Restoring older houses has been a passion for Brandon Chambers and Zebulon Thomeczek, whose interest was first sparked when living and cosmetically renovating their home on Fairmount Boulevard in Jefferson City’s east side historic district more than 10 years ago.
They then moved from Thomeczek’s stomping grounds in Missouri to Chambers’ native North Carolina, exploring a bigger renovation project and growing their passion for investing in older homes.
“After spending several years in Durham, North Carolina, a town that experienced a major renaissance over the past 10 years, we were inspired to move back to Jefferson City,” Chambers said. “We saw the same likelihood for Jefferson City as so many young professionals are investing their energy into the city. Zeb and I both wanted to be active participants in this beautiful town’s legacy and found it a fitting place to grow my brand and business.”
Since moving back in December 2017, Chambers renamed and redirected his design business, David Brandon Home & Design, utilizing his years of experience working in design and merchandising for Pottery Barn, while Thomeczek works as a nurse anesthetist at MU Health Care. The couple began their search for a home, with their old neighborhood as a major draw to find a historic home to renovate.
“We are very passionate about the historic east side of Jefferson City, and after exploring many homes in the area, fell in love with this house on Fairmount Boulevard,” Chambers said.
With that house at 823 Fairmount sitting vacant for about 10 years, Chambers and Thomeczek took on their biggest project yet, doing a complete top to bottom 10-month renovation, providing modern aesthetic and amenities, and restoring parts of its historic aspects and charm. Their efforts have not only paid off in providing a beautiful historic home for Chambers and Thomeczek to call home, but the Historic City of Jefferson’s June Golden Hammer Award.
“This month’s award is particularly special being the recent devastation left behind from last month’s tornado. The Historic City of Jefferson was founded 36 years ago to educate our community of its rich history and proactively preserve our historic structures,” said Laura Ward, Historic City of Jefferson Golden Hammer Award committee chair. “Our organization is even more committed to this mission and are very grateful to those like Brandon and Zebulon for envisioning what this home could be again, which sat vacant for approximately 10 years, and for understanding the importance of bringing it back to life so it can once again be a contributing home in this beautiful historic neighborhood.”
Built in 1930, 823 Fairmount is lot 11 and 10 feet of the west part of lot 12 in the former Wagner Place subdivision, according to information Golden Hammer committee researcher Debbie Goldammer found.
In a survey report for the Moreau Drive Neighborhood published in September 2008, the introduction of the streetcar and a redevelopment plan for the state Capitol that was destroyed in 1911, were contributing factors for the creation of Moreau Drive’s neighborhoods.
“The redevelopment plan expanded the Capitol’s grounds, which displaced several affluent families from their homes. Although some moved west, many were keen to relocate in a new neighborhood catering to the wealthy. With new modes of transportation, the Moreau Drive area soon became highly desirable,” the survey report said, adding the survey area’s principal developers were George W. Wagner, Louis Ott and Mayme Vineyard.
Wagner developed the first subdivision known as Wagner Place, with its boundaries including Atchison Street to the north, Moreau Drive to the east, Fairmount Boulevard to the west and south, as well as Oakwood Drive and Fairmount Court. By 1912, the subdivision was in place with plants to arrange the name of the streets, grading of the roads and extension of sewer lines, the survey report said.
On July 6, 1926, the Wagner Real Estate Company sold lot 11 of the Wagner Place subdivision to John and Addie Case, husband and wife, Goldammer’s research said. By 1910, John and Addie Case were renting a house in Jefferson City, and John was working as a carpenter.
In 1913, John Case was appointed fire chief for Jefferson City shortly after it changed from volunteer to professional, according to Goldammer’s research. Fire Chief John Case resigned to start his own construction company in February 1920.
In 1920, the Case family was renting at 516 E. High St., and by the 1921 directory, the Case family is living at 202 Hart. The couple’s daughter Nina died in 1922 of chronic hepatitis at 15 years old before they moved to Fairmount Boulevard.
