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Some Riverside Terrace Mods


JLWM8609

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Just some photos of some mods in Riverside Terrace that I really like.

This one here's on N. Roseneath, built in 1947.

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Lars Bang said this house was designed by Lucian Hood. Lars was designing the house for Sammy Finger (Parkwood at Del Rio) at the same time. At the time, both Hood and Bang were working for architect Philip G. Willard while still students at the University of Houston. Willard made them partners in the firm before they graduated. Lars Bang said he and Hood were allowed to oversee their own projects exclusively since Willard spent all his time marketing his ceramic construction building method. Bang has a story about the construction of the house across the street from 4511 North Roseneath. It may have been designed by them too and it seems like it was a speculative house by the same builder but I will have to check my notes. Bang said he and Hood and several other classmates that worked for Willard had designed more buildings while students than some of their professors in their entire careers. Bang said he would often be hired to design modern buildings for older established architects who were having trouble with modern design. Bang would moonlight some nights and weekends to get the preliminary plans completed and the architect was usually successful at finally getting a design approved by his clients.

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Lars Bang said this house was designed by Lucian Hood. Lars was designing the house for Sammy Finger (Parkwood at Del Rio) at the same time. At the time, both Hood and Bang were working for architect Philip G. Willard while still students at the University of Houston. Willard made them partners in the firm before they graduated. Lars Bang said he and Hood were allowed to oversee their own projects exclusively since Willard spent all his time marketing his ceramic construction building method. Bang has a story about the construction of the house across the street from 4511 North Roseneath. It may have been designed by them too and it seems like it was a speculative house by the same builder but I will have to check my notes. Bang said he and Hood and several other classmates that worked for Willard had designed more buildings while students than some of their professors in their entire careers. Bang said he would often be hired to design modern buildings for older established architects who were having trouble with modern design. Bang would moonlight some nights and weekends to get the preliminary plans completed and the architect was usually successful at finally getting a design approved by his clients.

Great info, thanks!

flipper

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1663716-1.jpg

1663716-2.jpg

The architect of 3602 Parkwood was Lenard Gabert, if I remember correctly. The house is in fair original condition but has had water damage from a leaking roof. Outstanding features of the house include: the foyer with spiral stairway, the living room mantel, the West entrance, and the upstairs East bedroom window detail. The plans show the downstairs master bedroom was added where a patio originally existed. HAR shows option pending, but they still scheduled an open house. Can it be demolished and redeveloped as smaller houses like the one nearby is reportedly doing?

Lenard Gabert was shown to have been among the first class to resister at Rice Institute about 1912 and was from Houston. He must be among the first group of Houston trained architects. Other sites state he was a Jewish architect and designed several synagogues including those at Baytown, Wharton and Houston. The following is about the Houston synagogue:

Mackie and Kamrath and Lenard Gabert were selected as architects. The Fretz Construction Company was awarded the building contract. The dedication of the building was held on September 9, 1949, when the congregation had 722 members. The original building comprised 65,000 square feet with a sanctuary seating 855 persons and Feld Hall seating an additional 1,800 persons for religious services. At that time these areas formed one of the largest spaces in the world under a cantilever roof, two-thirds of an acre without pillars.

It appears Lenard Gabert has a son who is an engineer and a partner in an architecture firm in Houston.

Edited by SpaceAge
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I've been watching that one on HAR for a while. Wish I could afford it. Thought about going to the open house last weekend, but I wound up getting sick and didn't make it.

Man, are those homes going for that now? Wow ... any pix of the insides? I love that period of architecture and know they would look incredible with some updates.

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  • 1 year later...
That article makes me wish my Riverside dwelling was a mod. This house was built during the time that the other mods were sprouting up, yet, I guess the owners wanted something a bit more traditional.

Mod or traditional, I'm impressed by both types. I even appreciate the smaller homes closer to Hwy 288. Nice patterns in the brickwork.

I, too, hope the lofts & mcmansions don't encroach on it too much, especially the smaller homes by the Hwy. There are some with those really old patterned tin-looking roofs. Can't believe how much the hoods close to downtown have changed.

Found that article interesting because it listed the name of the original Riverside developer, Clarence Malone.

Edited by NenaE
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  • 2 weeks later...

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