the upstairs area would like to sell the property to the highest bidder. Unfortunately the highest bidder is a developer who will demolish it in favor of high end apartments, losing this piece of architecture forever. The owner has received offers for above market value from buyers who would renovate the structure, including Nicole Curtis of HGTV & DIY, but the developer's offer is over 50% higher than market driven by the economics of a couple dozen high end apartments and the associated cash flow. A few weeks ago, the owner managed to convince the new Zoning and Planning committee and the new city council to support his scheme for demolition of a historic resource, focusing on the fire in the 1990's which damaged the upstairs and oddly on the 1895 fire which was repaired by TP Healy himself! The Healy Project has filed a lawsuit to bring to light all of the facts surrounding the situation, and prevent the demolition of the Orth House. Lawsuits are expensive. We ask that you contribute what you can to help preserve this home for future generations of Minneapolitans, and keep well over 200 tons of debris out of the landfill. It is important to save the Orth house, and important to stop what could become another long string of losses in terms of the historic architecture that really defines this part of Minneapolis.
More information about the house can be found here:
www.healyproject.org
Preservation Alliance
http://www.mnpreservation.org/2013/04/08/help-save-the-historic-edward-orth-house/
Nicole Curtis offers assistance
http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/25314913/popular-hgtv-star-fights-to-save-historic-minneapolis-home
Organizer
David Piehl
Organizer
Minneapolis, MN