As lovers of all things old, Larry and Cathy Mong were thrilled with the home they bought for $50,000 in Wichita 23 years ago: a 1906 Victorian in south central Wichita, less than a mile from the heart of downtown. The neighborhood was a little rough, but the Mongs had seen similar neighborhoods in the Dallas-Fort Worth area go through the gentrification process. “We thought in five to 10 years it would be like downtown Dallas, but it isn’t,” Larry Mong said. In fact, in some respects it seems to have declined. When they moved in, Larry remembers, every home on the block was occupied by owners or renters. Today, six are boarded up. The house two doors down appears headed for demolition, having suffered two major fires. Across the street, the red brick building that once housed Grace Methodist Episcopal Church — added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006 — is boarded up and its doors welded shut after being taken over by squatters, who also set fires. Even so, the neighborhood remains attractive for some. Recently, a couple relocating to Wichita from Seattle expressed excitement after touring the house next door to Mong’s, which is listed for sale at $129,000. The couple told Mong it would be worth $600,000 in Seattle. Elsewhere in south central Wichita, new owners have bought and fixed up derelict homes, duplexes and apartments. In a city where affordable housing is in short supply, south central real estate offers bargains. But can enough people look past its challenges to revive one of the city’s oldest neighborhoods?
Source: KLC Journal
