University Grove

Last Thanksgiving, we were in Chicago, going to museums, eating out, shopping, and exploring new neighborhoods. Since this Thanksgiving we could not get away, we decided to explore a neighborhood here in our hometown.

University Grove is a small enclave of architect-designed homes near the Saint Paul Campus of the U of M. The university-owned land was available only to university professors and staff, and he stipulation was that the homes in it all needed to be architect-designed. While early houses in the area tend to be colonial or tudor style (including a Lundie), subsequent construction (mainly from the late 1930s through the late 1960s) tends to be more modern in style, from architects such as Ralph Rapson, Hammel and Green, Winston & Elizabeth Close (who I am currently reading about and who also lived in the neighborhood), and more.

All the houses had construction cost caps (initially $10,000, later close to $50,000), giving them a remarkable continuity even as the styles differed. To the day, they must be sold only to a retired, university-affiliated party, as the university still technically owns the land.

The 103 homes in the planned-yet-not-planned community are complimented by large gardens, old-growth trees, and a number of paths, common spaces and vistas across open spaces included the university fields and the golf course. It was a lovely place to walk, accompanied by Brutus and Winston, appreciating the architecture on a warm, sunny late-November day.