In 1926, John and Addie bought the lot in Wagner Place for $900, which would indicate there was no building on the property. They appear to have built the house around 1926-27, Goldammer said. In the 1929 directory, John and Addie Case are living at 823 Fairmount, and John is a building contractor working out of 829 Fairmount, which doesn’t currently exist, she added.
The Cases sold the home to Joseph G. Kolkmeyer on March 3, 1930. Then, Joseph and Susie Kolkmeyer sold to Lellie Bohling on Nov. 15, 1933. Goldammer said that in 1933 and 1935, Harry and Ruth Waltner were living in the house, but they did not own it. In 1938, Albert and Geraldine Wallace were living in the house but did not own it.
On Sept. 7, 1937, Lellie Bohling bought 10 feet of the west side of lot 12 of Wagner Place that was added to the property description after that.
On June 18, 1943, Lellie and Walter Bohling sold the property to Lellie’s mother, Rose L Moore, Goldammer said. Rose, a widow, her daughter and granddaughter moved in, and Rose lived there until her death in 1962.
The home goes through a handful of owners from 1969-2005 before David and Julie Kenyon sold the home to Thomeczek on Jan. 23, 2018.
When Chambers and Thomeczek first saw the Fairmount Boulevard house, it was not for sale. Finding out about its longtime vacancy, Chambers and Thomeczek tracked down the owners and learned they didn’t have plans for it. Once buying the property, they saw both the amount of work that needed to be done but also the potential of the historic charmer.
“It was a top to bottom renovation. There was water damage, and the roof wasn’t salvageable. Just about everything is brand new,” Chambers said. “But, we saw a footprint in this house that we could take and make our own that could fit with our lifestyle of entertaining our friends and family.”
The two-story, 2,000-square-foot house originally had three bedrooms, with two guest rooms that were combined with one only accessible by walking through the first.
“We reworked the floor plan to create three whole bedrooms and adding a master suite,” Chambers said. “There was only one bath upstairs before, and now, it also has two full bathrooms and a laundry room upstairs.”
The couple also saw the potential for a large kitchen, one of their favorite parts of the house. With more a more segmented layout originally, Chambers and Thomeczek enhanced the value for entertainment downstairs, opening everything up.
“It is not a true open-concept home, but there are two separate open-concept environments,” Chambers said. “To the right, there is an open-concept dining room and living room. To the left, we have a large kitchen with a breakfast room. It enhances the flow of the house and allows for the circular motion where everybody can go and find a place to hang downstairs.”
The longtime vacancy of the home prevented them from being able to keep historic parts of the house due to damage. However, Chambers and Thomeczek were able to take notes of those original trends and utilize and exaggerate them throughout their restored home.
“Zeb inherited his father’s engineering mind and ability to solve problems. As a designer I can get carried away in my own ideas, and Zeb is my voice of practicality and beautifully brings my crazy ideas to life,” Chambers said. “We have big windows like the ones used in the home originally. There was this old brick patio with a cross-hatch pattern that is no longer there. We used that cross-hatch pattern in the backsplash in our kitchen so we are reminded of that old patio from the original house. … The style of the home gives that nod to the older historic home that it was.”
The couple was hoping for a six-month renovation but the 10-month project ended by October last year, and the couple was able to move in and start enjoying their personalized, renovated and restored home. Their neighbors are also loving that Chambers and Thomeczek have revitalized this once forgotten historic structure.
“This house was tucked into this corner, now it catches the attention of the neighborhood. All the neighbors have stopped by,” Chambers said, adding their neighbors have been so welcoming and gracious.
Chambers and Thomeczek are actively watching the market for a future renovation project to tackle, but for now, they are ecstatic with their home, their neighborhood and the Golden Hammer award.
“To me, the work that the historic city of Jefferson is doing is wonderful. They are investing in the community’s history. These structures and homes are such monumental pieces of who we are and honoring for the work we have done goes to show the respect and care they have for these old houses,” Chambers said. “Through that recognition we can share our story about the renovation and hopefully inspire someone else to pick up one of these homes and create their dream home like we did.”