Renovations vs. blight

Homes Tour shows two sides of historic neighborhood

People streamed through the Towles-Bucker Residence, owned by Flotron & McIntosh LLC, during Sunday's annual Historic City of Jefferson Homes Tour. The home was built in the late 1800s and now is a lobbying firm.
People streamed through the Towles-Bucker Residence, owned by Flotron & McIntosh LLC, during Sunday's annual Historic City of Jefferson Homes Tour. The home was built in the late 1800s and now is a lobbying firm.

A steady stream of tourists paraded across the 500-700 blocks of Capitol Avenue Sunday afternoon to witness the insides of homes built during the city's formative years.

They came to see what renovations have accomplished in the area, as well as the blight that occurs from the lack of upkeep in the same area.

The Historic City of Jefferson's annual Homes Tour featured seven properties this year, including Col. Darwin W. Marmaduke Warden's Residence, owned by Jeff and Jane Schaeperkoetter.

"With all the attention to Capitol Avenue, our original intention was to bring attention to this street, both how beautiful these houses can be - these owners have renovated them to their former glory - and also to see the potential on this street," said Jenny Smith, co-chair of this year's tour. "Oh my gosh, think what this could be with coffee shops and restaurants and galleries and music venues. It could be such a draw for tourists."

The tour also featured the Capitol Avenue Historic District Endangered Neighborhood, a self-guided tour of the outsides of more than a dozen blighted homes, many in the 400 block of Capitol and 100 block of Adams Street.

"It would be a tragedy of great proportions to lose these buildings," Smith said. "Not only were there historical figures that lived in these places, they are 150 years old or more and they are architecturally significant. There's no other places like it in Jefferson City."

One of the homes on tour was the Towles-Buckner Residence, owned by Flotron & McIntosh LLC, a lobbying firm.

Janet Hirschman, the office manager there, said the home was built around 1895-1901 and renovated in the late 1980s to early 1990s. At one point, it was broken down into apartments, and the stairway was removed. It was later added back in a restoration.

Lincoln University students boarded there in the attic during a period, she said.

The home originally was built with ball-and-tube wiring, the standard method for electrical wiring for buildings at the time. That indicates the home did have electricity when originally built, she said.

About 15 years ago, former state Sen. Franc Flotron, a Republican, and Richard McIntosh, who has previously worked for both Democrats Jay Nixon and Gracia Backer at different times.

"They believe they were the first bipartisan lobbyist group," Hirschman said. "It's worked out really well."

Terry Allan, while touring the historic home-turned lobbying firm, said she was impressed with the craftsmanship in all the homes, but particularly that one.'

"They all have just exquisite woodwork," she said. "But I haven't seen this kind of carving on top of the woodwork in any other house.

"It's fun to see someone actually take the challenge to make them modern without taking away the personality of the original house," she added.