The newest residential showcase in Oklahoma City's SoSA district, a neighborhood filled with new modern contemporary houses, is also one of the city's oldest.
The oldest home in Oklahoma City is the Shepherd house, built in 1889 and displayed at the Harn Homestead east of downtown. Most other surviving city houses from pre-statehood were built in 1902 or later, including a two-story Victorian at 614 NW 8.
The Victorian is the sixth preservation job for Kenna Oden, who, along with business partner Jarrod Rogers, has spent the past five years slowly and painstakingly stripping asbestos siding from the home and preserving the few original interior features while otherwise gutting and building all new kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms.
Oden describes the transformation as "turd to treasure."
"It's one of the few Victorians left in Oklahoma City," Oden said. "And it's the only painted lady with downtown views. But it takes considerable time, and it's more expensive if you do it this way. A lot of people just want to tear it down and do something fresh."
Such has been the case more often than not in SoSA (South of Saint Anthony), a neighborhood that makes up the southwest corner of Midtown.
The area was called the Cottage District by city planners when revitalization efforts began about 20 years, but an influx of aspiring homeowners took the neighborhood in a different direction. Neglected older homes were torn down, and along with existing empty lots, one block after another was reimagined as a showcase of modern contemporary architecture.
Most of the neighborhoods surrounding downtown encourage preservation of older homes and construction of new homes that fit into traditional residential designs. In SoSA, the expectations are the opposite.
"This one had me concerned," Oden said. "We had neighborhood meetings. I was concerned there would be people showing up (to oppose the project) at urban design meetings. I was proactive, I met with neighbors, and not one person showed up to oppose it."
Reimagining the home was yet another challenge. The house started as a single-family home, Oden said, but later was converted into a rooming house and was a sober house as recently as 2008.
"The balcony was in bad condition," Oden said. "There were no original windows. It needed an all new foundation and ceiling supports. We were having to start over."
Working with architect Ken Fitzsimmons, Oden went with a design that preserved the Victorian features, including scaled siding on the upper eaves, and yet added steel balconies with laser cut railings on the second floor as a slight reflection of the surrounding modernist homes.
"It's a perfect blend of old and new," Oden said.
Oden and Rogers ultimately kept the building as a multi-unit, mixed use property that comes with four kitchens, four bathrooms and five bedrooms, each with its own access.
Preservation hasn't been without heartbreak for Oden. Beyond the challenges of financing her projects, she suffered through a fire that destroyed a home at SW 6 and Dewey Avenue that was built in 1901 by Edward Orne, an original homesteader who staked out 160 acres during the 1889 Land Run.
Oden rebuilt the foundation, patched the exterior, replaced the roof and gutted the rooms and was set to start wiring and plumbing when it was set on fire by an intruder. She is living at her next and largest project to date — the historic Sundial estate in northeast Oklahoma City.
"It can be used for retail on the first floor and residential on the second floor, or you could do live/work in any of the units," Oden said. "It was really difficult to get the city to wrap its hands around this. I spent a year living there and tried to figure out the highest and best use for it."
The 7,196-square-foot Sundial estate was built on a 20-acre spread by John Sinopoulo, who operated theaters and Delmar Garden amusement park. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Mediterranean-style home is inspired by Italian villas popular at the turn of the century.
Oden's immediate task is to sell the Victorian, which is listed at $1.795 million, to a buyer who she hopes will share her appreciation for its history. Spending years fixing up old homes, Oden dismisses the term "house flipper" and instead prefers to be a called a historic renovation specialist.
"I want to encourage the preservation of historic properties In Oklahoma City," Oden said. "Yes, it is offered for sale, but there is a story behind this. Our historic footprint in Oklahoma City is very, very small in comparison to other large markets. I think it's important to keep our history for future generations."
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