Improvements bring a diamond out of the rough

For Barbara Droher Kline and her husband John when they bought their house south of Union Hill, they saw a diamond in the rough. The couple bought the house in January 2015 and have since had it renovated to where it is now an incredible home.

The couple both grew up in Minnesota and lived in the state and California for some time. When they decided to move back they chose the New Prague area as it close to Montgomery where the couple lived and worked at one time and Le Sueur, where John grew up. Barbara works at home for Thrivent Financial and is close to Belle Plaine where she does some work. They also like that nearby are such businesses Union Hill Pottery and Nytes Cabinets and the non-profit His Haven Ranch.

The farm house was not in the greatest shape when it was purchased. Kline isn’t sure of the building’s age, but has heard it dates back to 1895. Recently it had been owned by a bank, had been rented for 10 years and stood empty for two years. They bought it for $50,000. “We really bought the ground it’s on,” she said.

Kline said the structure needed nearly everything worked on from heat to electrical to insulation. There were some aspects she immediately loved about it. One was that the building has a granite stone foundation.

Those that did renovation work included Anderson Brothers LLC of Henderson who acted as the general contractor, Fred Wentzlaff did the kitchen, Nick Slavik of Nick Slavik Painting & Restoration of New Prague did the painting, selected colors and matched stain, Ryan Clancy of Clancy’s Hardwood Floors of New Prague did the floors and Hometown Bank of Le Sueur provided the construction loan. Kline noted that they found several items at Bauer Brothers Salvage that were incorporated into the farm house. She found out about the Minneapolis based businesses through the TV program “Rehab Addict,” hosted by Nicole Curtis.

“Most of the original plaster is still here,” she said, adding that most of the floors in the house are the originals, which include hard pine. There is also still a tin ceiling in the living room, plus a framed etching of a deer that originally came from a St. Paul bar.

One aspect of the house is that a....

To see more on this story pick up the November 10, 2016 print edition of The New Prague Times.