House of the Week: Built in 1885, this historic Syracuse home needs an owner with patience and vision – syracuse.com

SYRACUSE, N.Y. For fans of historic, older homes, the call to restore them to their original glory is almost inescapable.

Take real estate investor Leslie Tiffany, of Boston, for example.

She had no intention of buying the grand old house at 749 West Onondaga Street in Syracuse while she was visiting her brother in a local hospital over a period of three months in 2007.

But there was something about it, which called to her and her love of architecture.

Its just so grand and beautiful, she said. I loved the colors, the turret, the detailIt was unusual but perfect.

It was just a little gem.

Built in 1885, the house was designed by the most famous name in Syracuse architecture, Archimedes Russell, whose credits include the Onondaga County Courthouse, Central High School, Crouse College at Syracuse University and the Dey Brothers building on Salina Street.

A scan of the Post-Standards archives finds that it was once owned by Francis Gridley, the banker who owned the Gridley Building downtown. For a long time, it was a funeral home.

Realtor Douglas Freeman, of Procopio Real Estate, says walking through the front doors into the stately front foyer, one immediately gets transported back to Gilded Age Syracuse.

You feel the elegance, the history, he said. You can feel the parties that were held there. There was some high-end living there.

Tiffany spotted a For Sale sign on it and began making phone calls, growing more and more frustrated when her calls were not answered.

We would park in front of the house and wish he would answer the phone, she said.

The owner, Ric Bruno, had sunk a small fortune into restoring it, including rebuilding the grand staircase in the front parlor, installing a new heating and cooling system and painstakingly repainting many of the homes beautifully detailed woodworking.

Finally, he sold it to Tiffany, and she continued many of the restoration projects while also renting it out.

But it has been difficult to keep up with it while living so far away.

Now she wants to find someone who will answer the call she did.

Tiffany says the structure has withstood the test of time and says the foundation is solid.

She says the house right now is livable, but it needs someone with vision and patience to complete the hard work of restoring it to what it once was.

It needs a lot of cosmetic work and updating.

When completed, she says it belongs on the National Register of Historic Places.

They do not build houses like this anymore, she said. It cannot be replicated.

She also believes the property has a lot of potential.

Built on a double lot, with two spacious front living rooms, six second-floors bedrooms, two full bathrooms, and an enormous attic space which could be renovated into a master suite, game room, exercise room or spa, the structure could be remade into a bed and breakfast.

An open house is scheduled for Sunday, January 26, from noon to 2 p.m.

THE DETAILS

Address: 749 West Onondaga Street, Syracuse, N.Y. 13204

Price: $119,000

Size: 4,793 square feet

Acreage: 0.24 acres

Monthly Mortgage: $445 (based on this week's national average rate of 3.83 percent, according to Freddie Mac, for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a 20 percent down payment. Fees and points not included.)

Taxes: $3,150 (Based on assessed value of $60,000)

Built: 1885

School District: Syracuse City Schools

Kitchen: Owner says the kitchen needs to be renovated. The large kitchen has a high brick island in its center and has plenty of storage space. There is an eating area off to the side of it and a convenient staircase to the upstairs. There is a dishwasher and a refrigerator.

Living areas: Visitors enter the home in the stately front foyer with a magnificently detailed black staircase in front of you. Chandeliers and original hardwood floors are throughout. There are four fireplaces. There are large, high ceiling living rooms to the left and the right of the foyer. A formal dining room, with high windows, is off the kitchen. This historic home is partially restored and needs someone to continue the work of restoring it.

Bedrooms: There are six large bedrooms on the homes second floors. There is potential for more in the large attic space.

Bathrooms: There are two-and-a half bathrooms. The half bathroom is on the first floor, the two full ones are on the second.

Outside: Built on almost a quarter of an acre, the property is close to downtown Syracuse and its shopping and hospitals. Its proximity to the city makes it a potential bed and breakfast.

Agent: Douglas Freeman

Procopio Real Estate

Address: 2300 Milton Avenue, Syracuse, N.Y. 13209

Phone: (315) 440-7363

Email: douglas@procopiorealestate.com

If you know of a beautiful or interesting house currently up for sale, please consider sending a nomination for it to be featured as a future House of the Week. Send an email with the listing to home@syracuse.com.

Do you know of any older homes in Central New York which have fallen on hard times but have a lot of potential should they be restored to their original grandeur? A fixer-upper with a lot of potential? Consider nominating them to our new feature, Save this Home, in which we will spotlight grand houses of the past around Central New York that need to be saved. Send nominations to home@syracuse.com.

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House of the Week: Built in 1885, this historic Syracuse home needs an owner with patience and vision - syracuse.com