Is The Wrecking Ball Headed to Lakewood’s Iconic Bossom Manor?
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When the Lakewood Conservation District expansion passed, we all breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the homes that make Lakewood, well, Lakewood would be protected. Unfortunately, the expansion district did not go as far as preservationists had hoped. Some of the most significant homes have no protection. That is, sadly, the case with Lakewood’s Bossom Manor, the 1926 English Tudor at 6835 Westlake Ave, once owned by legendary Realtor Marilyn Hoffman. All I can say right now is the home is pending, and the whispers have started that it’s headed for demolition.
Sir Alfred Bossom designed the house for Arthur Kramer, president of A. Harris and Company, one of the many great department stores of downtown Dallas,now just a historical footnote. Bossom also constructed the American Exchange National Bank the Magnolia Building, the Maple Terrace apartments, and an addition to the Adolphus Hotel.
This is particularly distressing news as we head into the Preservation Dallas Achievement Awards in May, where we honor those who have gone the extra mile to preserve our built heritage. It takes money, dedication, and love to save a historic home today.
The smack-you-in-the-head aspect of this is that developers are drawn to neighborhoods like Lakewood because of the tone set by the historic homes. But here is the problem. The math never made sense.
The property was foreclosed on. The bank took over, and as we know, their concern is purely offloading the property at a price they deem appropriate.
Doing some digging, I found the dirt value of the 1.2-acre property is $2.59 million. Over the years, Bossom Manor has been listed as high as $6.9 million, with the last price reduction at $3.7 million, well below the assessed value of $4.49.
When you weigh the amount of work needed to create a modern, livable home layout, it simply does not pencil out unless you, again, have a bucket of money and are a preservation hero.
What Will Probably Happen to Bossom Manor
Short of a white knight scenario, which is not likely according to the rumors flying about, this home will meet the wrecking ball fairly soon. Although I think it would be tricky to get three lots approved by the city, I can see them allowing it to be split into two, with one facing Meadowlake and one facing Westlake. Logic does not diminish the emotional loss of a home like Bossom Manor, but without neighborhood protections or deed restrictions, these losses, unfortunately, are going to continue.
