Historic Winnetka Home’s Facade Could Be Saved

The front facade of the historic Gage House, at 1175 Whitebridge Hill Rd., could be saved from the wrecking ball after Winnetka’s Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously recommended giving the property owners zoning relief, Chicago Tribune reported.

John O’Brien, owner of the historic lakefront Gage House, has been working with Winnetka preservationists to save the ornate front façade of the house and needed a zoning variation to spare the asymmetrical front façade by moving it back 45 feet into the property and 42 inches into a side yard.

Louise Holland, chair of the Winnetka Landmark Preservation Commission, says in all the year’s she’s been involved in village government no portion of a historic home in the village has been saved but she doesn’t think of the zoning board’s decision as a victory, “I’d say it's a wonderful working together of owners and neighbors to preserve this facade,” the newspaper reported.

The Gage House is a pre-Civil War home that served as a makeshift hospital and morgue after Lady Elgin sank in Lake Michigan in 1860. It was named one of the Ten Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois by Landmarks Illinois in early May.

The purpose of the list is to raise awareness for the sites and bring attention to the lack of maintenance, insufficient funds, poor development and deterioration to the sites.  

The 7,600-square-foot lakefront mansion with five bedrooms and five bathrooms was sold for $6.5 million and ranked among the most expensive homes sold in 2010.

Earlier:

• Winnetka's Gage House Named Endangered Landmark