Published: July 02, 2009 11:20 pm      

Lincoln Park area on display

Homes, garden s featured on tour

DANVILLE — The ¡§Scents of July¡¨ Lincoln Park Historic District House and Garden Walk is making a return after a five-year absence.

Sue Richter, co-chairwoman of the event, said one of the neat things is there are some addresses on this year¡¦s walk that are addresses that have had participated in the past, but they have different homeowners.

She said the homeowners have done so many different things to the homes and yards.

Whether they are new owners or original owners, many homes and yards are works in progress, and they have continued to work on renovations or have projects in the making.

¡§It¡¦s kind of like a progression,¡¨ Richter said.

And having the homes in the Lincoln Park Historic District, with its brick streets and large, beautiful homes ¡X ¡§It¡¦s a great area to come and stroll in,¡¨ she added.

One participant along brick-lined Sherman Street is Shari Hall. She¡¦s displaying her home and garden.

She participated in the walk about five years ago, only showing her garden.

The white wooden porch swing, hanging flower baskets and porch ceiling fan reminds one of the south.

Hall said her three-story home dates back to around 1913. It was a rectory in the late 1950s to 1960s and local physician Dr. Hetherington owned it twice.

Hall has lived there for 35 years.

¡§I¡¦ve paid for the house three times since I¡¦ve been here,¡¨ she said of all the renovations she¡¦s done.

She¡¦s had help from her children and others as she¡¦s removed wallpaper, painted, installed ceiling fans and completed other work.

She loves her large living and dining rooms for family gatherings with her three grown children, and the dining room is also where she hosts a 12-member book club each month.

On the other side of the dining room is a kitchenette with a wooden built-in. There also is a small nook area in the kitchen where her children used to have a play kitchen area.

Hall, who retired from teaching at Danville High School this year, but will return to teach two Latin classes this fall, said when her children were growing up, the circular room pattern in the house made it easier to keep an eye on them.

Her flower gardening also has been a labor of love after her children got a little older.

She likes lilacs, roses, bronze fennel and other herbs for cooking and landscaping and mainly the colors of blues, purples and pinks.

¡§Spring is the best season in my garden,¡¨ she said.

¡§I really like hostas,¡¨ Hall added.

There also are white and pink dogwood trees in her yard, in addition to a little pond, benches and other sitting areas in the shade and various bird feeders.

Woodpeckers, finches and various colored squirrels are a common sight.

Another participant, Carol Case, who lives catty-corner from Hall, said ¡§this is the smallest yard I¡¦ve had.¡¨

When she moved in 2003, it had no trees.

But she loves Japanese maples and planted four of those and other trees including a blue spruce and bushes as a first step.

¡§I love the ornamental grasses,¡¨ Case added.

She also had at one time 25 rose bushes, but now only a couple remain.

Her yard also has holly bushes, iris, hostas, wave petunias, gladiolas, bleeding hearts and red, white and blue pinwheels mixed in.

Case said homeowners keeping up their properties help keep the history and authenticity of a neighborhood.

WALK DETAILS

This year¡¦s event will feature tours of seven gardens, six homes and one porch.

The walk is presented by the Vermilion County Museum Society and Lincoln Park Historic District Neighborhood Association.

Proceeds will benefit the Lamon House Restoration Fund and the neighborhood association.

Richter said having a porch on display always is a different way of looking at the home.

The homes and gardens are of various styles and sizes, and ¡§you don¡¦t have to have a terrific garden,¡¨ she said.

Just a mowed and well-kept yard and nice porch and front entrance add to the ambiance of the area, she added.

Walk co-chairwoman Brenda Dwiggins, president of the LPHDNA, said a committee of nine historic district residents, Richter and aldermen Mike Puhr and Jerry Askren have been making plans for the event since last fall.

Dwiggins said there was going to be a walk a couple of years ago, but it didn¡¦t come together due to a lack of time.

¡§It does take a lot of time and planning¡K,¡¨ Richter said, saying a lot of volunteers are needed.

The historic district also was being established in 2000 and the neighborhood association formed in 2001.

Previously, only the museum coordinated the event.

Richter said it was decided that now was a good time to continue the walk.

She said so many homeowners are working to beautify the area.

¡§It is a beautiful area of the city. It is a gorgeous district,¡¨ she said. ¡§It¡¦s a good way to showcase the history.¡¨

Participants:

ƒÞ Homes: Nancy and Keith Bates, 1124 N. Logan Ave.; Ellen and Vic Vanesse, 901 W. Center St.; Joyce and Harold Melton, 1103 Sherman St; Sue Jones, 1115 Sherman St.; Shari Hall, 1116 Sherman St. (she is showing her garden also; and Rich Roth, 1123 Sherman St.

ƒÞ Gardens: Pamela Starr, 1117 Sheridan St.; Carol Case, 1109 Sherman St.; E. French, 1223 Sherman St; the Bliss/Daugherty Family, 1104 Grant St.; Lisa and Scott Burgess, 1129 N. Logan Ave.; and the Lamon House garden at Lincoln Park.

ƒÞ Porch: Jennifer Mendoza, 1111 Sherman St.

Richter said there have been additional plantings this year at the Lamon House. Helping with the plantings are neighbors Janet and Brett McGreevy, the garden club and other volunteers.

Designers will be paired with the participating residents. The designers are: Anker Florist, Blossom Hill Florist, Berry¡¦s Garden Center & Floral Shop, Cornerstore Antiques, Country Chics, Danville Gardens, Fine Line Interiors, Petals and Porch Posts, Schultz Nursery and Stone House Antiques.

There will be refreshments, drawings for door prizes, a vendor area for design participants and local entertainers and artists throughout the area.

COMING UP

The ¡§Scents of July¡¨ Lincoln Park Historic District House and Garden Walk will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 18. Rain date: July 25.

Cost: $10 in advance; $12 day of walk. Advance tickets can be purchased at the Vermilion County Museum or Charlotte's. Ticket sales the day of the event stop at 2 p.m. at the Lamon House and the homes at 1124 Logan Ave. and 1223 Sherman St. Homes close at 4 p.m.