Hot Property: Midcentury home hides behind unassuming front

In 1966, architect Howard Wolner designed his own residence on a leafy green lot. His house, built around a courtyard, with midcentury modern lines, stood out in a neighborhood of older, more traditional homes on the north side.

By the time Wolner, a contemporary of Evans Woollen, died, his home had fallen into disrepair. About four years ago, the four-bedroom ranch was sold as a “fabulous fixer-upper.” Michael Boaz Construction along with John Pantzer purchased it and started a lengthy renovation, putting it on the market before the work concluded.

When the current owners of the home at 8211 N. Illinois St., saw the house for the first time, it was completely gutted. But that they did not dissuade them. They relished the opportunity to put their own mark on the home.

“It was not a house,” said Jennil Salazar, the family’s real estate agent. “You had to have great vision.”

Fortunately, the current owners did. They purchased the four-bedroom home and kept many of Wolner’s touches, including the wood al fresco entry and the open-plan living room, dining room and kitchen. They also embraced some of the original features, such as the lights in the living room and purchased fixtures from Italy for the kitchen to match.

Nor did they shy away from going new, either, Salazar said. They redid the kitchen and added on a master bedroom suite, taking a bathroom that was originally part of the house and expanding it.

Few details went unnoticed, from the heated Carrara marble floor in the entrance to the spacious windows in the master bedroom that overlook the 0.65 acres. Other improvements include skylights in what must have once been a dark hallway.

Now, natural light flows through this space just as it does the rest of the house.

Because Wolner made the unconventional decision of placing a small courtyard in the middle of the house and opting for walls of windows, light pours through the home in most of the rooms. The light wood floors help enhance the clean, modern lines of the home.

But it’s the courtyard atrium that helps make the house unique.

“That’s the best part of the house,” Salazar said.

Call IndyStar reporter Shari Rudavsky at (317) 444-6354. Follow her on Twitter: @srudavsky.

About the Home

• Location: 8211 N. Illinois St.

• Asking price: $959,000.

•Details: Four beds, four baths, 3,725 square feet, 0.65-acre lot.

• Listing: 21460878.

• Contact: Jennil Salazar, RE/MAX Ability Plus, (317) 610-6252, jennilsalazar.com, jennilsalazar5@gmail.com.

• Open House: 2-5 p.m. Sunday.