Title
Conduct a Public Hearing to Consider/Discuss/Act on the Request by Paul and Susan Matthews for Approval to Receive a Historic Marker for the House Located at 1215 Tucker Street.
Summary
MEETING DATE: May, 1, 2014
DEPARTMENT: Planning Department
CONTACT: Guy R. Giersch, Historic Preservation Officer
Matt Robinson, AICP, Planning Manager
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff is recommending approval of a historic marker for 1215 Tucker Street.
PRIORITY RATING: The property is listed as a Medium priority building according to the 1985 Historic Resource Survey. Medium priority buildings contribute to the local history or broader historical patterns, but alterations have diminished the resource’s integrity. The building is a significant example of architecture, engineering or crafted design.
ITEM SUMMARY: On January 2, 2014, the applicant submitted the necessary documentation to apply for a Historic Marker for the house located at 1215 Tucker (also known as the Bass House).
The purpose of the Historic Marker Program is to encourage owners of historic properties to become actively involved in the preservation of McKinney’s historic past through the recognition of historic events, people, and architecture. The applicant has submitted a written narrative relating the history of the various families that have owned the property or resided at 1215 Tucker Street and the role they played in McKinney’s history.
Richard Dayton and his future wife, Vivian, grew up on Tucker Street. Richard worked at the family’s cotton gin, Modern Farmers Gin Plant, as well as for J. D. Bass & Son as a cotton broker.
Richard and Vivian’s three children, William D., Richard Carr, and Vivian “Poppy” Hill grew up at 1215 Tucker. William D. continued in his father’s footsteps, becoming a cotton merchant. William was a member of the American Cotton Shippers’ Association, Texas Cotton Association, the Lubbock and Dallas Cotton Exchange, and was a charter member of the McKinney Country Club.
Richard Carr graduated from TCU, competed in the inaugural Cotton Bowl, and then went to Texas A&M where he graduated as a veterinarian. During WWII he was an intelligence officer and surveyed the effects of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
Vivian Hill became one of the first females to graduate from TCU. She married Charles McKissick and lived in McKinney until her death in 1977.
Richard Dayton Bass and his wife Vivian Hill constructed the Bass House in 1915. This house may represent the only Shingle Style, Arts and Crafts, Airplane Style bungalow in McKinney. The Bass family lived at 1215 Tucker for forty-five years. In 1960, the house became the property of Leo Crockett, a local auto mechanic. In 2012, Paul and Susan Matthews bought the house from the Crockett Family. The Matthews have restored the exterior of the house along with the garage and potting shed. They are presently finishing the interior restoration.
ASSESSMENT: Staff believes that the applicant has met all of the requirements to obtain a Historic Marker under the Historic Neighborhood Improvement Zone Program (Ordinance 2013-11-110). Therefore, Staff is recommending approval of a Historic Marker for 1215 Tucker Street.
Under Ordinance 2013-11-110, if the HPAB approves the Marker, the applicant will be responsible for purchasing and displaying the Historic Marker.
Also, under Ordinance 2013-11-110, if the HPAB approves the Marker, the applicant may make application for a Level 1 tax exemption (100% exemption of the City’s ad valorem taxes for a period of 7 years) providing the building has architectural integrity and has been properly rehabilitated/restored and maintained.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Historic Marker Application
• Marker Narrative
• Marker Research
• Sanborn Map
• Photos