As the Mile High City population rises, Denver’s density increases, in turn, altering the architectural aesthetics of historic neighborhoods — not always for the better.
“Denver has one of the largest, if not the largest, inventory of historic brick homes in the country. Craftsman-style homes are a major percentage of this inventory, one that’s being misguidedly scraped away for a variety of reasons,” said Scott Holder, who serves on two registered neighborhood organization boards.
Holder also led the successful charge to protect a historic home at 1741 Gaylord St. and preserve it as a landmark rather than let it fall to the wrecking ball. But the victory, he said, was only the second time Denver City Council approved such a request over a developer.
Some of Denver’s American bungalows have been painted, but most of the brick remains original.
“Form-based zoning changes were enacted about 10 years ago. Developers can now often put up to four times the square footage over the existing built condition, and that is driving the speculation and commoditization of neighborhoods,” said Holder.
He advocates for popping the tops on Denver’s historic American Craftsman-style homes rather than scraping them in favor of lackluster new construction.
Architectural rendering by Paul Bormann: A front building elevation for a house in Denver’s East 7th Avenue Historic District included a front porch expansion and a new upper level known as a pop top.
“As it stands now, cheap, big-box homes with no regard for the context of Denver’s various neighborhoods proliferate because they bring maximum return on investment,” Holder said. “That’s why you see cheap housing with minimum design standards and maximized square footage. Everything is a box, and since there is little else to choose from, it sells.”
Fortunately for people who care about architectural design, Denver’s abundance of distinctive 100-year-old-plus historic American Craftsman-style residences stand as testaments to another time. In various sizes and shapes, the Craftsman-style homes are the antithesis of cookie-cutter residences.
Each Craftsman house is singular, yet most include common elements of design: gabled roofs, expansive front porches, exposed rafter tails, front doors of solid oak with beveled glass windows. Interiors offer handsome millwork, hardwood floors, fireplaces flanked by built-in bookcases and lots of natural light.
Architect Paul Bormann lives in Congress Park, a neighborhood predominantly made up of American Craftsman residences built from roughly 1900 to 1929.
“Each home has a particular spin on the style from when they were made and how they have been remodeled,” Bormann said. “This is what makes our neighborhood so charming over the post-WWII developments.”
His firm, Bormann Eitemiller Architects, has completed hundreds of Craftsman-style home remodels, additions and new construction. Bormann adheres to many American Craftsman values: “The real materials, the pleasing proportions, the simple building forms and the modern functionality are all very desirable attributes that I try to include in my new home designs,” he said. “Craftsman is a very likeable style. Craftsman style is straightforward to build making it economical as well as flexible when it comes to future remodeling.”
Architectural rendering by Paul Bormann: A new ADU/garage structure in Denver’s Highlands neighborhood continues the home’s Craftsman-style attention to detail and materials.
Bormann pointed out three main elements of design for Craftsman abodes: the roof, fenestration (windows and doors) and building materials.
“Denver is a brick town so most of the Denver Craftsman-style houses are modular size brick. In California, they have a lot more wood. The brick variety in type, color, joints and ornamentation really help distinguish Denver Craftsmans as unique from other cities,” Bormann said.
Welcoming front porches typify Craftsman-style homes, often made singular by decorative brick work.
“Denver has a great spin on traditional architecture. Because of the 1890s fire and the passing of a brick construction ordinance, the widespread use of brick really helped to establish the Denver style. If we have a Colonial-style house, it’s going to be Georgian. If we have a Tudor-style house, then it’s going to be brick,” he said. “We have a bunch of brickyards here, a history of talented bricklayers and a wide assortment of brick colors and imaginative brick detailing.”
For Bormann, the Craftsman-style reflects a regrettably bygone era of high-quality construction.
“These homes were built at a time when contractors did not rush and subcontractors cared more about the quality of their work,” the architect said. “There were no fake materials like today. The proportions were more grounded instead of Victorian verticality. Remember, Victorian is an imported style from Europe. Craftsman style does come from England, but American Craftsman [buildings] are unique.”
Denver’s brickyards contributed to distinctive designs in Craftsman masonry.
From the Craftsman style, other American architecture evolved.
“Craftsman is the very beginning of the modern era,” said Bormann. “All other modern styles have roots in Craftsmen style — a new home design with a more open space plan and the hearth as the center of the home.”
The main drawback to Craftsman residences in Denver, Bormann said, is cost.
“It’s too bad they have all gotten so expensive that most people can’t afford one. They were never supposed to be like that.
Randy Marder, owner of R.M. Design & Construction, has specialized in saving and protecting historical properties around the U.S. since 1974. He moved to Denver from Malibu, and in California worked on landmark properties such as the celebrated Gamble House by Greene & Greene in Pasadena and the famous Ennis House by Frank Lloyd Wright in Los Angeles.
In Denver, Marder has repaired and restored numerous Craftsman houses.
“Denver has a great inventory of historic homes, unlike in California where a lot were torn down,” he said. “The volume of Craftsman homes in Denver, in Boulder: They’re all over the place.”
Marder specializes in restoring wood in historic homes, but also conserves historic properties by managing drainage, grading and sometimes stabilizing front porches with columns. But overall, he said, the Craftsman architecture holds up, even after a century or more.
“The Craftsman homes were built to last. They are amazingly stout. They can withstand a lot. They’re much superior construction to anything today,” Marder said.
“The homes were made to breathe. They were built with cross-ventilation. And the front porches act like the brim on a baseball cap or like a sombrero,” he added. “The kitchens are small. Craftsman houses have lots of built-ins. They did have steam-powered tools at the time, but a lot of the work was done by hand on-site.”
Many, but not all, of the historic Craftsman homes in Denver can be categorized as American bungalows — small, cottage-like homes typically with front porches. American bungalows offer one-story living with perhaps a garden-level basement. Chalet bungalows include a second story often with dormers and sloped ceilings of the roofline.
Craftsman architecture is so popular, and somewhat purist, that several paint companies have curated appropriate color palettes for the structures’ interiors and exteriors.
Danielle Sandusky and her husband, Matt Hubbard, own Modern Bungalow, located at 1028 Gaylord St. in Denver. The store caters to the American Craftsman crowd, offering period appropriate lighting, custom-made Amish wood furnishings, hand-knotted rugs, William Morris wallpapers and wall art. For exteriors, Modern Bungalow sells Craftsman-style house numbers, Mission-style patio furniture and mailboxes suited for the architecture.
“We try to emphasize craftsmanship meant to last for generations, and a lot of our customers do have Craftsman-style homes,” Sandusky said. “The aesthetic of the time was a transition right after Victorian when everything was ornate. Craftsman style was pared down and a backlash to the Industrial Revolution. Craftsman focuses on simplicity. Materials are natural — a lot of wood and leather and wool.”
The couple lives in a Craftsman brick bungalow in Denver’s Driving Park neighborhood, a 12-block enclave near Denver Country Club.
“It’s easy in houses of a bungalow’s scale to feel at home, to feel cozy versus in the much bigger, newer builds,” she said. “The brick houses breathe with the seasons, so you don’t feel like you’re sealed up inside. I love living with the natural materials rather than new building materials.”
Modern Bungalow’s website modernbungalow.com includes a local network of artisans who repair and restore heirlooms from the Craftsman era.
For a closer look at authentic Craftsman-era decor, visit Denver’s Kirkland Museum of Fine and Decorative Art which includes an Arts and Crafts collection.
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