Werner-Gilchrist Cultural Critique

      

            In the cultural critique that’s going to be talked about in this paper, were looking at the culture, politics, and history were going to be looking at the 97-year-old Werner-Gilchrist house in Albuquerque New Mexico, The house was built in 1908 by Laura Werner and her son-in-law Ralph Gilchrist. This house has a vast cultural history and now political history with its uniqueness and major significances to my case study. I think the reason this house is excellent choice for this project. Tom Drake said that "It was one of the first, if not the first, in the University Heights addition," who is a spokesman for the state Historic Preservation Division.

This house has historic significance rooted in its architecture and its associations with the eastward expansion and suburban development of the City of Albuquerque; it portrays the environment of a group of people (New Mexico residents) in an era of history (post-railroad, pre-Statehood New Mexico) characterized by a distinctive architectural style (Hipped Box). The house embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type and method of construction, being a single-family house of adobe bearing walls – a pre-railroad vernacular building tradition – built in post-railroad, Hipped Box styling with lumber-framed, hipped roof and milled wood doors, windows, and trim inside and out; and it was listed in the State Register of Cultural Properties and National Register of Historic Places in 1982. Significant features of the Werner-Gilchrist House identified by the Landmarks and Urban Conservation Commission as being worthy of preservation: Main mass of the house including its earthen walls, hipped roof, and dormers; milled wood doors, windows, and trim characteristic of early 20^th-century Albuquerque houses.

At the present time the house is an eye sore for the local resident, since the newest owners have let the property go into disrepair because they realized the costs.  However, the city of Albuquerque gave landmark status to the Werner-Gilchrist house, and on the week of January 12, 2006, which does prevent its owners from demolishing it without city approval. There has been great support from the former mayor Martin Chavez, when the Albuquerque Journal interviewed Mr. Chaves "said he remembers the house from his college days at the University of New Mexico". An appraisal for the city put the house's value, once renovated, at $407,600, with or without landmark designation. That same appraiser estimated renovation costs at $120,360, and the properties worth "as is" at $287,250. Since then the estimate has risen considerably on the property.

The University Heights community has mixed reviews about this property from the residents that live there. Some want to keep the property and see if there is a way to restore this house, then you have the rest that don't know what should be done with it. Some residents want it demolished because they feel that it’s an eyesore and feel that if the city will let the current owner put and infill project it would better their community. As of now, either the city or the current owners of the property have been clearing out the place, they cut the over grown weeds and some of the trees that have obscured the 100 year old house. There have been some residents that complained on the Duke City Forum, saying that the cleaning up efforts have made the property more unsightly.    

The University Heights Neighborhood Association stated that, the Werner-Gilchrist represents a chance to preserve a little piece of history and hold on to some of the open space on the four-lot property. The Neighborhood Association president stated that they “would like for there to be a good outcome and a good outcome would be for the house to be renovated”.
The Journal also interviewed the developer for the property and he said that it would be a “catalytic” project for townhouses that they are building in the nearby Nob Hill area. When the Journal asked the developer what he meant he stated that it means “coming into a neighborhood that need redevelopment” and help them get started. 

            Even though investing in something of this magnitude is expensive I think it would be a good investment, because it shows that the city wants to keep some of its history alive in its community. It speaks a lot when the mayor at that time was fighting for that house, and to demo it would be a loss to the city but I think also to the state of New Mexico, and to the architecture community.

Bibliography

Journal, Albuquerque. "Neighbors Bivided On Historic Home's Future." (2005).

—. "'Pioneer' Caled a Landmark-1908 Home Gets City's Designatio." (2006).

—. "This Old House May Escape the Wrecking Ball." (2005).