Renovation nearly finished on late-1800s ‘Frankie House’ in Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS - Restoration of a historic Cedar Rapids home is continuing this week in the Wellington Heights neighborhood in the southeast quadrant.

A group of AmeriCorps volunteers rolled up their sleeves Thursday to paint interior trim and glaze windows at what has become known as the 'Frankie House” at 1425 Fifth Ave. SE. The Bohemian-style home, built in the late 1800s, was moved to its current location in September 2015 in an effort to save it from the wrecking ball.

The move, coordinated by Save CR Heritage, involved support from the Wellington Heights Neighborhood Association, which owned the Fifth Avenue location, then the site of its community garden. The association agreed to move the garden to a nearby lot then owned by the Affordable Housing Network, which agreed to transfer the title of that lot to the association. The neighborhood association in turn transferred its lot to Save CR Heritage.

Since the move, Save CR Heritage members, volunteers and contractors hired by the group have worked to restore the home's vintage gable trim and fish-scale and original interior doors and woodwork. New heating and air conditioning, electrical wiring and plumbing have been installed and the home has a new roof. The new foundation is faced with masonry work reflecting the time period when the house was built.

The project has been funded entirely through Save CR Heritage and the support of several donors, with in-kind donations from local suppliers and contractors, said Emily Meyer, a member of the Save CR Heritage board of directors.

'The number of organizations that have helped us out along the way has been enormous,” Meyer said. 'We've been overwhelmed by the community support we've had. There have been some contracting businesses that have gone above and beyond, so we're grateful for that.”

With restoration work now in the final stages, the three-bedroom, one-and-a-half bathroom house is up for sale. The list price is $100,000, Meyer said. The home is eligible for the city's Rebuilding Ownership Opportunities Together - or ROOTs - program, which offers down-payment assistance of up to 25 percent of the purchase price to income-qualified applicants.

'It will be a mortgage of $75,000,” Meyer said, adding Save CR Heritage is planning some open houses once the renovations are complete.

Save CR Heritage members dubbed the house 'Frankie” after the daughter of the Woitishek family, who died at the age of three at the home in 1898. Dr. Frank J. Woitishek was a prominent citizen of Cedar Rapids after settling here in the 1890s.

'It's one of the oldest houses in the neighborhood,” said Meyer, adding the house has a craftsman-style front porch and 1890s-style back porch, as well as a modern basement. 'It's cottage-like; it's got that kind of charm.”

The team of AmeriCorps volunteers plans to return to the home Friday for another day of work.

'The AmeriCorps people are wonderful to work with,” said Meyer. 'They are tremendously helpful young people and this isn't the first time they've helped us out.”