One of the most historically significant homes in Westwood will be on the block this morning.
The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office will auction off the Werk Mansion, , at 11 AM at the Hamilton County Courthouse.
With an appraised value of $399,000 for the 15-room, 5,000-square-foot house, the minimum bid has been set at $266,000.
The sale includes 4.94 acres of property.
The mansion was originally constructed in 1848 by Casimir Werk, son of local industrialist Michael Werk.
Following a fire in 1894, the house was almost entirely rebuilt in the popular Queen Anne style.
It remained in the Werk family until 1988.
Local restauranteurs Ron and Katrina Mincy, of Aunt Flora's Cobbler House and Down Home Diner, purchased the house in 2005.
They had planned to open a non-profit bed and breakfast and ministry/conference center, but were stymied by groups such as Westwood Concern, who feared that a change in zoning for the property could open the door to more multi-family housing in the neighborhood.
Photo credit: Cincinnati Preservation Association
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Werk Mansion to be auctioned today
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8 comments:
I used to live two streets above that house, and always found it to be beautiful. If I had the money, I'd snatch it up. I hope whoever does buy it at auction does something good with it-- even if it's just live in it.
I do know that that area's property values are declining quite rapidly-- sad. There are some cute 1920s tudor-esque houses in that area that are very family friendly. Foreclosure and neighborhood issues--including the bigotry of Westwood Concern-- are making Westwood a not-so-friendly place to live.
whew
Glad the Mincy's plot to destroy western civilisation was thwarted.
Now, a real developer can come in and tear that eyesore down (with government subsidies, of course) and cram 99 soulless condos onto the property.
The Mincy's weren't ever going to do anything with it. Look them up on the Clerk of Courts site. They have a long history of shady dealings. They let the place fall apart like so many others have in that immediate area of Westwood.
You blame Westwood Concern for making Westwood "not-so-friendly"?! Heaven forbid they try to call out suspect property owners and known criminal hotspots. Westwood south of Lafeuille is broken beyond repair because of what W.C. prevented here--another beautiful home becoming a multi-family haven for low income tenants (does that make me a bigot?).
I do agree--I hope somebody buys the house to live in it, fixes it and maintains it.
This is sort of sad. While I doubt the viability of a bed + breakfast in this location, I have to applaud the idea. It would be nice if something like that would've worked out.
This property is beautiful (I have no idea what condition it is in, but it looks decent from the street) -- and I do hope that it is preserved.
This is the one problem I have with local organizations: they mean well, but they have no follow-up. If they would just anticipate something like this happening, perhaps they would've set up a fund for purchasing properties like this.
If I had the money and time, I'd buy it...
It’s sad that something like this is happening to a beautiful house.
No one is to be blamed for this house going to auction other than the Mincy’s. This is not the Westwood Concerns or the Westwood Civics fault. They were obliviously having financial issues prior to trying to turn it into a bed and breakfast. This is just another example of be someone buying a house why out of their means.
Well, the end result is that Deutsche Bank picked up the house for the minimum bid of $266,000 today. They were the only bidder.
Yes, the same Deutsche Bank that Price Hill sued due to not keeping their properties up.
Good luck, Westwood. It would have been nice for this house to end up in private hands.
ugghh
Man if I had the money. 20% down would be like $53k -- I could swing, but I'd have no cash to do any of the work. Not sure what condition this one is in. It's such an incredibly special spot; you need to see it underneath a clear moon. So pretty it will make you cry.
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