Built in 1901 by George and Imogene Havilland for Raymond Judd, the Judd Mansion at 309 S. 6th Ave. in St. Charles was a mission-style brick home with an impressive central pavilion and a flattened gothic arch. By the 1990s, the mansion became vacant. In 2011, a developer bought the property and cleared the lot of massive old oak trees to build townhomes surrounding the decaying mansion.
Fortunately, the city refused to allow the requested demolition of the mansion.
New developers Bob Rasmussen and Rick Diehl from JDR Development purchased the property in 2015 with a plan to transform the use of the mansion into four luxury apartments. The mansion's rehabilitation earned Rasmussen and Diehl a Star Award from Preservation Partners in 2016. The mansion has been occupied ever since.
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PHOTO: Judd Mansion in 2012, photo by City of St. Charles.
SOURCES: "Heartbreak Hill--A Cautionary Tale," Advocate (Winter 2011), 1-3; "A Monumental Rescue Has Begun," Advocate (Fall 2015), 2; Certificate of Appropriateness Application for 309 S. 6th Ave., St. Charles, St. Charles Historic Preservation Commission, August 5, 2015, https://www.stcharlesil.gov/sites/default/files/meetings/2015/attachments/a08-05-15-16126-12138.pdf.