Come back and sit a spell on the porch – The Herald-Times (subscription)

August is a tough month in Bloomington for coming up with new Homes stories. Many of our neighbors are out of town, enjoying a few final weeks of calm before the whirlwind of the school year. Others are home, outside by a pool, working in their yard or, as I discovered last August, enjoying their porches. The popularity of last years porch story led Homes to ask: Why sweat out the Dog Days when there are great conversations to be had with people chilling on their porches? Most are willing to chat with a drop-in visitor, even an inquisitive, camera-toting writer.

Few Bloomington neighborhoods show off their porch culture as robustly as does the South Dunn Street development. This example of neotraditional urban infill, begun in 2005, quickly became one of the citys most desirable neighborhoods. Most of its homes offer modern takes on early twentieth-century Foursquare or Craftsman-style designs. Set on narrow lots, they feature large front porches oriented toward the sidewalk and street, encouraging interaction with neighbors and passersby. It was exactly these qualities that attracted Padraic and Iza Kenney to South Dunn Street when they moved to Bloomington from Boulder, Colorado, in 2008.

When we first came to Bloomington to look at houses, we were shown around Elm Heights, and Iza said, This is lovely, but I want to live in a new house, Padraic recalled. At that time about half of these lots were not finished. We watched it fill in for about a year and a half. I loved watching the construction and seeing our new neighbors move in.

The Kenneys home has two porches, a screened east-facing porch on the back of the house, and a large west-facing porch on the front, where they spend many mornings drinking coffee and reading. The trees have gotten larger in the past nine years, so its shadier and very pleasant, said Iza. Between 4 and 9 p.m. the sun is very strong in front, so we mostly use the back porch at that time.

Both Padraic and Iza find the unspoken but understood codes of their neighborhoods porch culture fascinating. We are close enough to be interacting, and often do, but people also respect each others space and privacy, noted Iza.

If you want to see this place go crazy, porch-wise, come back at Halloween, Padraic interjected. Think of this place from the perspective of a candy collectorhouses close together, close to the street, everyone on their porch and eager to give out candy. I swear people come from all over the county to trick-or-treat here. If you were the parent of a small child and thought she had about 20 minutes to trick-or-treat before she melts down, this would be the street to do it.

A few miles to the east in Hyde Park, on their very private screened porch, Jim and Jeanne Madison recall a conversation they had with their homes builder in 1999.

The original house plans had no screened porch, but we insisted, Jim remembered. We had one at our former house, and it seemed a necessity to me. Its my favorite part of the house.

The Madisons comfortable screened porch is on the back of their home, overlooking a large pond. Its only three-season. We decided we didnt want to close it off with glass, said Jeanne. We use it as much as possibleeven when a bit cold or hot for breakfast, lunch, dinner, to after-dinner reading.

It rained steadily the only day the Madisons were available for photos on their porch; they were leaving the next day for the rest of the summer. But rain doesnt matter if youre on a screened porch, right? On this gloomy day, the light on the porch was fine for photos, and there were two vivacious bright spots: the Madisons grandchildren, Anna and James, were on hand to enjoy the porch, protected from the elements and the insects.

The next day I spotted Kaye Lee Johnston walking her dog Winston and literally followed them to her front porch. Kaye and her husband Blair Johnstons 1930s Foursquare in Elm Heights originally had a wooden front porch, but over eight decades the elements had taken a toll.

Last fall we replaced our leaky wooden porch floor with stamped concrete which has a slight slope. Water no longer pools on the porch, Kaye said. We love sitting on our porch in the springtime to view our yard. From the porch, the flowering trees are just divine to look at. I told Blair we could just move onto our porch and stop living inside. But the reality is that we typically only use our porch in the spring and fall, since I hate mosquitoes, but they love me!

In 2007, Dan Selvaggi and Cindy Lestikow decided to have a 9x 13 screened porch built on the original concrete pad behind their small historic home in Prospect Hill.

Weve been loving it ever since! exclaimed Dan. I truly believe wed have moved by now due to the small living space if not for this addition. Facing west means more direct sun in the late afternoon and evening, but coffee, breakfast and the newspaper happen there most mornings. Late evening is super sweet with loads of fireflies and an occasional passing skunk. Of course, our kitty loves it as it provides fresh air without the perils the outdoors can present an aged cat. More than a few acoustic music sessions have happened out here, too, and so far, no complaints from the neighbors, bless them!

This homes writer is sometimes a homesitter, and a good porch makes the job even more of a pleasure. This summer, good friends going abroad gave me they key to their home. There, I could work without any distractions except those generated by my restless mind. From the vantage point of their dining table, I could see baskets of lush ferns hanging on their wide veranda. When I reached a logical stopping point in my work, I would venture out to the porch and feel the breeze. Some days, when my work was done, my husband would drop by with our dog, and wed enjoy a glass of wine under the ferns before we walked home.

A porch is a very special place, indeed. Thanks to everyone who agreed to share their porch stories for this issue.

Editors note: If you love your porch and would like to have it considered for next years porch round-up, contact homes@heraldt.com.

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Come back and sit a spell on the porch - The Herald-Times (subscription)