Title
Conduct a Public Hearing to Consider/Discuss/Act on the Request by Brenda Tullous, for Approval of a Historic Marker for the House Located at 622 North Church Street.
Summary
COUNCIL GOAL: Enhance the Quality of Life in McKinney
MEETING DATE: July 6, 2017
DEPARTMENT: Planning
CONTACT: Guy R. Giersch, Historic Preservation Officer
Matt Robinson, AICP, Planning Manager
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff is recommending approval of a historic marker for 622 North Church Street.
PRIORITY RATING: The property is listed as a medium priority building according to the 2015 Update of the Historic Resource Survey. A medium priority building contributes to local history or broader historical patterns, however, reversible alterations have diminished the buildings integrity. These might include the loss or clear replacement with modern materials some of the historic windows, portions of the porch, roof materials or an addition that noticeably changes the perception of the building. For this priority rating these changes would need to be generally believed to be readily reversible without further loss of historic material. Any alterations should blend and not distract such that the building remains a typical example of architecture, engineering, or crafted design of the period it represents.
ITEM SUMMARY: On June 14, 2017 the applicant submitted the necessary documentation to apply for a historic marker for the house located at 622 North Church Street (also known as the Bloss-Tullous Home).
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 622 North Church Street and the role they played in McKinney’s history.
The Bloss-Tullous House was built in 1912. It is a fine example of a Craftsman bungalow style home being built in the 1900’s. These homes were popular between 1905 and 1930. Their simple handcrafted style was a big change from their Victorian predecessors.
The home at 622 North Church Street is a Craftsman bungalow, single story, wood-frame, center passage floorplan constructed on a pier-and-beam foundation. It has a low pitched gable roof with overhanging eaves with exposed rafter tails and brackets. Large, square wood columns support the porch which runs half the length of the house. Windows are large, one-over-one double-hung windows.
The Ralph Scott Bloss Sr. and wife Lillian Naomi Williford Bloss purchased the lot at 622 North Church Street from the Rhea family on March 27, 1911. The house was designed and built by Monroe H. Pearce. He worked with his father, A. B. Pearce, who was a carpenter.
Historical Figures Associated with the House:
• Ralph moved to McKinney in 1907 to work on the power station for the Interurban. Ralph went on to become a motorman for the Interurban. The motorman is the title for a person who operates an electrified trolley car, tram, light rail, etc. Ralph managed the McKinney High school baseball team.
• Lillian Naomi was the PTA President at North Ward Elementary.
• Ralph and Naomi Bloss lived in the house until their deaths, Ralph in 1955 and Naomi in 1963. They raised three sons in the house.
• Harry Erwin Bloss, the first of Ralph and Naomi’s sons, lived at home and worked as an electrical engineer and head of the Electric Power Department of Texas. He married Thelma Jane Gotcher who became the Superintendent of Nursing at the City-County Hospital of McKinney.
• Charles Lyndon Bloss was born in 1913. He became a doctor and worked at the Timberlawn Psychiatric Hospital in Dallas.
• Ralph Scott Bloss Jr. was born in 1923. Ralph was a salesman for the Chesterfield Cigarette Company a served as the announcer for the McKinney Lions baseball team. He inherited the home at 622 N. Church after his parents and brothers died.
• The house served as rental property after Mrs. Bloss’ death in 1963. In 1996 the house was condemned and sold to Harry and David Morris in 1996. The house was renovated in 1998 by the Morris’.
• The house was purchased in 1998 by the present owner, Brenda Tullous. She has updated the house while maintaining the original footprint. She has added a two-car detached garage and screened-in the rear porch. The attic was finished out without altering the roof line. A white picket fence was added to the front yard along with an English Style garden.
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 2015-12-105). Therefore, Staff is recommending approval of a Historic Marker for 622 North Church Street.
Under Ordinance 2015-12-105, if the HPAB approves the Marker, the applicant will be responsible for purchasing and displaying the Historic Marker.
Also, under Ordinance 2015-12-105, if the Historic Preservation Advisory Board 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. The building must have a residential use in order to qualify for the tax exemption.