More Hinsdale Houses To Be Torn Down

HINSDALE, IL – Two more houses in Hinsdale's Robbins Park Historic District are set to be torn down to make way for new ones.

Owners of 133 S. Park Ave. and 326 E. Sixth St. are seeking "certificates of appropriateness" from the Historic Preservation Commission, which meets at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Village Hall.

The commission's decisions are advisory only. As long as plans meet village regulations, owners can ultimately proceed.

In December, the two-story house on Sixth Street sold for $2.5 million, according to real estate records.

The house at 326 E. Sixth St. sold for $2.5 million in December. It was built in 1928. (Google Maps)

Built in 1928, the house features French Eclectic architecture and includes a steeply pitched roof, according to the village. A rear addition was built about a dozen years ago.

The property owners are John and Valerie Paro.

At a June meeting of the village's design review team, historic preservation advocates said the house does not exemplify French Eclectic architecture and lacks significant historical value, according to meeting minutes.

In a July letter, the Paros' lawyer, Peter Coules, agreed. He said the home could even be considered out of place, given it is near Greek Revival and Tudor Revival homes.

"The owners desire to demolish this historically insignificant home and intend to construct a new home on the property in the style of 'modern colonial revival' featuring exterior columns and window grilles...," Coules said.

The other house, on Park Avenue, was purchased for $900,000 in March 2023. Village documents list the owner as Victoria Jiang.

Built 100 years ago, the 2½-story house features Tudor Revival architecture. A two-story addition was constructed in the 1990s.

At a July 2023 commission meeting, architect Patrick Fortelka, co-owner of Moment Design, said the house had serious interior water damage, 8-foot-tall ceilings and a "rough" basement, according to a village memo.

The proposed design of the new house incorporates some of the existing building's elements, the village said.

The village said the house is the last original one on the east side of the block.

Architect Raynette Bradford, co-owner of Moment Design, said the new 2½-story house would be English Arts and Crafts style.

"(T)he proposed new home has been carefully considered to respect the historical significance and architectural integrity of the community," she said in a letter to the village.