When this historic landmark home – designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and finished by his son, Lloyd, for client William Weber in 1920 – came on the market just over a year ago, Stephan Cohen was the second person to see it. Cohen told the Buzz, he felt like he had found the dream house for his family.
Over the past year, Cohen set about a careful, thoughtful restoration with the idea that he would live there with his wife and daughter. He did most of the work himself. Though he’s not a trained carpenter or designer, Cohen works professionally with artisans and designers, and knew exactly how he wanted to restore the home at 3923 West 9th Street, in the Wilshire Park HPOZ.
But since Cohen purchased the house, circumstances have changed for his family, so he has put the three bedroom, two bathroom home back on the market. He is the listing agent and is hosting a brokers open today from 11a.m – 2 p.m. Cohen can be reached at (323) 697 7955, the property is also listed on Zillow.
We met with Cohen earlier this week and got a tour of the renovated home, which we last wrote about before Cohen bought it. The home, a historic monument complete with Mills Act tax credit, was mostly intact but badly needed restoration.
Cohen refinished the original beech wood floors in the living and dining rooms, carefully repairing patches that had been done haphazardly. All the wood work, a significant feature of the house, has been restored or replaced with Honduran Mahogany, to match the original materials.
Cohen also completely renovated the kitchen, designing wood cabinets to match the original cabinets in the dining room. He installed Stainless Steel appliances, soapstone counters and an apron sink, all of which perfectly match the period of the house. And there are original Wright light fixtures, produced by the Wright Foundation, as well as reproduction fixtures and cabinet hardware.
Cohen stayed true to the original floor plan which, it turns out, differed a bit from some of the drawings given to him by the previous owner. Cohen speculates that some of the drawings were from an earlier iteration of the house’s design. There are small differences, but for the most part, the house remains as the Wrights constructed it in 1921. Where Cohen made changes, like adding a second sink to the second floor bathroom, he did it carefully and tastefully, preserving the authenticity and architectural integrity of the house.
In short, the William Weber House is a rare example of Wright’s prairie style houses in Los Angeles, surrounded by similar period homes protect by the Wilshire Park HPOZ . A true original, now lovingly restored and ready for the next century.