if i had a million dollars

we've watched this house on 12th avenue transform from an ugly duckling into the beautiful swan over the last couple of years. last week a for sale sign went up with probably the top seller in vancouver- robin d vrba. check it out here... remember as soon as it's sold it'll be gone so it won't be a viable link for very long!
described as: Looking for spectacular? Look no further. Lovingly restored character w/ modern features. All original wood refinished, wood framed windows w/ double glazed glass, gorgeous fir floors, stained glass windows, modern kitchen opens to dining room w/ gas F/P. 3 bdrms upstairs, 4.5 baths, master bdrm w/ private deck, gas F/P, & spa like en-suite w/ jetted tub for 2. Downstairs are 2 mortgage helpers. Double garage. Electrical, plumbing, roof, all updated & done w/ permits. Queen Alexandra Elementary, Tupper High School. i wasn't surprised at the almost million dollar price tag. these pics are from the mls site. they actually removed the windows, had them stripped to the wood, stained, and double glazing put in. as much work has been done, there still are a few things i'd change... i don't care for the kitchen cabinets (they're nice, but don't look like what would have been in the house), nor the remainder of the painted woodwork.
i mean, if you're going to strip doors and the tin ceiling, why not go all the way? meh, maybe it's just me... ;)i'd still buy it though... if i had a million dollars (if i had a million dollars)

JC Penny Christmas

a few months ago there was a whole bunch of movie trailers in our neighbourhood, mostly around one of our favourite houses.



this is the result:





so neat!

Neighbourhood Fire Follow-up

Not much happening on the house, since I worked over 70 hours this week. So a little more about the fire. The house was torn down the next day, and now it's a pile of rubble, surrounded by a construction fence.

It was a big news story, it was in the Vancouver Sun and on the TV news. The woman lived in the house for over 50 years, and her son was a schizophrenic, dealing with drug addiction. The house was in terrible shape, and was a nuisance property, that the city had to clean up every year, to keep within safety standards. Deb was talking to one of the neighbours, and it came out that it was one of her favourite houses. The neighbour thought she was crazy, and said he'd lived in the neighbourhood for 20 years, and it had always been a dump. It was larger than all the other houses in the neighbourhood, and I can see that it was a nice house at one time, under all the debris and neglect. Hopefully what replaces it won't be too terrible, it's a big lot, so they could build 2 houses on it. I'm not sure if it's zoned for condos. At least nobody was seriously hurt.

Incendiary

On of the former gems of our neighbourhood is no more. There was a three alarm fire in the neighbourhood last night, the only victim, one of the neighbourhood's oldest houses. Deb met the lady that lived there, and she gave her an old chair, that we now have in our living room. She was a pack rat, the whole house was full of junk (I'm sure there were a few treasures in there too). Her son lived with her, and was responsible for a lot of the illegal activities in the neighbourhood, he'd just got out of jail a few weeks ago. I guess the only good thing, is that hopefully they'll keep him locked up a little longer this time. Anyway here's the story as I found it online. So I guess they'll be building condos there now, they said the building would be torn down, before noon today.