Chicago homeowners Andy and Tammy Sullivan sat amid the rubble of their 90-year-old Ravenswood Manor bungalow and were forced to reconsider their present as much as their future.
The couple had begun an extensive renovation, and by a mix of Mother Nature and human folly the house tumbled to the ground two months into the project. They could have seen defeat as much as the opportunity to build something more grand and distinctive.
Instead, they looked back, and decided to recreate their Chicago bungalow from the ground up, a rare turn in an evolving city where gentrification and progress too often means wrecking balls and a break from the past.
A purchase and plans
The historic Chicago bungalow remains the city's most iconic residential home style. Both sturdy with its brick construction and elaborate with its cathedral-style elements, the bungalow is a splendid mix of history and character, simplicity and stability.
Andy Sullivan, born and bred in Chicago's Beverly neighborhood, understood the bungalow's revered place in Chicago architecture, its reputation as a muscular, middle-class home. His wife, Tammy, a native Texan, wasn't sold.
"The whole idea of having a home just like thousands of others in Chicago didn't really appeal to me," Tammy said. "But once I got inside and saw how much room they had and the sense of history, I was hooked."
After six months of searching, the couple spotted a 2-bedroom, red-brick bungalow in Ravenswood Manor. The 1919 home held much charm typical of most bungalows, including stained glass windows and intricate woodwork. Care and updates were needed, but the home held promise.
The sale completed in February 2007, and the Sullivans turned their attention to an expansive remodeling project to put a fresh spin on their early 20th century structure. Plans included modernizing and expanding the living space, including a second-story addition, while restoring the bungalow's intricate detail and warm feel from years of inattention.
In March 2008, work began on gutting the home to its brick walls. On target for an October completion, the Sullivans -- their weariness high, their hopes even higher -- treasured the project and its potential.
Demolition day
On May 2, 2008, nearly two inches of rain and hail hammered the city in one hour. Wind gusts approached 60 mph and Mother Nature turned a subcontractor mistake into disaster. The construction team, directed to do the basement underpinning in four-foot sections, elected to do 10-foot sections. Unable to endure the vicious storm, the home toppled to the ground.
The foundation compromised, the Sullivans would have to tear the home down, thereby stifling any plans the couple had for an October move-in date.
"Here was this home we thought was being built and now it's done," Andy said of the wreckage. "Truthfully, I don't think we knew what we were going to do."
Recover and rebuild
Chicagoans have a long history of rebuilding, a track record of endurance and perseverance. The Sullivans summoned every bit of that spirit to battle the months ahead.
After consulting with attorneys, contractors and other trusted advisers, they elected to move forward with new construction -- and to recreate, as best they could, the same historic Chicago bungalow they had purchased just months prior.
The truth: the Sullivans could have built any home -- a modern Georgian, a contemporary Cape Cod, a Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired three-story monstrosity. They could have scoured the streets of Chicago's gentrifying neighborhoods to find a home that caught their eye, something fashionable, innovative and distinct. They had the blank canvas to make such a choice, the freedom to build any home they desired.
And yet, they choose the bungalow, the historic Chicago variety, something that would both blend into the neighborhood as well as honor the city's spirit.
"Chicago's a unique city for its architecture and the bungalow is a significant part of that style, class and character," Andy said. "We deeply wanted to be a part of that nostalgia, even as we had the opportunity to build anything else.
"I understand others who take a different route, who build a home that fits whatever vision they have, and they have that right. But for us, that wasn't what we wanted. We wanted a bungalow and something that blended into the neighborhood."
Though brick bungalows consume the Chicago area landscape -- estimates say the city hosts as many as 80,000 bungalows in areas north, south, and west -- it is a home design that has largely disappeared from modern residential construction. Expensive to build with brick and rarely maximizing a home's available land space, bungalows do not mesh with today's new home trends.
The Sullivans' project would be a new venture for many involved, calling for fresh designs on a century-old home style.
"We are always cognizant of wanting to fit in with the surroundings, and stress that with our clients, but we had never attempted to recreate a turn-of-the-century bungalow before," said Chad Halverson of Vertex Properties, the Sullivans' general contractor.
Reinvented and resurrected
Along with Halvorson, Ron Meadows, the head of Vertex, and architect Mark Michonski of Chicago-based Jonathan Splitt Architects, the Sullivans reviewed their initial plans for the once-standing bungalow and elected to stay consistent with those elements -- expanding the living space and modernizing the floor plan.
"We treated this like rebuilding the home that was there before and then adding a second story," Michonski said.
Obeying the footprint of the original home, the Sullivans relocated key functions, creating a more usable kitchen and family room while working to retain the bungalow's long-admired characteristics, such as a formal living room and dining room. The couple even included some of the bungalow's most intricate details, including the red-brick exterior patterns, stained-glass windows and stone planters.
Creating a historic Chicago bungalow in the 21st century, the Sullivans also added a number of eco-friendly features as a member of Chicago's Green Home program, including a geothermal heating system, expanding foam insulation made from soybean oil, and a tankless water heater.
This past June, the Sullivans moved into their completed bungalow. Boxes filled rooms and work remained, but the finish line emerged within view. As the Fourth of July approached, the couple embarked upon one of their final tasks: adding grass to their city lot, one that had been littered with dirt and debris for over a year.
"It was all such an emotional roller coaster, so it was a huge relief to know that we were nearing the end and had accomplished our goal," Tammy said.
Today, the couple's home blends into a block filled with historic Chicago bungalows, looking as much the 90-year old home as their neighbors'. Yes, it looks fresh and new, but also in place, a replica of Chicago's past in a hard-charging present.
"People ask me, 'Where does the addition start?' and that's a compliment to the work done here," Andy said.
From disaster, the Sullivans found comfort in the past and a plan for the future. In the historic brick bungalow, as much a piece of the Chicago scene as hot dog stands and church steeples, they found home.
"We never plan on moving," Andy said. "For us, this is it."
Friday, September 11, 2009
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