Thursday, October 13, 2011

A 1930's Beauty on Oak Street

Here's an interesting apartment house in Jacksonville's Riverside neighborhood to compare to Klutho's Kahler Apartments in nearby Avondale (see my last post).  While this is not an example of Art Deco design, it does share some of the Kahler's deco elements in its handsome entry.  This four-plex (a term I find more manageable than quadraplex) is three years older than the Kahler.


2832 Oak Street, Jacksonville, built in 1933.  This attractive red-brick building is on the corner of Oak and Cherry Streets; the corner lot allows a more expansive lawn than those of neighboring homes and helps set the building apart.  Each of the four units has 2 bedrooms and 1 bath.  The entrance to 2832 Oak Street is most distinctive and striking.


As in the Kahler, a "tower" rises above the front door and beyond the roof-line.  The three/two groupings of windows in each apartment provide a horizontal counterpoint to the tower's vertical.  The projecting canopy with scalloped edge above the front door is also reminiscent of the Kahler, although this is the older building.  These are Deco elements in a building that is otherwise very straightforward.


The view above gives a closer look at the things that make the entry special: the cast-stone decoration around the door, the lamps, the canopy, and the beautiful "crown" above the canopy.  These eye-catching design elements make a strong impression.  As this is a corner lot, the side-entrance to the building can't be ignored, so it receives its own Deco treatment in a cast-stone surround, crown, and lamps.  The white, double-hung windows stand out against the red brick.


As with most buildings in the neighborhood, parking is in the rear; in this case there is covered parking for each apartment.  These buildings were built with the automobile in mind, but still preserved the urban model of a relationship to the sidewalk as well as the street. 


2832 Oak Street is a simple, but handsome building, and is one more example of how well-designed multi-family homes can comfortably blend with single-family homes to create an attractive, desirable neighborhood.

NOTE: No new postings for a few days as I'm going to Open House New York Weekend.  http://www.ohny.org/weekend/overview

1 comment:

  1. This apartment building originally had Art Deco screen doors, the same design that the Kahler still has. They were lost to remuddling about five years ago.

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