The Baha’i Faith has added to its North Shore properties with three east Wilmette purchases in less than two years, but the addition of those high-end homes does not signal any intention on the part of the group to do anything new with the land, a spokesman said.
Instead, officials with the religious group, known formally as the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States, said they see the latest purchases as a means to diversify an investment portfolio, said Glenn Fullmer, director of communications at the Baha’i National Center.
The most recent purchase was in July of this year, Fullmer said. The Baha’i organization paid more than $1.4 million for a house at 155 Linden Avenue, Fullmer confirmed. In May of 2015 it paid $1.2 million for a residential property at 415 Sheridan Road, and June of 2014 it paid almost $1.34 million for a house at 111 Linden, he said.
Fullmer said on Oct. 9 that the properties at 415 Sheridan and 111 Linden have already been rented as homes. The organization won’t disclose the amount of rent, out of respect for the privacy of the renters, he said.
The Baha’i Faith already had a significant property portfolio in Wilmette and Evanston before it bought the most recent three houses.
In addition to the worship house property, commonly known as the Baha’i Temple, at 100 Linden, the faith owns a house at 536 Sheridan, originally the home of the architect who designed the house of worship. It is now the home of the secretary of the spiritual assembly’s national governing body.
The Baha’i organization has owned a property at 401 Greenleaf Avenue, in east Wilmette near the Linden Square business district, for many years, Fullmer said. It originally built a retirement home there, but the building is now used as office space for the group’s publishing arm and for other office needs, Fullmer said.
The group owns property at 415 Linden, also in the Linden business district next to Linden True Value Hardware, he said. That building houses the organization’s media and web services. Fullmer said the organization had owned the property “for some time.” Another property, at 121 Linden, has been owned by the Baha’i organization since the 1940s or 1950s and is used as a guesthouse, Fullmer said.
The Baha’i Faith has also owned a building at 1233 Central St. in Evanston since the 1970s, he said. It houses their national headquarters.
Fullmer said there are no current plans to do anything more than rent out the newest properties.
“To have a mixture of real estate assets like this is a pretty solid investment. There’s no immediate plans to do anything more than simply rent them for residential purposes,” he said.
Baha’i leadership did not set a specific policy on property purchases before buying the three homes, Fullmer said.
“There really wasn’t a particular point in time when the decision was made,” he said. “When properties come up, they are looked at on a case-by-case basis.”
More Top Picks Best Titanium Watches For Men With Day Date Watch
Fullmer said officials also considered the existing nature of the area around the house of worship when they looked at potential land buys.
“Certainly we have an interest in preserving the character of the neighborhood as well,” he said.
Currently, land around the Baha’i House of Worship is zoned for single-family use, said Lisa Roberts, Wilmette’s assistant community development director.
Properties east of Sheridan are zoned R, and lots in that district must be a minimum of 100 feet wide and 15,000 square feet in area, Roberts said on Oct. 12; properties west of Sheridan between Sheridan and 3rd Street are zoned R1-H, and must be a minimum of 50 feet wide and 7,500 square feet in area.
Commercial or business uses are not permitted in either of those zones, she said. Non-commercial or business uses, such for as a place of worship, a club or lodge, or a cultural facility can be built as special uses, but such requests would have to be granted by the zoning board of appeals and the village board, she said.
Twitter: @pioneer_kathy