The road to rainbows: unity through real estate

In the summer of 2023, I began the process of filming an interview series focused on people and organizations in the corridor working to build human connection in a divided world. When scouting locations for the shoot, I really only had one spot in mind: the Rainbow House. Situated a stone’s throw from the Jean Oxley building and currently operating as a short-term rental, the century-old Rainbow House stands as a beacon of inclusivity, boasting a paint job that matches the Philly Pride flag.

I sat with owner and local property developer Eric Gutschmidt to learn more about what differentiates his approach to building community through real estate.

Can you tell me why the concept of ‘community’ is so important to the business of leasing property?

“I don’t have any formal training or background in (real estate). Cedar Rapids is a community of abundance. I could see that my peers were engaging in win-lose relationships with their tenants. I have a college degree that I have never put on a resume, but I learned more in the service industry than I did in higher education. For anybody who has waited tables, your goal is for the customer to have a happy total experience. If anything goes wrong, you are hoping for a positive long-term result so that they will come back. This is the mentality that I have brought to real estate and property management.”

You have also become known for restoring turn of the century homes; particularly some that could bear the label “blight.” How does restoring historic properties play a role in community development?

“When a neighborhood is built, it is usually built with totality in mind - that it will be a complete space. Over the years, as neighborhoods change there are factors that can disrupt that dynamic. Maybe a bad neighbor or landlord comes to town, maybe a large institution buys houses and turns them into a parking lot. When blight happens it's not an accident, it's usually the result of a series of larger forces that are controllable. Rehabbing the houses can be a cure.”

Why not knock them down and start over?

“Probably foolishness and nostalgia,” he grins. “This goes back to sustainability: 1900-1920 was a golden age of house building. Craftsman houses in my opinion have the best bones of any era. It's a shame to demolish them and end up with something that’s not as strong as what you started with. In a perfect world, you would build something with the long term in mind and have that built environment evolve as culture evolves. Maybe someday we will have flying cars or whatever, so what we build today will have to interact with new technologies and new ways of being. As another example, we can already see that there is less demand for office space than there was pre pandemic.”

Gutschmidt’s quip about flying cars reminds me of an experience I had walking with my youngest child in residential Washington D.C. While gazing at the rowhouses built in 1875, she turned to me and asked why there were no driveways. Of course, when the homes were built, cars had not yet been invented.

“What’s frustrating to me,” he continued, “Is that it's not part of the conversation. I think society could benefit from a conversation about viewing things in the long term.”

We are sitting in what you call the Clark House, but will be forever known to me as the Rainbow House. My youngest and I helped paint this house four years ago, and I remember you describing its symbolic importance. Today you’re working on a project called Rainbow Road. Will you share about that project?

“I'm a straight white man who grew up on a farm in rural Linn County. I didn't interact with people who were different than me until I was an adult. In the bigger picture, I'm not discriminated against in any way, so I can go about my day with little to no obstructions from society at large - but I see how marginalized groups are actively discriminated against. I have a choice to ignore what is going on around me, or to stand on the side of what will be viewed as right in history. I believe the things I’m doing - even if they’re imperfect, and I hope I will be granted some grace, but I’m doing this with history in mind. This house is painted not just the rainbow flag but the Pride Plus flag, which has direct ties back to the Stonewall Riots and Marsha P Johnson. This flag is here so that the most marginalized among us can see, somebody is raising the flag saying ‘you are heard, you are seen, you are here and we embrace you.’

“Rainbow Road takes this to the next level: 10 houses in sequence that will make up a caribbean rainbow. I have traveled a fair degree and I have seen neighborhoods in other countries where in otherwise low-income, low census-tract blighted areas the houses are painted anyway. You can take a blighted neighborhood and make it something people will travel the world to see. The Lapa neighborhood in Rio and Comuna 13 in Medellin, Columbia are examples. Rainbow road is designed to unite people.”

In addition to your own projects, you have also devoted time to supporting aspiring property managers, particularly among members of historically marginalized populations. Why is that important?

“I have the most expertise in real estate and property management, so I can see the ways this has been used as a tool to systematically divide people and cause harm. From my perspective, this has been used to harm people so I believe it can be used as a tool to help people. A big piece of that is equity.”

Gutschmidt goes on to describe the very high percentage of white, male landlords in contrast to the disproportionate amount of people of color who are renters rather than homeowners.

“Twice the neighbors have complained about the race of my tenants. Many times people have complained that I shouldn't rent to people from Chicago or used similar coded language. People of color are renting from people who don't share the same background and life experiences. (We) need more access and more diversity in these rooms of power.”

You started this company with one house that you self-funded and fixed up with your own hands. A relatively short time later you’re taking on massive projects that will impact this community for decades and potentially generations to come. What should people know about the kind of challenges that go along with exponential growth?

“There is a belief that as things scale up, certain dynamics get easier. The reality is that the challenges just change. I don’t think it gets easier, it gets harder as you grow. But as this (company) grows and I can see what it can do - that’s what pushes me.”

Sofia DeMartino is a Gazette editorial fellow; sofia.demartino@thegazette.com