Go Tell It On The (Upper) Mountain

The survival of the stately home at 24 Upper Mountain is still uncertain. The clock is ticking for a developer with demoliton permit in hand and plans to replace the home with townhouses. After many objections at a May 8 council meeting, the developer agreed to hold off on any action until May 22.

Township Manager Joe Hartnett says "The town denied his initial request but he took our denial to the Essex County Board of Appeals, and was granted the permit. The township has appealed that decision." And the historical significance of the home, championed by local preservationists, has been challenged by the developer. A voluminous report of his findings is being investigated by the township planning board.

Montclair resident, Mieke Wiggin, makes a plea to preserve the "majestic" home: From The Montclair Times:

Much is said and written about this home on the corner of Claremont and Upper Mountain avenues. According to my husband, the house was built and designed by his grandfather, Major Blanton C. Welsh, a West Point grad of 1882. At the turn of the century, his wife, Emilie Benson Welsh, bought several small tracts of land from Theron Oliver.

Ownership of the property, which included 369 Claremont Ave., traces back to Nathaniel Crane, who in turn left it to James Howe. Howe sold the property to Francis Oliver, who left it to Theron, his son.

The Welsh's daughter, Emilie, who married Paul F. Wiggin, also lived there. After the death of Emilie Wiggin, in 1968, the property was sold to Van Dyke Nursing Home. The house at 24 Upper Mountain was then sold to Dominic Solino.

My husband, daughter and I were contracted by the Solinos, because they wanted to restore the house back to its original state. The inside has been beautifully restored. As for the outside, it needs paint, and the unique circular porch, which contains rare white wisteria, needs repair.

If you haven't done so, drive by and see this majestic house that was built solid as a rock, where not a floor or stair tread squeak. Please save this house from the wrecking ball. There are buyers for the property. Do we really need more town houses?

On Thursday, May 17, at 7:30 p.m. in Council Chambers, is a town Historic Preservation Meeting. History is what makes this town unique.

Meanwhile, a block away, a backhoe has been working the barren lot at 21 North Mountain, which has been a blight on the streetscape for months. Neighbors and an emergency downsizing ordinance last year put a stop to developer Desmond Neil's plan to build six apartments where a hundred-year-old home once stood. Now it seems construction is imminent. And apparently, plans for the new structure resemble what was once there: a a two-story, two family structure. "The outcome is as good as it can be," a neighbor told us, "but seems like a useless excercise. I never understood why the old house had to be taken down."