EVANSTON, IL. December 3, 2019 -- Friends of Harley Clarke launches its Priority Preservation Campaign today, on #GivingTuesday, for the Harley Clarke House in Evanston, Illinois. The goal of the campaign is to secure funding for essential maintenance which will prevent more costly repairs in the future -- regardless of which use plan is ultimately selected for Harley Clarke in response to the City's Request for Proposal, which are due in late February of 2020. Tax-deductible donations to the Priority Preservation campaign will support the physical structure of the house and grounds, as First Priority needs identified by engineering firm Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, and will help ensure its continued use by the community.

"The Friends of Harley Clarke group is very grateful for continued support and interest in keeping this gem for future generations of Evanston residents," said Jennifer Shadur, a lifetime Evanston resident and President of the Friends organization. "We envision a use that will be inviting for everyone in our community, and our effort is to support the house -- regardless of which proposal is selected -- so long as a strong public use is evident, per the language of the referendum, our charter, and the Request for Proposal from the City."

Friends of Harley Clarke, a 501c3 not-for-profit organization, was established with a simple mission to "preserve, maintain and otherwise support the publicly-owned Harley Clarke house, coach house and grounds, including the Jens Jensen Gardens, situated in Evanston, Illinois, in strategic alliance with the community and City of Evanston as a way to guarantee its continued public access."

The initiative to save the building has been a years-long effort and Harley Clarke had been identified as a Most Endangered property by Landmarks Illinois in 2016, and its Jens Jensen landscape on The Cultural Landscape Foundation's Landslide (most endangered) list as well. This time last year, the fate of the landmark Harley Clarke house, Evanston's only public lakefront house, hung in the balance after a fast path of what seemed to be almost-certain demolition. But in a referendum on the ballot last November, Evanston residents voted overwhelmingly (more than 80 percent in all wards) to preserve the mansion from demolition, and with the support of advocates near and far -- the mansion was saved. A unanimous City Council vote ultimately upheld the will of the people to "preserve and protect the house, coachhouse and grounds, including the historic Jens Jensen gardens for use and access as public property.

At the request of the Friends' group, in September 2019 Landmarks Illinois commissioned an architectural and engineering condition assessment by Wiss Janey Elstner (WJE), the purpose of which was to gain a general sense of the condition of the building, and to provide prioritized repair and maintenance recommendations. WJE found the Harley Clarke house to be in surprisingly good condition, despite years of deferred maintenance, identifying and prioritizing three phases of work that will stabilize the house for future use. The total cost of the First Priority of those repairs is estimated between $40,000 and $60,000, Second Priority is between $200,000 - $250,000, and Third Priority is between $100,000 - $150,000.