Earlier this month, the Lake Forest Plan Commission approved a proposed Westleigh Farm subdivision, albeit with a condition aimed at preserving a historically significant house on the property.
The plan commission approved an overall land use plan for the Westleigh Farm subdivision, planned for a 47-acre site south of Kennedy Road and west of Ridge Road in the city.
North Shore Builders of Winnetka has proposed building 33 homes on roughly half-acre lots. About 60 percent of the property will remain as open space, including some wetlands, said Nick Patera, a landscape architect hired by North Shore Builders.
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It’s the 34th lot, however, that got the most attention during the recent City Council meeting.
In the early 1900s, noted Chicago-area architect Howard Van Doren Shaw designed a house for wealthy businessman Charles Garfield King, said Laurie Stein, curator at the Lake Forest Lake Bluff Historical Society, in 2015.
In 1916, Stein said, a young F. Scott Fitzgerald visited his would-be girlfriend Ginevra King at the King house, located at 210 S. Ridge Road. She said the home “made quite an impression on him as a young man,” saying Ginevra King inspired several of his greatest literary characters, including Daisy Buchanan in ‘The Great Gatsby.'”
Patera described the current condition of the house “awful low.”
“It’s a white elephant right now,” he said. “Most of the architecturally significant elements are in the inside. The exterior has been modified and there was a fire in the 1930s or 1940s.”
Nate Wynsma, a vice president at North Shore Builders, said they plan to market the house and hope to sell it.
The house is not designated as landmark, either locally or nationally, said Cathy Czerniak, Lake Forest’s community development director. That means North Shore Builders can apply to the city for a demolition permit.
Wynsma said he originally proposed a one-year waiting period after site preparation is complete before North Shore Builders could apply for demolition.
City staff members recommended a longer waiting period, according to city documents. Lake Forest Commissioner Guy Berg agreed.
“I’d like to see it restored or renovated,” Berg said. “It’s a part of our community.”
Commissioner Michael Freeman said he also prefers that the main house survive, although he added that he doesn’t favor a longer marketing period.
During the public comment section of the meeting, resident Lloyd Culbertson expressed concern over commercial traffic in the area and requested more signs to show where commercial vehicles are not allowed. Resident Neil Fenwick also said he would like to see the main house preserved.
“However, I prefer a shorter development period than saving the main house,” Finnek said.
Ultimately the plan commission voted to approve the land plan with the restriction that North Shore Builders would not be allowed to apply for a demolition permit for the main house until two years after site preparation is complete.
North Shore Builders aims to start site preparation in the spring and hopes to complete it by the end of 2016, Wynsma said. Construction of houses would take place over the following three years, he said.
The recommendation of the plan commission next goes to the City Council for final approval in either February or early March, Czerniak said.
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