218 Lincoln Avenue

The two story brick duplex at 216-218 Lincoln Avenue has had many occupants since it was built a century ago. During the second half of the 19th century the lot was part of a much larger property owned by Richard Straw. Arriving here in 1854, Straw became a prosperous businessman and a leading citizen, and was one of the founders of Bellevue in 1867. Architecturally, the building can be considered a vernacular expression of the early 20th century Prairie style, popular between 1900 and 1920. Contemporary Arts and Crafts influences are evident throughout the interior. The tour committee secured the empty first floor unit for the 2019 tour. This space had been used as a dentist office for decades and just recently has been reconverted back to living space. It still shows signs of its commercial past, but sports some great built ins, a fireplace, French doors, a sunroom, and an original all-white bath. Since apartments in Bellevue are quite popular among under-30 residents, the volunteers working on this space created 2 fictional roommates -- Jen (age 23) and Megan (age 25) and used them to inspire the design. They designed the space to combine Jen's love for traditional and industrial design with Megan's love affair with Mid-Century modern. In addition, the team kept to a strict budget and furnished the space using as many thrift store, Craigslist, and curbside finds as possible. The group also added some personality to the space using totally-reversible, renter-friendly, preserve-the-security-deposit design products like removable wallpaper, cheap lighting fixtures, tension-style curtain rods, and faux, removable kitchen backsplash tile.