236 Summit Avenue

The brick and frame Colonial Revival/Tudor Revival/Shingle style home owned by Drew Farrar and Brenden Rogers is located in the middle of the block on the east side of Summit Avenue. The property includes Lots 321 and part of Lot 322 in the Bellevue Land Company’s “Sunnyside Plan of Lots.” According to a contemporary newspaper report, the two lots were part of an 8-acre group of 36 vacant lots on both sides of Summit Avenue. The land on Summit Avenue was originally set aside by the Bellevue Land Company for a clubhouse as it occupied the highest point in the Sunnyside Plan with an expansive view of the community, but that scheme fell through and the lots were put on the market again.

Fourteen of the Summit Avenue lots were acquired by William P. Getty who sold Lot 321 and part of Lot 322 to Mary Eva Dicks in April 1905. To maintain the desired character of the neighborhood, all of the lots carried deed restrictions which mandated that any house must be built 30 feet from the street and cost at least $2,000. Mary Eva Dicks was the wife of John C. Dicks, secretary of the Home Building and Loan Association of Bellevue, who later was convicted of embezzlement, having appropriated $6,700 of the association’s funds for his own use. But that would be years in the future.

On October 18, 1910, Mary Eva and John C. Dicks sold the property to Albert E.P. Kerr for $1,500. The house probably was built for the Kerrs soon after the October 1910 sale, and they would live there for 44 years.

In August 1952 the guardian of the estate of Albert E.P. Kerr (who was described as “feeble-minded”) and Mary J. Kerr conveyed 236 Summit Avenue to their son Edward P. Kerr and his wife Martha Kistler Kerr for $11,000. Edward and Martha owned the Summit Avenue property for only two years before they sold it to Frank S. and M. Jane Obenauf in February 1954 for $19,000.

The next owners of the property, Frank S. and M. Jane Obenauf, resided there for only four years before selling it to David and Frances Dugan in December 1958 for $17,500. In September 1962 the Dugans conveyed it to Francis X. (Fran) and Margaret L. (Peg) Sporrer for $15,000. The Sporrers would own it for the next 32 years and raise eight children in the home.

In June 1994 Francis and Peg Sporrer sold the property to Dale T. and Lisa B. Schneider initiating a period of fairly rapid turnover in ownership. The present owners, Drew Farrar and Brenden Rogers purchased the home in November 2021.

“We want to see this place looking beautiful for years to come so we are taking an outside-in approach to renovations (ensuring that the exterior is solid and protected from the elements before focusing on the interior),” Drew shared. This outside-in approach can be seen in the recently painted exterior and the repairs to the cedar shake siding. The large front porch is a dream come true for Southerner, Drew, and the couple have made this spot a favorite for relaxing and entertaining.

Along with other projects like rehabbing the back deck, replacing the retaining walls, repaving the driveway, and having some masonry work done on the stone foundations/chimneys, Drew and Brenden plan to restore the beautiful stained glass throughout the home This includes two small windows in the living room, two large ones in the staircase landing between the first and second floor, and a final one in the restroom on the second floor.

Prior to living in Bellevue, the couple lived in Brooklyn, New York. They felt good about moving to a community that is diverse and welcoming. They made the move here during the uncertainty of the pandemic to have more space, live more affordably, and be closer to family. The home’s character and proximity to downtown, as well as Summit Avenue’s wide brick street with no through traffic, and the neighborhood feel of the area were the reasons Brenden and Drew fell in love with the home.