Pleasant Ridge Home & Garden Tour… June 7

Pleasant Ridge Home & Garden Tour to Fund Museum Improvements June 7
(Crystal A. Proxmire, May 30, 2014)
In Pleasant Ridge there are beautiful homes, carefully decorated, with fantastic gardens and landscaping to match. And part of the joy of a community like Pleasant Ridge is inviting neighbors in for a peek.
The Home and Garden Tour gives people a chance to do just that, while also raising money for the Historical Commission. This year the Commission is raising money to put new siding on the Museum and make other improvements.
The Tour takes place Saturday, June 7, 2014 from 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Advance tickets can be purchased for $15 at the Pleasant Ridge City Hall during normal operating hours. Tickets can also be purchased the day of the tour for $20 behind City Hall from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
This year’s tour will be featuring eight beautiful and inspiring homes and/or gardens. The following homes/gardens are scheduled to be on the tour:
109 Cambridge Garden
31 Elm Park Home and Garden
22 Oakdale Garden
82 Oakdale Home and Garden
12 Oxford Home and Garden
20 Ridge Home and Garden
48 Ridge Home
1 Sylvan Home and Garden

James Koeppen and Don Hoefler own one of the homes on the tour. Since 2010 they have enjoyed Pleasant Ridge pleasantries, having both grown up in the cookie-cutter ranch homes of the less-affluent suburbs. The couple lived in Ferndale before finally capturing a window of opportunity to be part of the Pleasant Ridge community.
“The house I live in has been my favorite home in the neighborhood since 1990,” Koeppen said.
Both men are members of the commission, and though they are nervous about opening their home up, they wanted to support the museum project. Hoefler, who is Treasurer of the Commission, said “the museum and the history of the community are important. I’ve never lived in a city where we’ve had information about the past generations. It’s unique to know that and it should be preserved.” He also said that “knowing about history makes it easier to hold on to small town values.”
 
Originally founded as a country club for Detroiters who would go “up north” in the 1920s, Pleasant Ridge has maintained a rather secluded pocket of fine living.
Hoefler and Koeppen take pride in the things they have accomplished and the ability to have a home of their dreams. Throughout the 1927-built Tudor, items reflect their personalities and discerning tastes. In particular the lighting fixtures have tales to tell, with pieces rescued from historic buildings in the area. “If you go on the tour be sure to ask the homeowners about the origin of the living room light fixtures,’Koeppen said.
“We’re a little nervous,” Hoefler said. “Not because of having strangers in our home, it’s not the kind of place where we’d worry about that. We just want to make sure everything is perfect. We want people to feel welcome and we want them to like it.”
People come from throughout the city and beyond to tour the homes. The event has taken place annually for ten years, with different homes being featured each time.
To learn more about the Pleasant Ridge Historical Commission see http://www.pleasantridgehistory.com/.

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