A charming bungalow at 938 Fairmount Blvd., on Jefferson City's east side, is recipient of the September 2013 Historic City of Jefferson's Golden Hammer Award. This renovation project has conserved and protected this lovely home while making it more comfortable to live in now.
Cousins Jameson Morrow and Sally Owens purchased the property three years ago with the goal to keep the charm of the bungalow home but upgrade it to be as maintenance-free as possible.
It has been a multi-faceted rebuilding and remodeling project. The result is a restored home with modern updates and lots of personality.
Owens, who now lives in Seattle, Wash., is from Jefferson City and loves older homes, especially the Fairmount Boulevard neighborhood.
Morrow grew up in an older historic home, has worked on construction projects and has an interest in renovation. Owens offered the designer eye and Morrow the strong back to get the work done.
The home had been rental property for many years and then vacant more than a year before the cousins purchased the property.
Morrow moved into the home and started doing most of the work himself. His friend Kyle Bax helped complete a lot of the major construction.
One of the first projects was to dig out the limestone foundation for repair and to stop water damage and further leakage. Morrow did his own excavation work late into the night to get the work done as quickly as possible.
The wrap-around front porch floor was rotted through with no filler underneath. Several truck loads of gravel were hauled to fill the space and support a stamped and dyed concrete floor.
The porch ceiling and wood railings were replaced with vinyl. The porch still has the original French doors, craftsman-style front door and two remaining leaded, beveled glass windows.
All the other windows in the home were replaced, with trim to replicate the features of the old windows.
Stone pillars around the porch and brick in the home were in good condition. Some tuck-pointing and brick repair was done where brick had collapsed around the attic vents.
An addition to the back of the home, that had been built in the 1970s for another apartment, was opened up to be included as part of the home. A new, two-car garage was added under this area and a concrete driveway poured.
The floor plan of the original home was completely changed to open up rooms and add bedrooms and bathrooms. This was major renovation, with walls completely torn out and a joist installed in the middle of the house to support the roof, as well as new joists in the basement to support the floors.
Walls were shimmed and spray foam insulation blown in. All electrical, plumbing heating and cooling was replaced.
The sidewalk leading to the home was replaced with the same dyed and stamped concrete as the front porch.
Big potted plants and rocking chairs on the front porch add to the finish look of this inviting bungalow home.
Landscaping around the home, done by Jeff Feeler, completes the look of this corner lot at Fairmount Boulevard and Oakwood.
The bungalow at 938 Fairmount Blvd. is in the Wagner Place subdivision
In the early 1900s, there was a housing boom in the eastside subdivision known as Wagner Place, located from Clark Avenue south down what is now Moreau Drive and east on what is now Fairmount Boulevard.
The Wagner Place development included the original Cole County Fairgrounds where Fairmount Boulevard, Oakwood Drive and Fairmount Court are today.