Students Give Historic Henry Ford Home New Lease on Life

A historic home in Dearborn is getting a much needed facelift thanks to the help of students enrolled in Henry Ford Community College's architecture and interior design programs.

The aspiring architects are working with the city of Dearborn to restore a home located at 22668 Nona Street built by Henry Ford in 1919 for factory workers.

Dearborn acquired the structure after years of abandonment and complaints from neighbors about bad odors emanating from the property due to mold and deterioration, Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. explained.

"Under our standards it was a candidate to be demolished," he said. "The Ford Historic Homes District wanted to preserve it, so we came up with the idea to work with students at HFCC as a training exercise."

According to Chad Richert, HFCC lead architecture instructor, a total of 25 students participated in the project. Some of their challenges included designing a first floor bathroom, working with no first floor closet, a small kitchen, no garage, and neglected landscaping.

"It's been a fantastic opportunity for the students. It's also been beneficial for us to have them out from behind a textbook and actively work on a design project, especially one with such historic significance," he said.

After a month of planning, two design proposals were presented to city staff at a public meeting on May 2.

"We're thrilled to see so much creativity applied to this project," O'Reilly said.

According to students Kelley Erickson and Cameron Elder, some of the proposed renovations include:

• Removing a downstairs wall to join the kitchen and formal dining room into one area in order to create a more family-friendly living space.

• Adding a combined laundry and mudroom on the first floor to accommodate storage and removing the laundry room from the basement.

• Adding a powder room on the first floor.

• Enlarging a second floor bedroom and bathroom.

• Adding an addition to the rear of the house (Plan B only).

O'Reilly said students will soon begin phase II of the project, which includes working with the Dearborn Area Board of Realtors to determine what improvements will most impact the house’s marketability and value.

"The hard part is, how much can we invest to get the house to where it should be on the market? We're not trying to build something beyond the scope of what's reasonable but we want to be as creative as we can," he said.

"It's adding another dimension to the project because students will be working with a broker and appraiser to determine how to price the home and what the return will be on the investment," O'Reilly continued.

The majority of the project design is slated for completion at the end of May, however interior design students will continue working through the spring semester to select interior finishes for the house.

"This is the greatest thing that's ever happened since I've been at HFCC. I wish I could teach all my classes like this. We've had a good response from the students, who are getting a positive learning experience. If another opportunity like this project comes along again in the future, we will jump at the chance to participate," Karen Wilmering, HFCC program coordinator for the Interior Design program said.

O'Reilly said once a plan has been selected, the city will send out a request for proposals and begin construction on the home this fall.