Frank Lloyd Wright Design Sells For $750,000 In Glencoe

GLENCOE, IL — The final home designed Frank Lloyd Wright in Glencoe sold last month for $750,000 less than 40 percent of its 2016 asking price.

The Booth House on Sylvan Road was first commissioned in 1911 by Elizabeth and Sherman Booth and became one of his Wright's final Prairie-style designs when it was finally completed five years later, according to the Glencoe Historical Society.

The home was listed in July 2016 for $1.9 million by Sonia Bloch, who lived in the house for nearly five decades before her death at 91 in 2018. The asking price was eventually reduced by more than $1 million before the sale was listed as pending in November and sold Dec. 20.

The five-bedroom, 3,900-square-foot home on a 0.76-acre lot includes original Wright-designed details in its interior and exterior, according to its listing. The home was designed with dual master suits, four wood-burning fireplaces, a grand living room, roof deck and an all-season garden room overlooking a ravine and gardens.

The first owners, Mrs. Booth, a leading advocate of voting rights for women, and Mr. Booth, Wright's attorney and a founding member of the Glencoe Park District, initially planned to construct a large estate across 15 acres to be combined with a nature preserve designed by famed landscape architect Jens Jensen.

But fortunes changed, and the land was subdivided in 1914, according to the village. The resulting Ravine Bluffs subdivision was originally envisioned to include more than two dozen Wright-designed homes.

Five were completed before the Booths'. Of those, only one is a certified landmark protected from demolition without village approval. Two are listed as historically significant properties but not landmarks on the village website. The Booth House and the other three build on the subdivided property are honorary landmarks, which require a waiting period but no special village approval to demolish. The Kir House at 1031 Meadow Road has been for sale since soon after it was last purchased two years ago. Its current asking price is $724,000.

The new owners of Booth House have not yet been identified in public records. The buyers' agent told Crain's Chicago Business, which first reported the sale, she had been told of interest from potential buyers looking to tear down the home, but she believed the "Wright enthusiasts" who purchased the home will do their best to maintain its "original ethos."

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Before the Booth House was completed, Wright designed a temporary summer cottage where the Booth family lived in the early days of construction. Once the main home was completed, it was moved to 239 Franklin Road. That home was sold in May 2019 for $550,000 after having been declared "endangered" by the preservation nonprofit Landmarks Illinois. The new ownership entity, 239 Franklin LLC, has applied for a demolition permit and a building permit to replace the honorary landmark with a new construction home at a cost of $500,000.

Village staff reported they are monitoring ongoing negotiations involving the Glencoe Historical Society and the Glencoe Park District on a plan to relocate the original portions of the Booth Cottage to a new site. There have also been inquiries about moving the house outside of Glencoe, according to village staff.

"We remain optimistic that a successful outcome will be reached, and the house will be saved," Deputy Village Clerk Jordan Lester said in an email.

The minimum 180-day waiting period prior to demolition has expired, but village officials have not yet issued a final building or demolition permit, which are required before the home can be demolished or altered.

• Address: 265 Sylvan Rd, Glencoe, Illinois
• Built: 1915
• Square Feet: 3,985
• Lot Size: 0.76 acres
• Bedrooms: 5
• Bathrooms: 4 full, 1 half
• First Listed: $1.9 million in June 2016
• Sold: $750,000 on Dec. 20, 2019

Listing information originally appeared on realtor.com. For more information and photos, click here.