Louisville Bridges and Traffic Reports: Open house today at historic Drumanard Estate 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Open house today at historic Drumanard Estate 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
A historic estate is for sale in eastern Jefferson County. Sealed bids are being accepted for Drumanard. The home, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, sits on more than 50 acres. It's located at 6401 Wolf Pen Branch Road in Prospect.
The main home is nearly 10,000 square feet and includes six bedrooms, eight bathrooms and nine fireplaces. The property also includes a guest cottage, a partially finished gardener's cottage, greenhouse and gazebo.
Drumanard is derived from the Scottish word for "high land" or "hill top." Work on the Drumanard home was completed in 1929.
Tobacco executive William E. Strater had purchased the land in 1902. After he drowned in Harrods Creek in 1908, his widow, Jesse Strater, retained the property. She later remarried Maj. Alexander MacKenzie Watson, the great-grandson of Kentucky Gov. John J. Crittenden. The couple hired a local architectural firm, Nevin and Morgan, to build the Tudor Revival house.
Even the landscaping surrounding the rolling country estate is historic. Much of the overall landscaping was planned by Olmsted Brothers, a renowned landscape architectural firm, in the early 1900s. John Charles Olmsted and Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. were the sons of eminent landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. Olmsted and his sons designed Louisville's original park system.
The property is being sold by sealed bid, with a minimum bid reserve of $3,500,000. All bids must meet the reserve, and must be received before the scheduled bid opening, which is November 3 at 1:30 p.m. The Commonwealth of Kentucky reserves the right to reject any or all bids.
Bidders are subject to the terms and conditions of a historic preservation and conservation easement, designed to protect the architectural and historic integrity of the property. Future usage of the property will be reviewed by the state historic preservation office. Complete details of the preservation easement can be viewed here: http://ift.tt/2broQaS.
Six open houses are scheduled to give interested parties a closer look at the property. The open houses are September 1, 16, and 29, as well as October 7, 12 and 18. All are scheduled 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The property was purchased by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet in 2012 as part of right-of-way acquisition for the East End Crossing portion of the Louisville – Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project. The purchase price was $8.3 million.
Drumanard sits in the approach path to the East End bridge, with twin tunnels built underneath the property.
The conditions of the preservation easement ensure more than 50 acres of historic property will be protected and maintained.
Find more information about the property and the sales process at www.kytcproperty.com, or contact Mark McCoy, Division of Right of Way and Utilities, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, mark.mccoy@ky.gov, 502-782-4945.
Find all of the latest traffic information and more details on the Louisville – Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project at www.kyinbridges.com.