Almost 10 percent of Lake Ave. homes have been renovated or torn down during the past two decades
There have been a lot of major renovations and teardowns on Lake Avenue during the past 10 years. And like all of you, I have my personal biases about tearing down versus preserving a home. For many reasons I have a bias toward preserving a home.
When I moved to 2257 Second St., my own best friend suggested I consider tearing down our home and building an exact replica. “It will be cheaper in the long run,” she said. And looking back, I have to agree with her.
But everyone has unique considerations when making such a decision:
· Do I have the upfront money to finance a teardown and rebuild? (I didn’t.)
· Is the house salvageable? (Fortunately, ours was, but it was in really bad shape.)
· Do I have the patience to deal with a renovation? (Especially if I live there while they do it.)
· Will what I do make the home attractive to future buyers?
· Energy costs
· Sentimental values
· ETC
Here are some highlights of changes that have occurred on Lake Avenue in the last 10 years. I’d love to hear from you, if you have something to add about any of these homes. Thanks for your interest in preserving the irresistible charm of Lake Avenue.
4669 Lake Avenue
Patricia Puffer lived at 4669 Lake Avenue for most of her adult life and died there at age 99 in September 2020. She was preceded in death by her husband Ken in 2009.
Within a year, the house was sold and torn down. A year later, the property was purchased again and a larger home was built. The new owners moved in during the summer of 2023.
4669’s teardown took place during the winter of 2021.
The home previously at 4669 Lake Ave was built in in 1907.
The new home at 4669 Lake Ave. took a couple years to build and was completed during the summer of 2023.
Most Lake Avenue walkers have been impressed with how well the architecture fits in with the neighborhood, although the size of the house is significantly larger than its neighbors.
Former fence and landscaping kept watch over the new home build.
4705 Stewart Avenue
4705 Stewart Avenue was owned by Ed and Geri Cox for many years. They sold it to a commercial developer who lived there for a couple years.
This home was torn down during April 2021
Sandra Barton and Steven Rupprecht purchased the home in 2020, and the home was torn down and rebuilt to be made taller on the same foundation.
The new home at 4705 Stewart is similar in size and design. A bonus is the home’s beautiful new landscaping.
4725 Lake Avenue
This lovely Tudor home was built in 1926. It was owned by the Richard and Elizabeth Hiniker family for many years – in 2022, it was sold to the Ommens, who planned to renovate it.
New owners Jerilynn and Gordon Ommen worked with an architect and various construction experts to preserve the home, but it was structurally impossible. The chimney was preserved, but the rest of the home is being reconstructed. The owners hope it will be completed by Fall 2025.
4763 Lake Avenue
This photo is from the Ramsey County property records, which also indicate that like other new homes on Lake Avenue, the property value and taxes have more than tripled since 2019. For many years the home was owned by Bill and Violet Wahlquist. Violet died in 1992 and Bill in 2019.
The new home at 4763 Lake Ave.
This is the site of the former William and Violet Wahlquist home. It’s now owned by the Richard M. Farrell Trust. WB Press Publisher Carter Johson lives next door to this property. During an interview last spring, he said legend has it “there is/was a bullet hole in the banker’s house (Wahlquist house) and that Ma Barker may have stayed there”. It would be fun to be able to verify that legend.
4815 Lake Ave.
This is the most recent tear down on Lake Avenue. It is owned by Tammy and Michael Hilliard and is across from Matoska Park.
Tear down on 4815 started in September and by mid October the builder had made remarkably fast progress on this new three- story home.
4871 Lake Ave.
Brian and Rachel Bonine bought this property from his parents and tore down the old house to build a new one. The value of the house and the property taxes have more than doubled since 2019.
Other noteworthy major changes on Lake Avenue
4631 Lake Ave. was extremely eye-catching and often for sale when I moved back to White Bear Lake about 10 years ago. All I know about it is that it was sold for $600,000 in 2017 to Mark Houge and Anne Colombo. They’ve made many changes to the house, arguably updating it while keeping it in line with the neighborhood’s traditional design standards. However, I do miss the irreplaceable eclectic style of the original home.
4565 Lake Ave.
In February 2001, the Dougherty house, which was at 4565 Lake Ave (near Highway 61)., was moved by local contractor Doug Kraemer to 4930 Morehead Ave., so eight townhomes could be built on the west end of Lake Avenue near Highway 61. It was recently sold for approximately $800,000.
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