Historical house gets new home

At its new location, the house will be renovated and renewed to its formal glory to include a veranda. Once rehabilitated, the city will covert the home into a two low- to moderate-income housing units.

"It’ll be right across the street from a prominent 1920s building,” said Historical Society President Denny Lawhern. "It fits right in.”

The road to relocation was not easy, Lawhern said.

Originally, the Historical Society pushed for the house to be rehabilitated at its current location. No one realized a development agreement for the shopping center at El Camino Real and Ralston Avenue allowed for development up to the property line of the house, Lawhern said.

Once officials realized the house could not be restored at its current location, it began discussing a new location for the historic home, Lawhern said.

That led to at least 100 meetings with an ever-changing city government — changing city managers and councilmembers.

Lawhern said he was tempted to give up his quest to save the house, but is glad those committed to the city’s history stuck with the project.

"We jump on the planes and buses and go back east and we’re so proud of the buildings that are 200 to 300 years old. We’ll never have those buildings here, if we don’t work to keep them,” Lawhern said.

The Belmont City Council unanimously voted to move the house to a vacant lot at the corner of Sixth Avenue and O’Neill Street in December 2004. The new residential location will put the house next to other historical homes and allow enough land for landscaping.

Built in 1885, the house was the main residence of one of Belmont’s leading merchants, Alfred Emmett. In 1899, a second story was added to the house and was referred to by local press as the "third among the fine residences of Belmont,” according to state historical documents.