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Mt. Washington house tour reveals more to city than condos, restaurants

By Candy Williams, FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, June 13, 2003
If overnight guests request "a room with a view," Dr. George McCollum and his wife, Jan, have plenty of them. Their Mt. Washington ranch house is on an acre of ground overlooking the cityscape of Downtown Pittsburgh.

The view is even more breathtaking from their back yard, with its landscaped terraces and lush water gardens. The couple has lived on the hilltop for 36 years, "before the observation decks," Jan McCollum says.

Countless out-of-towners as well as locals drive to the top of McArdle Roadway or catch a ride up the mountainside on one of the inclines to gaze at the view recently ranked by USA Weekend magazine as the second best in its list of Top 10 Most Beautiful Places.

While Mt. Washington also boasts some of the region's most elegant restaurants, it's what people don't know about the neighborhood that concerns residents such as the McCollums.

Jan McCollum is past president and board member of Mt. Washington Community Development Corp., a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the economic development of the neighborhood. To encourage community growth and increase public awareness of what the neighborhood has for potential residents, the corporation has announced its inaugural "Mt. Washington: A Different Point of View" House Tour and Celebration.

The McCollums' house will not be a part of the public tour, but it is the setting for the VIP Preview Party the night before the event. Those attending the party, from 7 to 10 p.m. June 28, also will receive a ticket for the house tour the next day.

When the McCollums purchased their home, "it was a small, two-bedroom ranch," Jan McCollum says. "We just bought it for the property." Its convenient location was a big selling point for the couple. George McCollum is a family physician who has an office just a few blocks away. He also has offices on the South Side and in Carrick.

"If the weather's nice, we can go on the incline and walk to Station Square," Jan McCollum says. "We're five minutes from anything in the car -- and we don't have to go through any tunnels to get home."

The pair gutted the house and refurbished it, building an addition that doubled its size and added three more bedrooms. The house remains a ranch design, except for a second-floor room that was added above the den. With their four children grown, the couple converted two of the bedrooms into an exercise room and an office.

Creating an open feeling was essential, Jan McCollum says. As a result, there is only one wall separating the dining room, family room and kitchen. The home's decor ranges from modern to traditional, with several pieces of handcrafted furniture by internationally acclaimed Japanese-American designer George Nakashima, a modernist.

Jan McCollum notes that the late designer, whose daughter still operates her father's company in New Hope, was a favorite of architect Frank Lloyd Wright. The McCollums' Nakashima collection includes a window bench in the living room, a long credenza cabinet and a desk in the den.

Tour promoter Leo Castagnari calls the McCollum residence "one of the most unique Mt. Washington homes that I have seen." Guests at the preview party will get a chance to view the city from the couple's garden, which Jan McCollum says is unique because of its location on Bailey Avenue.

"It's a different view," she says. "Mt. Washington offers many different views. You can see the Point and Downtown area from our garden."

She explains that one of the goals of the development corporation is to show people that the neighborhood "is much more than condominiums and restaurants. We have gardens, green spaces and homes -- fine homes, very creative homes. And our schools are among the best in the city."

The community contains shops and family-owned businesses, mainly along three stretches on Shiloh, Boggs and Virginia avenues, she adds.

It also includes Mt. Washington Carnegie Library, an activities center for senior citizens, a community pool and "four great parks," says Susan Brandt, executive director of the development corporation.

Brandt explains that a goal of the house tour and celebration, funded in part by a grant from the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh, is "to have people come in from 'the view' and meet the people of the neighborhood. We have new and old homeowners -- and new and old houses."

Brandt says one of the "best-kept secrets" of Mt. Washington is its affordable housing. "We want young families to come up and buy houses here," she says. "We have all the amenities of other neighborhoods in the city and -- horrors -- the suburbs."

There are eight homes and three gardens on the tour June 29, she says. In addition, a full day of activities is scheduled, including sidewalk sales, food and street performers in the business district, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Brandt says the event promises to be "as spectacular as the view from Mt. Washington, illustrating that Grandview (Avenue) is just the starting point of a truly wonderful place to live, work and play."

Open House highlights beautiful designs, creative interiors and challenging renovations in Pittsburgh-area homes. If you've found a solution for making the most of small rooms, have a unique theme in your interior design, recently completed a major renovation -- or just live in an exquisite space -- we'd love to hear from you. Call Karin Welzel at (412) 320-7885, or e-mail kwelzel@tribweb.com.

More on the tour


Highlights of the inaugural Mt. Washington House Tour:

  • A contemporary Grandview Avenue condo with an indoor basketball court.

  • A Virginia Avenue home with a large in-ground pool and spa in the back yard.

  • A residence above a funeral home.

  • A Wyoming Street Queen Ann with a tree growing through the master bedroom balcony.

  • A home on the edge of Grandview Avenue that won a "Superior Interior" award.

  • St. Mary of the Mount Catholic Church.

  • A condo in a 1905 Victorian house with a master bedroom loft overlooking the city.

    Source: Mt. Washington Community Development Corp.


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