Among my many variations of undiagnosed ADD is a rare hybrid form of real estate ADD. This form of real estate ADD is, unfortunately, not contagious. If it were, I would be resting peacefully in some lakefront estate right now, while a bountiful contingent of house maids and pamperers waited on my every imagined need. If my particular affliction was shared by more, Realtors would replace investment bankers as the Evil Rich Guys, and never again would I have to buy my son the generic brand bike from Walmart- as I shamefully did last night (this generation’s lame bike isn’t a Huffy). If only my appetite for real estate was shared by the rest of the world, perhaps then I would have made a solid career choice. Sadly, instead of being normal, my tendency to move every 12-20 months is just downright odd. I can explain it easily though, in one concise sentence. Whatever type of house I happen to be living it at the moment is no longer the house I want to be living in. Nothing against the house, as I’ve lived in some fanciful houses in my short life, it’s just that I always want something else.
I lived in a new house in Geneva National, and longed for an old cottage by the water. I moved to a place in the country, surrounded by trees and chirping birds, and wanted to be in an open field where my one-day-orchard could thrive. I lived in an old stone cottage with curved stone archways gracing the first floor, and I desired the crisp clean lines of classic shingle style architecture. I am not easily satisfied. And so it is, to be me, is to be forever wanting. I don’t covet my neighbors wife, I just tend to covet my neighbors houses.
It is with this knowledge, that I must announce to you today, in this column, that I, David Curry, want a greenhouse. Correction- I need a greenhouse. My gums are bleeding not from gingivitis, but from an overwhelming desire to own my own glass building where I can tend to my crops in January as easily as I could in July. I know what you’re thinking. Greenhouse? Seriously? Yes, greenhouse, and yes, seriously. Not a giant greenhouse with that weird slightly green tint to the windows, but a small, classic, old, reclaimed greenhouse, made by none other than Lord and Burnham Company.
I didn’t know about Lord and Burnham greenhouses, nor did I fully understand how badly I needed one, until I wrote a contract on a beautiful mini-estate on the south shore of Geneva earlier this month. The property, complete with lakefront pier, ridiculously beautiful house, a private tennis court and swimming pool, also hosted a magnificent little greenhouse. Not little like those odd curved glass ones that people stuck on the sides of their houses in mass quantities from the 50’s through the 80’s, rather a relatively small greenhouse that might measure 12 x 22. It might be bigger, but that’s what it feels like to me. I walked into this greenhouse and fell in love. There was a cool chandelier hanging from the middle of the room, and in my mind, I pictured a long narrow wooden table with friends gathered around, the warm sounds of a summer night outside, and the refined style of a greenhouse dinner party. When the buyer asked what the wires running longways just inside the side windows were for- I instinctively blurted out that they were there to hold hanging pots. When I looked at the big wheels, designed like giant shut off valves, that drove the gear to open and close the rooftop panels, I decided then and there, I must own one.
Upon closer inspection, the greenhouse was manufactured by Lord & Burnham Company, a firm that began in 1849 when Frederick A. Lord started building greenhouses for his neighbors in Buffalo, New York. Fred was joined by his son in law Burnham, and the firm would go on to build some of the most famous conservatories in the United States, including the US Botanic Garden, and the New York Botanical Garden. They expanded by buying other greenhouse makers, and ultimately had operations in New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago. The greenhouses they built would become common throughout the country- particularly on estates, where discerning residents wanted fresh produce, herbs, and flowers, all year long.
This knowledge only fueled by greenhouse lust, and the fact that antique Lord & Burnham greenhouses, like the one at the Lake Geneva estate, can be found and purchased online, makes owning one a very reasonable goal. Okay, so it’s not that reasonable, but it is reasonable for a vacation loving Chicagoan to find a Lake Geneva estate where they can construct their very own greenhouse, or if you’re as lucky as my current buyer, you can just buy a house with such a greenhouse already in place. Rick Bayless famously grows many of the herbs and vegetables he uses at Frontera, Xoco, and Topolobampo in his Chicago garden. You know what Rick really needs? A Lake Geneva vacation home complete with Lord and Burnham greenhouse. Ideally one that dates to 1908.
It is reasonable to think that one could build a greenhouse in a suburban back yard. It is also reasonable to think that the greenhouse will not be at home there. Lake Geneva offers many different forms of estates- from lakefront estates- to country estates, and the sort of property that would suit a gardener and their new greenhouse is not as expensive as one might think. Country properties surrounding Geneva that would easily accommodate a greenhouse start around $300k, and obviously escalate well beyond that mark if you’re a little more discerning. Lakefront and lake access properties that would suit a greenhouse can probably be had from the mid $700k’s, a number I picked because you really do need an acre or so of land to properly house a greenhouse. The reality is this- If you love gardening and love the idea of a Lake Geneva vacation home, the two go very well together.
I just listed an estate that would be perfect for a greenhouse lover. This hobby farm is just outside of Williams Bay, and is complete with 12 acres, guest house, barn, tennis court, and a main house with indoor swimming pool. Priced at $799k, it might need some work, but it certainly would make any gardener or nature lover squeal with delight. The site is marvelously wooded, but it also has some wide open areas that would gladly host a small orchard or large garden.
For me, my search for a used Lord & Burnham greenhouse goes on. I don’t really need it to be a Lord & Burnham model, but since I sell real estate on the Bentley of lakes, I might as well plant vegetables in the Bentley of greenhouses. Living in Lake Geneva, and driving around the lake daily as I do, it is now impossible for me to escape my overwhelming desire. Several greenhouses dot the landscape of many lakefront estates, and much to my delight, greenhouses are making a comeback. A gorgeous new house was just built on the north shore of Geneva by one of the owners of Walsh Construction, and there, positioned behind the main house just not quite as far as the tennis court, sits a gorgeous new greenhouse. A greenhouse that I, for one, would love to own.
So did you ever get one?